Archive for Baby Enrichment
NYT Blog: Only 940 Saturdays with Your Child
Posted by: | CommentsI came across a very thought-provoking blog on the New York Times website a few days ago. It’s entitled “Childhood: 940 Saturdays and You’re Done.” Apparently, one doctor did the math and calculated that there are exactly 940 Saturdays from the time a child is born until he turns 18. And, as the NYT blog mentions, there are only 260 Saturdays from birth to age 5.
Ahh! Time already feels like it flies by, but hearing stats like this only makes it worse. Still, it’s a great reminder to savor our time with our children while they are young—especially on weekends when many families have both parents at home at the same time.
Personally, I love doing fun, exciting, out-of-the-box things on the weekends like traveling to new places. But last weekend, seemingly, could not have been more mundane or in-the-box. We spent the whole weekend mulching our front yard and doing some home improvement projects. But you know what? Pudge had a ball helping Daddy mulch and fix things (for the record, Mommy was there doing the chores right alongside Daddy—nevertheless, the whole week, Pudge talked about how he “mulched with Daddy.” *Sigh* If only mommies were as exciting as daddies…) As it turns out, even just doing chores together can make for great memories.
With that, enjoy your weekend!
When is the Best Time to Start Preschool?
Posted by: | CommentsEducation—both inside and outside the home—is probably our most important parental duty. Since my son is still so young, I’m particularly interested in preschool right now. Previously, we’ve discussed whether it’s necessary to send your child to preschool at all and, if so, how to pay for it. We’ve also talked about whether any old preschool will achieve the desired educational goals or whether it’s important to send your child to a prestigious one.
Now I need more of your input! We’ve decided that we are definitely going to send our son to preschool, but we’re struggling as to when he should start. Though uncommon, there are some preschools in our area that take kids as young as 18 months (and they claim it is truly preschool, not daycare). Since my son is already 20 months, clearly we’re not going that route, but lots of preschools here start at 24 months—in fact, that seems to be the standard in northern Virginia.
I only had one year of preschool myself (starting at age 4), but I do see the potential merits of a child having two or even three years of schooling under his/her belt before heading off to kindergarten. But I also wonder how much more prepared a child would be having two years of preschool as opposed to only one.
What do you think? When is the ideal time for a child to start preschool? Age 2? 3? 4? And given that there’s a cost to preschool, do you think extra years (that is, starting at age 2 or 3) is worth the cost?
I’m looking into a possible “intro preschool” classes, where Pudge would only go one or two days a week for only 2-3 hours at a time. But I’m wishy-washy about even that. I could use your advice!!!
Do You Find Age Guidelines for Toys to be Appropriate?
Posted by: | CommentsI’ve been perusing the aisles of our local toy stores for the last few weeks to start getting Christmas ideas for my son. He (like most little boys) is enamored with toy cars and trucks, so naturally, I spend most of my time looking there. However, as I was looking at the cars, I noticed that the vast majority of them are recommended for ages 3 and up. The only cars that are for younger kids are extremely babyish—and baby toys are, like, so 6 months ago 
!
Despite the age guidelines, though, I’ve bought Pudge many cars, trucks and other toys that are technically meant for older kids, and he loves them. I’ve gotten him a few Matchbox cars (recommended for age 3 and up), and he always picks them over his Fisher Price cars (recommended for 18 months and up).
So, it got me wondering. Do you find the age guidelines on toys to be appropriate for your kids? I certainly understand that there are legal and safety reasons for such recommendations, but I also know that my son likes what he likes—and he is certainly not interested in toys meant for his age group anymore.
Have you had a similar experience or do you find toys to be labeled for the appropriate age? And do you buy toys meant for older kids or do you stick to the age guidelines for your children’s toys for safety or other reasons?
What Are You Teaching Your Toddler?
Posted by: | CommentsKids are sponges! We’ve all heard it before, but we aren’t truly awed by the amount, scope and speed of kids’ learning until we become parents. In the past few months, Pudge has started to pick up on everything! He knows the whole alphabet, can do puzzles with ease that are supposedly designed for kids 3 and up, and has even figured 
out how to unlatch our child safety latches (wonderful…).
I’m constantly reminded how quickly kids learn new things, and I’m looking for new ways to continue to challenge Pudge’s little mind. What types of things do you teach your kids (even if teaching at this age isn’t all that formal)? I have been teaching my son the names of many body parts, the alphabet, numbers 1-10, and recently we’ve started playing around with rhyming. I try to let him lead (he’s essentially told me he was ready to start learning his letters when one days he handed me his letter flashcards and sat down as we went through all 26), but I also want to expose him to new things so pique his interest.
What types of things are you teaching your toddlers? And what have they picked up that you didn’t realize you taught them?
Time to Buy a Sandbox!
Posted by: | CommentsAfter our week at the beach, 
I’ve realized that we definitely need to buy a sandbox for Pudge. He loved sprawling in the sand, and he would laugh when we’d bury his legs in the sand. So cute!
Anybody have a recommendation for a good sandbox? I’ve thought about getting one of those classic turtle ones, but I was thinking it might be nice to get one that has a water feature to it because I think we might be more likely to use that kind in the summer heat.
What are some other good outdoor summer toys?
Do You Need to Send Your Child to the Harvard of Preschools?
Posted by: | CommentsThough it’s still a little ways off, my husband and I have started to plan for Pudge’s preschool education (see my previous post on whether two years of preschool is necessary). Since we moved to a new area, we’ve started to research some schools. In particular, we need to know whether preschools in our new town have long waiting lists that we need to quickly get on or whether we can wait another year or two to really start our search.
I’ve come across a couple of mothers who insist that getting your child on the waitlist for one of the “elite” preschools is the best way to ensure he begins his education with a leg up on the competition (read: other 4-year-olds). And while such “elite” preschools are plentiful in the over-achieving DC suburbs, I wonder whether it’s really necessary to send my son to the Harvard of preschools in order to start him off on the right foot. After all, the main purpose of preschool is to learn about the structure of a school day and to hone important social skills, right? I mean, what could make one preschool WAY better than another? They finger paint in crimson and puce instead of red and green?! I feel like the majority of preschools—even the so-called “mediocre” ones—would probably teach a child all he needs to know to prepare for kindergarten.
Having said that, I certainly don’t want to saddle my son with any educational disadvantages. If the kids graduating from the “Harvard” preschools are entering kindergarten with a third-grade reading level and a solid grasp of basic math, then I will certainly pay the extra money to send my little Pudge to such a school. But if the kids from these schools are really not much better off than kids from “average” preschools, then I think our money may be better spent elsewhere (such as, the college fund).
What do you think? Is it necessary to send your child to an elite preschool? If so, what advantages do you think they get there? If not, what criteria do you use to choose the right school?
The Sound of Pop Music
Posted by: | CommentsMy husband and I met in college when we joined the same a cappella group. Needless to say, we are big music buffs and love to play music of all kinds for Pudge. While I 
fully expected him to prefer “baby” music, such as “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” “ Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes,” and “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,” he has only a passing interest in such songs. He actually much prefers the “adult” music we play for him.
As an infant, he had a strong affinity for the Glee soundtracks (as does Mommy ). Now that he’s older, his tastes are a little edgier—John Mayer, Billy Joel, and Lady Antebellum are his new faves (ok, none of these are exactly “edgy,” but compared to Glee, just about anything is edgy!). I love, love, LOVE that he’s such a pop music fan because I think I might go insane listening to baby songs all day long.
What types of music do your kids enjoy? Any other pop lovers out there?
Spring has Sprung! What Activities Do You Have in Store?
Posted by: | Comments
I’m so excited that it’s officially spring! We’ve actually been lucky here in northern Virginia to have had nice weather for about a month now, but even nicer weather is on its way! Pudge and I have been enjoying long afternoon stroller rides, which I sorely missed in the middle of the winter. Yay for sunny, warm days!
Do you have any plans now that spring is here? We are going to be very busy since we have sold our house and are in the process of buying a new house (I’ll have more to report on that later…).
What are your favorite springtime activities to do with kids? Which ones have you missed the most?
What was Your Baby’s First Word?
Posted by: | CommentsTo my great delight, my son’s first word was “mama.” I was actually a little surprised that he said “mama” first since I had read that “da” is actually an easier sound for babies to make than “ma,” so I was totally expecting “dada” to come out first. And, though he has been saying “mama” for a while now, he has yet to say “dada.” (Sorry, 
hubby.)
But not all babies say “mama” or “dada” first. My in-laws swear that my husband’s first word was “igloo” (though he and I are fairly sure that they were just searching for a word in his baby babble and convinced themselves that they heard “igloo”). And one of my friends’ kids said “baba” first (for bottle).
What was your child’s first word, and when did he/she say it? Did your baby say lots of other words soon after or did he/she just stick to one or two words for a while?
What Do You Think About Educational DVDs for Babies?
Posted by: | CommentsYesterday, Groupon offered a deal on educational DVDs intended for babies, and it got me thinking. Are such DVDs actually teaching babies anything? Our pediatrician recommends no TV for babies under age 2. And even beyond age 2, she recommends limiting TV time to no more than 30 minutes a day. She says that babies that young do not really understand what is going on plot-wise, but they do get mesmerized by the lights and flashiness of TV. Basically, babies turn into mini-zombies when they watch TV, she argues, and therefore, it’s best to expose them to as little as possible.
However, some of my friends swear by educational DVDs for their toddlers. One friend says that her daughter learned some elementary Spanish by age 3, thanks to such DVDs. And another argues that her kids absolutely grasp what’s going on in educational TV shows because they regularly recite lyrics from songs in the shows.
Time magazine ran a story back in 2007 that explained why DVDs aimed at babies are not really making them smarter. In fact, the Baby Einstein company, which had advertised that babies learn to speak sooner by watching their DVDs, retracted many of its claims following reports that babies who did not watch the DVDs actually talked sooner than those that did watch.
But, again, I still think parents know best, so my interest piques when I hear parents rave about such educational videos. What do you think? Have you tried such videos with your kids? How much TV do you let your children watch? At what age did you first let them watch TV?
