A Gentle Reminder

Last night, I was on the computer when I heard the familiar clinking of the sugar spoon against the glass of the sugar bowl. Interestingly, that was about the time that the kiddo was getting ready to enjoy some fruit tea. I said, "I know that's not my kiddo getting into the sugar without washing her hands first", and got up to peer around the corner into the kitchen. What did I see? A rear view of my kiddo running out of the room. Then, I heard the sound of water running in the bathroom! 

This method is so much better than yelling out "Don't touch the sugar if you haven't washed your hands first!". A gentle reminder of my expectations is usually enough to keep the kiddo on the right track (unless she is feeling particularly rebellious).

However, recently the kiddo has tried using this technique on me. She has said things like "I know you are going to get my tea now, right?" Whenever she does this, I have to chuckle and remind her "You know that doesn't work on me, right?"

Well, Stupid Might Be Appropriate

So, about yesterday's post...what on earth could have led to my deliberations on the the word "stupid"? Well...

As I have griped about before in my posts Why Did the Mean Mommy Cross the Road? and Mean Mommy vs Stupid Driver, I have a problem with drivers who don't slow down when I am walking the kiddo to school.

The other day, the kiddo picked up on my frustration when multiple drivers refused to even slow down as we were waiting for a chance to cross the street on our way to school in the morning. She picked the strongest word out of her arsenal--you guessed it--stupid, even though I didn't use that word myself. As I mentioned, I think that word is pretty tame. It's not even a curse word at all, but then, some people seem to feel that way about the "F" word. Fine. I don't want my kiddo to be known as the 1st grade potty mouth, so I decided to nip that in the bud.

"No, honey. Their problem isn't that they are stupid. Their problem is that they are rude, inconsiderate, definitely NOT concerned about safety and completely unaware of the rule that pedestrians have the right of way."

Distracted driving is a serious hazard.    Not stopping for pedestrians on school property is not acceptable--even when there isn't a crosswalk.

OK, f*** it. Maybe they're just stupid.

This is So Stupid!

Sooner or later, you will have to have the talk with your kids about Bad Words. One word you might have to address could be the 'S' word. My sister in law, when told that her son had uttered "the 'S' word" had to stop and clarify, "Um, we are talking about 'stupid', right?"

"Stupid" hasn't been much of an issue for us, but my kiddo knows that it is a dangerous word to use. She will preface any usage of that word with a disclaimer: "I'm sorry but I have to say it...". I think that is the 6-year-old version of "Pardon my French".

It seems that "stupid" is the cool bad word right now for elementary school students. Sure, there are times when you can get away with it, but most of the time, it isn't appropriate. Even so, you know that everyone (and his little brother) is using it.

Sometimes, people rely too much on a cuss word. Hey, the 'F' word (and its variations) can function as a verb, noun, adverb, adjective...When a word starts coming out of your mouth just about every other sentence, it's time to search your vocabulary for something a bit more descriptive. If your child thinks that everything is stupid, it may be time for an intervention.

But, is "stupid" really so bad? In my opinion, yes and no. Both. Yes, I'm wobbling here. It's a lot less offensive than a lot of words out there (the "no" part), but the way it is used, it can carry the same amount of vitriol as &%#$^*@   $!@#%$^&?: ! In that sense, yes, it is.

I don't think that "stupid" should be used to convey dissatisfaction or annoyance with something or someone. That guy who cut me off? He may be rude and suicidal, but probably not stupid. After all, he did have to pass his driver's exam, right?

I have seriously upgraded my use of adjectives to describe anything that vexes me, so that my kiddo will know that "stupid" isn't an all-purpose descriptive word. If the kiddo does use that word, I remind her that she isn't being nice, and encourage her to use more descriptive words when something upsets her. 

Coming tomorrow: the stupid reason why we are discussing this word!

Cover Your Mouth!

It's that time--we are in the middle of cold and flu season. Yeah, there are flu vaccines, but they aren't always 100%. So, while I think sharing is wonderful in the right circumstances, please

KEEP YOUR GERMS TO YOURSELF!

I have already admonished one child and one adult (yeah, that's right!) to cover their mouths when coughing or sneezing. Are you next?

If you don't believe me, check this out:
http://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/11-tips-prevent-cold-flu

 

Get Out!

When mommies get together, we tend to talk about our kids. With the holiday last Monday, followed by two "snow" days plus a two-hour delay, the topic was "what to do with the kiddos" when stuck in the house. Unfortunately, nobody shared anything earth-shattering. However, I did hear of one idea that has potential during milder weather:

Mean Mommy D likes to push her rambunctious daughter out of the house with a timer set for thirty minutes. She tells her child to "play by yourself" and--get this--she locks the door! I can see some parents getting bent out of shape over this, but, truth is, back in the day, kids were regularly shoved outside and told to "go play" and not allowed in the house except to eat, use the bathroom, get first aid or retrieve a toy. Why, then, does this seem so harsh?

D parks her car at the end of the driveway, allowing her daughter to some paved space for riding her bike or using sidewalk chalk, and also making a clear line which her daughter knows not to cross. D also makes sure that outdoor toys are available, and she goes over the rules she has set for when her child plays outside. She also likes to challenge her daughter to "make something to impress" her and sometimes sweetens the deal with the promise of a treat.

So, again, why does this seem harsh? Because the locking of the door enforces the "play outside" mandate? Or because, with information so easily accessible, D can find out where the closest sex offender is...or how close the most recent case of rabies was to her house...or statistics on child abductions?

Why does D's daughter have to be locked out of the house? Because the lure of electronics is so strong she would choose to stay inside and turn into a vegetable otherwise? Last week, when my kiddo was complaining about being bored, I suggested she (a) help me clean; (b) read a book; or (c) find a toy, but what she really wanted to do was watch TV or play on the computer. Suddenly, the threat of a flooded bedroom due to "mad scientist experiments" or multicolored splatters from finger painting in the bathtub didn't sound so bad...

When Spring gets here, I'll be kicking the kiddo outside, but instead of locking her out, I would love it if she wanted to spend her time outside. With plenty of toys and sunscreen and a bottle of water and a list of rules...

The Grapes of Wrap

There is so much information out there about making healthy food choices that it's heartbreaking to see a child loading up on crap. I went to the kiddo's school to have lunch with her last week, and I was dismayed to see that her friend was eating Lunchables, Doritos, and a packaged sweet roll for her lunch, washed down with a bottle of water (as if that magically washed away the crap). Seeing that erased some of the doubts plaguing me about what I feed my kiddo. Sure, we enjoy sweets and salties once in a while, but I try not to indulge too much...which leads me to my latest strategy: grape rationing.

The kiddo loves fruit. She has her favorites, but I can't think of any fruit she actually dislikes. That is great, except that she would be a total fruitarian if I let her. Yesterday, she had the day off and we were at the supermarket, and she was begging for grapes. OK, I have a child who begs for grapes instead of neon-colored sugar bombs. Fantastic!! "Hmmm..." I thought, "I would like some grapes, too..." So I got a big bag. And later almost gasped at the big price. A tactical error on my part, it was too late to put the grapes back, nor would it have been OK to dump out half the bag. So, we got the grapes, but I decided that they were going to last the entire week. Before you accuse me of denying my child vital fruit nutrients, rest assured that we have apples, oranges, and mangoes, too. Not to mention a plethora of vegetables. We're good.

But, back to the crazy-expensive grapes. It is so easy to nosh through a whole bag (I'm speaking from experience here), but I decided to ration our stash to make it last through Friday--eight small containers full of green grape goodness. Why eight? Because I want some grapes, too! I will put my name on them if I have to!

The Axis of Evil* in the Stock Pot

                                            *Peppers, tomatoes, and onions

A mom is supposed to feed her child. Breast vs bottle, conventional vs organic...no matter what our preferences, we need to supply sustenance and nutrition to our offspring. I'm lucky, because my kiddo likes most foods, or at least the ones I typically buy and prepare. Around here, we eat healthy foods for the most part, but there are some things that the kiddo just won't touch--peppers and tomatoes in particular--unless I sneak them into her food. There are entire cookbooks dedicated to the art of sneaking veggies into foods, but I haven't checked them out since the only real bones of contention are the aforementioned peppers and tomatoes, and obvious onions. The onions aren't too much of a concern, because I can only handle them in very small amounts, anyway. I have to laugh, though, because yesterday the kiddo was enthusiastically noshing on some "doctored" black bean soup and corn bread. She quizzed me on the ingredients, and I have to confess that I lied. Well, it was a lie of omission. I neglected to tell her about the sauteed peppers and onions that were pureed and then made their way into both the soup and the cornbread. I explained that the soup was a funky color because I had added a jar of salsa, and any specks in the cornbread were from the mango that I pureed and added to it. Clearly, her questioning indicates that she is starting to become suspicious of my cooking, but she hasn't caught me at pepper dropping yet. The kiddo loves salsa, so I'm not sure why she doesn't like either peppers or tomatoes. I guess that she just hasn't realized yet that she really does like them. I mean, I can definitely taste the peppers in the soup, so if she likes the soup, she must also like the peppers. Out of sight, out of mind?