Sick of Chinese products

Another terrible story of bad or dangerous products coming from China are popping up daily. From date rape drug dots to salmonella laden food additives -when will this madness end?

I'll tell you when -when we stop buying cheap crap. Let's face it: the only reason most of us have this stuff is because the price is very attractive (even if the quality is dubious). We really need to start considering the longterm effects of buying cheap stuff from manufacturers who are looking to cut all corners -even at the risk of your child's health. So stop buying!

I can hear you already -"So what do we do now? Whittle our own toys?" That might not be such a bad idea after all. Did you know you can whittle a bar of soap? Also, if you go to a craft store there are millions of ideas for toys. Did you know that they sell clay that dries -you and your child can make your own actions figures/dolls/cars.

One of my fondest memories from childhood is when I made a doll house from a cardboard box -with an attached shoe box garage too! It is about time we start using our imaginations -show your children that things can be made instead of bought. This lesson will serve them well later in life after all not all things worth having are purchased.

Flying with Nuts -Part 1

A big thank you to my my sister-in-law who submitted this article. It is important enough that I think we should all be keenly aware what our children or their friends might be or are allergic to. Unfortunately, allergies can be life threatening. We count ourselves lucky because Claudia has never had an anaphylactic shock.

About a month ago we traveled to Romania to visit my Romanian side of the family and to introduce my husband to my relatives. Our daughter Claudia, age 4, is a veteran flyer by now, she has been traveling extensively since she was 1 1/2 years old.

I never thought of my daughter’s food allergy as a handicap or anything, but when trying to book through Orbitz I realized they have no options for people with life threatening allergies. They are concerned with vegan, low fat, low calories, etc. Their computer system needs to be updated to present times, when more and more people have diet restrictions because of health hazards; the diet preferences based on culture and religion, while important, are not as significant as having to avoid allergens in such a confined space as the passenger cabin of an airplane.

We had a scare on the Delta flight coming back home to US. From the start, the crew looked less than promising. From Bucharest to New York the flight is 10.5 hours long. We took crackers and a few other snacks for our daughter, just in case. The first snack served by the airline was peanuts. Bad for us, but a lot of people like peanuts. We politely refused the little packets of peanuts and told the flight attendants that our daughter is highly allergic and we will not have any.

Delta flight attendants are aware of the growing peanut allergy problem and the airline even has a policy of “safe buffer”. To make a long story short, it works like this: on another flight which served peanuts, the passengers in the row in front of us and we were spared of the peanut snack. But this was not the case on the return flight to New York. Smelling the peanuts around us, my heart pounded and I tried not to look worried; both my husband and I were watching my daughter’s face in case any sign of rash or swelling appeared around her eyes or neck. Finally the air cleared and we waited patiently for our next meal. For Claudia we chose a simple and safe dish: pasta.

We watched 3 movies, took a nap and played games to pass the time. We got really hungry and we anticipated our next meal with excitement: pizza. The description on the menu said nothing about nuts so we were hopeful Claudia will have a nice meal. When the food came, we were presented with a sandwich instead. We asked the flight attendants (again) about any nuts in the sandwich. I really feel foolish sometime when I keep asking the same question; but I owe it Claudia to make sure her food is safe. Answer being negative, we launched into devouring our sandwiches. My husband and I really liked the bread; it was a gourmet sandwich with blue cheese, tomato and basil on a bread baguette. Very yummy and we felt good to serve it to Claudia as well. However, she is not very keen on blue cheese (neither were some of the other passengers, we heard a few objections about the taste); so she only had a bite of bread before she started complaining about having an itchy mouth. I thought it was because she doesn’t like the blue cheese, she doesn’t even want to eat the bread, so I dismissed her by saying: “It is probably the blue cheese and basil you taste, please try another piece of bread”. At the same time I was pronouncing the words; my brain is processing the ingredients in the sandwich again: cheese, tomato, basil. Almost simultaneously with my husband we screamed the words: “Pesto Sauce!”. Before I go on about the panic that set in and I describe how quickly we found the Benadryl and gave it to her, I will explain the ingredients of pesto sauce, which is used in so many gourmet sandwiches: basil, oil, garlic, parmesan and walnuts or pine nuts. NUTS!! The antihistamine worked like a miracle, the itchiness in Claudia’s mouth stopped; we wrapped our unfinished sandwiches, placed them on a table far from her and waited. The entire experience had exhausted us.

Now I have mixed feelings about Delta. Half the time they were careful. It really matters who takes care of you in the air. The flight attendant’s care on the first flight saved us a lot of stress. The second crew kept giving us snacks and cakes which they had no idea what they’re made of.

If you have a child with allergies, you already know about the stress of flying. If you don’t have food allergies in your family, then enjoy the food, sometimes it can be quite delicious and fun. We love the little packages the airplane food is wrapped in. It is like having a tea party with my daughter every time we fly.

Museum Booty

In case you haven't already guessed I LOVE taking the Little Man to museums. There is nothing like hearing him say an enthusiastic "WOW!" when we enter a room or turn a corner. I love touring around leisurely while he takes it all in or takes a nap (he's really good that way). When we go we always have to have a break at the cafe and then our last stop is ALWAYS the museum shop.

I'm kind of obsessive really. I scour museum shops for cool gifts, postcards and toys for the Little Man. The museums here in Europe do not disappoint. I'll be showing you some of my unique and cool finds in this series, Museum Booty.

My first example is from the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. I may be a little biased when I say this but I really love what they have done with the museum. The renovations it has undergone have really given it an intimate feel and 'wow' inspiring feeling. Also, it was very easy to go through with a stroller (elevators and very helpful & friendly museum staff).

Now the goods -puzzles. No, I'm not talking about shoddy cardboard, lead paint laden, made in China, poison and/or choke your kid kind of puzzle with cheesy kittens and puppies. I'm talking about a real wood board jigsaw puzzle with some pretty famous paintings. Yup, these little beauties I picked up from the gift shop have Van Gogh's "Portrait of Marcelle Roulin" and "Fishing boats on the beach at Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer." Do you know what the MOST ridiculous things about them is? The price! They were less than 3€ a piece! And you don't have to worry about them having too many pieces (only 20) nor do you have to worry about it being crushed in luggage.
On a related note and if you can't make it to Amsterdam -no problem! Install the Rijksmuseum way-cool widget on your computer to see their masterpieces (and descriptions!) and you can also order from their online store. Click here for the link.

Oh, I'm angry now!

One of my favorite baby blogs -DaddyTypes has a new post up about a docent at The National Gallery in Washington DC. I have to tell you it makes me very mad to hear that some docent is telling children that,

"Well, there are curators--do you know what that is? art experts who study and know what art is important enough to be in a museum--curators and art historians and other experts who say this is art, and even if it doesn't look like it's about anything and it doesn't make any sense, you just have to bear with it sometimes."

What the %^#@ is that?! Since when do we let Homer Simpson be a docent? Statements like that make art seem like it something for the elite or for the well studied and I have to tell you THAT is the biggest load of BS EVER!Take your child to the local museum* and let them take a look around and don't say a word. You'll notice that they can see and feel art all by themselves -they don't need a docent like the one above to squash their views nor do they need an expert to tell them what art is.

*I do not care if you feel like you are the world's most culturally illiterate parent just DO IT!

By the way, 50 points to the person who can identify the paintings here.

Yummy Playground Atlanta

For those of you who need a rest from juggling your little one on long haul flights in and out of Atlanta check out their international concourse -they have a toddler gym with mats! Great place to let off some steam for me and the little one. And catch up on emails too!

If you have a longer layover head out to the Atlanta Zoo it is really a very nice zoo with Pandas. For a super fun place to have a retro meets good old south food go to Agnes & Muriel's Restaurant. Try the sweet potato fries, sangria and gobs of other great food! Atlanta sure is a nice place for a wedding!
[Thanks to Mike & Laura -we had a great time!]

Dumber than dirt?

I've just finished an alarming article on the state of today's youth in American and it is chilling. The article is titled, "American kids, dumber than dirt Warning: The next generation might just be the biggest pile of idiots in U.S. history" by Mark Morford for the SF Gate. It is very interesting so I encourage you to click on the link, read it and tell me what you think and do you think this is a pandemic in Europe as well?

Women of Italy: Hands Off! It's all Mine!

So I've been wondering what cool thing I'd write about next (aka procrastination). Until this afternoon. This is not a cool subject it is a warning. For the umpteenth time I got felt up today by another woman! Women of the world be warned: when you come to the Mediterranean and if they know you are:

• pregnant
• going to be pregnant
• used to be pregnant and could possibly still be breastfeeding
• looking for a bra
• or just browsing for shirts
• female
  

You could be accosted by the little hands that grab your boobs (and I'm not talking about small children either!). Yes, middle aged women around here seem to zoom in on your boobs when you are least expecting it. Today I was at the beauty salon and out of nowhere the technician asks, "are you pregnant?" and quick as lighting she's grabbed my breast! If I had half a second I would have grabbed those hands and twisted them behind her back...errr......

As you can guess this happens fairly frequently and that is why they are so good at the hit-and-run. This type of unwelcome and unsolicited touching has happened at department stores, pharmacies (oh, you have mastitis let me see), markets, outside your home as your trying to dodge neighbors and now beauty salons.

Oh and by the way, when your pregnant, apparently, it is good luck to rub, touch or poke a pregnant woman's belly. You've been warned.