Does Your Toddler Make You Cry?

If he doesn’t sleep through the night, is a hellion on the playground, goes on joy rides without you knowing it or breaks into other people’s homes when he’s supposed to be in time-out, then there’s a good chance you’ve shed a few tears in the last week or so. The good news: If you’re a mom and your toddler’s behavior makes you weep, you aren’t alone. Whether you have a rambunctious toddler or not, a new poll shows that the average woman cries for 12,012.92 hours over the course of 78.5 years. To put that into perspective, women basically … Continue reading

Toddlers and Guns Don’t Mix

Newsflash: Loaded guns and toddlers don’t mix. In other news… saying something will never happen to you, typically begets negative results. Just ask these parents: In Las Vegas some heat packing parents are hoping beyond hope that their 2-year-old daughter will survive after being shot by their 4-year-old. According to police, the girl is in critical condition while the father remains in custody for allegedly leaving a improperly secured loaded gun laying around in the family’s home. In South Carolina, a 3-year-old boy shot his 4-year-old brother with a gun he allegedly found under the bed at the home of … Continue reading

Teaching Your Toddler to Lose Gracefully

Yeah, right! Good luck with that. I know some adults (okay, one in particular) who explode when they miss a single shot at a mini-golf course, so the thought of having a toddler lose gracefully is somewhat of an oxymoron to me. Still, childhood experts say it is very possible for young children to lose a game without having a full-blown meltdown, provided you teach them about winning first. This, of course, opens an entirely different can of worms: When playing a game with your toddler (Candy Land, hopscotch, Memory, etc.) do you let her win all the time, or … Continue reading

Obtaining a Passport for Your Toddler

If you’re jetting off to an international destination with your toddler this summer, then you’re going to have to get him a passport. What’s more, it doesn’t matter if your child is two weeks old, two months old, or two years old, your little guy or gal will need to be present during the application process. Government officials warn that a passport will not be issued to parents who do not bring their children along to an official passport agency. To help expedite the annoying (at times) task of obtaining a passport for your toddler, consider the following guidelines: *Complete … Continue reading

How to Make Fat Tuesday Fun for Kids

Fat Tuesday is typically associated with half-naked women whipping out their hooters and half-naked men whipping beads at ladies to see said hooters. Not exactly kid-friendly stuff. These days you don’t have to travel to New Orleans or Rio de Janeiro to partake in R-rated Fat Tuesday celebrations complete with raucous booze-filled parties. Heck, the tiny rural town I reside in holds an annual Fat Tuesday beer chugging contest at the pub on Main Street. Hide your children… or steer clear of the mayhem by taking them to Mass. On Shrove Tuesday our church is celebrating a Votive Mass in … Continue reading

What Others See

Do you ever wonder what others see when they look at your marriage or when they look at your family? Sometimes they may not see the picture we see in our minds. I was reminded of this recently. Over the Christmas period a friend of mine dropped into our place. I apologized later from the noise and mayhem. With several generations that included six adults, two young school aged children, a toddler and a baby, it was noisy. But that’s not what she saw. She thought it was ‘lovely to see a normal happy family enjoying themselves and celebrating together.’ … Continue reading

Larry Boy and the Rumor Weed (1999) Plus, Where to Buy Larry Boy Stuff!

Our favorite plunger-headed hero is back in this wacky animated adventure of madness and mayhem starring Larry the Cucumber. A weed has popped up in a crack in the sidewalk and starts spreading rumors about the good citizens of Bumblyberg. With a large head of yellow hair and a voice that sounds remarkably like Joan Rivers, it’s hard to ignore this weed, especially with her bright red lipstick. As people listen to the rumors she spreads, she gains power, growing larger and larger. The two gossip-mongers who do the most damage are Laura Carrot and Junior Asparagus, those two little … Continue reading