This was too precious to keep to myself

This past Sunday Justyn, Alexarya and I went into the city to walk around a street fair (Justyn's favorite thing to do on a Sunday afternoon) On our way there we passed by a great looking park on the corner or Hudson and Bleecker and decided to make a pit stop. There was a fountain for kids to run in and swings and a sand box and a huge area to sit and run around and lots of shade. I highly recommend it. Between the park and the car we walked past the Marc Jacobs store and in the window there was a real sight to see. The video speaks for itself...

This was the fountain at the water park

New Food For Baby

OKay so who else is sick of the same 5 thing they can think up to feed their kid?!! I know I am. Alexarya doesn't seem to care but I think she may need a little more diversity. I guess part of the problem is that I am a simple eater and I don't really care much about variety. (This also makes me a faithful wife...hehehehe) Well, I'm not sure if this simple little recipe is new to anyone but I hadn't thought of it till now cause Alexarya hasn't seemed to like fish. Today I made her some bow tie pasta. I cooled them off and added a can of tuna and some mayo, mixed it up and handed her a small bowl. She loved it! Yumm Yumm. The bow ties are just the right size, the mayo is devilishly slippery and somehow she doesn't seem to realize there is fish in the mix..woo hoo
I recommend giving this dish no more than once a week, if not less because there are high level of mercury in tuna (not enough that one meal matters and the pros out weigh the cons) but don't go over board. The next time I make it I am thinking about chopping up some raisins into tiny little pieces and throwing them in. The are sweet and high in iron. I think they go well with tuna.
Enjoy

Happy Birthday to you Azie

Leslie would like to stroll on Sunday

I got this email from Leslie the other day.
"It is supposed to be really nice this weekend, and it would be nice to get some people together to stroll on the Boardwalk. I haven't seen many of your little ones in a long time now! I was thinking 2pm, let's meet up at the Bulls Ferry playground and then stroll."
---Leslie

Can someone please call a medic!!

So why does it seem I am frequently one second too late when it comes to rescuing Alexarya from getting hurt? I spend 90% of my day no more than 5 feet away from her, watchful and alert, and yet at least once a day, she seems to meet with disaster. Oddly, I get this strange ESP kind of thing that happens about a second before the tragedy. It seems like a premonition of sorts, and I can almost see the accident before it happens. However, I guess cause I'm new to this whole mommy thing, instead of it causing a knee jerk reaction of jumping toward Alexayra I just sit there thinking "this looks kind of dangerous to me. Maybe she shouldn't be doing that." It never fails, that one second later, she is laying on the floor crying or bleeding or just tangled up in a strange position looking helplessly for me. And I say to myself, why didn't I stop that? I thought it might happen. Why didn't I prevent it?
Well, I was speaking to BN, (aka Azie) about it today and to my surprise and relief she told me that the same thing happens on her watch. (Not sure if that's the same thing, cause it is certainly easier for me to jump over and swoop up Alexarya than it is for Azie to get her 8 month preggie ass over and scoop up her gynormus kid) but still, it was a comforting thought. I'm not a bad mom, or if I am at least I'm not the only bad mom (thanks Azie). We do the best we can, right!?. I'm going to try to listen to my sixth sense from now on and focus on the 100 other times that day that I did manage to spare her from agony; And
today, when Alexarya is half way up the couch balancing her remaining foot on a slippery magazine, I am going to try my best to make it there on time. If by chance I stop her fall and 5 minutes later she gets her finger caught in the drawer I'm not going to feel guilty. This kid has to learn what is safe and what isn't by trial and error. You can't just slide off something twice your height onto an open box of crayons and not get one stuck between your toes...that's an important lesson. One day she'll thank me. (probably from the top of a cliff just before she bungee jumps off...."THANKSSSSSSS MOMMMMMMMMM"......... ;-)

Carters Sale

Carter's is having a sale...$5, $7, $9 plus here's a $10 coupon
http://view.exacttarget.com/?j=fe4e1579736c0d797d10&m=fefe1671706100&ls=fdf11374706c037c7417727d&l=fe671575726406757515&s=fdfc157575660d7f71127271&jb=ffcf14&ju=fe1b16727d6c077a731d77

Ben and Jerry's blogging disaster

Okay, so I dropped the blogging ball today. I totally missed posting the free ice cream at Ben and Jerry's. Alexarya and I were out of the house at 8:20am to go to Little Gym and we hung out at Ikea and the Christmas store with Olga and Alina (and Olga's mom, who is visiting from Russia for the next 2 months) all afternoon. I got an e-mail on my iphone from Erin around 7:45am telling me about the free ice cream and sharing her wish for me to post the news but I was already in the car when I read it. Then I got an e-mail from Ben and Jerry's telling me of the news but I was not home to post it on the blog. I felt so guilty about it. I mean here I am, trying to help bring the fun events to the mommies of West New York and I am failing to report a FREE ice cream cone!! Mommy blog news doesn't get more important than that! Well, by the time I got home I was wiped out but Alexarya was in the mood to play play play so we did. When I finally put her down for a little nap at 4:30 I checked my email and low and behold there was an email from no other than my mommy blogging nemesis, Azie Shellhorse and to my horror and disbelief I proceeded to read the email she sent to all the West New York mommies informing them about the free ice cream cone at our local Ben and Jerry's. That was the last straw. I decided it must be time for me to hang up my blogging shoes and call it quits. So with my head hanging low, I woke up my sleeping baby and dragged her to Ben and Jerry's to get myself a free cone. When I got there I ran into Kelly who was outside with Madeleine enjoying their free cone of half baked. I said hello, with my head hung low, sure that she wasn't there because of anything she'd read on the blog. She said hi too. As I turned away to get on the line, she said to me that she just wanted to thank me for doing the blog. ;-) and she left it at that.
Well, I had planned on going to go home and resigning as blog editor but after hearing Kelly's encouraging words I realized that there were people out there who wanted me to keep writing. Who want me to keep posting. Who would like me to keep this town's mommies informed and united. So, while I can not promise to report every single thing going on in this crazy town I will promise you this..the next time there is a free cone at Ben and Jerry's you better believe you will here it from me first!!!!!

Kidville

Alexarya and I met my friend Avi and her son Aaron today at a place called Kidville. It's in Manhattan, Columbus and 83rd street. It's a lot like Little Gym except you are allowed free play time, which is great cause Alexarya really loves to run free these days and when it's raining she can go pretty stir crazy at home and so can I! There isn't a Kidville in NJ yet but maybe Little Gym will change their free play policy. I'm going to talk to them tomorrow.

This is such a must see...Susan Boyle

Click on the link above.
This audition made me cry. It was so surprisingly beautiful.

Playground kind of day

Well it was finally nice enough to play outside today. It was so great to run around, laughing and smiling. We met Nomi and Jay at the playground now that they are finally back in town. Yeah! We ran into Roni and Yarden (who is walking like a champ, woo hoo) and then Leslie at A&P. It felt like a small town day. My favorite kind.

Joyful Path of Good Fortune

The Great Kindness of Other Living Beings

"Everything we possess is ours only through the kindness of others. If it were not for others we would not be able to call our possessions our own. We did not manufacture them on our own, nor did they arise miraculously of their own accord. They were all produced in dependence upon the kindness of others. For example, take the bread we eat each day. Where does it come from? Many people labor in the fields to produce the wheat, and many people work to turn the wheat into loaves of bread and transport it to the shop where we buy it. We may think that the bread is ours simply because we paid for it, but money cannot produce bread. If we sow coins in the ground they will not produce a harvest. It is the kindness of others and not our own cash that provides the bread we need."

Geshe Kelsang Gyatso

Try recalling these words the next time you give your kiddie some milk. Trace the kindness if others who make it possible for you to nourish your child, from the farmer, to the workers at the milk company, to the truckers, the grocery store stock person, the cashier and most importantly THE COW, who shares the milk intended for her calf. I also like to remember the kindness of my hubby who provides the cash to buy it. ;-) If you are a working mom, perhaps you can think of the kindness of your boss (Okay, now did I go to far? lol)

Eggs and More

Morning breakfast time has been turned into a good meal for us, which is great, cause I don't really stress over what she eats again till about 4pm..We are usually on the go around noon time and it's hard to pin her down for a good lunch. So breakfast is our good meal.
Here's what we eat.
The veggie part I prepare in advance and keep in the fridge. (I learned this simply recipe from my good friend Avi) I pour some oil in a frying pan and add some sliced garlic. I place a top over it and let the garlic brown. Then I add small pieces of broccoli and cauliflower. I fix them up an place the top back on. I stir occasionally. After about 5 minutes I add a little water and leave the top on for about 5 more minutes so the veggies get soft. When these are done I just stick them in a Tupperware in the fridge.
In the morning I make an egg omelet. Pam or butter the pan, cook up 2 eggs, throw in a slice of American cheese. Wait for the cheese to start melting and add some of the veggies. Pour us each a cup of OJ, put some of the eggs on a plate for me ad some in a bowl for her and we are all set.
Simple, healthy for us both, and yum yum

Toddler Food Requirements

I got this from our last visit at Dr. Bacha's. I find it very useful cause some days Alexarya isn't that into drinking her milk. Sure you can relate.

..............Calcium Requirements
0-6 months.......................... 400mgms
6-12 months..........................600mgms
1 yr-12 yrs............................. 800mgms
Adolescent............................1200mgms
Adult...................................... 80mgms

Dietary Sources of Calcium

Dairy

Skim Milk, 1 cup (8oz)...............300mg
Plain Yogurt, 1 cup.....................295
Whole Milk, 1 cup......................290
Tofu 1/2 cup ..............................227
Cheddar cheese, 1 oz, 1 slice......205
American cheese, 1 oz ...............175
ice milk, soft serve.....................140
icecream 1/2 cup, 165fat .............75

Non-Dairy

Almonds 31/2 oz ......................255mg
Sardines, 5 small ......................250
Molasses, 1tbsp .........................140
Broccoli, cooked 1 cup ..............130
Sunflower seeds 31/2oz ........... 120
chickpeas, 1/2cup .....................100
Orange, large ............................. 95
Soybeans, 1/2 cup ......................88
Egg, large ...................................30
Hamburger 6oz ..........................20


Tums .....................................400mg per tab
Tums Ultra ...........................800mg

Daily requirements for a one-to-three-year-old:

Protein: Minimum of 16 grams. Try 16 ounces of milk plus one ounce of meat.

Fat: Toddlers should get at least 30 percent of their calories from fat for energy and growth needs.

Calories: 40 calories/day/inch of height (1000 to 1300 calories/day).
Calorie distribution should look something like this:
16 g protein = ..................64 calories
44 g fat = .......................396 calories
210 g carbohydrate = ....840 calories
Total = .........................1300 calories

Sodium: 325 to 1000 mg.

Vitamin C: 40 mg.

Vitamin A: 400 ug (micrograms).

Iron: 10 mg.

Zinc: 10 mg. A mild zinc deficiency in toddlers is common. Symptoms include poor appetite, sub-optimal growth and a reduced sense of taste and smell. The best sources of zinc are meat, eggs and seafood.

Folate: 50 ug.

The last four are the ones most often deficient in toddlers.
Try to serve the following each day:

* 2 to 3 cups of milk (or yogurt, cheese and pudding).
* 4 servings of fruits and vegetables. (Serving size: one tablespoon per year of age.) One serving should be high in vitamin C and another in vitamin A.
* 4 servings of bread and cereal. One should be an iron-fortified baby cereal. A serving is about 1/4 to 1/3 an adult portion (1/4 slice toast, 1/4 cup pasta).
* 2 servings of meat (a 1/6th of the size of a deck of cards) , beans, egg (1/4egg) , tofu, or peanut butter (1/4 tbls). A good serving of protein should be served at every meal. One serving equals 1/2 ounce

These last requirements were very reassuring to me as they are really sooo tiny..

Ikea Paramus

Fun Fun Fun. We went to Ikea today and met a bunch of new moms and kids, well new to us anyway. The kiddies LOVEDDDDD playing together. They were al ages but seemed to get along like a friendly pack of dogs. Some of the moms were telling me about a few cool places they go in the park. I will keep you informed. They really know how to have a good time, so they can count us in.

Ikea Paramus

Morning. Sorry for the last minute post but we had a very busy weekend. There is a meet-up this morning at 10:30 at Ikea in Paramus. For those of you who have not tried playing at Ikea yet you must give it a try. Go upstairs to the lunch room area and there is a whole play area for the kids that's squared off. There are tables and chairs around so you can eat while they play. There is also a kids toy and furniture section a few feet away where the kids can run around. Sometimes Olga, Alina, Alexarya and I can hang out there for hours. It's fun and free and you can pick up some fun stuff on the way out. There is also the most family friendly changing room I have ever seem there. Stocked with free diapers. a diaper genie and a place for mom to go too without the little one having to be squished in the cubicle with you. I'll be there. Come play with us.

Lucky's Funeral..

Lucky's Funeral
Just wait till our kids can talk!

But what about when it hurts too much to eat?

I brought Alexarya to see Dr Bacha today (best pediatrician EVER) to discus her moodiness and refusal to eat and just check and make sure nothing was wrong besides teething pain. He said "sorry but happy to say she's just teething." He said it wouldn't surprise him if her front top tooth broke the skin in the next 2 days...phew..
Dr. Bacha rocks, not just because he has 4 healthy, grown kids or because 2 of them work with him, not just because he's slow to vaccinate, and light on anti-biotics, not just because he is a sole practitioner that recommends many holistic alternatives and turned me on to an excellent physical therapist that cured Alexarya's torticollis without a helmet but because no matter when I go there, no matter what I go there for, he spends tons of time with us. For our 1 yr check up he spent an entire hour with us discussing the transitions!
Today he just leaned back in his chair and we talked till Alexarya felt safe enough for him to examine her. He laughed with me and went though all the possibilities. He did point out that she has only gained .03lbs in the last few weeks so he wanted us to try a food alternative. He told me that Nestle just came out with a new product called Kid essentials and he gave one to Alexarya. She loved it. It's a protein shake for toddlers. It also has antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. So as long as she drinks one a day plus her 800mgms of Calcium she will be just fine till this round of teething is over and she gets back to eating properly. The nurse, Dr. Bacha's daughter, said the chocolate flavored one tasted the best. She laughed, saying she'd tried them all... ;-)
I thought I'd share this shake with you just in case your little one is going though the same thing. ;-) or you are just worried he/she doesn't get enough good stuff.

Little Gym Pics