These Are a Few of My Favorite Things
Items I Recommend for Anyone with Kid.
Cherylyn Feierabend
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These Are a Few of My Favorite Things
Hey there! You’re listening to the Mighty Mommy with some Quick and Dirty Tips for Practical Parenting. Today’s Topic: My Favorite Things.
Items I Recommend for Anyone with Kids
As I was going through my daily routine I realized that there are many items I use every day without giving them much thought. I take them for granted. One of the items I am very fond of is my cell phone. Today, I thought I’d misplaced it. I remembered that my son had it briefly and I had intended to take it away from him, but he had set it down and moved on to something else. When I went to leave the house to run an errand, I ran down my checklist of “must have” items. My cell phone was missing. I picked up my landline and dialed my cell phone and heard the ringing. The sound was coming from the trashcan in the kitchen. Last week, my husband lost his cell phone. We think we know where it might have gone.
Having a phone that travels with me is a nice convenience, but more importantly, it can be a lifesaver if there is an emergency situation and I need to call for immediate help. If you are a parent or guardian, it’s a good idea to have a phone with you at all times if possible. If it is an issue of cost, keep in mind that there are pay-as-you-go plans that don’t require a monthly fee. We may have survived many years without cell phones, but we don’t have to anymore.
There are many items that I am quite attached to which may not be as important as my phone, but I love them all the same. One of these items is an ideal baby shower gift. There are many different brands of diaper disposal systems on the market now. These are containers where you put soiled diapers. The seals on these containers are so good that you can’t even smell what’s inside. If you invest in one of these systems that require refills, you can save money by only using the system when necessary. Only use them for the truly soiled and smelly diapers. If you remove a slightly wet diaper from your baby, don’t waste your refill space, just put it in the trash. You won’t need to buy bag refills as often this way. I only wish somebody had told me that with my first child.
Another one of my favorite items is a shopping cart seat cover. There are many different brands of these on the market and I’m sure they all do pretty much the same thing. Basically, it’s a seat cover that fits over a shopping cart seat. The cover I have, and love, is padded and has its own seatbelt. When my children were babies, I would use it in restaurant highchairs as well as shopping carts. It protects from some germs, makes the seat more comfortable, keeps babies strapped in securely and offers extra support for those kids who still lean a little bit when they are sitting up. Another great feature of this item is that when it’s dirty, you can just throw it in the washing machine. My favorite version also has a pocket to hide my sunglasses, keys and coupons.
My family goes out to eat way too often. Once my daughter was too old for the highchair, we tried the booster seats provided by the restaurants. The first few times this was so exciting for her that she sat in her seat like the “big girl” we all expected her to be. She was very well behaved and we were very proud. Once the novelty wore off, however, she channeled her energy into other things like crawling under the table and attempting to socialize with other patrons at their tables. Unfortunately, booster seats rarely come with a belt to keep the child in place. Luckily, I found a solution to the problem. It’s a folding chair, much like a lawn chair, but sized to fit a toddler. It has a three-point seatbelt system and an additional belt, which can be used to fasten the seat to a chair. There are many types of portable booster seats. Mine is getting worn out so I will definitely purchase a new one for my younger child soon. My daughter is older now and no longer needs a booster. She still crawls under the table once in a while, but sometimes kids just need to see what’s under there.
I know I’ve mentioned this item in a previous show, but I think it deserves another mention. My favorite toy is still the magnetic doodle pad. There are a few different brands of these and you can find them at just about any toy store. There are also many different types of these doodle pads available. Some have loose magnets that are shaped like circles, squares or flowers and some have stencils for tracing. I believe we own at least six of these in various shapes and sizes. Kids can draw a picture, erase it and draw another. My kids love to trace their hands on the doodle pad. Then they add their fingernails or rings or turn their hand into a turkey. I love using the doodle pad as a giant flash card. I draw a letter, a number, a shape, or an animal and ask my kids to name it. At least once a day, my son will bring a doodle pad to me and place the magnetic pen in my hand. He then stands back in anticipation, just waiting to see what I create. I enjoy the interaction this toy promotes. It’s also a great downtime activity, which allows the kids to rest while still being creative. We still use crayons, markers and paints once in a while, but nothing beats the convenience and cleanliness of a magnetic doodle pad!
There are many more items that I find incredibly useful and certainly would not want to be without. I’m tempted to offer the idea of a digital camera as one of my favorite things, which it is, but I’m simply going to go with books as my final item in this show. I don’t just mean any books, either. I love all books. I think books are important and fun and every home should be full of them. The books I am talking about, however, are virtually indestructible. My kids eat books. My son loves the sound of a fresh page of paper ripping down the middle. When you love books as much as I do, you don’t love that sound. I’ve invested in a large quantity of heavy board books, soft cloth books and waterproof plastic bath books. These books are great for the littlest hands and mouths. The cloth books are best for babies. Babies can chew on the soft cloth books, which can then be washed. Board books can wear out or tear with too much chewing or drooling, but they’ll still last longer than other types of books. I love reading in the bath so I figure bath books would be fun for just about anyone.
That’s it for now. Hope you enjoyed listening. I’d love to hear from you. Let me know what products have helped you in your parenting adventure.
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This is your friend the Mighty Mommy wishing you happy and fun parenting!
Music – “Golly Gee” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0
Family image courtesy of Shutterstock