Tag Archives: kids health

Can’t Win for Losing

Summertime and the living is easy… No pencils, no books, no teacher’s dirty looks… and no set bedtime. What time do your children hit the hay during the summer months? In many families, summer sleepy time is dictated by Mother Nature.  Sunset bedtimes are the norm for many clans, much to the delight of young children, who gain at least a couple hours of extra playtime during the months of June, July and August. My 8-year-old is one of millions who has enjoyed bonus awake time this summer.  She’s spent it capturing fireflies, biking, making s’mores and attending all-night un-slumber … Continue reading →

Crack-a-lackin

Snap!  Crackle!  Pop! It’s the sound I wake up to every morning and continue to hear throughout the day. And not because I gorge on Kellogg’s Rice Krispies. Nope. The crack-a-lackin is coming from my daughter’s… wait for it… back. Yes, my 8-year-old twists, turns, bends, bangs, and hangs her body in the most frightening ways imaginable to get her cracking fix. She claims her bizarre manipulations ease the tightness she experiences in her lower back.  However, my theory is that she is addicted to the sound more than the actual feeling. I recently consulted a pediatrician about my daughter’s … Continue reading →

Waste Not

My mom spent years battling stage II breast cancer, three of my aunts died from the insidious disease, and I am long overdue for a mammogram. I keep ignoring my doctor’s suggestion to make an appointment and potentially save my own life, yet I refuse to eat unopened yogurt that’s been in my refrigerator even one day past its expiration date for fear of getting sick. How’s that for irony? And by irony I mean stupidity. My senseless thinking hurts my budget as much as it does my head.  What’s more, I take little solace in the fact that studies … Continue reading →

Oh Say Can You See

That’s me with glasses. That’s my daughter dying of embarrassment because I decided to wear said glasses in public. I bribed her to smile for the camera. Yes, I am that mom. The one who willingly mortifies her child in public by wearing specs her daughter views as “totally ugly” all in the name of safety.  Believe me; you don’t want to know what would happen if I were to drive without the lenses that help correct my 20/500 vision. Ironically, that same daughter, who so quickly denounces my looks when I opt to wear glasses instead of contacts, came … Continue reading →

Dirty Habit

Remember when you had your first child and his pacifier fell out of his mouth at the park?  You wouldn’t dream of letting your precious peanut place the plastic plug back in his mouth after it touched the ground.  Not a chance.  Rather, you likely pulled out a fresh binky and let your baby resume sucking on it. Then, you had baby number two.  When his pacifier fell to the ground, you picked it up, brushed it off on your sleeve and stuck it back in his mouth without thinking twice. Looking back, I bet it’s hard to tell whether … Continue reading →

Eating Out: More Trick Than Treat

Eating out is a big treat for most families.  Parents love the break from cooking and doing the dishes, while kids enjoy eating chicken nuggets in a different setting.  Unfortunately, splurging on a restaurant meal may come back to bite you. According to a new study by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), parents are doing their children a disservice by treating them to dinner out.  Researchers say menu options offered to children by most U.S. restaurant chains have way too many calories, in addition to dangerously high amounts of salt and fat.  In fact, the group … Continue reading →