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February Carnival of Natural Parenting: Co-Parents

Welcome to the February Carnival of Natural Parenting: Love and partners!

This is the second monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama. This month we’re writing about how a co-parent has or has not supported us in our dedication to natural parenting. Please read to the end to find a list of links to the other carnival participants.

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A Love Letter

Dear Tom,

For this month’s Natural Parenting Carnival, I am supposed to write about how a co-parent has supported my own journey in natural parenting, but all I want to do is say thank you.

Thank you for helping me learn about natural childbirth. Thank you for watching countless natural labor and delivery videos with me while I squeezed your hand, for visiting midwives with me in order to find a good fit, for understanding the value in birthing outside of a hospital, and for calming my fears when I doubted my ability to have our baby naturally.

Thank you for walking through 31 hours of labor with me, and for staying in that NICU room with us for the next five days. If anything cemented our bond as a family, it was those long and intense six days.

Thank you for recognizing the importance of leaving our son intact. Thank you reading the research on why circumcision is not a healthy decision. Many, many thank you’s for being comfortable with sharing our decision with friends and family, and for passing information along to your friends who are about to become parents.

Thank you for helping us establish a successful breastfeeding relationship. When Kieran was a newborn you tirelessly helped me to pump, correct Kieran’s bad latch, and work the little feeding tube in while Kieran was nursing in order to supplement him with expressed milk. You rarely complained whenever you had to get me glass upon glass of water, bring me snacks, or dry my hormonal tears. I wouldn’t have been able to handle it without you regularly hugging me close and telling me I was giving our son the best start.

Thank you for helping me feel comfortable nursing in public. How many women can say that a man has helped normalize breastfeeding for them? You have done that for me. You have always been by my side, never to cover me up or make me feel ashamed, but rather to stand with me as one united front against the world. You make me confident.

Thank you for recognizing the benefits of full-term breastfeeding. You act as if you have been around breastfeeding toddlers your entire life – our friends may be surprised to know that Kieran was your first breastfeeding experience ever. You make it easy to forget that we are not living according to mainstream standards – I love that.

Thank you for welcoming Kieran into our family bed. It has been such a blessing to wake up with both of you every day.

Thank you for utilizing our entire babywearing stash without complaint – even the pink and orange tie dye ring sling.

Thank you for listening to me read article after article on gentle discipline, noncoercive parenting, and the benefits of giving Kieran the same love and respect we want ourselves.

Thank you for helping me research our health care decisions (including vaccinations), for listening to and challenging my arguments, and for making sure that we are making the right choices for our family.

Thank you for jumping feet first on the environmental bandwagon with me. The environmentally conscious habits we are creating are already second nature to Kieran.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for believing in the value of having me stay home with Kieran. I understand that losing my income was a struggle and a sacrifice for you, and I’m not sure you will ever realize how very much it means to me.

Thank you for coming around to the idea of homeschooling Kieran. I look forward to both of us having a part in helping Kieran explore and learn about the world.

Thank you for giving me time to recharge my batteries and for encouraging me to express myself in creative ways. Every project I have attempted in the past two years is due in part to you. You help me find balance, and you help me remember that I am an individual on top of being a mama.

I don’t say it often enough, but thank you for the husband and father you have become. I hear mothers worry every day that their partners do not support their choices. It is a very rare occurrence that we disagree about how to best parent Kieran, and I am so happy that we see eye to eye.

This journey of fatherhood has not always been easy for you. You have felt unprepared at times and ostracized at others, but you keep going, growing, and learning. Thank you for modeling that for Kieran.

You are my foundation and my support, and you are an incredibly positive example for others.

I love you,

~Dionna

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Carnival of Natural Parenting -- Hobo Mama and Code Name: MamaVisit Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!

Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:

(This list will be updated Feb. 9 with all the carnival links, and all links should be active by noon EST. Go to Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama for the most recently updated list.)

February 9th, 2010 | Category: Attachment Parenting, Carnival of Natural Parenting, Family Life, My Family, Parenting | One comment

The Naked Chef

Kieran has recently become our little exhibitionist. I’ve been waiting and wondering whether this stage would crop up; many toddlers go through it. I have a friend whose then two year old daughter took off her clothes at a public park last summer. My friend put her daughter’s clothes back on, the daughter took them off. This happened two or three times before my friend said “to heck with it” and let her daughter run around the grass naked. There were only a few other mother/toddler pairs nearby, and mothers generally understand that kind of stuff.

Right?

Not these mothers – one of them called 911. An officer showed up to take a report. As my friend chatted with the officer, she dressed her daughter once again. Before the officer left, my friend’s daughter had – you guessed it – stripped down. Mercifully, the officer laughed and went on his way.

Yes, I had to pick my jaw up off the floor too when I heard the story.

Anyway, it’s the middle of winter so I’ve not had to deal with him disrobing at our local park. He does run around naked in our house quite often, though. We got a giggle out of him cooking in the buff the other day.

Does (or did) your child enjoy running around au naturale? Where is the most embarrassing place s/he has disrobed?

February 8th, 2010 | Category: Kieran, Parenting, Toddlerhood | 11 comments

Liner Notes

Ever since Kieran went from runny-breastfed-poo to eating-real-food-so-more-substantial-poo, we have used liners on our cloth diapers (this is one brand we particularly like).

After several interesting diapers this week (the menu has included homemade split pea soup, frozen blueberries, and something with corn in it), I had a thought:

am I the only person who would find it highly amusing to have a weekly featured post entitled . . .

(ready?)

“Liner Notes”

You could even set it to music based on what meal inspired the subject of each post.

Tom told me posting pictures would be going too far though.

February 5th, 2010 | Category: Just for Fun, Parenting | 15 comments

Toddler Activity Schedule 4 (Hearts)

Since February is “American Heart Month,” and because Valentine’s Day is fast approaching, we are going to focus on hearts this week.

Monday

Morning
Monday Fun-day with Jax & Sarah
*Sarah is hosting this week.

Afternoon
Pretend play
*Walking a Tightrope: Make a line along the floor with masking tape, starting with a straight line, than twisting and bending the tape. End the ‘walk’ with a spiral. See if your child can walk on the tape, without stepping off! (Too easy? See if your child can do it backwards!)

3:00-4:00 – outside
4:00-5:00 – Music & Movement (We will check out a good CD from the library and dance together.)

Tuesday

Morning
Fun with numbers
*Sing the “One little Two little” song using hearts.

One little, two little, three little hearts
Four little, five little, six little hearts
Seven little, eight little, nine little hearts
Ten little hearts go thump thump thump (Thump your chest lightly in rhythm, then sing it backwards: “Ten little, nine little, eight little hearts,” etc.)

*You can also talk about heart beats and how they beat in a rhythm of one-two, one-two. See if you can hear each other’s hear beat. (Use a stethoscope if you have one!) Practice making a heart beat rhythm by clapping your hands lightly on your thighs or the floor.

Afternoon
Language/pre-reading
*Patterns: I will cut out shapes from construction paper (hearts, circles, and squares).Make a pattern with three of the shapes. Ask your child to try to make a pattern just like yours using the same shapes. Try making patterns with four, then five shapes. Have your child do the same. If your child becomes frustrated, try it another time.

3:00-4:00 – outside
4:00-5:00 – Music & Movement

Wednesday

Morning
Wacky Wednesdays with Molly & Jenny
*I am hosting this week. We will do a heart collage: the kids will glue pre-cut hearts onto construction paper.

Afternoon
Exploring our World
*Using pictures from magazines, we will make a picture (to hang in the kitchen) of snacks that are healthy for our hearts. We will talk about how our bodies need healthy foods to grow and function. I will try to have several of those snack options always available for Kieran to choose from when he’s hungry.

3:00-4:00 – outside
4:00-5:00 – Music & Movement

Thursday

Morning
Science Adventures
*We will paint with red and white paint. We will talk about what happens when you mix the two together.

Afternoon
Library & grocery store
*I have a hold on “My Heart is Like a Zoo“: Twenty animals are waiting for young readers–some are familiar, some may be brand-new. Hall’s menagerie invites parents and their children to talk about feelings and emotions, explore colors and shapes, count the hearts, and meet the animals.

3:00-4:00 – outside
4:00-5:00 – Music & Movement

Friday

Morning
Kid Swapping with Melody

Afternoon
Messy Play
*We will make fingerprint hearts with tempera paint.

3:00-4:00 – outside
4:00-5:00 – Music & Movement

Would you and your child benefit from a weekly activity schedule? I’d love to share with you! Please take a moment to subscribe to my RSS feed for free updates.

February 4th, 2010 | Category: Activities for Toddlers, Arts & Crafts, Creative/Dramatic Play, Educational, Fun & Games, Music, Sensory, Toddler Activity Schedule | 4 comments

Baked Spaghetti Pie

Any dish that is full of veggies, freezable, and approved by both hubby and toddler is fine with me, and Baked Spaghetti Pie meets all of those criteria. Added bonus: it’s easy! It can also be made with or without meat (I usually make mine meatless, but I could see adding some cooked ground turkey).

I based my recipe on one found here. Below is the recipe with my modifications, it will make enough to eat one pie and freeze a second.

This recipe makes two 13x9 pans of spaghetti pie. Here they are before baking.

Ingredients

1 lb spaghetti
4 eggs
2 (16 oz) containers cottage cheese (I sub cottage for ricotta, either works)
1 1/2 to 2 (12 oz) packages Italian cheese blend
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 (32 oz) jars spaghetti sauce (pick your flavor or make your own – yum!)
2 zucchinis (diced)
1-2 cups mushrooms (diced)
4 carrots (diced)
1 small onion (diced)
1-2 tbsp Garlic
Italian seasoning (to taste; I also like to add some red pepper flakes to mine)

Directions

*Cook spaghetti according to package directions. At the same time, boil carrots so they soften. If you’re feeling extra fancy, heat a tablespoon or two of olive oil and saute your onions, mushrooms, and zucchini. I’ve gone without sauteing though and it turns out just fine.
*Once spaghetti is done, drain. Add eggs, Italian cheese blend, cottage cheese, and a cup or two of your spaghetti sauce. Stir until well blended.
*In a separate bowl, stir together the remaining sauce and all of your veggies, garlic, and seasoning.
*Spray a glass baking dish with cooking spray.
*Put approximately half of your spaghetti mixture in the dish. Top with half of the sauce/veggie mix.
*Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. 5-10 minutes before it is done baking, sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Let cool for a few minutes, then cut into wedges and serve.

To freeze the other half: I have always arranged it in a baking dish like above and then frozen it. If you don’t have a spare dish, I would freeze the spaghetti mixture and sauce in separate ziploc bags. When you are ready to eat it, thaw and bake as directed above.

And here is the spaghetti pie after baking. Ooey gooey and good!

February 3rd, 2010 | Tags: | Category: Feed the Freezer, Food & Nutrition, Recipes | 12 comments
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