There's An App For That!

When I hear the familiar tune for an iPhone commercial, I drop what I am doing and "rewind" the DVR, not wanting to miss a single second of the ad. I marvel over the latest apps that promise me efficiency, knowledge, fun, and tight abs. There are thousands of apps out there - 66,000 according to the newspaper this week. I thought that somewhere among the thousands of iPhone apps there had to be a few that would be beneficial to moms, so I started my search in the iTunes Store. Within minutes, I discovered I could learn Aussie slang, find my way through Paris, or track my finances. I could even identify a rare bird or a poisonous mushroom while out on a hike. Well, as a busy mom, I do not see the practicality of learning Aussie slang, and since a nature hike is a rare occurrence, an overseas adventure would be even more unlikely. Which leaves me with tracking my finances, but like I said, I have children, and well... you know what I am saying.

Dissatisfied with my initial results, I continued my quest. I had an inkling of success when I noticed, glowing on the right side of the iTunes Store window, these two perfect words - power search. Using this feature, I entered mom-related keywords, and boy, did I find the mother load of apps for mothers. There are apps that log the entire pregnancy, practically from conception. Some apps can time contractions or track the number of kicks from baby, while others are more suitable after baby for recording feedings and diaper changes. Even though the iPhone is one incredible device, it can't actually change the baby...yet. There are apps that can direct moms to the nearest playground, record vaccinations, and plot out growth charts for kids. Right at our fingertips are the tools to make parenting just a little easier.

With continued investigation, I came upon an app that all parents and moms-to-be should put on their iPhones. This free app isn't about convenience or entertainment, it is about health and safety. Fish4Health educates users about safe fish consumption for women and young children. For years, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has publicized fish advisories for women and young children. The reason being that many fish and shellfish are contaminated with toxins such as mercury, PCBs, chlordane, dioxins, and DDT. These chemicals may harm the developing nervous system of a fetus or young child. Here's a quick biology lesson - these contaminants end up in our lakes, rivers, and oceans from man-made causes such as insecticide and fertilizer use in agriculture and burning of fossil fuels. These toxins settle in the water and persist for long periods of time. Bottom-feeding creatures accumulate the toxins which pass up the food chain to larger fish...the higher up the food chain, the higher the levels of contamination. Think about where humans are in the food chain and you will understand why this is a health problem for our offspring.

We know that fish consumption is an important part of a healthy diet for everyone. By following these recommendations from the EPA, women and young children can get the health benefits of eating fish and shellfish while at the same time reducing exposure to the harmful effects of mercury and other toxins. Keep in mind that children need to eat child-sized portions of fish and shellfish.

• Do not eat Shark, Swordfish, King Mackerel, or Tilefish because they contain high levels of mercury.
• Eat up to 12 ounces (2 average meals) a week of a variety of fish and shellfish that are lower in mercury.
  • Five of the most commonly eaten fish that are low in mercury are shrimp, canned light tuna, salmon, pollock, and catfish.
  • Another commonly eaten fish, albacore ("white") tuna has more mercury than canned light tuna. So, when choosing your two meals of fish and shellfish, you may eat up to 6 ounces (one average meal) of albacore tuna per week.
• Check local advisories about the safety of fish caught by family and friends in your local lakes, rivers, and coastal areas. If no advice is available, eat up to 6 ounces (one average meal) per week of fish you catch from local waters, but don't consume any other fish during that week.

So keep this advice in mind next time you are eating fish or shellfish. Download Fish4Health if you are an iPhone enthusiast. If you have other parenting issues, quandaries, or questions, take a look-see at the iTunes Store because "there's an app for that".

www.epa.gov

Holding Hands Is More Than A Sign Of Affection

The other day, my mom eyes (you know, the ones on the back of your head) caught sight of my eight-year-old son as he was darting out from our parked car right into oncoming traffic. My Ninja-like reflexes sprang into action. I grabbed him by the scruff of his neck, just as any good mother in the animal kingdom does to get the immediate attention of her wayward offspring, and pulled him to safety. I gave him the stern lecture about parking lot rules for what I believe to be the bazillionth time since he took his first steps at the age of 14 months. The seriousness of my words melted him into a puddle of tears, but he needs to learn how to stay safe. My son, like other children his age, is impulsive, impatient, and inattentive, and he does not have ADD. His young mind is distracted by the way the wind blows, "Puffles", and coming up with another reason why he can't clean his room. In addition, he is completely incapable of just walking anywhere, his choice of forward motion is a jump, lunge, or gallop. I know from all my child development classes that children do not fully their develop depth perception or spatial awareness until the tween years. When you add in impaired judgment of speed and distance and the usual clumsiness of a growing body, my son (and every other child) is a walking, talking accident waiting to happen. Fortunately, I have managed to keep him from harm's way and have every intention of continuing this trend, even if it means that I occasionally dent his self-esteem. My thought is that tears and sadness can be fixed with a big hug and an "I love you", where as an injured brain...not so much. Within minutes following this incident, I knew all was fine with him as his little hand grabbed onto mine when we reached the corner of the street and safely crossed it together.

I share this little tale as children everywhere are heading back to school. They will be spending more time out of view of your watchful eye. According to a recent statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), approximately 900 pedestrians younger than 19 years of age are killed each year. Additionally, another 51,000 children are injured as pedestrians and about 10% of these children require hospitalization for their injuries. It is suggested by the AAP that children 10 years and younger be supervised when crossing the street or when in other areas with vehicular traffic. You need to be aware of pedestrian safety and review it often with your children, no matter what their age is. Use those teachable moments to your advantage, whenever or wherever they occur. There is a great song called "In the Middle, In the Middle, In the Middle" by They Might Be Giants. With its toe-tapping xylophonic refrain, this memorable tune teaches young kids the basics of safely crossing the street. For additional information about pedestrian safety for children, please refer to Safe Kids USA. Since 2000, their initiative, "Safe Kids Walk This Way", has provided pedestrian safety education around the world. So whether you use a song, a safety tip sheet, or teach your children the rules of the road (and parking lot) by rote, just remember to hold their hands too.

http://www.usa.safekids.org/wtw/

Sleep And A Little Shakespeare

Enjoy the honey-heavy dew of slumber;
Thou hast no figures, nor no fantasies,
Which busy care draws in the brains of men;
Therefore thou sleep'st so sound.

Sleep...we all do it, none of us get enough of it, and as parents we obsess about it at various points of our child's life. A parent of a newborn is thrilled with the little milestones...a 2 hour stretch of sleep at night...a nap that coincides with a much-needed shower for mom. We all remember when our baby slept through the night for the first time. I thought that I would be well rested when that day came, but I was not. Instead of reveling in the quiet slumber of my baby and catching some solid zzz's myself, I would anxiously drift in and out of sleep all night, believing at any moment, she would wake. With the preschool years come new sleep issues...they need the nap and we need them to take the nap, but by nightfall, they are not tired because of that nap. Also, the monsters under the bed, extra drinks and then visits to the potty are diversional tactics that all 4-year-olds master. It is all over when they figure out that asking for extra hugs and kisses actually get a reaction from mom and dad. They eventually grow out of that and one day wake up as a teenager. However, I will leave this topic to a future post as there is so much to say about the vampire-like sleep habits of adolescents. Today, I am focused on my school-aged children and their sleep hygiene (a term I haven't used since grad school). According to the research, many school-aged children average 1-2 hours less sleep each night than they require for expected growth and development. This can lead to inattention, poor performance in school and athletics, and cranky kids with crankier parents.

School starts in two days for my children. During the summer, school-year bedtime habits fall by the wayside and are replaced by late nights and late mornings. We will have a brutal wake-up call as my daughter catches her bus at 7:25 AM., over an hour earlier than previous years. Every August, we have this same conversation about two weeks before school starts, and it goes something like this..."Tonight, let's put the kids to bed 15 minutes earlier than last night and wake them up earlier, and do this each night until they are back to the usual school-year bedtime." However, it never happens. Somehow it just does not seem right to force them to go to bed when the sun still shines and other kids are outside playing. I did give the earlier bedtime a go last night, but ten minutes later I heard "I can't fall asleep" uttered by my son. I do take comfort in the fact that my friends and their kids are in the same sinking ship as we are, just like when we had sleepless nights with our newborns. Now that it is Tminus48 hours until school, I guess my kids will have to get by on the first-day-of-school rush and hope is lasts until the weekend, and we grown-ups will rely on our friend, Caffeine, a little more than usual over the next few weeks. Tonight, I will try our bedtime plan again, and when I hear "I can't fall asleep!", perhaps I will read them some Shakespeare.