Monday, March 21, 2011

The New Father: A Dad's Guide to the Toddler Years (New Father)


Author:  Armin A. Brott

I know this guy has written a series of parenting books just for fathers, which is nice, but this guy comes off as a hack. The research-backed suggestions were alright, the ideas for taking care of business beyond fathering was a bit novel yet disorganized. The real problem area were the suggestions the author made on his own, which ranged from silly (If it isn't too cold out, strip down to your underwear with your child and go out in the yard and paint each other head to toe; if it is too cold out, go puddle jumping or drive through puddles in the car. Seriously? ever thought about neighbors, hypothermia, or hydroplaning?) to what I consider to be dangerous (Teach your one-and-a-half-year-old to shave you without the razor on the handle, and when they get that down, let them shave you for real. This is dangerous for you, and it also draws unnecessary attention to razors. Even with razors hidden, a 4-year-old boy in my daughter's preschool managed to slip into the bathroom one night after he was presumed asleep and shave himself, drawing blood and scaring the daylights out of his parents, even when the razor was hidden.). Not what I like to see. The parts that told about what to expect at each age was sparse and overly colored with his own children's experiences instead of real research into what is normal. To top it all off, he ended the book with a section on how to get through a divorce and come out as much on top as possible. Not very encouraging, and not really appropriate. He also tried to champion being non-sexist, but then he was a bit sexist himself at times.

That said, I know there's a draw to having a book written just for dads, and I think it's nice to get something for a new dad, but this book is not it. Stick with the "What to Expect" series, which is very good, support the dad, and the rest should fall into place.


Overall Rating:  2 of 5 Stars

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Donuts with Dads



This morning Autumn’s school held its annual Donuts With Dads breakfast.  Her last school had this event, but she was unable to participate since my husband Ben was working the day shift.  He works nights and evenings now, so it was just a matter of him staying awake a few more hours, a small sacrifice for some rare quality time without Farrah or me horning in.  Since Farrah is the ultimate Daddy's girl and my husband works so much, Autumn's chances of one-on-one time outside of specially scheduled events are usually slim.

The way this works is the dads and kids come in before school during the normal breakfast time.  Since the cafeteria is divided, the kids who aren’t participating get one side, and the kids who are get the other.  The pairs stop by a table manned by parent volunteers to get a donut and a carton of milk before sitting down and enjoying themselves.  Autumn’s previous school was pretty small, so the whole school did this on the same morning.  This school, however, is quite large--there were seven classes of kindergartners before the school split into two to give primary students (preschool, kindergarten, and first graders) their own building, and these numbers were pretty much in line with the rest of the grades.  There is a healthy-sized crowd, but it is less chaotic than if there were hundreds of dads swarming in at one time.  The line wasn't horribly long, and they had a leisurely breakfast with time to talk and mingle with other father-daughter pairs.

This was a really good experience for them, second only to the Girl Scouts father-daughter sock hop they attended several years ago.  It would be nice to find a way to make little outings like this happen more often.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Yogurt Mix-Ins


This is a fun project we did at my daughter's preschool for the monthly parent-child activity.  Both the children and their parents enjoyed this activity a lot, even though it's really simple.  It's fun, easy, and can be done in about five to ten minutes.  Depending on what you mix into your yogurt, it's also a healthy snack.  The ingredients and amounts can be modified, but this is a good starting point.

First, take a cup of yogurt.  We used vanilla, although it can be any flavor. If your child has a milk allergy, we also tried this with mixed berry soy yogurt, and it was just as delicious.  Put the yogurt in a bowl.  Add in a tablespoon of granola.  Next, add in some mixed berries (about a tablespoon and a half).  We used frozen and thawed, but fresh would work just as well.  Also, take one large strawberry (also previously frozen) and a third of a banana.  Using a plastic butter knife, your child can cut these into small pieces to add in.  Stir all of it together, and it's ready.  We used two spoons so parent and child could share, but it's also easily enough for one person.

This activity is a good chance to bond in the kitchen, but it also teaches motor skills (cutting), math skills (measuring), and lessons about following directions.  If you want, this could be an opportunity to talk about healthy snacks, food groups, and protein.  We didn't, but it would have been a prime time.