Debbie and Friends New CD

It can be hard to find kids music that doesn’t make you want to cringe.  I’m not sure what my aversion is to some “classics” like the Wiggles and Raffie, but I have to reccomend this new CD from Debbie and Friends.  Now in the interest of full and fair discolusure and because I’m really really proud of him, my husband has done the artwork, branding and website for Debbie and her friends.  However, putting our personal connection to this CD aside, I really love it.  It’s the one kids CD in our car and I find myself singing the songs with vigor and vim.

For those of you that are local to the Boston area, Debbie also does a series of concerts, which I’ve not been too yet, but heard they are really fun.  You can also find a few Debbie and Friends related activities on the website.

Babies at Work?

Very interesting article today on Boston.com about the trend toward companies allowing new moms, and I suppose new dads, the flexibility to bring their baby to work. Now, I’m a working mom. I work three days a week, my husband watches our daughter two days, and we have a nanny who helps out about 20 hours a week. I have to say, in the normally unfamily friendly career avenue I’ve taken; my company has been extremely flexible with me. I’m able to work from home when we have things going on with our daughter, when she’s sick, etc. However, we would never think of bringing babies to work for more than a visit.

I think the idea is interesting as a contingency plan. Say the nanny had a conflict; daycare fell through, something like that. But I’m not sure what I think about this option as a longer term childcare solution. Not necessarily because of its impact on the work environment, but what about the impact on the baby. Yes, I know the argument is always that the more time a baby spends with its parents as opposed to a child care worker the better. But when do babies just get to be babies? What kind of attention are they really getting playing on the floor of your cubicle?

This will be another interesting trend to watch. I’m glad employers are finally waking up to the fact that most families in today’s America need to consider some arrangement around two working parents. It’s not typically an option for most families to have only one income and choosing to have a child in this environment forces you to ask many questions about your career and how it fits into your family goals. I’m just not sure yet how I feel about babies in my office.

Mimi the Sardine

Ok just opened up my order from a company called Mimi the Sardine. First of all, WHAT A GREAT NAME! If I had a stage name, it would be Mimi the Sardine.  I love it! Mimi the Sardine makes a line of “oil cloth” products that are eco-friendly. All the products are made from Swedish print cottons that are coated to make them permanently waterproof. They are plastic and PVC free, use low impact dyes, Oeko-Tex (A European designation for ecofriendlyness) compliant, and machine washable.

They are predominantly a wholesaler but have recently set up an online store so they can reach consumers in areas where they can’t purchase product via retail outlets.  The ordering system is thus new and a bit combersome. For instance, you order through an online form, but must follow with a call to give your credit card information over the phone.  But despite the rudimentary nature of the online ordering system, the woman I dealt with was great, my order was promptly processed and shipped, and I’m thrilled with my purchases.

Does chicken really need to have it’s ingredients listed?

So, I’ve been very conscious of what type of food goes into my body for years now. I have Celiac disease, a genetic autoimmune condition, which causes sensitivity to gluten (a protein in certain grains such as wheat, rye, etc). This makes you obsessive about reading food labels. You call the companies of products you like to ascertain whether this food you have to have has any gluten derived ingredients.

Last Thanksgiving I became aware that some omnipotent ingredients such as wheat and soy can be found in foods that you never thought they’d be in — Our Thanksgiving turkey proved to be a challenge. We had to find one that wasn’t basted, soaked, preserved, etc in any broths that contained wheat. We settled for soy…in our turkey!

But today I read an article in the Washington Post that brought the unexpected food additive issue into even greater light for me: Battle Over ‘Natural’ Food Designation. Now I knew that this word was tossed around willy nilly but I guess I never really realized how much. Who knew that high-fructose corn syrup can be in a product and it still be called natural. Additionally, this is the one that really got me was the discussion amongst the poultry industry about what types of additives can be in chicken for it to be called all natural. The thing about this that struck me was that I never really thought to look at the package of chicken breast for a list of ingredients other than say…chicken.

This debate over what can be called natural will be an interesting one to follow.

Cool and Eco-Concious Diaper Bags

The diaper bag decision is a hard one, especially at the beginning. It’s like trying to purchase a suitcase without having every traveled before. We went with the Skip Hop bag and am definitely happy with the choice. I picked the camouflage one since I felt if I was carrying the baby, my husband could carry the bag. It therefore had to feel manly, not too baby, not pink (although I think he’s now coming around to liking pink), and not scream “Hey look at me. I’m a new dad carrying this pink flowered bag my wife picked out.”

However happy I may be with our diaper bag purchase, I’m a woman and not prone to only having one bag, diaper or otherwise. I’ve just come across this company Fleurville, which makes some really cool diaper bags with an eco-friendly edge. They are PVC free, stylish, and have introduced some new bags that are made of recycled elements. I’m lusting after the G-Luxe, but haven’t come around to spending that much money on a diaper bag, but maybe I’ll treat myself one day.

Eating out, Carrying light

Now that our daughter is getting older (9 months) we don’t really need to lug around all the accoutrement that you need with a new born. No need (or usually no need) to carry around an extra set of clothing, no burp cloth, only a couple of diapers, etc. Of course there are times when you will bring everything and the kitchen sink, but most of the time you can carry light. That’s why I really like this product I found: Kipiis Now I just need to carry this bib clip in my pocketbook or in the trimmed down diaper bag and we are all set for the unplanned lunch out at the mall or with friends. This is totally one of those products that I thought “Now, seriously, why have I not thought of an idea like this? I could make millions.” Some things are so simple, but so functional.

Travelling with Babies

So, we’re headed off to the west coast for Thanksgiving. We’ve traveled with our daughter on a plane before when she was 3 months old, but at 9 months, I’m sure it’s a whole different ball game. I’m planning on taking along some books and toys she’s never seen, my husband has his iPhone stocked with movies, etc to serve as a distraction. No, we don’t normally let her watch TV, nor do we watch TV (save for the occasional football game with my husband) when she’s in the room. However, we have a fear of being “those parents” who can’t control their screaming child. Thus, we’re bringing all the tricks we can think of. Once we return, I’ll update everyone on how it went.

For the next trip, who’s post will be entitled “Traveling with Toddlers” I totally want one of these: A Trunki. Frankly, I wish I could have one for myself that my husband would pull me around on.

One of the only parenting books I read

I was not into reading lots of parenting books. Maybe I will be one day, but thus far (9months in) I’ve only read one and this is it. Our Babies Ourselves: How Biology and Culture Shape the Way We Parent by Meredith Small

Truthfully, this book made me feel a little bad about my parenting at first and I was already a babywearing, breastfeeding, co-sleeping parent. But in the end I’ve decided it’s a great book. It’s based on studies and includes data so it satisfies the science-type in me. I think for me it made me try to be conscious about what was affecting my parenting decision. What was driving me to decide: Were we going to co-sleep? If so, for how long? For how long was I going to breastfeed? How were we going to manage the “does your child sleep through the night” issue. Regardless of our choices, this book made me become aware of what influences were driving our decisions.

It’s almost more of an ethnography or sociology read, but I think one that was very interesting for me. Pick it up online or if you’re on the Northshore, head to Crunchy Granola Baby.  They carry it.

So That’s What They’re For

So here is one of my favorite books for the expectant or new mom. It’s a great breastfeeding resource, I think gives a very realistic picture of what you’re in for, and really makes a great case for why breastfeeding is so important.

So That’s What They’re For: The Definitive Breastfeeding Guide by Janet Tamaro

I highly recommend that you pick this one up. It’s a must read. I never thought I’d read a book on breastfeeding and really like it. But I read this one cover to cover and recited half of it to my husband as I was working my way through. He even picked it up after our daughter arrived to help figure out the answers to questions we were having early on in my breastfeeding career.

You’ll soon discover that I am very pro-breastfeeding. One of my friends has deemed me the “lactavist” and I think it fits. I’ll talk about breastfeeding to anyone who is interested.

I have things to say

So my first post. I’ve felt very intimidated by this first post, as if I’m supposed to say something profound. Talk about why I’m blogging in some sort of articulate fashion. State my purpose. The truth is I just have stuff to say and hopefully people will find it useful and interesting. Certainly not everyone, but hopefully folks in my demographic. Young (I like to think hip), recently transitioning out of DINK (Double Income No Kids) status, parents; with an eco-conscious mindset; interested in design, cool products, latests news and research on health/kids.

We’ll see how this blogging thing goes, but I’m finally in. I’m past my first post.