My Son's First Trip To The Zoo

"I want to throw my feces at you."

On Saturday my family and a good friend spent the morning at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo. It was my son's first trip to the zoo.

I think he like running around more than looking at the animals. But he did like watching the monkeys swing around and do funny things. And for some reason, he really likes ducks. He's probably a little too young to appreciate seeing all the cool animals.

For me, I couldn't wait to see the tigers and lions, pictured above. They are my favorite.

Fun was had by all, which was the most important thing.

Photo Credit: Me. Taken with my Blackberry.

Review: Little Tikes Cozy Coupe

We got the Little Tike Cozy Coupe for my DS when he turned one last year. It's basically a little car that is powered by your child's feet. Or, you can push them around. It's up to you.

Here's the scoop:

Assembly

The assembly of this seemingly simple looking toy is horrible. My wife and dad (I'm not handy at all!) put ours together and it took a few hours. I knew it was bad when my dad started using a drill.

Tough assembly seems to be a common problem with children's toys. I'll talk about that in future posts.

Durability

My son doesn't take his Cozy Coupe off road into the mountains. But I can say it's a solid toy. I don't feel like it's going to fall apart when I roll it out of the garage and help him get in and out. It has withstood staying outside during bad weather and I think I've hit it with my car a few times (sans my son inside).

Playing Fun

When we first got him the Cozy Coupe he wasn't walking. It comes with a solid floor you can put in so their feet aren't dragging on the pavement.

This means I pushed him around the driveway. Very boring for me, but he enjoyed it, and that's what counts.

We finally took the solid bottom out so he can push himself along. He does a little of that, and when he does, he likes to go backwards. I hope that's not a habit he keeps when he gets his real driver's license.

Now that he's almost two he can get in and out himself. It takes him a little time because it rolls very easily. He knows how to open and shut the door and play with the fake key. He has yet to figure out the horn.

Verdict

I'd recommend this. As long as you have the patience to put the damned thing together, it's a fun toy for toddlers to scoot around in.

As always, make sure you supervise your little one's play in the Cozy Coupe. If you have an inclined driveway be careful it doesn't roll into the street. Nothing good ever comes from that.

How To Avoid Hidden Danger On Playground Slides

Experts are warning about a new danger on the playground: Going down slides with your toddler on your lap. It appears that well-intentioned parents who do this thinking it's safer than letting their little one go down alone, are actually putting their kids in more danger.

What's so dangerous about going down slides with your toddler on your lap? This Yahoo! article explains:

Parents may not notice when their child's shoe catches on the side of the slide for a second or two, but that, combined with the speed at which the parent and child are zipping down the slide, can create enough friction to break the child's shin bone (tibia). Instead, what parents do notice is that at the bottom of the slide, instead of laughing with joy, the child is whimpering or screaming in pain.

The article goes on to say that even tucking your child's feet between your legs is still dangerous because the shoe can still get caught on the slide. It seems that the only safe way for a toddler to go down a slide is by him/herself. 

Of course, holding their hand on the way down is okay. But if their foot gets caught they can at least stop themselves to avoid injury.

I've taken my own DS down slides a few times, and this never occurred to me. But I see how it can be dangerous. 

My son LOVES going down slides. We bought a little one for our backyard and he laughs every time he hits the bottom. My legs are about as long as the slide, so there's no chance I'd take him down on my lap.

How Do I Kick The TV Habit?

I'll confess that the TV in my home is on...a lot! When I'm playing with my DS on the floor, it's always on. Even while we have snack time or lunch, the TV is still blaring in the background. When he goes down for his nap, the TV keeps on ticking (lately, I've been working on turning it off during his naps to go do other things).

I should mention that just because the television is on, it doesn't mean I'm always watching it. But more often than not, I find myself watching the latest news program or an interesting show on the History Channel. Sometimes I'll even watch a recorded sitcom from the DVR. There's a never-ending stream of shows that I can watch on any given day.

My son is still pretty aloof when it comes to TV. He'll stare at the screen for a little bit, but I don't think he knows it's for entertainment. At least, not yet. He does like bright, flashy commercials and shows. Because of this, I avoid children's programming.

The good news is that we do a lot of stuff outside the house: Like story times, play group, Gymboree and so forth. And now that the weather is improving, we spend time outside running around.

The Television Addiction

The biggest problem with TV is that it's highly addictive. I've been searching around the interwebs about this topic and article after article says that TV has the same effect on the brain as some drugs. That's why it can be a hard habit to kick, because as soon as you stop watching TV for any length of time, you will get withdrawal symptoms.

But the advantages of getting off the TV horse appear to make those withdrawal symptoms worth suffering. I've read that people who have given up TV say they can think more clearly, their creativity improves, their productivity improves and their overall quality of life improves.

It's not hard to imagine those benefits because instead of watching someone else's fake life on television, you're out living your own real life, with real people, having real experiences. One article even pointed out that the actors who play the characters we are addicted to watching on our favorite shows, probably don't watch a lot of television.

Television And Stay-At-Home Parents

I think for stay-at-home parents television can be especially addicting (and dangerous). It's very easy to turn on the TV while taking care of our little ones. I find it very weird to play with my DS with the TV off. It's almost like the house is emptier. 

And for some parents, the television is used as a babysitter. They plunk their children on the couch or floor, put on a children's show, thus freeing them to do other things. I'm not passing judgment on parents who do this because I can sympathize with them.

The solution? Stay busy with other stuff. Like I said earlier, my son and I go to different play groups and activities throughout the week. This keeps us out of the house for a few hours. And when we get home it's lunch and then he's down for his nap.

I wish I could keep the television off for good. It's very much like a safety blanket. The only thing I, and everyone else can do, is ween ourselves off slowly.

My Toddler Son Beats Me Up

My DS is at the age where he can grab things, throw things and pull on things that shouldn't be pulled on. In other words, he's a 30-lbs wrecking machine.

I've been discovering that the hard way. His new favorite hobby is grabbing at my face and scratching it with his long fingernails (my wife does cut them, but it's like pulling teeth, for lack of a better phrase). He's also strong, it usually takes me a few seconds to pry his hand away from the fistful of facial skin he's holding on to.

He's left some pretty impressive scratches on my face. I'm usually too embarrassed to tell people my son is beating me up, so I blame the scratches on my cat.

He also likes to pull my hair and snatch my glasses right off my face. One time he even bitch-slapped (pardon my language) my face with one of his toys.

It seems this is a pretty normal stage for toddlers his age. I think he's just learning how he can use his fine motor skills to terrorize his parents. Further, he probably thinks it's funny to get such a reaction from us.

I'm not too worried about it right now because he'll eventually grow out of it. As long as he's not doing it to other kids he's around or other adults. I don't want him being "that kid" in school who's always biting and scratching when he gets mad.

This is just one more thing we'll look back on when he's 18 and ready to go off to college, and laugh.

Dads: Stay In Shape, Prison-Style

Prisoners are notorious for being ingenious. They can make a shank out of just about anything. They can make gourmet meals from a few snacks bought at the prison store.

Most of all, though, they can chisel a perfect body without a gym.

If someone goes into prison stick thin, they'll emerge a decade later with massive arms, a perfect 6-pack, and gang tattoos covering their entire bodies (I'll discuss being a stay-at-home dad and gang tattoos in a later post).

One thing I've learned in the year and a half of being a stay-at-home dad is that you can stay in pretty good shape without an expensive gym membership.

I should add that yes, I do have a gym membership because I do a lot of swimming. However, if you want rock-hard abs, bulging biceps and pecs that can crush an apple, then you have everything you need right at home.

Basic Exercise

These are things you can do anytime, anywhere. They include push-ups, sit-ups, crunches, leg lifts and so forth. There's no reason not to do these basic exercises.

For me, push-ups can be challenging. My son likes to jump on my back while I'm doing them. This is bad because it's almost 30 lbs of extra weight I'm pushing. This is good because it's almost 30 lbs of extra weight I'm pushing that will turn my ams into iron machines.

There's one more exercise that I should add to this list - baby lifts. That's basically something you do every time you pick up your little one. As they get older and gain more weight, you'll get stronger.

Sometimes I take it one more step and hold my DS under his arms and lift him up a few times to work the biceps. I don't do this often, mostly because he's too wiggly to hold on to while I use him as a weight machine. Though he does find it funny.

Homemade Weights

This is where you can get really creative. There are basic household items all around you that can turn your spindly, weak body into that of a world-class body builder.

For example, use different sizes of canned goods to work your biceps, triceps and more. Run up and down your stairs (if you have any) to burn that belly fat away. Different baby toys also make good weights. Run around your backyard holding a baby pool full of water, without spilling a drop. That'll shape you up really fast!

But if you have money to burn, you can go to your local sporting goods store and buy some real weights.

Get Out of Your House

I going to assume you do leave your house several times a week. If you do, it's a perfect opportunity to get some exercise in. They make specialized strollers that are great for running. Invest in one and take a few laps around your block.

When my DS was only a few months old, I found myself going to the mall a lot. There were a lot of other parents (mostly moms) walking around the mall with their own babies. The mall should only be used in the winter, when walking outside is not an option.

As your child gets older and starts walking, then running, you'll be able to go outside and chase him/her around. I'm rediscovering the joys of playing outside now that my toddler goes out a few times a day. Mostly he runs all over the place, never really playing with one toy for very long. But I'll take what I can get.

Stretching

Stretching not only feels good (there's nothing like a good stretch after getting out of bed in the morning), but it limbers you up and can help prevent injuries when doing other exercises.

I'm not saying you need to become a yoga master and be able contort yourself into almost any size cardboard box (to ship yourself overseas, of course). But would it kill you to be able to touch your toes? How about kicking your foot in the air without bending your knees? If you're not limber enough to do those two stretches, how do you expect to do a roundhouse kick to someone's face when you really need to?

There's a lot of stuff about stretching I don't know, so I can't offer a lot of advice here. I do know, however, that it is good for you. That's pretty much all you need to know.

Hopefully this post will get your testosterone flowing enough to get you off the couch. It doesn't take a whole lot to stay in shape. And you don't need a gym to do it in. Get creative and have fun with it.

Should Kids Be Banned From Certain Airline Flights?

I remember the days before kids when I could fly and actually get stuff done, or take a nap. It was my choice. The only exception was when there was a whiny, screaming child on the plane that made my blood boil.

Now that I have a kid of my own, I'm very sympathetic to parents flying with kids. I've been on both sides of the aisle (pub intended) so I can see other passenger's frustration with kids and the parents frustration.

Malaysia Airlines is trying to make everybody happy by declaring the entire upper deck of the monster A380 jumbo jet a kids-free zone. Any child under 12 is not welcome. The kick is, the upper deck is economy class. Not business. Not first class. It's the cattle car of airplanes.

An article from the Australian Business Traveler explains how it works:

Banning kids from the upper deck economy cabin of 70 seats – which is next to the 66 seat business class section – will restrict them to the main economy cabin on the A380s' lower deck.

This is not the only time Malaysia Airlines has made kid-free zones on their aircraft:

Infants are also not allowed in the A380's first class cabin, in keeping with a similar and controversial 'baby ban' for the first class section of its Boeing 747s.

Last year MAS managing director and CEO Tengku Azmil took to Twitter to defend MAS' decision not to install bassinets in the 747's first class cabin – as a result of which parents with infants are not permitted to travel in first class and have to book in the bassinet-equipped business or economy sections instead.

If I was traveling alone, I'd be applauding this move. But since most (if not all) of my travel now includes bringing my DS along, it's kind of a pain.

As I said before, I see both sides of the issue. Screaming kids and crying babies are a huge annoyance on any flight. They make it hard to concentrate on getting any work done, or taking a snooze.

What do you think? Did Malaysia Airlines make a good decision? Should all airlines have "kid free zones?"

Taking Care of Business While Taking Care of Your Baby

Sometimes being a stay-at-home dad isn't enough. Don't get me wrong, taking care of your little one is the most important job one can have. But a lot of parents miss working a regular job.

Is it even possible to work and take care of your child at the same time? I've been trying to answer that question. Unfortunately, the answer is not a definitive "yes" or "no." In other words, it depends.

When I say working and parenting, I don't mean dropping your kids off at school, going to work and picking them up sometime later that afternoon or evening. I'm talking about caring for a baby or a young toddler while having a job.

Of course, in order for this to be practical, your job would have to be one where you can work from home. So you either need to find a company and boss that will give you a lot of flexibility, or, you need to start your own business, and be your own boss.

The latter probably applies to most working stay-at-home parents. A lot of them have freelance-type jobs like graphic designer, writer/blogger, and the like.

I found this article on CNN.com that talks about what are called WAHM - work at home mom. But for the purposes of this blog, we'll substitute "mom" for "dad" (WAHD). Here's a snippet from the article that shows the mostly positive side of being a working parent:

Brooke Hall, who runs a Web design business (brookehalldesign.com) and stays home with her 10-month-old son, Owen, is happy doing both. "I get to be here for the first giggle and step, and yet working from home gives me an identity other than 'mom,'" says the 27-year-old from Dublin, California. "I'm still the same person I was before the baby -- partly due to my continuing professional life."

It can be a crazy juggling act on some days, but most WAHMs say the multitasking is worth it. "The best part of the work/kid combination is that I'm not lost and drowning in diapers and plastic building blocks," says Amy McAllister, 23, of Elk Grove, California, who teaches others how to bake and decorate cakes and is studying to be a licensed acupuncturist. "I feel strong as an individual, which makes me a better mother and an even better role model to my 2-year-old son."

I think it is very important for any parent to have an identity that is more than just being a mom or dad. Changing poopy diapers has its merits, but there's nothing wrong with keeping a toe in the professional world too.

The hardest part is multitasking, if you can even call it that. When I'm at home with my DS, I'm pretty much engaged with him in one way or another all the time. Nap times are a 2-3 hour luxury that lets me get other stuff done.

While playing with my son I can still do stuff like check email and respond to messages. I can also make a call or two (as long as he's being quiet). A lot of little things can be done. The question then becomes: How far do you take it?

By that I mean, do you let your little one play on the floor while you work at the table? If you have a baby, it can be more challenging or easier depending on your baby's temperament. It boils down to how you will balance getting actual work done and giving your child the attention and care he/she deserves.

I've found that as my DS gets older, he is more independent and is happy to play with his toys for a while, usually not more than 10-15 minutes at a time - if I'm lucky. It never fails though, as soon as I try to do something, he decides to have a temper tantrum.