Veggie sloppy Joes are like childhood on a plate. Growing up in the ’70s, you just couldn’t escape this meaty dish. Since it’s such a comfort food, Ceri and I decided to go retro and bring back the sloppy. We’ve updated it, of course, for a more health-conscious family, substituting all that ground beef with a flavor-rich black bean sauce. This recipe was excerpted from the great new cookbook entitled How to Feed a Family: The Sweet Potatoes Chronicles Cookbook, by Ceri Marsh and Laura Keogh. As two urban, working moms, Ceri and Laura learned quickly how challenging healthy meal-times can be. So they joined forces to create the Sweet Potato Chronicles a website written for, and by, non-judgmental moms, packed full of nutritious recipes for families.
The process of diagnosing Autism in a child can be a little bit difficult for parents at home since it involves a series of observations on a child’s behaviour. Specialists in this field agree that it is best to identify and treat this disorder in children at an early age. Parents are usually concerned about the warning signs to look out for in their babies for them to be concerned. There are particular signs that children who end up with this disorder start exhibiting at a tender age. There are standard Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) indicators which are very common to autistic children.
Many readers know that my son went through colic. But I’ve never really admitted the full extent of the turmoil that swept our house for 18 months. So in the spirit of our new blog, I will dish it. I was kicked out of mommy and me pilates. (Twice). And then excused from a breastfeeding group with nurses due to the excessive noise. People would come up to me on the street with advice (constructive criticism..). “I think he’s hungry! Wet! Tired! Overstimulated!”
What kind of mother would take a child that screams for an hour into a grocery store? The kind that needs groceries and has no other option, thank you. If you would care to watch him at home while I shop I would be grateful. But he will cry – no matter how many needs you satisfy. And he won’t get tired BY THE WAY – not even after 4 hours straight. It went on and on, and experts weighed in as close friends worried my husband and I would drive off a dock hurdling the whole family into the ocean in our LandRover.
Along with the other suggested colic remedies, we were introduced to Boiron camilia. I had used their arnica montana as a homeopathic remedy after giving birth and we decided to try the camilia. Typically recommended for teething, this natural herb is free of acetominiphen and anisthetics and is fully safe for babies. More important, it had a calming effect on our little (screamer) monkey. You twist the tip off the plastic tube of the convenient individual dose and can even slip the liquid into baby’s mouth while nursing (or better yet, have them pretend it’s a nipple and suck it out). We would have ‘picnics’ and I would have chamomile tea when he had his ‘medicine’.
Now that my two boys are bigger, though not quieter (now they never stop talking), they catch colds at school and get boo boos as they tumble. Insect bites while tree climbing are common. Boiron has (thankfully) expanded their lineup so I can keep curing the boys with natural medicines.
DAPIS gel is an ointment to relieve hives, itching and promote the healing of insect bites. Now they tell me. (I didn’t have to buy all of that mosquito netting after all.) The flip cap ensures a tidy application and the 40g tube is easy to slip into a purse or diaper bag.
I was one of those parents taken aback by the research on and subsequent removal of traditional childrens’ cough syrups from the pharmacy shelves. And it, of course, became another bone of contention with the older generation, “Well I gave it to you and you turned out fine! Kids these days…” Thankfully, STODAL honey-based cough syrup is great for kids over one year of age and – ahem – looks like any other ‘traditional’ cough syrup. So your mom doesn’t need to know that you’ve changed up the parenting practices. It’s so yummy my kids keep asking for it on their pancakes. When you come from Canada and it ousts maple syrup you know you’re onto something. (It now also comes in sugar-free). Unfortunately it doesn’t make the kids drowsy, so they keep talking and talking, but at least they’re not keeping me up at night with the cough. And I have Boiron camilia with my nighttime tea, so I’m relaxed anyway.
Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Boiron. As always our opinions are our own.
I am packed. The technology is charged (and needs its own bag). My sneakers are ready to go. And there is only 1 pair of wedges in the suitcase (I couldn’t go cold turkey). To have been given this opportunity is astounding. In a few days I will participate in an all-female Liberian kick-ball tournament, meet representatives of other organizations that support Right To Play’s efforts in Liberia and chat with families and children in more than 5 communities in Monrovia.
The mayor of West Vancouver has sent a letter and dozens of pins and my communities are brimming with support and well wishes. Facebook. Email. Phone calls. Twitter. Personal hugs. I am humbled and overwhelmed. A few short months ago, I knew so little about the development of communities, including my own. I’m actually quite a shy person and can be reluctant to share and truly know people.
This campaign to raise awareness for Right To Play made me realize not only the incredible things that come out of play, but how a community can truly come together for a cause. I have bonded with people who were once strangers by mentioning my involvement with Right To Play. Eyes light up and all of a sudden I realize that a parent at the school lived in Africa, the passport picture photographer used to volunteer teaching sports to inner-city children and my doctor donates to Right To Play. Advice is rampant. Everyone wants to know how they can donate, and for the first time since I last performed in the theatre, I feel part of something much bigger and more impactful than I can even imagine.
Play teaches determination, leadership, how to be a part of a team, how to balance sport and school and discipline. Gender equality and sportsmanship are enhanced. Laughter abounds. And Right To Play has already truly taught me to be part of my own community. I am bursting to see the programs in action!
My final task is to pick the boys up from school and do a bit of shopping. Very exciting shopping. (Not that my heart doesn’t usually skip a beat when I see a store.) This task, however, will be a selfless one. It will be an exciting excursion for my kids when I hand them a few bills at the dollar store and ask them to choose whatever they think the children of Liberia would love. How amazing as a parent to see what my children will think kids in Africa would want!
My heart is so full and my head may explode with the lessons I have already learned. I can’t even imagine what is waiting for me in West Africa.
Let the games begin! I am ready to play and can’t wait to share the journey with you all.
I’m on a plane and a Humphrey Bogart film is playing on the seat next to me. I think of the photos on the wall of the Mandarin Oriental Elbow Beach Resort Bermuda and smile. To be alive in those days. To have been at the 1925 party with the hair and dresses on the patio.
About to take off on my final journey I am quite sad, actually. The whole experience as a McDonald’s All-Access Mom has been transformative, but not in any of the ways I expected. Sure – lots of questions have been answered, I’ve traipsed around farms and plants (check out the videos), and worn way too many un-sexy lab coats. But I also feel like a better mom. A better citizen. The corporate culture of McDonald’s and its suppliers is much friendlier – much more transparent, than I was expecting. After almost 6 years of momm-ing, I think I’ve gotten a bit too insular. Charity work had lapsed and a disconnection to the world and it’s news had set in. The opportunity to participate in the MAAM program has helped change that.
I am most excited about seeing the Ronald McDonald House Charities. Giving back. Sharing. Helping. These charities give homes and home cooked meals to families whose children are hospitalized with severe illness. I will be spending a full day with the children and families involved in the London, Ontario house, learning about the program and more importantly, the people. I hope that I can take the lessons of charity and giving back to my own children and incorporate them into our daily lives. I know there has been criticism of the All-Access-Mom program, but this is an opportunity to get a glimpse into something that nobody could say McDonald’s doesn’t do really well.
The second part of the trip? Chicken at the London, Ontario Cargill facility. Shall I cluck like when I moo-ed at the cows? Want to know the deal with the shaped McNuggets? (I already asked about chicken lips and toenails getting into the mix.) Nada. Any other questions? Reconstituted white meat? Glue? Sawdust? Last chance!!
The next stop on the McDonald’s All-Access Mom journey is to the Cargill beef facility and cattle farms near Edmonton, Alberta. (Apparently 100% of the beef used by McDonald’s in Canada is Canadian). Packed: thigh-high stilletto boots. Watching: Food Inc. Refraining from: Cow-tipping jokes.
Please ask your questions about burgers, beef and cows below. As always, I promise to ask them all.
Friendships are important to every child. Peer relationships allow kids to see themselves against a larger backdrop, to learn empathy and sympathy, and how to fit in with society at large.Some kids are naturally shy or more reticent than others; it’s as basic as introverts and extroverts. Still, introverts, or people who are not as bubbly and public about everything, have friends, too—usually very deep and long-lasting friendships. Making friends isn’t always easy for some people, especially some kids who are naturally more withdrawn. So how on earth do you encourage friendships for your a child?
Tips for parents to encourage friendships with others:
Start Slow. The last think you should do with a shy child is to plunk him or her down in the middle of a busy play-date with a bunch of strange kids and expect miracles. That is a recipe for disaster, actually. Start slow and start small: one new kid, on your home turf, or on a common ground your child is familiar with.
Don’t Push. Think of it a bit like a romance: don’t push it. If it’s meant to be, it will be. Sometimes it will take a bit of time to elapse before they truly start warming up to each other.
Choose Play Friends Wisely. If you have a shy child, don’t ask the rowdy, rambunctious neighbor kid over as your first choice. Try to find someone more like your child, who won’t frighten or overwhelm them.
Provide Common Ground. Have some cool stuff to play with and do available, to avoid boredom. Do something fun, like go to a kid’s museum or animal exhibit, where the kids can get tactile. Get outside so they can roughhouse. All these things are conducive to bonding.
Teach Manners and Courtesy. No one worthwhile wants to be friends with a rude bully. So, do your kids a favor and teach them how to be polite, courteous, and kind. It goes a long way in fostering friendships and earning a good peer reputation.
Do Team Events. Encourage your child to participate in team-based events. This doesn’t mean just sports; it can include debate and other intellectual teams, clubs, volunteer groups, etc. They will meet like-minded kids and spend time with them in a positive arena. When they’re small, try out Gymboree, baby gymnastics, music and other groups, where they can get used to socializing with other kids early on.
Heading to the car with luggage, 2 screaming toddlers and wearing a ducky backpack (that quacks), I wasn’t too sure about the whole vacation-in-my-own-city. Pulling up to the stunning Fairmont Pacific Rim, though, things improved quickly. We were greeted with juice boxes, and the doorman remembered the kids (by name) from the time we had come to Oru for lunch. (Orange chopsticks and the best kids menu ever keep us coming back).
According to a new Ipsos Reid poll, our kids are still not getting enough fruit. Diet and nutrition are so crucial for our children. As Jessica Seinfeld promotes, if they don’t like it.. well, then hide it. Or at least get creative. Mott’s Fruitsations and Korey Kealey, food specialist and mom-of-three, have teamed up to provide five easy tips for Canadian families to eat more fruit that are fun, simple and exciting. Here are some tips to get your kids to eat more fruit.