Here are a few movies for those who appreciate having-a-baby humor and pain...literal and emotional. :)

Baby Mama

Juno

Knocked Up


See which movies the general public advises pregnant women should never watch!

A more serious-toned pregnancy infused flick...

Children of Men

It starts early! I have three boys and a husband at home so there's always some size comparison thing going on. My 8yo just pulled a total guy-size-complex episode.

From the beginning, it was obvious the size thing is innate.

In the sandbox, someone always wants the biggest truck.

At dessert, someone wants the biggest bowl of ice cream (although it's usually me).

My husband wants a lifted truck (he used to have one).

My little guys want big guns and swords and big boy underwear (but of course I'm a good mommy and they would never have felt-tipped swords to whack each other with...wink, wink).

big, big, big.

Well, no too long ago, M, my 8yo went to get new skate shoes. He cam home and wore them around the house. When it came time to wear them skateboarding, he said he couldn't actually wear them skateboarding.

I said "why?"

He said, "They are too big."

"What size are they? "

"5"

"Oh, what size are you?"

"4"

"what!?"

After some nosying around, I figured it out that he bought bigger shoes because his friend was bigger than a four. He didn't want to
look like a wimp so he bought skateshoes he can't even wear skating! Is that ridiculous for an 8 year old?

I didn't say anything because I didn't want to make him feel silly about it.


What age did your kids start comparing/feeling inferior to friends?

Vacation is almost over and it's almost time to start thinking about packing healthy lunches. Here's a decent entry from one of the cool moms over at mommytrack'd

  IDEAS for LUNCHES:

• Instead of sliced bread, try rice or whole grain crackers, whole wheat pita bread, bagels and tortillas.
  
• Wrap it Up! Combine a variety of spreads, fillings and wrappers for a sandwich alternative your kids won’t forget. For lots of wrap recipes, please visit the Healthy School Lunches [2] page at What’s Cooking.
• You can make several peanut butter and jam sandwiches at a time. Wrap them tightly and store in the freezer. Toss one in a lunch bag and it will be thawed by lunch time! Is peanut butter banned at your school? Try: cashew butter, almond butter, soy nut butter, sunflower seed butter or tahini (sesame seed paste) as alternate spreads

Read the entire blog article "blarticle" HERE


My personal awesome ideas (that I've been totally slacking to prepare) are:

• meatballs heated in red sauce w/bread...(buy frozen healthy brands for long-keeping)
  
• kim & scott's gourmet pretzels (one kid loves the pizza, another loves the apple...either way, tasty! just take one out in the morning, thaw for 30 in micro and by lunch, ready to eat)
• couscous (mix from a box) cooked in a microwavable glass bowl for 5 minutes or so; add frozen broccoli and left over chicken from dinner the night before. canned chicken works too.
• fruit salad. cut up a bunch of fruit on Sunday and scoop it out to go every day until it's gone. at my house? like 3 days... include watermelon, berries, cantalope, cut grapes, mango, kiwi and whatever else is on sale...er...in season (buy organic if you can...chemicals make the healthy awesomeness somehow less awesome). to keep apples and bananas from browning, squirt with lemon and store in an airtight container.
• protein bars, all kinds including gensoy, balance, luna, and all those. I give my son a balance bar with like 15g protein (3rd grade) every day at school (just about). I just try to avoid the megaprotein bars so he doesn't end up extra buff and have chest hair by 6th grade, lol.

Do you have any ideas to add to the lunch-boxing ring? Shout 'em out, yo!

Ha!
I read vtmomof2's gardening journal and I thought about how I structured my gardening commitment this year.  I'd like to share it with you.

I had no real idea where to start...so, I picked a personal favorite theme for my gardening: happy hour.

An unlikely combo you think? Well, not really. I decided to plant only herbs and plants I would find useful if I were having a cocktail hour (with a bbq to follow).

Here's how I got started:

I had a few planters and  pots so I figured I'd put something in them...but what?

After a walk through the gardening section, it hit me...what will I actually use this summer? I planted spearmint for fresh mojitos, cilantro for guacamole con margaritas, rosemary for easy chicken seasoning (for my hubby on grill patrol), and strawberries for happy kids during happy hour (if there are any left for me, they'll end up in a daquiri or marg).

When it gets warmer, I'll continue with berries for spritzers, basil for pesto, tomatoes for guac, lettuce for burgers and green onions for guac. That'll give me a variety of choices I'll actually use! So, good luck!

Oh, and lots of lavendar to help me chill out when my kids are loud.:)

Can you think of any other cocktail-friendly crops?

I  am kind of freaking out because Michael D. Shelby, director of the Center for the Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction, says a report on the safety of Bisphenol A, a chemical used in some plastics, finds it might cause cancer, early puberty and neural and behavioral changes.

 

I don't know about you but my kids often use plastic cups (although I recently switched to little glass cups from the thrift store) and I have plastic plates for the kids to use. Plus, I use nalgene bottles all the time! I haven't been able to justify dishing out the $20-30/sigg but I guess I'm gonna have to!

 

Here's an informative article from MSNBC

 

Here's an official report from the NPR site with LOTS of information.

 

WATCH THIS for information on toxic-free clean bottles.

 

 

"The number 7 indicates BPA. The numbers 3 and 6 indicates the presence of similar chemicals that some scientists and environmentalists believe could be cause for concern."

 

 

CHECK out these siggs for safer drinking.

 

 

MOM TIP:

Go to the thrift store and you can find sturdy glass juice cups that are perfect for little ones. My 2 and 4 year old use them at home.

 

BTW, nalgene is phasing out their toxic chemical line...

from http://www.nalgene-outdoor.com/...

Is that a gun in your carry on or are you just thirsty?

This is a traveling parent’s story.

Time out, before I get to the "gun" details. Think of how much crap you have to lug, shlep, carry, drag, stuf and stash when you travel with kids. You get all organized and you work days in advance to pack a simple carry on for your little mile-high munchkins. Well, I have a tale of one such trip. One carry-on of well-planned items is all you really need for a handful of kids, right? Otherwise, you get all stressed and when meltdowns happen, you have five bags piled on the stroller and you look like a freaky sideshow...

Anyway, well, a few years ago, I took two kids cross country and I packed these goodies:

matchbox cars, including a mini-sized hershey's milk tanker truck
mazes
games
movies, etc.

I was expecting no problems as I traveled and I actually thought I had packed well in order to avoid problems.

So, I’m all fine as we get to the x-ray machine....waiting...m’am...waiting ...ma’mm is this your..?...waiting...yes I say

....look, it’sme and two kids, one baby one preschooler,....of course you can check it...


omg, what could be in there? something bad? something erroneously put in there? something illegal? No, luckily I was clear there...did I accidentally borrow something they didn't allow? something risque I would be really embarassed if he pulled from the luggage? what backpack do they have? is it an old bag from college? who knows...did someone borrow it from me and return it? I started to get nervous...I have no idea why they are gathering, phone-calling, pointing at the x-ray machine.

panic set in a bit as they looked at me, the screen, the supervisors...what is going on????

So, I’m waiting nervously and I am wondering....

more people, security...what did I possibly put in there? Now I am thinking, did I take their bag on a picnic and leave a watermelon knife or something absurd? Is this for real? OK, deep breath.


“M’amm we will be searching your bag....blank and nervous (also perplexed) looks staring in my direction.

Okay, cool.

So, by now I'm really stressed because they are concerned about something in my kids' carryon. Well, when they opened it (slowly and methodically) and went through its contents, they were perplexed to find a...

MATCHBOX HERSHEY MILK TRUCK (coincidentally about the size of a handgun) with a metal tank in the bottom of the bag!

see this image to imagine the shape of a small, black metal hershey tanker truck

They took it out and ran it again and said, it's this, this truck is what we saw...when I realized they thought the solid metal hershey milk truck looked like a solid metal gun I laughed...they didn't. They were annoyed about the whole thing...but obviously I was RELIEVED!!!!!

And that's just one of my many travel-with-kids stories....anyone else have something like this happen?

I'm not exactly happy with the state of my post-3-kids sedentary life-style bod. You can read about my mombod problems or you can just lament your own...if you have any. If you don't you are one of the few!

Anyway, I'm just giving a shout out to the only post-baby activity that I've found to really help me because:

• No public fat jiggling sessions on tread mills have ever made me feel good.
• No random jogs through my neighborhood with rubbing thighs ever boosted my morale.
• No gym visits with germy babysitting drop-offs and a sweaty spinning bike seat has helped me feel like wow, this is how I'll feel good about myself again.

Every one of those traditional tactics  has failed me. I never stick with them and I ignore the  empty pep talks from "fit" people who say just get in there. You see, it's a psychological torture to go through and why would I?

Some people don't experience it that way and I wonder how they don't but it's probably just a personality thing.

Anyway, before I had 2 kids, I started BIKRAM yoga (back in 2002!) and I lost my post-baby # 2 weight in 2003 by attending three classes a week for one spring season. I never quite got back in there after baby three, although  a certain "fat jeans" scenario made me hit the hot yoga for a trim-down, lol!

Bikram yoga is a love hate yoga series. It's in a 105+ degree heated room and the moves are slow and repetitive. For people who need action, they hate it (although many find it the perfect supplement to their high-action lifestyles). For people who like to micromanage and suffer, it's perfect. I'm always suggesting people try it and I've had several friends who swear by it and thank me still for introducing them to Bikram yoga. You have to focus on every muscle and movement- why is it hard? Because of the heat and slow, controlled postures.

BTW- I do like power yoga/ vinyasa flow but when I hit my max, I head to Bikram first, then the others when I feel in touch with every muscle in my mom-bod.

Now, I have three kids, I'm beat down, overweight and tired so I've decided to go back. Sure, I've gone on a kick every now and then and it's helped me refresh and renew but I need to get myself to where I almost like who I am.

It's tough to look in a mirror at yourself in spandex (although if you strategically place your mat between two people, they can each obstruct a saddlebag and it really helps) but the benefits I get everytime change me.

I feel like this is something I need to do so that I can
1)decompress
2) keep my bod in check- and spine!
3)build strength and
4)give me something I need as part of my own identity.

Anyway, if you are in that place of "how do I get back on track?" I highly suggest giving yourself 15 classes (read some testimonials) and go for it. It really is an awesome way to feel good again...and sweat the fat off, no matter how big your lovehandles are!



HOW DO YOU GET YOURSELF BACK...if at all??






this should include "fat" btw...

"Never too bad, never too old, never too late, and never too sick to start from scratch once again." — Bikram Choudhury

EASY and Educational  Infant Activity: Baby Basket

This is a simple exploration activity. The coolest thing about it is that you can whip it up in five minutes and your baby will have a ton of fun. It is educational and explorative.

Practical Tip: Pack a Mini-SizedTravel Basket for Restaurants, Visits and Outings

 Appealing for Infants 6-12 months.

DISCLAIMER: You must sit with your infant and supervise while he or she explores. Also, please CLEAN and disinfect all dirty items and replace anything that comes loose, soiled, broken, splintered. This is a great real-life experience and requires real-life common sense. Good luck!

Adapted from NAMC Infant Montessori Curriculum.

WHAT YOU NEED

A sturdy Basket. Plastic isn’t as exciting to handle so anything with texture that won’t splinter when held and put into the mouth.

 
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

Gather ten-twenty items from around the house.

Make sure they are NOT plastic toys!

Items should vary in texture, color, weight, scent, material

Items May Include:

• Wooden clothpegs (not the pinchy kind)
•   Tea strainer
• Bag with zipper (old clean makeup bag)
• Wooden Beads tied on a thick string
• Tennis ball
• Wooden spoon
• Clean (new) all natural sponge (or make-up sponge)
• Small brush
• Bell  (on a string or a bike bell)
• Scarf
• Socks
• Curlers with rough texture
• Silver cuff bracelet or other shiny items from around the house
• Safe mirror
• Rattle
• Large food items like a gourd
• Hand towel
• Wash cloth
• Whatever you have in junk draweres that is child-safe but unusual in terms of texture, weight, color, etc.
  

So, I saw the mybaby upromise banner and had no idea what it actually was. I clicked on it and it seems like a rebate-savings plan for college. Now, I'm bad at budgeting so this sounds like my kind of savings plan. I haven't signed up yet but I think I'm going to try- it's free. Has anyone used this site? I'm thinking it's like rewards points like on credit cards but it's cashback into savings. Here's the description from the site:

Upromise is a one-stop college service provider that helps families earn, save and pay for higher education. We provide the best resources, services and programs available today in three major areas we call The Upromise Way^SM :

	earn rewards Earn rewards from 1% to 25% when you shop online, shop in-store, and dine out at participating restaurants [1] . Learn more
	save smart Start early and reach your goal sooner. We can help introduce you to many college savings options. Learn more
	pay for college Need a student loan or a great way to pay an existing student loan down? Upromise can help. Learn more

APRIL FOOLS. Gotcha.