This One's for the Moms

Ok, moms.  During your kid(s) next nap time today, I highly encourage you to find a quiet, comfy corner of your house.  Sit down.  Recline if possible.  Then slowly turn the dial on your baby monitor until it clicks into the "off" position as you read the first chapter of my friend, Wendy Hagen's book-in-progress that gives a far too realistic portrayal of motherhood.  Enjoy!

Excerpts from the Book

Help for the Motherhood

Husbands, you'll enjoy this too.  Just don't forget to send it to your wives... Unless of course, you don't have kids and are wanting some.  Then maybe don't.  =)

Nostalgia

In my continued efforts to refrain from t.v.-watching and video game-playing with Reid, I'm always on the look-out for alternatives.  So, I was pretty excited when I came across this game while cleaning out our closet over the weekend.  It instantly brought me back.  Reid is now all about Hungry, Hungry Hippos.  

(The point-counting at the end of each game has been great counting practice for him too, so yeah, I'm going to add a "Homeschooling" label to this post!)

TV or No TV?

My conscience has been weighing on me over the past couple months about the amount of television I had been allowing Reid to watch.  I became more lenient on the subject while dealing with the fatigue and nausea that came with my first trimester with Ronin and then it quickly became a habit and way of life.  Eventually, Reid was wanting to watch full-length movies, children's television shows and even Pixar shorts on youtube at nearly every waking moment.  And because the more I gave in, the more I could get done around the house, it's been a pretty slippery slope.  Recently though, I came across an article, which explained the suspected correlation between early childhood television-viewing and attention/behavioral disorders such as ADD and ADHD in a way that made total sense to me.  It read,     

"...The rapid scene changes common to many TV programs may overstimulate the developing brain of a young child, and could make reality seem boring by comparison. 

Hence, children who watch a lot of television may become less tolerant of slower-paced and more mundane tasks, such as school work."

And of course it reinforced that TV-viewing may take the place of other activities that promote concentration, such as reading, games, sports and play.  I also came across another article that warned of the affects of background television in babies, as it discourages interaction between parents and their babies, hindering language development.  (Apparently, just turning Ronin's bouncy chair away from the t.v. isn't good enough!) 

I was finally motivated me to make a change, so Reid and I went three days with no television.  I noticed a pretty immediate change in his behavior.  While he still requested to watch t.v. repeatedly throughout the day, he took the answer "no" pretty well and was easily distracted by other activities I suggested.  His temperament improved, which could very well be from the additional time I spent with him as a result and bed times even seemed (a bit) less dramatic (sometimes).

In just those first few days alone, while house work didn't get taken care of as soon as I would have liked, it proved to be a rewarding trade-off.  Reid and I got to play with his state puzzle (he now can name about ten states), his number flash cards (he can count to 20 if you don't mind skipping 7 and 15), and we even reassembled his space train set -no small feat for me!

Ronin's Ink

During an impromptu cast-signing party, our talented tattooist friend, Steven decorated Ronin's cast with some seriously awesome Sailor Jerry-style flash art.

The Artist, Steven Andersen of Stay True Tattoo:

 

Since then Ronin has been collecting signatures from all our friends and family who've stopped by to see him.  Most prime real estate is taken, but there's still plenty of room to show your love before he gets it removed on the 14th!

 

 

Colby Drawing a Peg Leg (would you expect anything less?)

My Turn:

About to Sneeze:

5 Days Down...

...12 to go of Ronin in his hip spica cast.  Besides being understandably impatient and more easily frustrated, he is doing famously.  He's definitely needing more one-on-one attention to keep him distracted and happy and more often than not, he can still be found with an oversized, drooly smile on his face.  Each day I'm finding new ways to deal.  For example, my mom and I rigged up the Radio Flyer wagon with a bean bag and umbrella to take him on a little stroll to lighten his mood over the weekend.

 

  

Palatable Inspiration

My friend, Maggie inspired me to not only take prettier pictures, but also to make prettier food!  Some recent culinary creations:

Roast Pork Tenderloin with Fresh Red Plum Salsa

Roast Asparagus with Orange Butter

The Fair

Since I've been playing around with my new camera, Colby has once again started to show me up.  While at the fair a few weeks ago, I took this shot and was pretty proud of it... Until Colby took the camera from me and took the two after it.  So I made a rule.  I told him it was fine for him to be a better photographer than me, but he was no longer allowed to take the camera from me and take better versions of the shots I just took!

Mine:

His:

Anyway, Reid enjoyed the fair.  He loved riding "Bulls-eye," the pony.  Yeah, I know the saddle reads, "Fancy," but he didn't need to know that.


Reid enjoyed a few other rides too, but nothing compared to "making Mommy bizzy on the tea cups!"

...Well, maybe visiting the horse statue outside PF Changs.