PulseonParenting | Let's Get to the Heart of Parenting

Winning: Is That What it’s All About?

Mar 17 2015

Pinewood Derby Fever recently took command of our household. As our boys’ searched the internet for design ideas, assisted Dad with the shaping and drilling of the wood and gleefully sprayed paint on their carefully cut creations, it was hard not to get caught up in their enthusiasm. The best part was learning to fix mistakes, like the misplaced drill hole that was transformed into a brad-covered “gas cap.” Parents and their boys, spending time together, building something by hand. Isn’t that the point? It should be. But Pinewood Derby is a confusing combination of handshake agreement and paperwork. It’s…

Remind Me, Who is This For Again?

Mar 12 2015

Take a look at Pinterest, she said. There are some really cool ideas, she said. Boy, were there ever. I “pinned” five. I liked even more. That unsettling combo of excitement and stress started to bubble up from my stomach toward my chest and pulsed into my head, which began humming with white noise. Then, in a rare moment of clarity, a voice said: Stop. This is ridiculous. Who is this actually for??? It was time to plan the annual Cub Scout Pinewood Derby. My boys’ den leader, whom I greatly admire, approached me and asked if I would help…

Strep Throat: Easy Fix, Not Easily Suspected

Mar 04 2015

Well, it finally happened. My kids had their first bout of strep throat. My girly daughter was thrilled with her “pink”-acillin, happy to take a plastic shot glass-sized amount twice a day. My younger son was stoked, thinking he would get the same pink goo. But he ended up with a liquid that he said tasted like “poison cherries,” tortured to take it three times a day. And it only went down hill from there: my older son ended up with amoxicillin capsules, the bitter contents of which we sprinkled in applesauce and he slurped down with nary a breath.

Jenny McCarthy, Mouthpiece Mom

Feb 18 2015

Tired of all the vaccine talk? I kinda am. And I thought it was just receiving vaccines that caused sleepiness (my kids crashed big after boosters). But no, this time it is my brain that is tired. But to lay this issue to rest (at least for now) I need to get something off my mind. Actually, I need to get someone off my mind. Jenny McCarthy. Mom, famous-person, apparent anti-vaxx advocate. It says something when a well-known individual’s stint as Playmate of the Year gets upended by her staunch support of the vaccines-cause-autism movement (McCarthy even went so far as to…

Grocery Store “Gangstas”

Feb 11 2015

He was so proud. He loved bell peppers and tiny things in general (still does) and showed me the diminutive green pepper while we shopped the produce section of the grocery store. I turned away for just a few seconds (it’s always “just a few seconds,” right?) to select some lettuce and when I turned back to my son, his tongue was hanging out of his mouth and jalapeño seeds falling to the floor.

Why We Vaccinate

Feb 05 2015

[For this week’s photo, imagine a seven year old girl with glasses, opening Christmas presents. That little girl is me, with the chicken pox] The answer may seem obvious, but why do we vaccinate children against diseases we may never have heard of, much less whose names we can’t pronounce? Parents and guardians who consent to having their children vaccinated do get that information (it is a federal law that families receive vaccine information sheets, otherwise known as VIS’s). However, parents who chose to forgo vaccines for their children are not required to take VIS’s. Why not? Every parent…

Another Important Fact About Childhood Vaccines

Jan 29 2015

After posting Should I Vaccinate My Children? yesterday and “sleeping on it” I realized another important piece of information needs inclusion. Any parent considering or reconsidering whether to vaccinate their kids needs to know this: it’s never too late. If your child is school-aged (even a collegiate) and never been vaccinated or only partially vaccinated, age-appropriate “catch-up” protocols exist. Grown ups may also apply.

Jan 28 2015

I‘m going to give this to you straight. As in 23-gauge needle straight: ∗Vaccinate your kids. ∗ Let them eat dirt. ∗Don’t freak if they eat their boogers. ∗(Do freak if they eat someone else’s.) Evidence supports doing the first two. The third falls under the “can’t hurt ’em” line of thinking. And the fourth, well, goes without saying. What can hurt, as we know, is the sting from a needle delivering a vaccine, often several administered in rapid succession. But what can hurt even more are the repercussions from choosing to forgo “shots.”

A Reason to Recharge

Jan 22 2015

The other morning I needed to recharge. I went to Friday Flow yoga and reconnected with some amazing people. I got my favorite Chai from my favorite local coffee place. “Me Time” at its best. Maybe it was the clarity that only yoga and a jolt of spicy tea can provide, but I got to thinking about this thing we call “Me Time.” The time we take for just ourselves. The time we rarely indulge in because we have responsibilities and commitments. A sense of obligation, and even guilt, makes “Me Time” sound too decadent and selfish. But “Me Time”…

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