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September 2010
And the Most Annoying Sibling Award goes to …
Merriam-Webster.com defines “antagonist” as one that contends with or opposes another: an adversary or opponent; and an “instigator” as a person who stirs up public feelings especially of discontent (and always manages to be innocently standing by).
Both of these definitions also display a photograph of my 5-year-old son, Nick (OK, not really, but they should).
This child of mine takes the cake when it comes to the Annoying Sibling Awards.
My own brother even had to relinquish his Lifetime Achievement Award to Nick.
I try to keep my cool when Nick is provoking his older brother, but the flashbacks from my own childhood are just too much for me to muster.
“Nick, stop it already! You are bugging ME!”
Of course, this only encourages Mr. Funny-Man to continue his said behavior. I then attempt to just ignore him - as does Noah, but Nick is relentless.
I often feel empathy towards my older son and commend him for his patience, but Nick has figured out that if he wants something from Noah, persistence is the answer; as Noah - having reached his max-capacity for irritation - will eventually cave in just to get Nick to stop whatever he is doing.
Thus, I have to intervene again and reprimand Nick for his tactics - although they are clever.
I prayed for guidance in how to handle this ever-increasing problem with sibling rivalry and my prayer was answered with the arrival of a baby sister last year.
“How is that an answer?” you ask.
Baby Sister, now 13-month old and mobile, is very nosy.
She has a special affinity for hand-held gaming devices, whatever snack is within reach and for being in her brothers’ room making messes.
Nick is getting a dose of his own medicine.
If only I had a dime for every time I’ve now heard, “Mom! Sissy is bothering me!”
“Get used to it. She’ll be doing it until you move out.”
I confess, I find some satisfaction in knowing Nick is on the receiving end of the sibling dispute for a change.
Not because I enjoy seeing my son unhappy, but because it gives me a great example to use when he starts bugging his brother.
“Remember how you felt when Sissy took your toy/put her fingers in your food/ripped your book? That is how Noah is feeling now. Please find something else to do.”
As for what I’m going to do when Sissy is honing in on Nick’s Annoying Sibling award - I think I’d better start praying now.
Email this contributing writer at Motherhoodcolumn@yahoo.com.
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TweetYummy, healthy after-school snacks
I have a slew of product reviews to share. This week I’ll concentrate on healthy snacks for the kids — some new, and some improved.
I don’t know about you, but I can’t seem to fill my three kids’ bellies fast enough after school. They are basically like locusts when they fly through the door, devouring everything in sight, so I try to keep at least some semblance of dietary order by offering them alternatives to that big ol’ bag of greasy potato chips.
Here are some products I’ve tried recently:
— In his first two years of preschool, my son had classmates with nut/gluten/dairy allergies. This made sending in birthday treats and classroom snacks a real challenge.
I did a lot of googling to find the few safe snacks available on shelves or made my own using Cherrybrook Kitchen line of baking products (they even have icing!). But that meant I actually had to turn on the oven. :(
Not anymore. A big box of samples from Kinnikinnick Foods was packed with yummy treats including KinniToos, which resemble Oreo sandwich cookies in fudge, vanilla and chocolate, and three flavors of KinniKritters Animal Cookies. And they’re all nut/dairy/gluten-free. How cool is that?
The oldest didn’t care for the chocolate animal cookies, but all the other varieties won rave reviews from my young testers.
These cookies really take the guesswork out of safe snacking for allergy sufferers. Want to score points as a perfect homeroom mom? Have a pack of these sweet treats at the ready for that awkward moment when a not-so-perfect mom brings peanut butter fudge for snacktime.
— Harvest Cheddar SunChips are always a hit at our house. Not only are they crunchy and delicious, they are made with whole grains and are less fattening than the old standby potato chips. The best part is they come in a 100% compostable bag, so they’re healthier for the environment too.
— This summer, we traveled to the wilds of West Virginia for a long weekend with some family friends — six kids and six adults in all. There was a whole lotta snacking going on! Before each foray into the great outdoors, we’d pool our snacks into one knapsack to share.
One of the other moms brought a big box of Clif bars from Sam’s Club. The kids really dug them, and they needed that extra protein boost after all the hill-climbing.
I had tried to get the kids interested in a few other brands of protein bars for snacking during the long days of wrestling and soccer tournaments, but they spat every one out. So now I know I’ll stick with Clif.
Shortly after our trip, the kind people at Clif sent me some samples of a few of their new products: Clif Kid Organic ZBaR and Organic Twisted Fruit.
As soon as I opened the box, the kids grabbed all the packages of Twisted Fruit and disappeared, leaving empty wrappers in their wake. Gluten-free, no processed sugars, 20% of their daily value of vitamin C. What’s not to love?
One young taster’s take: “Mmmmm … just like fruit!” And a lot less messy to throw in a backpack.
— Another new favorite that arrived in the Adventures in Motherhood mailbag are fruit leathers from Stretch Island Fruit Co. Nothing artificial and no added sugars make these a great pick.
The Harvest Grape flavor was the top choice in our family, but Ripened Raspberry scored high too.
Each all-natural strip has just 45 calories and equals half a serving of fruit — woo-hoo!
Happy snacking.
Permalink | Comments (1) | Post your comment | Categories: Back to School, Helpful tips, Nutrition, Product review, Safety
TweetA Mozart in the making? Not quite, but he sure surprised mom …
Our oldest son has reached the age where he is beginning to show interest in activities.
With three kids and limited time, I was planning to stick to the rules my parents adhered to when I was a kid: 1.) No more than one activity at a time 2.) School work and acceptable grades come first
Needless-to-say, I have already broken the first one.
Noah took a liking to Martial Arts last spring. He did well in it, but there was no way he was going to miss out on spring baseball, so we allowed that, too.
This summer, it was swimming lessons and now we have come full circle with the start-up of Martial Arts again.
Wanting Noah to expand his horizons, we also signed him up for piano lessons.
He loves music and could hardly wait to go to his first lesson.
I made it through maybe a year of piano lessons before I freaked out at a recital and refused to go on stage. That was the end of my piano career.
I have higher hopes for Noah though, as he never ceases to surprise me.
We went to his first lesson where the teacher asked him if he knew how to play any songs on the piano.
“Yes,” he answered.
I gave him a skeptical look, thinking, “Banging on the keyboard at home is hardly playing a song.”
But, I didn’t say anything.
He proceeded to poke at the keys and said, “I can’t find the right tone.”
“Tone? How does he even know that word?” I thought to myself.
“Oh, here it is,” he said as he began to play “Mary Had A Little Lamb” with his index finger.
And he played it correctly!
I nearly fell off of my chair.
It’s a far cry from Mozart, but I was quite proud of him and ashamed of myself for doubting him.
By the end of his lesson Noah was playing some simple tunes with ease.
We practiced through the week and he did well at his next lesson, too.
If he makes it through a recital one day - and now, I do not doubt he will - maybe we’ll even invest in a real piano.
Email this contributing writer at Motherhoodcolumn@yahoo.com.
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TweetMom hopes to be a better student the second time around
I was never what you would call an “exemplary student.” I did OK in school, but probably could have done better.
Homework was just a nuisance that kept me from spending more time with my beloved horse and taking the extra time to check my work? Forget it.
Despite my shortcomings, I did manage to graduate with a BS in Agriculture (agriculture communications to be specific - and no I don’t talk to cows) from Ohio State.
Now I am the mother of school age children.
My oldest son is in first grade and already he brings home, you guessed it, homework.
Noah is already doing higher math than I ever did (thus, he can’t possibly be my child). He has a worksheet to complete four days a week.
All went well until he brought one home that actually threw mommy for a loop. I had to read the directions at least 18 times before I could explain to him - correctly - what to do.
Seems as though I’ll be learning a few new things, too, as my kids go through school.
Thank goodness for erasers and my insistence that he use pencil.
As badly as he wanted to run off and play, Noah even checked his work when I told him if he didn’t, he’d end up just like mommy who had to correct her work at home the next day (quite often).
I wasn’t surprised by Noah having homework, but I was surprised at my reaction to it.
When he brought home an assignment for his first “project” I actually groaned.
Some things never change.
Although, I believe my groaning was aimed more at the fact that this project required photographs.
Anyone who knows me will tell you I am a picture-taking-maniac.
However, I fail these days to develop the precious digital pics I snap.
Sifting through the computer files stuffed with our precious family memories for Noah’s timeline (all of 7-years) is more homework for me than him. (Do I even own photo printing paper and index cards?)
True to my rep as a procrastinator though, when the due date for Noah’s timeline project was moved to the 27th, I did a little dance (to the tune of Noah’s “homework” for piano class).
But, I’m determined to be a better student the second time around. By the time Elena is working on her timeline (in about six years), I plan to have all of the photos developed.
Email this contributing writer at Motherhoodcolumn@yahoo.com.
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TweetFall: Exhaustion, mini-breaks and animal rehab
I promised myself I wouldn’t rehash the tired ol’ blog topic about how back-to-school season is the busiest season of all, and here I am doing it anyway.
I love to write, and I just simply have not had time to do it.
Endless shopping, mountains of school forms, doctor appointments, dentist visits, soccer for daughter, football for son, home repairs … ugh. I’ll spare you the gory details and instead say it with a photo. It’s worth a thousand words, right?
We had been running ourselves ragged in the last month, so I forced a little R&R upon the fam. We took a full-blown mini-break holiday weekend, driving up to Lake Erie for Labor Day. And to paraphrase Bridget Jones, this was not just a mini-break. This was a holiday in heaven.
We romped on the beach, made new friends (Hi, Carmen and Dan!), devoured steaks sizzlin’ hot off the grill, snuggled with Grandma, sat by the fire and snarfed toasted marshmallows … all the stuff that makes living on this planet worthwhile.
We even managed to jam in an educational jaunt to Back to the Wild, a wildlife rehabilitation center in Castalia, Ohio. I recommend a trip there if you’re in the area.
They had eagles, owls, bobcats, egrets, hawks, you name it. The tour was very interesting (we called ahead to set a time), and we couldn’t help but donate to the cause afterward. They have a lot of frozen rodents to buy to fill up all those bellies every day!
Our next adventure will be tap-dancing lessons for my 4-year-old son, starting next week. He’s been asking to learn for a year! We pick up his shoes at Payless tomorrow (and I have a $3 coupon :).
Oh, and my 12-year-old daughter is joining a fencing class next month.
Did I mention we’re busy?
Permalink | Comments (0) | Post your comment | Categories: Back to School, Great deals, Mommy confessions, Photo of the Week, Things to Do, Travel with kids
TweetKids cope with loss of pet in their own special way
Our immediate family was comprised of five humans, one canine, one feline and some fish - until this past week.
The cat of almost 15 years had become very ill.
My husband, the keeper-of-the-cat since it had been his companion long before we were married, made the fateful trip to the veterinarian.
He returned sadly with an empty carrier.
The boys were at school when “Blondie” went to the vet.
Not completely sure of how things might go, we didn’t tell them the cat was going to the doctor.
My husband broke the new to Nick explaining to him that the cat was no longer with us.
Nick wasn’t too heart broken. He was more interested in what the vet had done to “make Blondie dead” and why.
Noah, too, wondered the same things.
“How did the vet kill him?
I flinched, but followed my husbands lead.
“Well, the doctor gave him some medicine that made him go to sleep forever.”
“But when you are asleep you are not dead,” said my observant son.
Hhhhmmmmm.
“Right. While he was sleeping, his heart stopped beating.”
“Oh. OK.”
End of discussion.
Later, though, the boys began asking questions about the cat and talking about what had happened.
“He’s with Cat-Jesus now!” said Nick.
“Yeah!” said Noah nodding with enthusiasm.
“There are special rooms in heaven for cats.”
Rather than cry for their lost pet, they continued to talk about what it would be like for Blondie now that he was in heaven.
They were excited for him.
“Heaven is a lot of fun,” said Noah. “It’s just like Kings Island.”
I had to smile.
Envisioning the cat enjoying himself in an amusement park-like type of heaven was far more enjoyable than delving into the details of his unfortunate - but necessary - demise.
Continuing to make the best of sad situation, we gathered up Blondie’s things - extra food, blankets, toys and bowls - and donated them to the animal shelter.
We think Blondie, who had a pretty cushy life, would look down from his special room (or kitty-coaster) in heaven, and approve.
Email this contributing writer at Motherhoodcolumn@yahoo.com.
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