Believe it or not, The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Mattel is recalling even more toys due to high lead content. Ugh. Is this the end of it? These ones are the “Go Diego Go” toys, 55,000 of them.
Archive for October, 2007
The perfect diaper bag- everyone is looking for it… and there are some nice ones out there- Fleurville, Oi Oi, Skip Hop, but what I have found is they are mostly high on style and on price. I find that they have too many small pockets, too many novel attributes. So how to find the perfect- or near perfect bag? I know one mom who took the issue into her own hands and designed and made her own diaper bag. Abbadabba Bags was born, and she now makes and sells them and to top it off, they are stylish and functional.
Her signature bag, seen here, is black and white toile, diaper tote with a different color lining (usually light blue, pink or black). She also has an expansive line of well-known designer fabric bags that suit many styles and tastes. The quality is fantastic, the bags are all handmade and lined with a stiff interfacing to make them more sturdy. There are pockets on both sides of the inside, and one more on the outside with a key clip inside. (click on the picture to see the inside) The large weekend size is 16″ W x 14″ H x 5″ D, but there are smaller sizes and styles- every bag is handmade so they are completely customizable . One thing I love about the large weekend size- is in a few years, it is a great beach bag!
If you’re looking for a different fabric, she goes above and beyond to try to get what your looking for or help guide you in your search to find a fabric you like. Looking for your own fabric will ensure you have a unique and personal looking bag. A customizable diaper bag- that is perfect. Mom designed baby-products are always more functional, they’ve thoughtfully looked something over and improved upon it.
For more info, email: abbadabbabags@gmail.com or visit her store at Etsy or Artfire.com.
This just might get you on your way to finding the best diaper bag.
So it has finally come out to general population that using over-the-counter cough and cold medicine is potentially dangerous for kids under 2. I say finally because I have wondered why it is on the shelves to begin with. After being advised by my daughter’s pediatrician not to use it, I was curious why it was being sold.
When she was 13 months old, she had a terrible cough, runny nose, sleepless nights- the whole thing. I wanted to make things better for her, I thought the best way would be to give her some cold medicine I had seen advertised on TV for infants. I went to the pharmacy and bought a pack of the Triaminic Infant & Toddler Thin Strips Decongestant Plus Cough. At home, I read the package which advised me to consult a physician for dosage information. I called the doctor and asked. His response was “Don’t use it, it’s best to return it to the store.” I was surprised, but he explained that he didn’t feel that they were safe for infants or toddlers. He said to stick to using saline nose spray, the suction bulb and lots of fluids. I trusted his opinion and his strong recommendation against the medicines. So I returned it but worried a bit about all the people who were going to buy it and not call their doctors and worse, might accidentally overdose their baby.
That was almost a year ago, and now they are being taken off the shelf, and I feel better that the option is gone- the question won’t be bugging someone at 3 a.m. with a sick child on their lap, what should the dosage be?
Information on treating infants and toddlers with colds
Click here to read an article on the descision to remove the medicines.
I was just forwarded a story about a woman whose son had a 3M Easy Eraser rubbed on his face. As a result, his skin was burned from the alkeline chemicals that are in the product, and not listed in the ingredients. Here is the story posted on her own website.
It is a good thing to know, as most parents do, she read the label- and presumed it was safe from the lack of chemicals listed on the package. I guess we can never be too careful. I have always assumed that listing of ingredients was mandatory but somehow corporations are able to skirt this when they want.
Sugar has been a source of debate for quite some time. It has a bizarre history from the sugar cane fields of Hawaii, to the sugar beet fields on the Caribbean, and it continues to raise questions about our health, our metabolism, and our diets.
What is sugar?
The word “sugar” means a lot of different things. It can mean the granular white substance you put in your coffee and on your cereal, or it can mean the simple carbohydrate that your body digests to make energy. In terms of this blog post, we’re referring to sugar as that tasty sweetener we use to “make stuff taste better”.
When it comes to “making stuff taste better”, we have many options, most of the derived from sugar cane or sugar beets.
Health Concerns
As a kid, we mostly all love sugar because it tastes great and made us all hyper. But because sugar is full of energy, if we don’t use it up, it turns to fat. Furthermore, the balance of sugar in our bloodstream helps other foods get digested, and if that balance is out of whack, it can make us feel very tired, or worse, many people believe that an inappropriate amount of sugar intake can lead to diabetes.
What Can We Do?
Starting from a young age, we need to introduce our babies and toddlers to diets low in sugar. Hopefully, it creates a palette that is less inclined to crave it. I am not suggesting no cookies, no treats, just use moderation and be mindful in your choices. Be a label reader- it is clear from the research that we need to stay away from products that use highly refined sugars like high fructose corn syrup. It is lurking in places you might never assume- bread, pasta sauce, ketchup, etc. Buy applesauce without added sugar, trying making your own Oatmeal Raisin cookies and using date sugar, serve fresh fruits and fresh vegetable for snacks. Look for products that use sugars like brown rice syrup, maple syrup and unrefined cane juice.
Artificial Sweeteners
At this point, you might be wondering about the artificial variety of sweeteners, suralose (aka Splenda), aspartame and saccharin- well we could write a book here. There is tons of conflicting information out there about its safety or lack thereof. Plainly, it seems unless your child has diabetes or the like, you just shouldn’t give it to your kids.
It can be a hard habit to modify, but it will be worthwhile. Here are a few additional resources you can access for more information:
