Kids = Animals

Kids and animals; animals and kids.

This could be interpreted several different ways.

1. Kids are animals. They are primal, and live moment—to fight over flight—moment. They spit, throw food, climb, fight, and make strange sounds.
2. Kids are kind of like pets.  They must be feed, loved, and taken for walks. Unlike pets however, children cannot be left home alone.
3. Kids love animals!

Which is where I am going with this . . .

Nothing makes a kid happier (for longer than ice cream), than animals!

Toddlers love animal pictures. Toddlers love animal noises. Toddlers love animal toys. Toddlers love everything animal.

So, to have a great toddler day (and an oh-so-goodness-my-child-is-so-cute-day), take your child to see some animals.

Here are some options:

• Local Farms

Farms are everywhere, even in the city.  In Atlanta they cleverly call them “urban farms.”  They typically have an array of goats, sheep, and chickens.  There is a farm near my home that also has a Emu, as if it is totally normal.  They are incredibly welcoming to family visits.  You can generally find a community friendly farm through a little googling.

• Zoos

Most large cities (and many small ones) have some kind of a zoo.  The one here in Atlanta is awesome.  It has made my day so much easier, and everyone happier countless times.  I can not express how great it is to take your child to the zoo.  So, do it.  I recommend a season pass.

• Safaris

Outside Atlanta, there happens to be a “Wild Animal Safari.”  It blows my mind that it exists.  Apparently they can be found more often than I ever would have imagined.  Give it a try.

• Backyards

While we all have common wildlife in our yards, there has been an increased movement in backyard “livestock.”  We have several neighbors with chickens and one with a pig.  It is fun to go for a walk and stop to pet a pig.  Wow, I never thought I would say that!

Animals, animals, animals.  

No matter which option you take, you are sure to have a happy, and tired, child by the end of the day.  

Sanity? Check!

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Special thanks to favim.com (Funny Meme), Flickr, Michael Thielmeier (Goats) Southwick Zoo (Baby Giraffe), David Berkowitz (Zebra), and Stewart Black (Chicken) for the great photos!

The Traveling Potty

The scoop on potty training outside of the house.

As your child approaches two, every parent is faced with potty training.  And there is advice EVERYWHERE!  Some good and some bad.  

One of the things people don’t talk about though, is how to leave the prison of your home when potty training and for the months that follow.  As if going places is nonessential.

Reality doesn’t work that way though, at least not my life.

Once the basics were established (about 2 weeks in) I knew we needed to get out of the house.  But how?  Children do not use the potty when you need them too (like right before you leave the house).

Eventually you have to get on with life, and the inevitable day will arrive when you must take your toddler into a public bathroom.

Even writing this now, I cringe.

You rush through the store or restaurant, enter the stall, and remind your child for the 60th time in the last-minute not to touch anything.  Then, you see this tiny person standing next to, what you never before realized, is a giant toilet.

I am serious.

In our adult view, a toilet looks like, well, a toilet.  But when you look at it from a toddler’s perspective, it is frightening.  It is high off the ground and has a big hole in the middle, through which this little person could easily fall.  Also, there are the common bathroom noises: people talking, toilets flushing, and hand dryers running.  Public bathrooms are actually super scary places and no toddler (or mine at least) will use them, no matter how bad she has to go.

The solution- a potty in the car.

That’s right.  I’ve realized that it is not something that is talked about, but it is something that is done all the time.  And I am here to tell you, it works.  Need to go?  Step outside, easy peasy, no frightened toddler, and no wet pants.  We can stay out and about with no problem.

I do have a station wagon, so I have plenty of space for an on-the-go potty, but I have taken it along in others’ cars.  We have pottied in the middle aisle of a minivan, the cargo space of a hatchback, and the trunk of a sedan.  It can be done.

So here it is parents, to get the poop in the potty and out of the pants, put a potty in the car.

You’ll be so glad you did.

Recommended Gear:

• Small, easy to carry and clean potty
• Toilet Paper
• Baby Wipes
• Dog Poop Bags
• Books (for them)
• Magazines (for you)
• Hand sanitizer

Good luck out there.  You can do it and they can too!

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Special thanks to Daniel Lobo for the Potty Training Illustrated photo and to Celine Nadeau for the Public Potty photo!

Park It

While I see parks all the time driving to other places (like the grocery store), somehow when I desperately need to get the little one out of the house, and I mean out RIGHT NOW, my brain fails at where to go.

So here is a listing of a few Atlanta parks, for when our Mommy (or Daddy) brains have too much going on to focus on what is needed this very second: to get outside, now.

OAKHUST PARK

 The whole neighborhood is family friendly and the park is usually full of kids of all ages. The playground is nicely shaded and well maintained. Parking is generally not a problem. On warm days the ice cream truck comes by, which can be a nightmare once your toddler understands there is ice cream inside that creepy van, and takes off running through the parking lot towards it, then pitches such a fit over the fact that you don’t have any cash and can’t get her ice cream that you are forced to leave the park all together (insert sigh). Overall though, I would say that Oakhurst Park is a great place to pass an afternoon.

Grant Park

This place is one not to be missed. Grant Park has everything, but right now is playground time, and the one is here is awesome! There are different levels of slides, spinning things, modern seesaws, and bouncy motorcycles. It is well maintained and I always meet really interesting (in a good way) people there. The downfall,:the sun gets hot. There is not much shade on the actual playground, but there are lovely shaded grass areas for a picnic, which is another great afternoon idea.

Piedmont Park

I feel forced to mention Piedmont Park if I am talking parks of Atlanta. I am not reluctant to, however, since the playground is great. It looks cool and the kids love it. What sells me on this park though, is the Legacy Fountain. Once the weather is warm, pack some snacks, put on a bathing suit, and bring the kids. Hours and hours of fun/entertainment can be had by all, running through the fountain. Just remember pajamas because that baby is going to sleep all the way home and plus some. Mission accomplished.

Every neighborhood in Atlanta offers at least one park, but usually more. The City of Atlanta, Parks and Recreation services has a listing off ALL the parks in Atlanta. It can be a little overwhelming, or awesome, depending on how much sleep you got last night and how efficiently your brain is operating today. They do break it down however,  so that it is a little more manageable: with a separate listing of the playgrounds and of the spraygrounds (aka splashpads).

So, take your pick, load them up, and get on out.

Your kids will thank you, and even more importantly, you will thank you. Sanity guaranteed.

Just don’t forget the snacks. And a change of clothes, because bathrooms are not guaranteed, and potty training is a tough one!

 

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Thanks to Play Atlanta and Fox News Atlanta for the great park photos.  You can click on the pictures to follow the links.  I highly suggest following the Play Atlana links for great information and reviews to all things kids around the city. 

Wear Out Your Opponent

The easiest way to be right is to argue with someone too tired to protest.

The easiest way to put a crazy toddler in a bath or a bed is to wear them out first.

While Atlanta has parks galore, all the rain we have been getting makes visiting them unenjoyable/impossible. Being cooped up in a house with a bouncing off the furniture (if not the walls) two-year old would drive anyone insane. I was on my way to the looney bin, without passing go or stopping to collect $200.

Then, I discovered INDOOR PLAYGROUNDS!!! That is correct; you read that right, indoor playgrounds. They exist and they are wonderful.

Think of a very large room with everything a child could dream and a parent could wish. These people are brilliant.

Did I mention that it is affordable as well? For a two-year old it is roughly $5 to play for as long as that baby can make it, or until they close. If your toddler has older siblings it costs about $8-11, and parents get in free.

Here are a few around Atlanta:

Hippo Hopp

1936 Briarwood Ct NE, Atlanta 30329

404-634-4964

Open: Mon-Thurs 9:30-6, Fri-Sat 9:30-7, and Sun 10-6

This is a personal favorite. Everything is located in one room so it is easy to keep track of your little one while you sit back with a latte. Yes, they make all sorts of coffees and healthy (many organic) snacks. They also claim to be eco-friendly and non-toxic.

Leapin’ Lizards

185 Sams Street, Decatur 30030

404-537-3030

Open: Mon-Thurs 10-6, Fri-Sat 10-7, and Sun 10-6

This is the happening spot in Decatur. It can get a little busy on school holidays and weekends, but is large enough to accommodate. It is two large rooms with bouncy houses galore. You can bring your own snacks, which is a big plus in my opinion.

Catch Air

560 Amsterdam Ave Ne, Atlanta 30306

678-256-3941

Open: Mon-Thu 10-6, Fri-Sat 10-7, and Sun 11-6

This one is a little more expensive than the others, with two and under at $6-7, and 3-10 year olds at $10-11. So, we have yet to go (I am cheap, or as I would rather say, economical). The photos look awesome though and it will be visited soon, especially if it keeps raining.

Well, I am sure you can find indoor playgrounds anywhere you are, but thankfully we have them here in Atlanta.

Knowing you are going creates good behavior, because you get to hold it over them to behave if they want to go,

“If you want to go to Hippo Hopp you need to stop jumping on the couch.”

“Ok!”

Then, having gone creates good behavior, because they are so tired they will do whatever you ask them too,

“It’s time for a bath.”

“Ok.”

Ah! An easy day battling a toddler. Sanity? Check! Thank you indoor playground people.

 

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Thanks to Photopin, Flickr, and Janice Cullivan for the great photo.

Help! A crazed toddler has taken over my sweet baby . . .

In January, my daughter turned two.

Her first birthday was sweet and sad for me, “My baby is one!?”

Her second birthday was a shock. I cannot believe I delivered a baby two years ago! An even bigger shock however, was when she woke up about 3 weeks ago and decided she was two.

As a parent I can testify to the shifting of emotions a child goes through, one minute to the next.  Typically they are fairly predictable, based upon what is happening. Not however, with a recently decided she is now an individual with her own opinions toddler. This crazed person, of multiple personalities, has invaded my sweet baby’s body and taken over my home.

HELP!

I am determined this will not be a complete take over. I will not go down without a fight. I am one to stand my ground, and after all, I’m the parent, right. Right? I want my sweet baby back, and if I cannot have her, I at least want some sense of sanity.

Please.

So, step one is reminding myself that I am not alone.  There are countless others of you out there trying to retain claim of your household and sanity as well, in the PARENT VS TODDLER struggle.

This is a very real struggle, seeing as the 2010 US Census said there were 20,201,362 children under the age of 5 in the United States. Times that by 2 (subtracting those unable or unwilling) and you have a rough estimate (which is a pretty significant number) of all the people out there doing this young-child parenting thing.

So, when your toddler is adamant that he will not wear a coat today even if it is 28 degrees out, or absolutely does not like lasagna even though she ate two helpings the last time you made it, take solace in the thought that you are not alone.

I will.

 

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Thanks to Ray_from_LA and Flickr for the perfect photo!

Looking for Relief?

For those with young children, this blog may provide some relief in the form of solutions (or at least an understanding that you are not alone). For those without kids, it may provide relief in a comic form (or at least give some info you can pass on to someone in need).  While I live in Atlanta, and most of what I post will involve my location, it should provide ideas and options for anywhere.

To get things started, you can look at a few tips to parenting a toddler, or you can just keep making it up, like I do, or as most parents do, like this one:

 

Thanks to www.scottsdaledaycare.com for the great photo. And yes, that is how an upset two-year old looks.  Trust me, I know.