IS MOTHER NATURE OUT OF CONTROL

I have to ask you, "Is Mother Nature out of control?". After nearly getting our tushes handed to us in last weekend's tornadoes I'm thinking she's lost her rabid mind! The massive twister that rolled through the south was said at times to be up to 1.75 miles wide which is just about as wide a tornado as ever has been documented and that's saying something. Big funnel clouds are not rare in Mississippi but this was one for the books. One of the pictures I saw snapped in Yazoo City looked like something out of a sci-fi movie!

The weather channel people who, bless their hearts, struggled so valiantly in their efforts to correctly pronounce Yazoo much less a tongue twister (hate that word, twister) like Kosciusko did a great job of covering the misery and devastation that was left in this horrific storm's wake. They stated several times this was the worst storm since Katrina hit...people, that was only a couple of years ago!

Are we now to expect weather events that used to happen once in a lifetime on a regular basis? I can remember the old folks talking about Hurricane Camille back in 1969 and a tornado that came through so fast and unexpectedly in the late 1940s that it not only picked up train cars but neighborhood who were out playing ball and couldn't get home or take cover quickly enough.

My point being that these storms were so memorable because they were isolated events. These days, you might want to start a diary to keep track of all the major hurricanes, tornadoes and ice storms that you live through so you won't forget some of the important details when entertaining your grandchildren.

I have to wonder if we have just had a really bad spell of weather over the last decade and that things will calm down getting back to normal or after getting a taste of walking on the wild side is Mother Nature out of control and are there more tornadoes than there used to be?

I'm sure that the citizens of Weir and Yazoo City Mississippi still sifting through the wreckage hope that the old bat, Mom Nature, has one heck of a hangover after all she put everybody through last weekend. Beyond that, they are probably afraid to talk too bad about her for fear she'll get pissed off and come back and take another swing at us.

Meanwhile, this mother is wondering if everybody waited so late to start going green that the old broad will never forgive and forget.

And kudos to the Weather Channel's Jim Cantore for not only being there but actually pronouncing the names of the towns beautifully. I know that he was just doing his job but small consideration during such dreadful times can make a huge difference.

GREEN WEED KILLERS

It’s time to break out the green weed killers because the cracks in our driveway are filling up with weeds! Am I heading out to the lawn and garden supply store for a buggy full of poisonous chemicals? Well, heck no because I have one of the best earth friendly weed killers right in my kitchen cabinet at home and vinegar is the cheapest thing going when it comes to killing weeds!


Chemical weed killers are not cheap but I wouldn’t use them even if they were giving them away for free! You may have already guessed my secret weed killing weapon; yes, I’m going to use plain, old garden variety vinegar to kill those weeds right in their tracks. It’s slower acting than the most common poison, Roundup, and you have to dump it on the plant a couple of times before you kill the roots, but using natural products over chemicals is worth a little extra time to me.


I would rather use green weed killers than chemicals that will first soak into the earth and then leach into our water supply, evaporate into the air we breathe and on and on. Everything we dump into the ground will eventually land on our doorstep so think about that the next time you take the quick and easy chemical method of weed killing when you could have killed those pesky weeds with something much less harmful to the planet. PLUS, I have a real problem with my kids playing on a lawn that has been doused with chemicals!


The only dangerous thing about using this green weed killer is that you have to protect the surrounding plants that you don’t want to kill. Pour to your heart’s contest on sidewalks and around fence lines but be careful around your flowers and any shrubs you want to keep because this green method of weed killing really works.
I have always used household vinegar that I buy in gallon containers but I have been told that there is such a thing as agricultural vinegar that is 20-30% acetic acid where the vinegar that I’ve been using (and it works just fine) is only 5%. Even though it’s much more acidic word is that it still is environmentally friendly. All you do is spray it on the pesky weeds and they shrivel up and die. However, I have not tried it myself and I understand it’s not EPA approved for use as an herbicide and can be difficult to find.

The weaker stuff is working just fine for me which is such an affirmation for my efforts in going green but if you have a resource for agricultural vinegar, would you please leave a comment telling us where to find it, how much it costs and how it worked for you?

GO GREEN TIPS

GOING GREEN is not that hard. It's going green and STAYING green that's tough. I have some "GO GREEN TIPS" for homes and work that might help moms resist the urge to drift back into nasty environmentally UN friendly habits when stress on the job or in our daily lives makes going the extra mile for Mother Earth too time consuming or (horrors!) expensive.

Inside the home, there are two easy tips that if everybody would put to use would have a major impact on home energy savings and a reduction in our carbon footprint.

1. Wash your clothes in cold water

2. Stop the dishwasher before it goes into the dry cycle

You can manage either of these Go Green tips for your home by pushing a button!

That's the kind of energy saving, environmentally thing that is so very easy to do and if you're a busy mom, sometimes baby steps is the best we can do. The thing is that baby steps are just the beginning. I started out with the little things and then dedicated myself to learning and utilizing more green living practices along the way and that works for me! My current goal is to pass my desire to clean up the environment to my children so if you have some green parenting tips, please take a minute and share them.

Jennifer Lopez Body After Babies

I've read so much speculation and so many comments about Jennifer Lopez body after babies that it made me all the more happy about my total lack of celebrity mom status. How awful it must be to think that the public at large is sitting around wondering about how flabby your belly is or how low your boobs are going to drop after breastfeeding.

Other than running across her name plastered on the front of magazines in the checkout line at the grocery and enjoying some of the movies she's starred in, I must make the confession that I haven't given Jennifer Lopez body after babies, before babies or otherwise much thought. However, after reading an article today with quotes from her on motherhood and her flabby tummy after having her twins; I am now one of her most devoted fans.

She was quoted as saying that when she got a peek at her flabby belly after giving birth she just laughed and said to her husband 'Look, baby! Isn't this crazy?' and that she just didn't care." Now THAT is, in my humble opinion, a celebrity mom with an attitude worthy of admiration!

TERRACYCLE PRODUCTS IN WALMART

Here's a heads up to look for Terracyle products in Walmart from April 5 to April 29 coinciding with Earth Day! I just read that Terracycle will be keeping 60 products in every Wal-Mart across the United States during that time span and it would be a shame if anybody misses them!

If you're wondering what I find so exciting about this company, you should visit the Terracyle website and take a look at their garbage recycling process. Their claim to environmental fame is that they actually convert your household trash into products that are being sold at major retailers. And the day that there are Terracycle products in Walmart, well, that's a day to crow about!

HISTORY

The company was nine years ago by a Princeton graduate right out of business school and what they do is convert non-recyclable stuff like plastic potato chip bags and plastic bottles into items that are now being sold at big name stores like Wal-Mart, Target, and K-Mart.

Not only is the company doing something to clean up the planet, but they actually pays consumers to send in their garbage or drop it off at one of their collection centers to be converted into usable items like children's toys, kitchen cutting boards. And they do all this using a very small amount of energy which is key to effective recycling and green living in my book!

Make a point to check out the Terracycle Products in Walmart and if you see a manager lurking around give him a big, hearty pat on the back for drawing attention to earth friendly companies and their products...now if they would only stock more organic foods.

How Do I Entertain My Newborn

A neighbor recently asked me, "How do I entertain my newborn?" I suppose she had noticed my house bursting at the seams with babies and felt I had lots of experience with entertaining them to maintain my sanity. My response was, "How do you know she's bored?". Her crestfallen expression made me feel so bad and brought back memories of how lost I was at times with my first that I wanted to offer some assistance.

I had never given this much thought and when I did, I had to question how DO I entertain my newborn? After putting my mind to it I realized that I have got a few tricks up my sleeve for keeping a four month old (or thereabouts) occupied. Here are a few tips that have served me well during church services, in doctor's waiting rooms and at other times when I noticed that my babies were getting bored.

(1.)
At home, I simply talk to my infants, make the occasional silly face and then laugh with them. I take their bouncy seat, swing, playpen or high chair into the room where I'm working to give them a change of scenery and let them be a part of what I'm doing.

(2.)
How do I entertain my newborn at church? My little ones refused to stay in the nursery much to the dismay of those close to our family's pew. There are Sundays when it's just not worth the effort but on special occasions when watching church on television just won't do, I resort to quiet toys and making funny faces behind my hand so the minister won't get the idea that I'm mocking him.


After typing this post, I've come to the conclusion that entertaining a four month old baby will come naturally if you just relax and let it happen. Giggling, being silly and being in the moment is easy; it's thinking about it that makes it more complicated than it has to be.

How Often Should You Clean Your House

After seeing me cleaning window screens a newlywed neighbor asked me how often should you clean your house. I pondered the question a minute and realized that I couldn't give her an answer because I clean some parts of my house more often than others.

The young bride (read: novice housekeeper) may been more interested in conversation than a cleaning schedule but as this may be a topic that lots of young wives and mothers might be interested in I made the following list. Please remember that I don't claim to be an expert on homemaking plus I probably clean the dusty parts of our family's home more than the average person because my babies have such severe asthma and allergies.

In other words I don't know the answer to how often should you clean your house because your circumstances may be completely different from mine.

How often should you clean your air ducts?
I clean my heat and air ducts monthly using my crevice tool because I see them as a major contributor of dust particles. If you have a good air filter, you could probably get away with cleaning them at the start of each season or a couple of times a year and don't forget to use green house cleaners!


How often should you clean your bathroom?

As you probably know, we've been fighting MRSA (staph infection) in my house so I clean mine after each family member takes a bath.

If you have no such problem, you could probably get away with cleaning your bathroom once or twice a week. To make weekly bathroom cleaning easier:

• always crack a window or run the exhaust fan while showering to keep the bathroom from getting moldy
• wipe down the sides of the tub or shower walls using a squeegee. This is important because removing hard water stains from glass shower doors is a pain in the ass!
• toss the bar soap and use body wash
  pour a cup of vinegar into the toilet once a week and let sit over night to break down hard water stains

How often should you clean your carpet?

This question is a no-brainer for me because I don't have carpet. Allergies and carpet don't mix. I have no rugs that can't be washed. As for others, it's still an easy to answer question; once a year or when it looks nasty. In my personal opinion carpet is nasty all the time even when it looks clean. If you don't believe me, hang around and take a peek underneath next your old carpet pad next time you have new wall to wall carpet installed. If that doesn't make you want to tile your floors nothing will, my friend.

That's just hitting the high points but it should give you some idea of how often should you clean your house as well as easy ways to keep it looking good in between scrubbings.

The Extreme Germophobe

A friend just said that that dealing with MRSA has turned me into an extreme GERMAPHOBE! My response to this accusation was that I don't actually have germophobia which is condition that causes a person who is so obsessed with bacteria to sanitize their hourly but I do turn on water faucets with my elbow so I suppose one could call me a pseudo-germaphobe according to the definitions I've found in the dictionary.

The reason for her inaccurate remark was that I told her that I would never consider owning a jetted tub because unsanitary bathrooms are not an option for me. Cleaning and sanitizing a normal bathtub after two family members who have MRSA staph infections is quite challenging enough without having to worry about bacteria hiding deep within dark holes.

And don't tell me that this is not an issue because I once flipped the switch in a whirlpool bath at a luxurious bed and breakfast inn only to find black moldy flakes floating in my bath water. This was before I became the extreme germophobe that I am today or it probably would have cause a fainting spell.

Where I once lived for a soak in a Jacuzzi, I know know that without going the extra mile to disinfect it, a jetted tub is a haven for mold and bacteria. Those warm, damp pipes are a virtual playground for stuff that scares me silly.
A well maintained hot tub has enough chemicals to beat back the bacteria but bathtubs don't.

I learned how to clean a jetted tub in our previous home out of necessity but I truly never trusted it and while many say the way to do it is easy and inexpensive; I found that performing the procedure which involved Cascade dishwashing powder and bleach after each and every bath to be time consuming and to cost money that I didn't have to spend at the time not to mention that I find unnecessarily dumping more chemicals into the environment reprehensible.

Being the extreme germophobe and frugal mom that I have to be, please forgive me if whenever I see a jetted tub I look at it as extra work and a breeding ground for bacteria. I'm sorry if that rains on anyone's parade but when you are talking about avoiding contaminating yourselves and your kids with MRSA that could be life threatening whirlpool bathtubs are simply not worth it.
Oh yeah, and there's no way in hell that I would ever take a bath in a B&B, motel or even a 5 star hotel EVER!

And even when taking a shower I practice the following advice that my grandmother lived by way before staph came into my life:


An optimist cleans the bathtub after her bath.
A pessimist cleans the bathtub before her bath.
A lady cleans the bath tub both before and after her bath.

I hope that next time you visit that I have something more uplifting to talk about in the way of Family Recipes, Babies and Parenting Issues rather than ranting about that the reasons that I should not be classified as an extreme germophobe because I am told that dealing with a germaphobe is not fun... now imagine that!

Am I a Helicopter Mom

My goal for yesterday was to decide if I am a helicopter mom. I was forced to take a look at myself to see if all of the health problems and chronic illnesses in my household had caused me to cross the line from caring, attachment parenting into helicopter parenting? Am I guilty of hovering about throwing myself between my kids and the cruel world and therefore leaving them victims to stunted development?

I’m a pretty busy lady and it has taken a little longer for the latest buzz phrase to catch my attention. However, my sister (remember the one who lets her kids run wild?) pointedly brought up the term "helicopter parenting" that she heard on a CBS documentary that aired awhile back to me over the weekend. I believe that she is pointing the finger at me for being a "hyper-parent" who coddles her kids.

WHAT IS A HELICOPTER MOM

Other than the obvious assumption that the definition of a helicopter mommy is one that hovers, after doing a little research I have ascertained that this would be a neurotically overprotective mother but who is fearful of upsetting her children and overcompensates (read: spoils) in various areas of their lives.

Am I little guilty of hovering over my kids? I wish I could square my shoulders and say that I would never do such a thing. But the truth is that I’m just a tat guilty. I’m not guilty of spoiling them or trying to predict and fill their every desire but because of our circumstances I may be a little overcautious but please allow me to plead my case.

Forgive me if I cringe whenever we are at the playground (or any other uncontrolled environment) and your child who doesn’t know my baby has a life threatening peanut allergy offers my daughter a bite. And please be understanding when you call to invite my kids over for a play date if I ask if you have cats, dogs or birds because my baby has asthma.

Under normal circumstances, I would like to think that I’m not a helicopter mom. I don’t spoil my children with toys and clothes and do my best parent them without clinging or overprotecting. But when it comes to my babies’ safety, you had better just get out of the way because this aircraft has a flight plan that will rock your world and for this mission I refuse to apologize.

HOW TO STOP CO-SLEEPING

I’m opening the floor for discussion on how to stop co-sleeping with my baby AND my older children. I’ve enjoyed a nice long run where my little ones slept within arms’ reach but as the size of my brood increases and the duration of hubby’s illness drags on, let’s say that co-sleeping with children and one infant is not that pleasurable or restful and I need help.

When this ball got rolling we never marked a date on the calendar setting a date for what age to stop co-sleeping. Frankly, I couldn’t think much past the desperate need for getting some sleep. Today, long after the ship has sailed I start to study up on how to stop co-sleeping and find that I should have conferred with my pediatrician about making a plan regarding my baby’s sleeping location. Oh, whatever..like my kids care what their doctor says.

After making light of involving a doctor in deciding when to stop co-sleeping, I do agree that I need a plan now that I can see that weaning time is drawing nigh. And after being sucker punched in the nose last night, I’m motivated but not sure how to stop co-sleeping without leaving my little ones feeling unwanted, unloved or abandoned. After checking into borrowing a portable crib for the little one, cost is no longer an issue. But do I need to move cots for the older children into the bedroom to ease the transition?

I was thinking something along the lines of gently moving the older children into the toddler beds after they go to sleep in our big bed and easing the baby into the travel crib. My husband called my idea “How to Stop Co-Sleeping for Sissies”. My response was that I prefer a gentle approach to parenting confident, independent children one baby step at a time.

Another reason that I’m working to make the transition as pain free and gradual as possible is because the idea of having to spend hours at a time rubbing little backs in the middle of the night because they woke up in a disoriented state is not appealing to me. Plus, I need some time to adjust to not being able to reach out and touch my girls to reassure myself that all is well during the night. Prolonged chronic illnesses and almost losing one can do that to a mom.

So, perhaps I should be asking for ideas on how to stop co-sleeping that are easy on both mother and child or any other parenting advice that you’d like to share I’m open to suggestions.

BEST GREEN BABY WIPES

After a round with baby rash, I did a little research on the best green baby wipes. I've had concerns about the cheap store-bought brands for a long time. With my baby's sensitive skin, allergies and eczema I'm very particular about all products she comes in contact with and wipes appeared on my radar when I read that some brands have materials that have been bleached with chlorine and contain alcohol or other irritants that might cause diaper rash.

A few common brands are Huggies, Pampers and Luvs so I decided to see if I could find a list of ingredients for each and here's what I found:

PAMPERS BABY WIPES INGREDIENTS LIST


Pampers "One Ups" Ingredients List
Water
Propylene Glycol
Aloe Vera Gel
Sodium Coco PG Dimonium
Chloride Phosphate
Cetyl Hydroxyethylcellulose
Methylparaben
Propylparaben
2-Brono-2-Nitropropane-1,3-Diol
Fragrance

HUGGIES BABY WIPES INGREDIENTS


I couldn't find a list of Huggies Baby Wipes Ingredients but I found a statement on their FAQ that stated that they contain Vitamin E and natural Aloe Vera. No information on what else they had in them which I found kind of fishy...but I didn't actually go to the store and check out the container to see if their was more info on the label.

The reasons that I put Huggies and Pampers first on my list to review were price and the fact that Huggies Natural Care Wipes and Pampers Baby Fresh Wipes were mentioned in an article discussing the best baby wipes of the year. But after reading some of the baby wipes reviews, I am somewhat less than impressed.

So, moving on to the more expensive but highly rated brand, Bum Boosa Bamboo baby wipes. And when I tell you they are not cheap...believe me.
The cost averaged out to .07 cents per wipe (on the bumboosa website) even if you spring for the 960 count package! Who can afford that kind of money for each and every wiped face, hand or butt? I can't imagine paying that for the best green baby wipes on the planet!

I'm all for utilizing bamboo as a replacement for traditional fibers. From what I know, the theory behind its use is spot on. But when an eco-friendly product is so expensive that only the very wealthy could ever afford to use products made with it that's not so helpful.

Another thing that caught my attention with this brand (rated the best green baby wipe by many) is that some of the reviews reported an orange essential oil smell that was strong. The idea of a fragrant smell of oranges that might do a little to overpower the smell of baby poop is appealing to me but guess what? My youngest is allergic to oranges.

Here's a list of ingredients in Bumboosa Baby Wipes from their website:

• Purified Water (98%)
• Organic Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera leaf)
• Lavender Essential Oil from France)
• Sweet Orange Essential Oil (Brazilian no less but my babies are just as allergic)
• Tocopherol (Vitamin E) – Natural Preservative, Skin Softener
• Vegetable Glycerin – Soothes and cleanses skin (so does water)
• Potassium Sorbate Preservative – Preservative (Sorbate is the metabolized form of the sugar Sorbitol)
• Polysorbate 20 used as an Emulsifier
• Citric Acid pH a Stabilizer that provides stability (what the heck does that mean)

I admit a certain amount of frustration after gathering these facts and
I'm about to come to the conclusion that the best green baby wipes that will work with my budget are homemade from scraps of cotton flannel. I challenge the visitors to Family Recipes, Babies and Parenting Issues to tell me how much more trouble can it be to pack moist flannel wipes in a ziploc or to store them dry and moisten them for use! As for myself, I feel kind of silly for obsessing over this issue when the best green baby wipes are right under our noses and even my five year old can sew a straight seam!

GREEN PARENTING TIPS

When I started this blog I wanted to focus on sharing green parenting tips. My goal was to turn the lot of you into eco-friendly parents in 10 Easy Steps or less. As so many of you know, it’s easy to run to the end of the thread of your subject and be jerked backwards only to fall on your butt. Why I thought I could give advice to others at a time when I was completely overwhelmed with parenting a very sick child is beyond me. In between emergencies, I did manage to offer some advice but I feel I must apologize for those days when I ventured off the course or didn't post at all.

The reason I feel so very guilty for neglecting my duties here is perhaps because
I can look back into my own childhood and see where no care whatsoever was given to isolating me and my sisters (and to be fair the other kids I knew) from pesticides or noxious fumes blowing out of a nearby factory. I tend to blame overexposure to chemicals for a healthy portion of my troubles in life. Granted I have been guilty of meandering off the course with the occasional recipe and rant but I am still driven to not only improve the air quality and the environment of my own home but to help guide others with as many green parenting tips as I can churn out.

Some of the posts I’ve made in this blog were made when my daughter was very sick and it gave me a place to vent my fears and share my pain. I was tempted to go back and delete old posts whose content is no longer relevant or start a new blog altogether and delete this one that displays my struggle to stay on topic.

These days my husband is the sickest one of the bunch and is engaged in a battle with staph which hopefully he will win. I look forward to the day that I can write about how the posts that I made during that health crisis are no longer important. On that note, I believe that I'll keep this blog intact, because moms still leave comments about what they are going through with their child’s peanut allergy, asthma or MRSA plus someday I would like for my girls to be able to read what mommy said about their early lives and to know that I was more focused on them at times than I was on posting green parenting tips on Oooh Baby Green Living and Parenting Ideas.

Parenting Independent Children

I can tell you from experience that parenting independent children is more of a challenge than raising people pleasers. I have a few of each so I know of what I speak. After studying nature versus nurture in school, I thought I had it all figured out until I had kids of my own. After venturing forth into the hands-on experience of actual child rearing, my thinking is that each baby comes here pre-programmed and while some behaviors can be tempered the basic character of a child is hard wired.

My daughters all have different temperaments. Two are shy and eager to please and the other two are rowdy, outspoken and at times, bull headed. I'm here to tell you that parenting independent children is a challenge. I believe that all of my girls are capable of being self sufficient and doing wonderful things in their lifetime even though the odds have been stacked heavily against two of them with chronic illnesses.

Oddly enough the one who has suffered the most is showing the strongest leadership capabilities. She is the one who calls the shots for the group's activities each day. Even though she is not the oldest or the strongest she has won the respect and admiration of the other three by handling herself with dignity that amazes even me.
Watching my girls take care of things because they have decided that I must be tired from taking care of their sick dad (which if you've visited Family Recipes, Babies and Parenting Issues you know about our recent trials and tribulations) or have a lot going on makes me feel like an expert on parenting independent children or at least at giving birth to them.

A Step Forward and Two Back

Battling illness in my house follows a pattern, a step forward and two back or maybe it's three but who's counting, right? I haven't posted much on MRSA wound healing or our battle with staph lately. It's like I've been avoiding the pink elephant in the room that you hope will go away if you ignore it.

The step forward that I mentioned was that the worst of the wounds finally closed. You know you've taken a step forward when the wound care doctor and nurses join for a group cheer some with tears in their eyes and others threatening to tear their shoulders out of the socket patting themselves on the back for having the knowledge and skill to manage the gaping holes. The worst of the wounds now has a paper thin layer of skin joining the sides that is so fragile that it can't be soaked in a tub or scratched if it itches for fear of tearing it.

I hate not to leave our progress report on a completely positive note but yesterday another "bump" or "pimple" was found right alongside the previously mentioned "wonder wound". It's the new year and that means that the insurance deductible starts all over again PLUS the 20% that we have to pay even once that is met.

We were so hoping that we would have a reprieve from treatments and to catch up on old doctor and hospital bills and avoid bankruptcy. We are going to call the wound care clinic and see if they will just call in a prescription to see if a round of antibiotics will zap the bump without having to schedule an appointment.

Meanwhile, I'm going to take an attitude of gratitude and be thankful that we have had a step forward and that we are going to blast our way past the two back. Thanks for the well wishes and uplifting comments that have been left for us on Family Recipes, Babies and Parenting Issues and I hope that you will keep us in your prayers.

GREEN HOUSE CLEANERS

The best Christmas present ever is causing me problems! Researching green house cleaners (actually house cleaning services not the products) has now been added to my VERY long "to do" list. I'm ashamed to say that I knuckled and bumped it to the top. I did so out of selfishness and more than a healthy dose of the need for assistance in digging through the after holiday clutter and confusion.

Before my awakening to the dangers of household cleaning products I might have called the first commercial cleaning service with an impressive ad in the yellow pages. But now I want to know more about what will be left behind after my merry little helpers leave my home.

Here are some questions that I plan to ask all of the green house cleaners that I call.

1. Does your company use commercial chemical free products or do you make your own out of baking soda, vinegar, lemon juice and the like? If you buy your green cleaning
   products can you give me the name of the company?
   
   
2. Are you bonded? I don't have a lot of valuable stuff but I like to know I'm covered because once upon a time (pre-babies) I had a decorator that dropped a hammer on my brand new Kohler toilet while hanging pictures and found out the hard way that she was not insured.
   
   
3. Do you hire workers or are your cleaning professionals co-owners of the company? I like the idea of the owner polishing my furniture.
   
   
4. Will the green house cleaners who visit my home have GREEN cards and speak English? I would prefer that there be no illegals in my house and I want to be able to communicate my needs as we go, if you please.
   
   
5. What kind of vacuum cleaners and vacuum cleaner filters do you use? If it's not HEPA, it's not happening in my house.
   
   
6. What do you charge and do you do windows? Even though I won't be paying the green house cleaning crew for several visits, I want to know that once I'm fully and completely addicted to having help that I can afford to keep it coming.
   
   

I'm just starting the process of interviewing green house cleaners and I have to make my phonecalls during naptime so it could take awhile but right off the bat I'm pleased to report that there are quite a few household and commercial cleaning services that advertise that their cleaning products are environmentally safe and chemical free.

That's encouraging, but we all know that talk's cheap and they are going to have to prove their claims to me before I let them in the door. If you have questions about who gets the job of becoming my environmentally friendly house cleaners, I'll probably be posting about them on Family Recipes, Babies and Green Parenting Issues in the next few weeks.

Where to Donate Used Stuffed Animals

I'm on a house cleaning mission and wondering where to donate used stuffed animals? After what will be forever remembered as the Christmas asthma attack of 2009, I've dedicated every free moment to ferreting out every possible irritant and allergy trigger in the house including all but the kids' most beloved plush toys that are worth all the trouble it takes to keep them dust mite free. I always try to recycle my kids' toys after Christmas, but this year I'm especially focused.

I know I could take the whole kit and kaboodle and leave them in the Salvation Army dumpster, but by conducting a little research I have found some answers to the question of where to donate used stuffed animals where they will do the most good.

Here are a few places that I'm going to locate and contact to see if will accept these toys or if they don't they might know of where to donate stuffed animals for children in need.

1. SAFE (Stuffed Animals For Emergencies) is at the top of my list if I can locate a chapter near us. A friend told me that this organization collects new as well as used toys and stuffed animals. If I can find one, this is the answer to my prayers because the volunteers take care of distributing the items to children's homes, hospitals and emergency organizations like fire, ambulance and rescue services where the items are used to comfort children. The SAFE website is stuffedanimalsforemergencies.org.
   
   
2. Homeless shelters are next on my list of where to donate used stuffed animals.
   
   

Where to donate used stuffed animals. by state:

ARIZONA - CALIFORNIA - OHIO

If you live in Arizona, California and Ohio you might want to check out Project Night Night. This organization creates and donates tote bags for homeless children ages 0-10 that contain a blanket, a book and a stuffed animal. At this time, their website says they only have drop-off locations in those three states, but we can only pray that they expand.

FLORIDA

Floridian families can contact Mushy Mates to donate their used stuffed animals to foster children and other needy kids. This non-profit group is based in Florida but helps children in all states and I've also heard that they accept donations from all 50 states but I'm unclear as to the process. Maybe somebody can respond and help us out with some details?

Mushy Mates works with case workers to get the toys to the foster children. You can also donate money as well as toys to any of their local foster care agencies, family homeless shelters or battered women's shelters and it's probably a good idea to mention the Mushy Mates' charity by name. If you have questions, you can contact Mushy Mates by email at MushyMates at MushyMates.com.


If you have any more tips on where to donate used stuffed animals, please return to Family Recipes, Babies and Parenting Issues and share them.

Is My Baby Allergic to Dogs

I have never stopped to wonder is my baby allergic to dogs because her allergies included all the common irritants like peanuts, cat hair and dairy. Her allergist never mentioned a dog allergy so I assumed that this was the one animal oriented area that we may have gotten lucky.

However, we learned over the holidays that this was not to be. As I look back the last post was made while I had images of creating a lovely holiday meal dancing in my head. Sick of leftover turkey, my goal was to come up with dishes with a fresh, new taste, something that the whole family would enjoy and that would not trigger any of the kids' many allergies.

Then, while neck deep in recipes printed off the internet one of our college friends came to visit with a new puppy in tow. Needless to say that the girls went crazy over the cute little guy. I was letting them all visit and entertain each other when my friend comes rushing into the kitchen asking is my baby allergic to dogs.

I could tell she was excited and when I saw my little one, I knew we were in a bit of trouble. Her face was red and her breathing indicated she might be in for an asthma attack. Thanks to quick treatment with her meds, all quieted down. But you can bet that I'm scheduling an appointment with her allergy specialist to see for sure is my baby allergic to dogs or was there a chemical or perhaps grass on the dog's hair that triggered the allergic reaction.

Return to Family Recipes, Babies and Parenting Issues to see if it was flea powder or dog hair that created these symptoms.

Christmas Menu Ideas

Hey everybody, I'm open to some new and interesting Christmas menu ideas if you happen to have any lying around. I made a huge pan of southern cornbread dressing using my family's traditional recipe for Thanksgiving with all the usual trimmings including a large cheesecake for those who don't fully appreciate sweet potato pie or banana pudding.

Plus, we had enough turkey to feed our large group, have turkey sandwiches for a week and then boil it for a big pot of turkey carcass soup. My nieces and nephews cringe at the word "carcass" so if you have any suggestions for renaming my favorite leftover turkey recipe I will consider them.

My problem is that after eating one creative leftover turkey recipe after another for several weeks, the idea of baking another one so soon is not so appealing to me and my husband actually turned a lovely shade of green awhile ago when I mentioned it. His Christmas menu idea is to buy rib eye steaks, potatoes and salad fixings and let that be it; he even offered to be the cook! Whoa, now that's hard to resist but I can feel all my ancestors in the background threatening to haunt me if I'm lazy enough to cave.

We are not big fans of ham around here so I need Holiday recipes that don't use ham and Christmas menu ideas that will keep both my living and departed family members happy!

Parenting Styles

I had an excellent opportunity to get a good look at my siblings parenting styles over Thanksgiving and I'm certain that I'll get another taste during the Christmas and New Year's holidays. I'm one to resist spewing parenting advice to others for the simple reason that no matter what the kids do at home, there is really no way of knowing what they will do when they are in public.

Long story short, Thursday night I broke my own rule of not becoming involved. No, one of the cousins did not whack one of my girls on the head or try to sneak peanuts to my baby with a severe peanut allergy. The little darling disrespected my mom's home.

I didn't lose control and even managed not to criticize my sister's severely relaxed parenting style but I just could not keep my mouth shut. She was raised in the same house as I was with the same values and to see her let her child get away with a level of destructive behavior that we never would have been caught dead practicing under the darkest cover of darkness or under a cloak of anonymity, much less in the middle of a family gathering in full daylight was just too much.

To give you some background, mom has had the same living room furniture all my life. On her birthday we pooled our resources and bought her a new set of end tables and a coffee table challenging dad to buy a sofa, chair and loveseat which he did. Thursday was her day to show the completed room off and you could tell that she was so very proud.

I reminded my girls to mind their manners and keep food at the table and to play outside as did all of my brothers and sisters EXCEPT for the one who believes in a loose and indulgent style of parenting. Things started out alright and then her little boy got rowdy and thought it was a good idea to stand on the coffee table, jump on the new sofa and break a lamp. After each incident, the expected admonishment never arrived.

Finally, after the lamp crashed to the floor. I took matters into my own hands and told the little boy to get outside with the other children and pulled my sister aside to give her a piece of my mind. She proceeded to give me a rundown of her preferred style of child-rearing and how she wanted her child to have freedom to make his own choices to build his self-esteem. Parenting styles and self esteem be hanged, that was my mother's house and I shared a piece of my mind and shared a little unappreciated advice with her on how to discipline her son.

Was I wrong in the way I handled the situation? I would appreciate it if those of you who visit Family Recipes, Babies and Parenting Issues would give me a little advice before the family Christmas get-together.

Thanksgiving Time Savers

One of the best Thanksgiving time savers that I put to work yesterday (and the day before) would make my great-grandmother's head spin backwards. Yeah, I was raised to believe that it was a sin or at the very least something to be embarrassed about if the can opener came into play at any time during the preparation of the holiday feast.

The rest of the year, the dancing glove was the enemy but on Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter canned goods were left in the cabinet or better yet, the grocery store. The exception was, of course, something that you had canned yourself in a Mason jar.

This year, with all of the stress and extra workload in keeping the house disinfected so that everybody won't get MRSA that doesn't already have it, I bit the bullet and took a few shortcuts. And I have to tell you that of all the heretofore forbidden Thanksgiving time savers, canned chicken broth was the absolute BEST!

Led to believe that the taste of canned broth was easily detected when compared to homemade, I had never experimented with it. Under the gun this year, I forgot to buy a hen and simmer it to have my broth ready to make the dressing and gravy. After a quick and surreptitious dash to the grocery before lunch, six cans of Sweet Sue saved the day. The empty cans were bagged, hidden and buried in the dumpster and NOBODY said a thing about any of the recipes having a slightly "off" flavor.

Not having to make room in the refrigerator to store the homemade broth alone probably saved me an hour! That may not sound like much but on a busy holiday, every hour counts.

I would be curious to know if you discovered any Thanksgiving time savers that you might want to share. As for me, you can bet that I've got six more cans of this stuff on my grocery list to have on hand for Christmas. Am I proud that I jumped in and did what I had to do to make Thanksgiving dinner a success? You bet I am! Am I going to tell my grandmother what I did? Well, no. In fact, the canned broth is written in code on my grocery list and I plan to hide the cans in the trunk of the car. Will I be found out? You will have to return to Family Recipes, Babies and Parenting Issues to see more Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday time savers and to see if anybody outs me.