Points, calories, carbs, food journals…bleck! I hate counting any of those things because I start to feel like a slave to numbers. Turns out I’m not alone. I knew it!
Size DOES matter. Plate size that is. We eat off of small plate, because they look really full with less food. It totally works. Plus you can always go back for more if you’re still hungry.
Because It Feels Good
Time for a little real food related laughter. Watch this video.
It’s Monday (Tax Day) as I write this, and despite the enormous check that I just sent off to the state of Idaho this morning it’s been a pretty good day. Got plenty of sleep, ate a good breakfast, my son and I got adjusted by the chiropractor, went to yoga with a good friend, nap time went off without a hitch, everything going along swimmingly.
I came to my computer ready to finally work on a post that I’ve been ruminating about and putting off for awhile. Armed with a double caffeinated cappuccino I flipped open my laptop and took a quick peek at Facebook before getting into my post. That one last bit of procrastination revealed that at the finish line of today’s Boston Marathon there were 2 bombs that went off and many people have been injured. Well, #$%^!!!!
***It’s now a few hours since I started this post and rather than post the rant that I initially came up with I decided that John Lennon says it a whole lot better.***
Imagine there’s no heaven
It’s easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today…
Imagine there’s no countries
It isn’t hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace…
You may say I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will be as one
Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world…
You may say I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will live as one
A few months ago I did a post about my decision to send my son to a traditional school, and not to homeschool him. In the interest of fairness, and curiosity, I put some feelers out there to find another mom who made the opposite decision of my own.
Luck would have it that Allison, from the blog Our Small Hours, happens to be experienced in homeschooling and traditional schooling alike. She was kind enough to write a guest post for us, which is what you’re about to enjoy.
If you’re intersted in finding out about homeschooling, and how her family homeschools with two parents working full time, and some great real food recipes too, check out her blog at www.OurSmallHours.com Thanks Allison!
Without further ado, I give you Allison’s piece.
When my oldest son was born I simply could not imagine a time when I’d have to send him off to school for hours each day to be cared for and taught by someone else. I believe that many mothers share my overwhelming desire to never miss a moment of their child’s life. However, in our society, there comes a time when every parent must make the decision to take on the responsibility of their child’s education or to allow teachers and school administrators to take over the bulk of this important job. My decision was not easily made and some may find my decisions concerning my children’s education to be strange and difficult to understand. At the heart of my choices is my desire to do what is best for each of my children and to help them pursue a life-long love of learning.
By the time my oldest son was ready for Kindergarten (two days before his fifth birthday!) I had two more sons who were two years old and seven months old. I had slowly realized over a year’s time that I was not in a good position to attend to my son’s social and educational needs alone. I needed help. He had the benefit of preschool for the previous three years and thrived in the classroom environment. Although, like many moms, my heart hurt at the thought of being away from him for 7+ hours every day, I knew that keeping him at home with me with me would be to ignore his needs.
Now, many would say that I didn’t need to give him much or that learning need not be formal and I agree with them in theory. Learning absolutely does not need to be formal and five year olds do not require very much time—when that time is given one-on-one and there are no special needs to consider—to teach. At that age children are incredibly self-motivated to learn, which makes home schooling a breeze. Still, my child was beyond the grade-level work we had been doing at home and enjoyed regular interaction with peers. I was busy with his brothers—one who had begun to exhibit signs of being on the spectrum and the other who had just been diagnosed with Failure To Thrive. Needless to say, I had my hands full.
Making the decision to send my oldest son to public Kindergarten was the right one for him and for our family. In all, he spent two years in the public school system and thrived. In late July, just a couple of weeks before he was to begin the 2nd grade, my son expressed an interest in home schooling. We knew home schooling families and he understood that it was an option for others and wanted to try it for himself. My husband and I had been talking about my middle son’s struggles in preschool and the fact that he would likely not do well in a traditional classroom environment. In addition, life was a little simpler for us since the baby was healthy again and older now. It was a perfect opportunity to give home schooling a try.
We began home schooling by making an agreement with our son. He would get to decide each school year if he wanted to continue home schooling or return to public school. He would have plenty of social opportunities through weekly parks and recreation programs offered for home schoolers, activities with our local home school group and sports. He has never asked to return public school. He loves home schooling and has expressed on many occasions that he’s glad he doesn’t have to go to school all day. As a serious athlete, he values being able to sleep in when his body requires it. Home schooling has also allowed him more practice time than his teammates who must spend their days sitting at a desk.
Since all children are different, it wouldn’t be fair to only write about my oldest son’s experience. I have two other children whose education is just as important to me. My middle son has never attended public school. In fact, when he was in preschool, he attended on a modified schedule because three days a week was overwhelming to him. He has mild Asperger’s. He would find the social setting of school to be too much to handle. Instead, we are able to guide him in social interactions and teach him how to interact appropriately with others. He is able to spend ample time pursing his interests—something he would not have enough time to do if he were in school all day. He is working at grade-level on the subjects we formally school and above grade level (Quantum Physics, folks.) on the subjects that we unschool.
My youngest son is a social butterfly, much like his oldest brother. He is a little behind developmentally and has articulation difficulties. We sent him to public Kindergarten and he excelled. He was given an Individualized Education Program (IEP) that included speech therapy. I saw him mature and speak better over the course of the year. When the year was over, however, he asked to home school. Since we value our children’s input into their education, we decided not to send him to first grade, but to home school him instead. The first semester of home schooling was a breeze, but I could tell that he was missing the social interaction that school provided.
Last fall it became clear that I would have to return to work full-time. Since all three of our sons have found home schooling to be a good fit, we knew we would have to work to figure out a way to continue to support their love of learning at home while providing them with the amount of social interaction that they each desired.
For my youngest, who was already in need of more social interaction, a fellow mom—who herself was home schooled as a child—stepped in to help with his home schooling and, because she has children his age, has provided him with all of the “extravert time” he needs. In the two months that he has stayed with her while I work, he has matured by leaps and bounds and his speech has improved more than it did with two semesters of speech therapy!
My older two are quite independent in their learning and use an internet based program to complete the subjects for which we use a more formal curriculum. For the subjects we unschool, we spend time on weekends and evenings supplementing with books and question/answer sessions. (Find out more about how we make working full-time and home schooling work for our family.)
I consider myself to be a big supporter of freedom of choice in education for all parents and children. As evidenced in my own family, all children have different needs. I can honestly say that my youngest is probably not an ideal candidate for a strict interpretation of home schooling. My middle son, on the other hand, would likely experience many emotional issues if placed in a traditional school environment—even with an IEP. My oldest has excelled in both places.
My only caveat to educational choice is that the decisions we make about our children’s education be well-informed and not done out of selfishness driven by our own emotional unwellness. Decisions about how and where to education our children should not come from a place of fear or guilt. In addition, our children should be given some say in how and where they learn. Listening to what they want, and more importantly, why they want it, is key. Showing our children that they are free to learn and putting them in an environment where their natural love of learning is fostered will lead to a better future for us all.
For more information about homeschooling, and other fantastic goodies, check out the blog www.OurSmallHours.com
~my dad: micologist, Master Gardener educator, landscape architect and man with the biggest green thumb I know
Square Foot Gardening (SFG) Is Kinda Genius
Mix equal parts compost, vermiculite and peat moss, place it in your 6″ deep raised bed and BOOM! – instant garden. I’ve been doing it for a few years now and am slowly but surely getting better and better yields on my crops. My friend’s Square Foot Garden is off the hook.
There’s Only One Problem
– peat moss is no bueno for use in horticulture, for a few good reasons:
Like rain forests, peat bogs are ancient ecosystems. Unlike rain forests, they can’t be replicated or replaced once destroyed. It has taken thousands of years for these bogs to become what they are today.
The mining of peat bogs negatively impacts water systems for the environment and the people living near them. Last I checked, clean and abundant water is something that should be preserved not squandered.
Peat bogs hold and store carbon dioxide indefinitely. Breaking down of peat bogs releases carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere, greatly contributing to global warming. Which we (you, me and all the scientists) can all agree is actually happening.
Peat bogs are entire ecosystems unto themselves, containing specific flora and fauna that can only be found there. The breakdown of an ecosystem also means the breakdown of the flora and fauna.
Despite it’s popularity for use in gardening, there are actually better soil amendments than peat. (sources 1, 2, 3, 4)
Alternative For Your Square Foot Garden
Since the Square Foot Gardening formula calls for a specific amount of peat moss, the alternative that I found that most easily replicates the use and measurements is coir (pronounced koi-er), or the husks of coconut. Not only does this use a product that was once considered the waste of coconut harvesting, it does a great job of holding moisture, which is what peat is used for in Square Foot Gardening.
When you use coir, it comes compressed in a very tight block. VERY TIGHT. If you only want to use a section of it, you’ll have to saw (that’s right SAW) off the sections you want to use or save for later.
The directions say to let it soak in water for 5-10 minutes. This is clearly a joke by the folks who labeled the package, because I’ve never had it soak and be ready for use in less than 45 minutes of soaking and labor.
I haven’t had the patience to try, but you may want to let it soak for a few hours before using it. Maybe that will take out some of the scraping, pounding and jabbing that will ensue. Truthfully, it’s not as bad as I make it sound. No harder than turning soil to garden in.
The Most Important Thing When Using Coir
Make sure it’s entirely broken down into a dirt like substance. Don’t let any chunks of dried husk remain. I was too impatient my first year of doing this, 3 years ago, and I’m still finding chunks of coir in my bed. It does your garden and plants no good if it’s not entirely broken down. On that note, don’t be afraid to get dirty. Get in there with your hands arms and toss it up. If you garden, then I suspect you don’t take issue with getting dirty. Am I right?
The Process
The SetupIn a wheelbarrow add your coir and copious amounts of water. You’ll eventually add more.Sitting for 5-10 minutes. HAHAHA!After soaking, scraping, jabbing, more water and tossing you’ll have this.Like fine soil.On the tarp combine the coir, compost and vermiculite.To mix: fold the tarp, thereby combining the soil.After each turn, open the tarp and pull in a different direction. Repeat 15-20 times. In the process you’ll find small clumps of soil, break them apart by hand and continue.You should have a well mixed soil.Drag the tarp next to your planter bed and amend the existing soil.Plant!Enlist any help you can get. Keep in mind, my helper is 2, which meant that the hard parts were done by me alone. I’ll still share the bounty though.
I’m within 5 pounds of my first goal!! Pre-baby weight. It was so nice to step on the scale and see a 3 in the ten’s place. There’s a little elementary math for you. Two months ago my goal was to keep my weight fluctuations within the 250’s and that seemed like it would never happen. Progress feels nice.
This week I also identified two reasons that will keep me from losing weight. They are:
Copious amounts of macadamia nuts
Chocolate almond butter (it’s better than frosting)
In moderation these are both healthy treats, but when eaten with reckless abandon, well you know.
Something I’ve also been trying, which started as a way of getting Porter to eat the food served at meal time, was the elimination of snacking. Don’t judge me, he still eats regularly, but now he (usually) eats at mealtime instead of grazing on snack foods all day long. The schedule looks like this: breakfast, lunch, PM snack, dinner. So far the results have been great and I spend less time in the kitchen preparing healthy snacks all day long. This also means that I snack less too, which feels good. I’m forced to find other things to do with all that spare time I’ve got these days (NOT!)
Last night I was on the phone with one of my oldest and dearest friends. We were talking about being moms, having kids and all the crazy cool things that go down in our days. It came up that her husband (who is nice enough to follow this blog) wondered how it is that I managed to spend time with my son, cook all our food, work, be a wife, keep our home, garden and do all the other things that go into being an involved green mama.
As a blogger, I share a lot of information about myself and my family with you. Really, that’s most of how I know what I know…experience. I also shared with you in my About Me section, if there is something I’m working on or want to change about myself, I’m the first to share that. This is evident in my New Year’s Resolution to shed 100 pounds.
My conversation last night, however, made me realize that for all the sharing I do it’s really easy to come off as near perfect in my execution of being a green mama. Let me assure you, I am nowhere near as green as I wish I were or as I think some other bloggers appear to be.
Let me share with you some of the trials, errors and little secrets that I experience and am still working on. I’m not sharing these with you to make myself feel better (because I don’t really feel that guilty) but to assure you that we’re all in this together, warts and all!
I Confess
I’m all for composting, an advocate even. In my post about worm composting I was very excited to share my worm bin with you. Sadly, about a month ago I overfed my red wigglers. The temperature in my bin shot to 110*. That’s no bueno. I tried to reverse the heat wave, but there was no saving them. My worms died and that made me really sad. I had to explain to my son what happened and am starting over. PS- If your worm bin gets too hot, don’t try to reverse it, just take out the hot compost and save the worms.
We drive 2 cars. Even though we only use about a tank a month, one of them is an SUV.
Plane travel is the worst offender when it comes to green house emmissions. We fly (as a family of 3) round trip to somewhere 4-6 times a year.
In a perfect world we would eat only locally and seasonally. I don’t like squash that much and bananas are too good for us to give up (sorry Luke).
There is a clothes line in my backyard, but more often than not I choose to machine dry my clothes.
The house we live in is old and has drafty windows and poor insulation. There’s a gap in my front door, but I haven’t done anything about it all winter. Energy savings fail.
This is a big one: I have a house cleaner come and clean my whole house every other week. I LOVE her, and I’m never going back. It has taken a weight off my shoulders, it makes me happy, and I feel healthier knowing my house is clean.
If the dishwasher doesn’t get emptied first thing in the morning (this happens <50% of the time) there are piles of dishes, pots and pans on my counter and in my sink at the end of the day. Thanks to my husband for cleaning them and not sighing too heavily when he walks into the kitchen every night.
Folding laundry is the bain of my existence. I often leave it in a pile and wait for my house cleaner to fold it. For which she volunteered by the way.
Addiction in two words: Amazon Prime.
Even though I was gang busters to use cloth diapers, I was so seriously overwhelmed by motherhood that we use disposable.
Sauerkraut (and all it’s fermented goodness) has yet to thrill me.
Two summers ago we installed a lawn in our backyard (low water Xerilawn) and I don’t regret it one little bit.
Evidently I’ve bought into the Apple revolution as I own THREE different devices – iPhone, iPad and a Macbook.
In the beginning I was sure attachment parenting was for us. Turns out sleep training (and some cry it out) was one of the best parenting decissons we’ve ever made.
My son is vaccinated, using the Dr. Sear’s alternative schedule.
In the five steps to a Zero Waste Home, I’m terrible at step one: refusing.
My son watches some television almost everyday, and so do I.
Can you say caffe breve? I drink one a day and we use our Nespresso machine, which only has dissposible pods in which I have no say as to what kind of coffee is used. Although I’ve been searching desparately to find good reusable ones, to no avail.
We aren’t members of a CSA (see squash reference above).
My cats used to get a homemade raw food diet, but when the baby came they got reverted back to dry (grainless) cat food.
I’m sure if I thought about it I could come up with 100 more things to add to this list, but I’ll stop here for now. Remember, we’re all human and we’re all works in progress. Do what you can do and take small steps. Continue to be optimistic that whatever goals you have for being a parent, being green or maybe just starting to cook dinners at home – you’ll get there, slow and steady wins the race. Celebrate small successes and make choices you can stand behind. And last but not least, be well!
Today’s post is for the fam. This is the first year we’ve celebrated Easter with Porter. We’re celebrating the gift of Spring, and Porter was psyched (to say the least) when he learned of a bunny that will hide eggs. So yesterday we went to our friends house to color eggs in anticipation for the Easter bunny. That furry friend didn’t let us down. Not only did he hide our beautiful eggs, but he left Porter some homemade marshmallows and graham crackers. He also got Thomas the train bubbles and a kite. We celebrated with some more friends this morning and with the warm sun shining. I hope your day is beautiful, warm and hopeful for the days that are ahead. Happy Easter!
This was Porter’s favorite egg. He carried it around all morning long and loved it to pieces.
This is a particularly lovely photo of my mom.Getting tangled up in the Banyon tree in Lahaina.
We were pretty certain that after we had a kid our travelling would dwindle to the occasional trip to visit family. Thankfully, that’s not happened and we’ve gotten to experience truly wonderful sights and cultures with our child in tow.
P has been charming flight attendants since he was 2 months old, he’s now 2 years old. He’s been to Hawaii 4 times, Maine, Spain, and California many times to visit our family there. We’ve flown non-stop and we’ve had to make connections. Big airports, small airports, customs, baggage, international, trams…we’ve done them all. Our upcoming trips include Boston, Alaska, and California a couple more times for good measure.
Be kind with flight attendants and they’ll be kind with you.
P’s always been an easy travelling companion and, with the exception of that one time he had a head cold, he’s never been THAT kid. Here’s my biggest thought on whether a baby/child will be a good traveller. If they eat out at restaurants well, I think it’s a good indication that your child can handle being cooped up in a flying can, with a bunch of strangers, for many hours on end.
Will it be easy? No, not like when you didn’t have kids. And certainly not like when they’re older and can plug into movies or books for hours on end, but it’s very possible and definitely worth it.
Through our travels there are a few things we’ve learned that I think you might also find helpful, or at least worth considering:
Travel Business/First class if you can afford it
If you can bring the grandparents, DO IT!
Give yourself at least 30 minutes longer than you used to (pre-baby) at the airport
Get a chiropractic adjustment for yourself and baby a couple of days before you go
Be patient with yourself, others and especially your baby
Avoid the red-eye if you can
Make lists and check them
As a side note, if you’re pregnant and planning to fly you should read what WebMD has to say about the subject, talk with your care provider, and then make an educated decision. Here’s the link to the TSA website for travelling with children, where they lay out what your child can expect when trying to get through security.
The more the merrier!
It can be stressful at times, but after you’ve arrived at your destination it will all have been worth it. Just think how good you’ll feel having accomplished such a task as flying with a baby and all the memories you’re about to make on your trip. I’ll break the rest down by age, since that does indeed make a difference.
Infant – 6 Months
Assuming you had a normal pregnancy and vaginal birth doctors seem to agree that it’s safe for mother and child to fly as soon as 2 weeks after birth (source 1, 2). Why anyone would voluntarily do this at 2 weeks post-partum is beyond me. Barring any big life moves I recommend staying put for a month or two and developing some semblance of sanity routine before venturing into the world of TSA, cabin pressure and time zone changes.
What To Bring
Your baby’s passport (required for international travel) or a COPY of their birth certificate. Don’t forget this. Ticketing agents don’t always check them, but when they do you’ll be glad to have it.
A change of clothes for baby and mom. Let me stress that MOM does indeed want a change of clothes. I’ve experienced the worst possible blowout, EVER, on an airplane and paid for it for the rest of the flight. Not pretty folks, not pretty at all.
If your breastfeeding you can bring one of those cover/sheet do-dads, but it gets really hot on an airplane. Like Bikram yoga hot. I found that wearing a very large, comfortable, maternity shirt that I could stretch over the baby worked much better. Then you don’t have to fumble around with a giant piece of fabric while confined to a tiny seat either. After a year, I just started whipping out the boob, stare if you want, I don’t give a darn.
If you’re bottle feeding, bring formula. TSA will let you bring liquids through too, but they will test for the gun powder and flammable liquids that you’re really trying to smuggle in and then they’ll pull you aside for a little one-on-one time. Just you, a TSA agent of the corresponding gender, and some sanitary gloves. Mmm-hmmm.
A pillow. For the first bunch of flights I brought my Boppie. It was cumbersome, but it made feeding and holding a sleeping baby for hours manageable. It’s worth it to bring some sort of cushion.
For a wee babe you can carry them in your arms or bring your baby carrier/sling to spare your back and free up a hand for dragging luggage/diaper bag. You should know that even though it seems like a dandy idea to have your baby strapped to you during flight, you will be required to TAKE BABY OUT of said carrier during take off and landing. If you’re flying in Europe with a lap infant they have a special baby seat belt, that connects to your belt, which is required to be around your baby.
If your baby is sitting up, or able to ride in an umbrella stroller, bring one of those. It’s great for loading up with a baby, or other baby items, that you’re going to trudge around with you for the duration of your trip. It will have to go through security, will be checked at the gate, and (unless the airport staff hates you and sends it to baggage claim) it will be brought to the door of the plane when you exit. Do everyone a favor and leave your jumbo multi-child stroller at home, or at least check it with your baggage.
Technically, kids under the age of 2 fly free if they sit on your lap. That’s how we’ve always done it. Airlines do this so families won’t stop flying because paying for a baby ticket is outlandishly expensive. If you’re a safety first type then you can bring your car seat on the plane, but you will have to purchase a full price ticket for your baby.
Bonus while travelling with a child under two is that you will often get to skip to the front of the security line, you don’t have to go through those obnoxious full body scans, and people are generally helpful and friendly.
You can bring your car seat with you wherever you travel and check it for free with your luggage (unless you get a mean ticketing agent who hates you).
And in case you’re getting overwhelmed, don’t forget to bring more diapers than you think you’ll need, the appropriate amount of wipes, and your little changing mat. They don’t typically sell these at airports.
I don’t know what it is about flying, but the air pressure seems to squeeze every last bit of bodily function out of your tiny baby while inflight and you’ll have to master the art of changing diapers in a lavatory. It’s very possible that this will be the most traumatic event of your baby’s life and he will scream bloody murder the entire time you’re in the lavatory. Or not. Either way, deep calming breathes become enormously helpful during these times.
Honestly, if it’s just a wet diaper I’ll change it right at our seat. Shhh, don’t tell. It is required that the dirty diapers be thrown away in the lavatory or off the plane. A flight attendant will refuse it in their regular trash pickups.
On The Plane
Business class is good, grandparents are better.
If it’s your first time flying you may have an overwhelming sense of guilt for what you may be exposing your inflight neighbors to. And yes, it may be loud and involve screams and glares and all sorts of bad stuff. But more often than not, your baby will be fine either eating (during take off and landing to keep their little ears clear) or sleeping. People are generally kind, and if they’re not than I say %$&! ’em.
When your baby is very little they don’t need toys or books, just loving arms and some food. I think travelling with really young babies is actually much easier than older ones, albeit a little boring.
If you’re travelling alone, make sure to get anything out you might need and stick it in the seat pocket, so you won’t be fumbling around too much. Hopefully you’re travelling with your partner, in which case you’re $$$ honey. Two sets of arms, someone to buffer you from the rest of the plane, and a person to feed and water YOU is always nice to have.
6 Months – 18 Months
When your child is older they will obviously be more active and interested in the world around them. This becomes extra fun when you’re flying coach and the person in front of you has big hair that a baby would love to tug on. It also means that when they coo and gaze at strangers they’re often going to get a smile in return, which is nice for everyone.
The previous list holds true here, and if your baby is into toys/books you should bring a couple. Bring a bottle for your baby to sip on (if they’re not still nursing) for take off and landing. If your baby is eating solids, bring them. Again, liquids are okay, but they will be scanned by TSA at security and there’s a good chance you’ll get a rub pat down too. But mostly, just be ready to be the most interactive parent you’ve ever been in your life. Now, dance monkey!
18 Months – 23 Months
In doing some research I found out that if your baby celebrates their second birthday while in the air, you will indeed have to buy them a ticket. So don’t travel on your baby’s birthday at midnight.
When P was about 18 months he got too big to have a pillow and sit on my lap. I still wore the same huge maternity shirt in case he wanted to nurse (he often didn’t), we brought along a couple of toys/books, and I even loaded movies and apps onto the iPad for the brief time that they would hold his attention.
Honestly, this is the most uncomfortable time to travel with a child. They’re getting bigger, they need to move more and are ready to throw down a tantrum at a moments notice. This is when Business/First class is super nice if you can afford it. More dancing, more monkey, go!
2+ Years
On our most recent trip Porter got his own seats. It was great. Despite his obsession for putting the tray table up and down, we both had space. His interest in airplanes and airports was very inspiring. I brought a pillow (tied up with a shoe lace) in hopes that he would nap, but he didn’t, shoot.
I didn’t bring the umbrella stroller (we checked it with luggage) and instead opted for a Trunki. A lovely carry-on which contained his toys/books/diapers, which is conveniently capable of pulling your child on. You should seriously check it out. Porter rode through the airport some of the way, pulled it some of the way, and when he was over it I just slung it over my shoulder.
Before getting on the plane, talk with your child about what to expect. Get a book (like one of these) that explains the airport/flying process, and certainly remind them that they’ll have to wear a seat belt. Show them the signs on the plane and the different parts. Don’t be afraid to enlist a friendly flight attendant to talk with your child. Sometimes a perfect stranger has a positive effect on your child’s desire to stay seated.
During take off and landing P and I practiced opening our mouths very big. We then licked pretend ice cream cones and swallowed the pretend ice cream. Imagination, works like a charm!
At this point you’ve made it! Now your child is really expensive and considered a full human being – at least to the airlines. Gone are the days of cutting in front of the security lines. On the upside, we’ve mastered art of standing up while changing a diaper in the lavatory. If you have the distinct pleasure of potty training while travelling, more power to you! The success you’ll feel after your baby uses the onboard lavatory for the first time is oddly empowering and definitely a momentous occasion worthy of turbulence and exaltation. Now, go enjoy your trip!
Anything I left out? Add your ideas in the comments.
Living With Less
