Things I Like

Thanks, Sprout Band of Bloggers!

I never did say THANK YOU to PBS Sprout for how much fun we had at the Wiggles.

We had a BLAST. Noah and Josie were both mesmerized, barely moving so much as their heads during the show.

Jill, Grandma, and I were impressed by the high energy level of all of the performers, and the unbelievable acrobatic skills of -- among others -- a former member of the Russian Olympic Gymnastics team. On the whole, great show.

TODAY, the nice PBS Sprout people sent another great treat! I should take a picture, but I'm too tired to get organized to do it. They sent a canvas shopping bag & t-shirt that have the Band of Bloggers logo, along with stickers, crayons, coloring books...and a FLIP VIDEO RECORDER.

Josie, of course, likes the box it came in and the crumpled paper that cushioned the contents. She's filled the box with my shoes and several toys. Noah will love the stickers when we let him see them.

Too Clever By Half. Also general updatification.

This morning, when I came out of our room after getting showered and dressed, Jill was working on changing Noah's horrifying, scary, smelly, what-died-in-there? poopsplosion diaper. I walked in to see a cookie disappearing into Noah's mouth. This was something of a surprise, as we don't allow cookies for breakfast. Seeing my glance, Jill explained, "He found it. In a plastic container. On the table where we keep his backpack." I think this marks the end of pre-packed "just in case" snacks in (or around) Noah's backpack. At least in transparent containers. By the way, he's gotten a lot better at using his super-cool, non-toxic, nearly-indestructible, recyclable and reusable, kid-size water-bottle. I think we'll be investing in a few more and packing up the "babyish" sippy cups. Have I mentioned that I loved Noah's Sigg bottle so much that I ordered two more grown-up sized ones? I read not long ago that plastic water bottles are some insane percentage of landfill matter. Between that, the fact that I prefer my water with some flavor added, and that Sigg bottles are cool looking, I made the switch. I bought this one (1 liter) and also this one (0.6 liters). The 0.6 liter size is pretty much an ordinary soda or water bottle, the other is too large for me to really comfortably drink from directly. And in other news, this cycle is looking good:

• 2 good-size and 1 runty follicle, just like in the cycle when we conceived Noah
• Follow-up doctor's appt on Weds, when we will probably trigger ovulation
• Probable giant trek half-way to Tennessee first thing in the morning on Thankgiving, to do the insem
• That's just before I turn 38
• And my mom brought me home from the hospital on Thanksgiving when I was a newborn
• And my due date would be a couple of days after Jill's birthday

Banned Books Week

A lot of you know that I'm a wannabee librarian, I love libraries (although I hate giving books back), and I generally think that librarians rock. So of course I "celebrate" Banned Books Week. Celebrate is such a strange word, isn't it? But I think that recognizing the ongoing challenges to young people's freedom to read and learn to think for themselves is important. It's one of the many valuable services that librarians and libraries provide to our communities. These were the 10 books most frequently challenged in 2006: (I bold italicized the ones I've read.)

1. “And Tango Makes Three” by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell, for homosexuality, anti-family, and unsuited to age group;
2. “Gossip Girls” series by Cecily Von Ziegesar for homosexuality, sexual content, drugs, unsuited to age group, and offensive language;
3. “Alice” series by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor for sexual content and offensive language;
4. “The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things” by Carolyn Mackler for sexual content, anti-family, offensive language, and unsuited to age group;
5. “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison for sexual content, offensive language, and unsuited to age group;
6. “Scary Stories” series by Alvin Schwartz for occult/Satanism, unsuited to age group, violence, and insensitivity;
7. “Athletic Shorts” by Chris Crutcher for homosexuality and offensive language;
8. “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky for homosexuality, sexually explicit, offensive language, and unsuited to age group;
9. “Beloved” by Toni Morrison for offensive language, sexual content, and unsuited to age group; and
10. “The Chocolate War” by Robert Cormier for sexual content, offensive language, and violence.

And these are the 10 most frequently challenged authors, from 1990 - 2004.

1. Alvin Schwartz
2. Judy Blume
3. Robert Cormier
4. J.K. Rowling
5. Michael Willhoite
6. Katherine Paterson
7. Stephen King
8. Maya Angelou
9. R.L. Stine
10. John Steinbeck

Here's the thing: I respect the right of a parent to decide what is appropriate, or not, for their own children to read and view. Trying to limit that hugely seems like a waste of effort to me, and a good way to get your kids to sneak around, but that's each of our individual business/problem as parents. And frankly, if your repressive parenting makes your kid sneak away to the library...that's actually a pretty good silver lining. But that's not what challenges to books are about. These are parents (mostly) who want to prevent EVERYONE from reading the books they don't want their children to read. And that is unacceptable. You may not want your child to learn about loss or death from a book like Bridge to Terabithia, or the Harry Potter series, and I respect your right to make that choice. But I don't agree with it. I think fiction is a wonderfully safe learning tool, allowing all of us as human beings to imagine things we've never experienced, including some things we hope never to experience. Reasonable minds may differ as to when a child is mature enough to read this or that. In the context of Banned Books Week, that's one of the many valuable roles a librarian can play. Without preventing a young person from reading something they want to read, a librarian can help them select appropriate material. I'm not going to go into my personal opinions about these books and authors, except to say that some I love, some I am just not a fan of, and some don't interest me. That, I think, is precisely the point. If you don't want to read something, there's a very simple way to do it. Close the book and walk away from it. If you want to have the huge fight with your child about not reading something, go right ahead. But leave my child out of it. A tip of the pixel to Clare and Polly, for reminding me to blog about this.

Local Food Challenge Update

Well, midway through the month, I can see very clearly that me taking this on was insanely unrealistic. I know that it can be done to a significant extent, but it takes a lot more planning and shopping flexibility than I really have right now. Some parts are pretty easy, and I'll probably keep them up, at least mostly:

• Bread
• Milk
• Some chicken
• Some fruit & veg (but not very much)

Instead of giving up completely, I'm going to modify the challenge to try to do one completely local dinner every other week. Plus the items noted above. What I can say out of this is that it's been a huge consciousness raising experience. First, I never really gave that much thought to where my food came from, geographically speaking, before now. Except of course to be a snob about Wisconsin beer and cheese. Also, I never thought about the environmental impact of eating foods shipped thousands of miles from farm or factory to me. But once you start thinking about it, it's ridiculously obvious. It is bizarre to think that it makes sense for my cereal to be imported from Canada, nearly all of my fruit and vegetables from California, Chile, or New Zealand. BIZARRE. I do still think I'm going to try making my own yogurt, but I don't know when and I'm not committed to it regularly.

Healthified Meatloaf

Warning: Spoiler ahead! We are so happy that Top Chef is back on TV, and this week, the episode was one of our favorite challenges: update and healthify a classic comfort food. I love comfort food. Well, duh, right? Why else would they call it comfort food if average Americans didn't love it? Unfortunately for South African (apparently partially raised in exile in Connecticut) contestant Micah, whom we liked but expected to be eliminated soon, she got to update meatloaf and mashed potatoes. Personally, I thought that would be an EASY assignment, not the one that would get the contestant sent home. In fact, I had an updated and healthier meatloaf baking in the oven while we watched the show. AND since my meatloaf turned out Elks Lodge delicious, plus was full of ingredients that Tom and Padma would have approved, I'm going to share the recipe with you. In the interests of full disclosure, I have never made the same meatloaf twice. Meatloaf was one of the first dishes I learned to cook, and I'm all about the "Hmm, that might be good in it" style of cooking. So don't fuss about the exact ingredients if you try this at home. Ingredients

• 1 lb ground turkey (ideally the 7% fat kind; if they don't label it in your area, then the regular kind. NOT the ground turkey breast/ 1-3% fat kind)
• 1/2 lb chicken sausage, loose (not link)
• 1 cup leftover whole grain pilaf (details below)
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup "quick" oats
• 1 tsp seasoned salt
• 1.5 tsp "herbs de provence" (or other seasonings you like)
• handful of breadcrumbs if needed

Pilaf Digression Last week, I made a vat (well, cooked, not quite 3 cups) of mixed whole grain pilaf, which didn't work quite as well as I'd hoped as a pilaf, but was PERFECT as the filler for the meatloaf. Pilaf ingredients All of these could safely be halved.

• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1/4 cup amaranth
• 1/4 cup barley
• 1/2 cup brown rice
• 1 large vidalia onion
• 1 cup mushrooms
• 2.5 cups chicken broth

Saute the chopped onion and sliced mushrooms until the onion is translucent. Dump all the dry grains in a pot, stir them up a little, add the onions and mushrooms, then the chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then cover and turn the heat to low for 45 minutes. Of course you could cook it in mushroom broth or water and make it vegetarian, but since we're adding it to the meatloaf, what's the point? WHEN I DO THIS AGAIN, I'll probably skip the amaranth. I think that's what gave this too cereally a texture for pilaf. But it was perfect for meatloaf. Meatloaf Cooking Dump everything together in a large bowl and mix it thoroughly with your hands. Yes, it feels gross, but the results are worth it. You may want to start with just 1 egg and see if you actually need the second one for texture. If you are one of those people who likes your meatloaf ketchup infused (that's not the way I roll), add as much as you want, and definitely start with just the one egg. You may need to increase the amount of oats and/or breadcrumbs. The trick to meatloaf is getting the texture right. If it's too runny/sticky/gloppy in the bowl, you're going to get more of a giant meat patty than a loaf. Too dry and it's going to get you sent home, just like Micah. Incidentally, that's why I recommend the "regular fat" turkey and the whole egg, not just the white. Meatloaf needs some fat to cook properly. What you want is something that holds its shape, but is kinda sticky/gloppy when you're done mixing. The easiest way to correct too wet is by adding breadcrumbs. I needed 1 generous handful. You know what would probably also be good in this recipe? Parmesean cheese! My next meatloaf I'll try adding 1/4 or 1/3 cup of grated parmesean. Or you try it and tell me if it tastes as good as it sounds. (Yes, that's cheese, that's fat, whatever. This is healthier meatloaf; I am about balance, not strict food rules.) Anyway, once you have a meatloaf that is sticky but holds its shape, put it in the middle of a roasting pan and bake it in the oven at 350 for 45 minutes. For reheating, I like to slice and heat in a dry pan, like hamburgers, more than in the microwave, but that's just me.

Recommendation

We have one of those stainless-steel bowl-style colanders, with handles and a base. Noah loves it, of course: shiny, makes a nice clangy sound when you whack it with a wooden spoon, easy to pick up and fill with toys, attractive as a hat. What's not to love? Yesterday it finally occurred to me that it would be a great bath toy! Unlike a regular bowl, most of the water would drain out before it could be flung, plus lifting it out of the water and watching the water drain is interesting all by itself. A hit, a very palpable hit. Especially in a bubble bath, where it both contains and creates bubbles. And you can also wear it on your head, for a bubblicious hat. Noah found it entertaining for at least 10 minutes, probably closer to 15.

Useful Newborn Baby Products & Gear

This appears to be Opinion Week here in Casa Booski, while there still is a full blown Casa of the Booskis.

Here are the things that we have used and appreciated the most in caring for The King -- at least so far.

Flatfold Cloth Diapers - We aren't using these for diapers, in fact I think they would be a pain for that.

But they are great for catching baby-boy fountain action during diaper changes. They absorb most of it mid-fountain, and are big and absorbant enough to wipe up anything that they missed "in action." Although The King doesn't spit up much, they're great for cleaning that up too. And if you are using pocket-style cloth diapers, I think they'd be good inserts, because they're thin and flat, so you could fold them as needed. They seem quicker to absorb than the prefolds.

My Brest Friend - Incredibly goofy name, unbelievably useful product if you are breastfeeding. The Brest Friend has a wide, flat surface for the baby to rest on while eating. It also has an attached pocket, large enough for a tube of Lanisoh cream and a paperback. It has an adjustable strap so you can fasten it in place. It even has a small amount of lumbar support.

My only complaint is that the cover is made from a fairly coarse cotton weave. I normally spread a receiving blanket over the top to protect the skin on both my hand/wrist and The King's head.

We have one of these and a Boppy; I think I've used the Boppy 5 or 6 times, including twice as a support pillow to keep this pillow from pressing down on the still-healing c-section scar. But the Boppy does have a softer cover, with more cute options. And I think it will be more useful for other things. My Brest Friend is a single-purpose tool. But one I've used sometimes 10 times per day.

Receiving Blankets -

• Bigger is better. We wash the larger ones every couple of days. (We might have used the smaller ones more if The King had been small at birth.)
• More is better. We rotate through at least half a dozen every couple of days, plus use the smaller ones for things like an extra layer between the baby and the sheet, reducing the number of times we have to wash the sheet because of overnight poopie blowouts. And on cold days, he's had a few wrapped around or on top of him in his bassinet.
• I think the double-layer cotton knit kind are the best. They stretch more, making any swaddling your baby will take easier to do. But the flannel ones are fine.

Mulitple Changing Table/Pad Covers - We bought a fancy changing pad that is also a dresser, and converts to a normal looking dresser after The King is out of diapers. Unfortunately, it turns out to be about an inch less wide than the standard curved-side changing pads.

We wound up buying 2 packs of quilted "multi-use" waterproof pads. They're all in a stack on our changing table, giving us about half an inch of padding. This has been great, because when The King has a poopie blowout and gets the top pad, we just toss it in the hamper. No stress even when he gets another one after we remove the first one. We've never actually gotten down to the 4th layer, but I recommend having at least 3 layers in place as a general practice. And having 4 means never worrying that you'll have to do laundry right away. :)

Footie PJs  - Ideally, with zippers instead of snaps. Maybe The King just takes after Jill, but his little hands and feet get cold much more quickly than the rest of his body. And like most babies, he's skilled at magically getting his socks off, no matter how dorkily high up I pull them. He can't reach his feet, he can't grab things well yet (except fingers and Mommy's shirt) but he is never wearing 2 socks after he wakes up. Never!

I say zippers over snaps for just 2 reasons: speed, and first-time-parent condfidence. Some of these snap-covered outfits are as complex as Ikea furniture -- where the hell does this snap get snapped to??? But most of the outfits available have snaps, so you'll have to learn how Tab A connects with Slot B.

Eucerin Lotion - Our pediatrician recommended this, and it does seem to be helping keep the non-rash-crazed part of The King's skin from getting too dry. Plus we have it in rotation with the prescription creams for the rash, and it's keeping his whole face from flaking off. And I have to admit, I love how it feels on my hands.

Last but not least....

Baby Bjorn - We have the original style, and I love it. It almost always settles The King down for a nap, and I've manage not only to go on walks wearing it, and manage shopping wearing it, but I can also type and cook in it. The only thing that's really hard to do with the BB on is pick up something from a low shelf or the ground.

If I were buying one now, I think I'd go for the Active Carrier version, which looks more complicated to get on, but appears to have lumbar support, which would be a big improvement over the original.

I also absolutely love our swing and Diaper Champ, but The King is waking up, so I have to go deliver the milk truck.

 

Librarians Rock, or Cool New Web Toy

Today's Cool New Web Toy comes courtesy of the Librarian Avenger. Have I mentioned how much I love and adore librarians? I'm a librarian wannabee.

Today's toy is Frappr!, which basically allows a group of people to visually show up on a Google Map. Think one level of Friendster, but on a map.

So PLEASE, join my Frappr! map. I'm curious about how my "real world" friends and new Internet friends distribute on the map. Or make your own map.