Altoid & Other Cuties' Thread

[jamiebk]

I like the second page...he really got the characteristics of the snake correct...triangle head, rattles and all. He sould be aware that rattlesnakes in some form are distributed almost everywhere in the US with some exceptions. Can't say that I really care for the critters...but they do keep the vermin population down.

[piqaboo]

Very well done, way to go pumpkin!

[Schmeelkie]

Thanks - we're very proud of him!
Pumpkin and I actually went to the zoo on Friday (day care camp started today, school ended last Wednesday) and just drew animals. So we spent about a 1/2 hour in front of some snakes, had lunch, spent 20 min watching the sea lions (that's what I drew), then off to the alligators (after a quick peek at the penguins), and tortises. We were there almost 3 hours but really only looked at those animals - he was drawing - trying to get patterns of the various snakes right. Did see a 1/2 hour show with other animals at the end. He's starting to be able to see a snake and at least guess the type (viper, constrictor, etc) before reading the name. He was telling other families info about the snakes and alligators in pauses of drawing. Our zoo has a teen docent program...if he keeps this up, it might be a cool thing for him later. I always loved animals as a kid - watched everything animal-related on PBS that I could. Really cool to share that with him now.

[Schmeelkie]

See the 'summer vacation' thread for recent pics of Pumpkin and Bella!

[Schmeelkie]

I went to a 'going-away' dinner for two of my colleagues last night. Another colleague had his wife come with their almost 3-month old baby girl. She's at that great hyper-chubby phase, complete with leg wrinkles and jowls. When I got home and mentioned the baby to Bella, she got all sad and said, 'I wish I was there. I love babies. I could have made her laugh'. When Pumpkin says he wants to be a nature explorer when he grows up, Bella says she wants to be a 'baby actor' - which she defines as someone who takes care of babies and makes them laugh. Pumpkin will often say that that's not a real job, which I counter with, 'but she could make it a real job if she wants to'.

In other funny kid news, my sister-in-law reported recently on FB that her second son (4 yrs old) recently said that he liked one of his twin sisters best. When SIL said, what about the other one? Son responds that his older brother can have her. The mind of a 4-year old is an interesting thing.... but he also says his older brother is his best friend...so it's all good.

[piqaboo]

Bella, Bella - what a sweet goal!

Altoid decided to read Fox in Socks to me. Whew! At last, it 'clicked'.

[Schmeelkie]

go Altoid!

Pumpkin will sometimes read a funny line out of fiction or an interesting fact from a non-fiction book to us. He will also read to his sister from time to time - generally if neither I nor dad are around. Lately it was some Calvin & Hobbes, and once when I was on the phone Buford the Little Big Horn. He gets nervous if we're actively listening in.

[Schmeelkie]

7 years today since I became a Mom. Can't believe Pumpkin is so big! here's hoping the stuff we ordered for his b'day arrives today! Birthday party on Saturday will include The Reptile Guys - 45 min show where kids can interact with a python, boa, crocodile and some other smaller lizards and snakes. Had heard about them and couldn't not do a show for his b'day...also must be blamed on the 'my parents could never have afforded something like this' effect. I generally try not to over-do or raise the expectation that the kids can have anything they want, but I really couldn't resist this.

[piqaboo]

I'm totally with you on 'the reptile guys' or something like it.
Altoid has gotten all her school friends interested in bugs - even the girls.

I hope Pumpkin's birthday is awesome!

[Haggis@wk]

Because that’s who’s dumb enough to believe the anti-vaccine crap:

California’s Whooping Cough Epidemic Centered in Rich, White Counties.

Sadly, the children pay for their parent's "superior knowledge."

[dai bread]

The children of the "ME!" generation always know best. Their children are worse, but with any luck the tradition of generational rebellion will see a return to sanity. I'm not holding my breath, though.

[Haggis@wk]

What hath public-health hysteria wrought? Middle class children suffering rickets.

“Middle class children in the south of England are suffering from the ‘17th century disease’ rickets as parents cover them in sunscreen and limit time outside in the sunshine, a leading doctor has warned.”

They go crazy following the sunshine warnings — and then skip the vaccinations. Vitamin D good. Whooping cough bad. How hard is that, anyway?

[Schmeelkie]

As Selma likes to say - parents today are too young to remember when kids regularly died of pertussis and other diseases, so they find it easier to downplay the importance of vaccinations. The latest research I've seen suggests that some kids might be predisposed to have bad reactions to vaccinations, which might explain the anecdotal link between autism and shots, but it's so rare that you're MUCH better off getting the shots than risking catching the diseases.

Also, it's amazing how stupid a great majority of 'well-to-do' folks are. In an age where you can get good information easily, people persist in believing what some idiot says rather than doing the research on the topic.

And my kids have sunscreen on more than I ever did as a kid, but I never bother slathering them up after 6pm, or when we're just going to the store or something, and don't panic if they're out for 20 min... we live in the north, we need as much sun as we can get! Saw something in mid-Sept saying 'don't forget the sunscreen even though it's getting cooler'. Yeah - I ignored that - we were outside for about 3 hours in late Sept and I doubt it had much effect...I never sunscreen in winter - up here, you're rarely going to be out for more than an hour (unless you're skiing), and the sun is so low, we're lucky to be getting any D out of that...

It's all in that old saw, "everything in moderation"...

[dai bread]

What hath public-health hysteria wrought? Middle class children suffering rickets.

“Middle class children in the south of England are suffering from the ‘17th century disease’ rickets as parents cover them in sunscreen and limit time outside in the sunshine, a leading doctor has warned.”

They go crazy following the sunshine warnings — and then skip the vaccinations. Vitamin D good. Whooping cough bad. How hard is that, anyway?

Very hard, evidently. Single-issue people have been pushing the contrary for years. Our health people seem to have got on top of it before the English.

[jamiebk]

What hath public-health hysteria wrought? Middle class children suffering rickets.

“Middle class children in the south of England are suffering from the ‘17th century disease’ rickets as parents cover them in sunscreen and limit time outside in the sunshine, a leading doctor has warned.”

They go crazy following the sunshine warnings — and then skip the vaccinations. Vitamin D good. Whooping cough bad. How hard is that, anyway?

Very hard, evidently. Single-issue people have been pushing the contrary for years. Our health people seem to have got on top of it before the English.

Vitamin D supplements don't work very well. People need to use their God given ability to manufacture the kind of vit. D that nature intended...sunshine, along with plenty of "greens", salmon, sardines, shrimp, milk, cod, and eggs.

[piqaboo]

Sunscreen on the face, back of the neck, shoulders. Arms and legs free to metabolize.
Gotta compromise between skin that burns easily, and Vit D. Plus, Altoid only wants to look 30 when she's 30. Not 30 when she's 19 like her non-sunscreen-using mom did.
Milk is fortified which helps, but its not easy to get that much milk.

And in the north, in the winter, the sun never gets intense enough for Vit D production. Time for liver!

[piqaboo]

Altoid, and the new TSA procedures, will probably put a stop to a planned trip to see Nai Nai this winter.
Somehow, I dont like the extra radiation being targeted at children and the pat-down is a total non-starter.
Poor Nai Nai.

[Shapley]

We do seem to have lost our way on this security business, haven't we? I've flown into and out of other countries without all the hassle.

We've got to learn to accept that there is a certian acceptable level of risk to living, and that sometimes the cure is worse than the disease.

[jamiebk]

Altoid, and the new TSA procedures, will probably put a stop to a planned trip to see Nai Nai this winter.
Somehow, I dont like the extra radiation being targeted at children and the pat-down is a total non-starter.
Poor Nai Nai.

Big flap out here about a TSA guy patting down a 3 year old girl. This just doesn't seem right. The kid was screaming in fear. I doubt that the radiation is much to write about...probably get more at the dentist.

[Selma in Sandy Eggo]

It's been some time since I have flown anywhere - I can get anywhere in the CONUS inside of three days by road. And I'd consider the radiation an issue: I have already had numerous actinic keratoses and a couple of small basal cell carcinomas removed from my very fair skin. Piq and Altoid are just about in the same melanin class as I am - which is "nearly none".

OTOH, I know where to get radiopaque fabric. I could whip up a camisole and pettipants...

Wonder what the TSA would do about that???