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Wild Animal Crunch
When I was little, my parents would take my sister and I to the local soft-serve ice cream stores, the kind you walk up to and order through a tiny, greasy window. My sister and I would get the chocolate cone with chocolate jimmies, my mom would get an ice cream sandwich, and my dad would get a large, daddy-sized vanilla cone. I always thought it was so weird that my parents wouldn’t get a giant chocolate cone. They were, after all, the adults and could get any size or flavor of cone they wanted. But my dad, when questioned, would always just say, "but I like vanilla." As I got older, I began to associate vanilla with old. It’s not quite up there with Butter Pecan, but it’s getting pretty darn close. Flash forward twenty some years later. I often find myself ordering just vanilla, but always, deep down, I am a chocolate girl.
This vanilla-chocolate love must go beyond my little world. Kellogg’s has launched a new cereal, Wild Animal Crunch. This whole-grain cereal has the best of both worlds…vanilla AND chocolate. It is shaped in cute little animals which made them a hit with my son. And while they are adorable to look at, they are delicious to eat. All three of us have been eating them, and I know when this complimentary review box is gone, everyone will be begging for more. I’m not a huge fan of sweet cereals, but Wild Animal Crunch has just enough sweet, but not too much. I love it dry to munch on while I commute to work, my son loves it dry or with a ton of milk. Either way, it’s a crunchy, yummy cereal.
Not only does this serve boast whole-grains and a great taste, the packaging is equally enticing. With a cuddly-looking panda bear on the front of the box, how can you pass this box by? On the back are some cool Animal Planet facts and games. You can check out more info on Wild Animal Crunch. For the taste, nutrition, and great packaging, I give this a
Lice MD
Last summer, while playing outside with my three year old son, I heard some screaming and crying from the neighbor children. Kids are normally loud creatures, but this particular scream variety suggested something was amiss. Because their mother was with them, I continued to play with my son while watching the events next store. After the screaming, I noticed some ape-like behavior. The mother sat with her daughter between her legs, picking something out of her hair. An hour later, the girls were slathered in some gooey, stinky liquid that clearly could kill some animal breeds. You know where I am going with this, don’t ya?
Evidently, the girls next door had lice. And they kindly play with my son regularly. And they continued to play with my son that day. All I have to say is, "EW!" We have all been faced with a breakout of lice, but I had never faced this as a parent. I never had it as a child, although friends had. I spent the next few weeks searching my son’s head for unwanted inhabitants, reading every normal each as a bite from the little critters. Thankfully, no one set up shop on my son’s had.
I recently found out about a new product, Lice MD, that is used to treat lice and their lovely eggs. You bet I will be buying this in the event of a lice outbreak in our house. As parents, we are always terrified what we put in and on our kids…not to worry with Lice MD. Lice MD is pesticide free, non-toxic, and odorless. No dyes or perfumes! Pediatricians have tested this and it has been proven effective. It boasts a one-step application for even long and thick hair. Sounds great to me!
So, if you find yourself ravaged by those unfriendly little head vermins, head over to www.LiceMD.com. They have put together a great website with a ton of useful information to ease the freaked out moms faced with lice. And bonus, there’s a coupon!! Then had to your pharmacy for your own package and stop your outbreak quickly, effetively and without worry. I have a feeling with the school years coming upon us quickly, Lice MD just might be a staple in our house!
Only Child
Raw. Poignant. Emotional. Humorous. Honest. As readers, we all bring our own baggage with us to every book we read. Like art, our reading experience is just that-an experience. When asked to review Only Child: Writers on the Singular Joys and Solitary Sorrows of Growing Up Solo, I brought my own baggage with me. I’m not an avid non-fiction reader, not because I don’t enjoy it, but instead, as an English teacher, when I am not reading for my classes, I want to escape into a book-not have to think. However, Only Child was a book I wanted and needed to read, and every night I allowed myself 20 minutes no matter how late it was to fall into this honest look at only child-dom put together by editors Deborah Siegel and Daphne Uviller.
You see, I never expected to raise an only child. I am one of two children who always had dreams of a loud, raucous, large family reminiscent of the Cheaper by the Dozen crew. My husband is one of seven and certainly wanted to recreate that. When we were first dating, we’d have the "How many kids do you want to have" talk-he said five, I said, "We’ll see after the first one." Looking back, I feel like I cursed us. It was extremely difficult to have our son, and now, almost four years later, we are faced with an almost certain finished family. Infertility has robbed us of the family we wanted not just for us, but also for our son. He grows up alone, no partners in crime, no built in friend. Only Child explores these issues, from the parent point-of-view, from the only child, and from the only child as parent point-of-view.
What struck me the most as I read this was how raw and emotional it was. Each essay delved into a different aspect of what it was like to be an only child. Each writer was more honest than I imagine most people can be. At times, without even realizing it, I found myself sobbing. It’s not that the plight of the only child is a bad one, because many of these essays showed just how great it can be, but all of the essays did demonstrate some similar themes, the biggest one being, "What happens when I am all that is left?" This haunts me as a mother of an only child. What will my son do when we are gone? Who will be there to support him? Will he be lonely? Who will be there to help him tell the stories of our family? I read this book to find those answers and find comfort in a life I didn’t choose. Sometimes, Only Child provided that for me, other times, it hurt to read the words of the "lonely child."
What strengthened me after reading this was that, for the most part, only children feel incredibly loved. Most of them talked about this bond they have with their parents. John Hodgman, in his essay "A Letter to My Second Child," discussed the family of three as "stable as a triangle, unlikely to collapse, each point strengthening and relying on the other" (158). I like this concept, this idea of stability that I hopefully will provide for my son. Together, we will take on the world. Hopefully, along the way, I will teach him how to play well with others so that he might find some stability in other relationships. The idea of him being all alone tears me up inside, but I have to trust that what these only children tell me is the truth: that they are very well loved, very stable, and while sometimes envious of sibling relationships, they always are grateful for the life they have been given.
For the depth of honesty shown in the book, for giving a voice to this mysterious group called "onlies," for giving comfort to a mother desperately seeking happiness for her only child, I give this a:
All Hail Whole Grain Pop-Tarts
When the opportunity came up to review Whole Grain Pop-Tarts, I jumped at the chance. I used to love Pop-Tarts…the way you toast them up and get that hot, gooey, sugary filling (okay, that usually burns your mouth, but it just doesn’t matter…) and the way you eat mostly the inside where the filling is and the yummy icing on top and leave the "crusts" for the birds. I haven’t had one in years and my son has never experienced them. Mostly because we eat too much sugar throughout the day, I just didn’t want to start his day with that. But, when you add Whole Grain to the package, I’m willing to be persuaded.
Sometimes, adding the whole grain element can change the texture and flavor for the worst. In this case, well, it’s just not the case. I like the Whole Grain Pop-Tarts far better than the classic Pop-Tarts. The icing is drizzled on the top and not in one solid chunk of sugar…the less sweet flavor makes the rest of the Pop-Tart taste delicious. The best part of them? When you toast them up, they get kind of crispy and it really brings out the taste of the filling.
We tried both the Brown Sugar Cinnamon and the Strawberry. I am a huge cinnamon fan with anything, so this was my favorite, but the Strawberry was yummy, too. My son, who usually favors strawberry, liked the Brown Sugar Cinnamon more, too.
The biggest negative to the product is that the second and third ingredients are corn syrup and high fructose corn syrup. If you’re trying to avoid those, you’re out of luck on this one.
Although I haven’t yet looked in my local grocery stores for them, you can search on their website, www2.kelloggs.com, to find a store near you. In my area, the local chain grocery store carries it as well as our local Target. So, it’s apparently out there and easy to get. And I will be getting…
So, while it still may not be the most healthful breakfast food on the market, with 1 1/4 servings of whole grains in it, it’s a better alternative to much of what is out there. Just talking about it makes me want one and I think I will indulge.
I give Whole Grain Pop-Tarts Brown Sugar Cinnamon and Strawberry a
Breakfast Breaks
I admit…at three years of age, we are already doing breakfast on the go. Well, not on my watch, but when I am at work and my Hubby has to do the morning duties, breakfast is more often than not on the go. Usually it consists of dry cereal or a waffle, no syrup. This phenomenon may be a thing of the past.
Breakfast Breaks is here. This nifty new product is perfect for families on the go (or daddies who sleep too long and don’t have time to fix their kiddos breakfast). Packaged in these cute little briefcase-like boxes, my son loved playing with the box and pretending to be daddy. Included in each box are a variety of breakfast foods. We received two boxes…one had a strawberry Fruit & Grain bar, a package of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and an Minute Maid Apple Juice box. The other contained an Apple Cinnamon Fruit & Grain Bar, Honey Nut Cheerios, and a Minute Maid Apple Juice Box. These are all staple breakfast foods for us so to have them all in the same place is super convenient. Each box also includes a spoon, a napkin, and a moist towelette. Great for eating and cleaning up on the go!
The downfall to these little packs is twofold-the juice is warm and there’s no milk for the cereal. While these are problems, my son didn’t comment on the juice’s temperature and we more often than not eat cereal dry in our house. I also think that school-age children would be able to buy milk before school since most schools have a breakfast program now.
I’m excited to have the Breakfast Breaks for any road trips. My little guy is not a morning person and usually waits to eat breakfast. When we leave on an early morning trip, he won’t eat and then will be "so hungry" once we are on the road. This is the perfect way to have breakfast without having to stop and take more time out of our travels.
You can get lots more info on the Breakfast Breaks website http://www.breakfastbreaks.com/. You can check out where to buy Breakfast Breaks and the kids can even play some games. This is a great concept, but because of the couple of downfalls, I give it:
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