“Darrell’s Dream” Playground
Jan 03, 2009
Over the holidays we’ve been visiting my parents down in east Tennessee where I grew up. While we were here we decided to visit one of my favorite parks, “Warrior’s Path State Park.” We were pleasantly surprised to find they had added a new play area called, “Darrell’s Dream: A place where children of all abilities grow through play.” It’s a huge play area nestled in the mountainside.
I love how they’ve designed the place to be wheelchair friendly and how braille is incorporated throughout the play area. There’s a special playground for younger children as well as play equipment strong enough for adults. This makes it a great place for the whole family to play together. There’s “Sand Island,” a station where kids can experiment with leaves, sand and other natural materials surrounding them and a sensory garden filled with herbs. Surrounding the whole complex is a paved trail that wanders past the river and through the woods. If you’re ever in the area (Kingsport, TN) it’s a great place to visit with your kids. 
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SIDS Prevention
Nov 18, 2008
Would you be surprised to know that SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) is completely preventable? The name implies that the cause is unknown but in reality the cause has been known for about 12 years! SIDS happens when a baby inhales toxic nerve gases emitted from his crib mattress. These nerve gases are produced when a fungus develops in the mattress and ‘eats’ the flame retardants there. This would explain why the recommendations to have babies sleep on their backs in a well-ventilated room has ‘slightly’ decreased the occurrences of SIDS. Fortunately, SIDS (or more accurately named, ‘Crib Death’) is completely preventable through mattress wrapping. This is done by wrapping the mattress with a polyethylene cover. This cover separates the baby from the toxic fumes. BabeSafe mattress covers can be found at Eve’s Best. They’re much cheaper than buying an organic mattress. I have yet to find them for full-size beds yet though. I would like to just buy a roll of food-grade polyethylene sheeting and use that to wrap all the mattresses in our house but I’m not sure where to get it.
So why isn’t this news widespread? Can you imagine how liable that would make the mattress companies and the SIDS research groups if this were admitted to be true? There has been a LOT of money given for SIDS research! Like I’ve said before, it’s amazing how many things come down to money and greed!
Please help spread the word about SIDS/Crib Death! It’s so frustrating that parents aren’t even made aware of these facts! It’s completely preventable and yet the media and the medical profession refuse to acknowledge it!
Sources:
PreventSids.org
Mattress Off-gassing Confusion on the Net
Research which confirms the toxic gas explanation for crib death
Cot Death: A Single Primary Cause
Posted In: Parenting | Pregnancy | Activism • Comments (2)
Book Review: I Love Dirt
Aug 29, 2008
Most of us (adults as well as children) don’t spend the time outdoors that our ancestors did in the past. Because of this we’ve grown rather disconnected from the wonders of nature. Research has demonstrated how beneficial being outdoors is for children’s mental & emotional well-being and yet we may still neglect this part of our lives.
Jennifer Ward has put together a marvelous little book that gives all sorts of creative ways to interact with and explore our environment. Most of her suggestions are simply ways to open our eyes to the details around us. She alerts us to things we may not have noticed before. I know I especially need this. I want to spend time outdoors with my daughter but I oftentimes don’t know what I should be doing out there with her. After reading her book I now have lots of options! Most of her ideas do not require any special equipment other than the five senses. While reading, several art/craft projects did come to my mind that would compliment nicely the activities she mentions. I appreciate how the book is organized by the seasons, so you can just turn to the section that applies to you at the time. In my efforts to live a more simple yet deep life, this book will be most helpful. I plan on purchasing this as one of my primary resources for Emma’s home-school Kindergarten this year.
Posted In: Green Living | Gardening | Parenting | Book Reviews • Comments (2)
Book Review: Goose’s Story
Aug 28, 2008
Here in an excellent children’s book that I highly recommend. It’s the story of a goose with one leg who struggles to survive and to fit in with the other geese. I love that it’s a true story! This book is inspiring for both children and adults. I even found myself tearing up at the end!
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The Importance of Eye Contact
Aug 27, 2008
Life can become so busy sometimes that we mulit-task and tend not to make eye contact when speaking. This can be especially tempting when relating to our children. But the truth is, our children desperately need to make contact with us. This is true right from birth when a baby is able to bond with his parents through their loving gazes. Through our eyes we can convey approval or disapproval. It also gives us the chance to make a connection with our kids. It shows them they’re important and that we value what they have to say. I tend to fall into the trap of multi-tasking often and have to remind myself to stop what I’m doing and give my full attention to my daughter.
This is an important skill between adults as well. It can become easy to neglect sitting down with our spouses and having an eye-to-eye conversation with them. The day gets busy, we concentrate on getting our tasks done and find at the end of the day that we haven’t spent any quality time with them.
May we not neglect this valuable human connection.
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