Stop, Breathe and Think

Experts are quick to tell parents that too much television is bad for kids. And generally speaking, I will agree. But once in awhile, a television show offers more than entertainment, it offers some good advice.

Today on Blue's Clues, Steve helped his friends deal with frustration. It's a very common occurance for children. Every day, children face several frustrating situations because they are still developing basic problem solving skills. Steve's formula to deal with frustration?: Stop, Breathe and Think. Three simple steps to help work through any problem. Simple enough for even a child to understand.

The basic idea of Steve's advice is for kids to learn at an early age that by slowing down, they are more in control of their thoughts, as well as their actions. This process helps children develop their problem solving skills, and self-dependence. What a great lesson! A lesson that even adults can live by.

The next time you are faced with a frustration situation, (like your kids are driving your crazy), take a lesson from Steve: Stop, Breathe and Think. It just might work.

Cabin Fever

This time of year, it's easy to catch a raging case of "Cabin Fever". Now, I've lived in Wisconsin my entire life, and I'm used to long, cold winters. But every year at about this time, my patience runs short, and I'm eager to get out of the house to spend more time outdoors.

We were teased with warmer weather a few weeks ago when temperatures sky-rocketed into the low 70's; an amazing feat for late-March. Jack and I even took a trip to the zoo in which I had to be careful that Jack didn't get too much sun. But a recent winter storm desecrated our green grass and tulips, and insured that our furnace would not be going on vacation any time soon.

This is now my second spring season as a stay-at-home dad. This year the desire to get outside seems to be just a little more intense. It might be because Jack is eager to get outside as well, which means there are now two of us with our noses pressed up against the windows. Now that Jack is almost 19 months old, all he really wants to do is run, explore, and run some more. So dealing with confides of the house is just way too constricting. It's a big world out there, and Jack is eager to discover it.

To help maintain sanity, (for both Jack and myself), we have to be extra-creative in finding fun ways to pass the time. Books that we've read 900 times throughout the winter just won't cut it. No, we must think outside the box--or in this case, outside the home. Tomorrow night, we are taking a field trip to see the Milwaukee Admirals take on the Chicago Wolves in an American Hockey League showdown. It will be Jack's first hockey game, and I'm curious to see his reaction.

While the hockey game won't provide the warmth of an afternoon sitting in the sun, it will offer Jack and me a chance to get out of the house for a few hours. For Jack, it will be a brand new experience to see the speed and excitement of professional hockey. And hopefully, we'll both enjoy some minor relief to our accute Cabin Fever.

Worth the Wait

Running errands while toting your child can be an unpredictable experience. Sometimes all goes well, while other times you swear you will never leave the house with a toddler again. Today I was fortunate enough to have a positive experience as I took my car in for some routine scheduled maintenance.

Having your car or truck serviced is one of life's many necessary evils. It's not really something you look forward to, and if it's a minor service, you might as well stick around in the waiting room for the hour or so the vehicle is being worked on. Doesn't sound very exciting, does it? It didn't seem very appealing to me either, especially knowing that my 18-month old son is getting more adventurous every day. Sitting patiently in a cold, boring, cinderblock holding tank, with nothing more than an 8-cup coffee maker, and a stack of day-old newspapers for entertainment seemed like the last thing Jack would put up with.

But to my pleasure, the waiting room at Schlossman's Honda City in Milwaukee actually seemed like it was designed with real customers in mind. There were large, leather recliners for adults to sit on, and a surprisingly large collection of simple toys for kids and toddlers to enjoy. When Jack and I walked in, there was already another parent, along with her 19-month old daughter playing with some toy trucks. Jack joined right in as if it were a planned play date. And if Jack grew tired of the toys, or the company of his new found playmate, there was a 42" plasma tv hanging on the wall (just in case I had to call in for backup from The Backyardigans or Wonder Pets!). This situation didn't look so bad after all.

One of the factors that can make an experience a positive one, is the environment you find yourself in. Fortunately, there are businesses out there that are looking out for the best interests of their customers. As a parent running errands with a young sidekick, these are the businesses that are worth visiting again.

A True Artist

My son, Jack, loves to draw with crayons. I think it's great that at 18 months old, he's already developed the dexterity to manipulate a skinny, drawing utensil. Jack can create swirls, scribbles and dashes as well as any child at least twice his age.

Crayola makes this process much easier with its line of "twistables". Unlike traditional crayons that break under very little pressure, twistables are protected by a durable, outer plastic barrel. Similar to a tube of lipstick, twisting the barrel exposes more of the color. And like a mechanical pencil, twistables are always sharp. No need for a sharpener!

I really enjoy watching Jack as he scribbles with his crayons. It doesn't take long for him to turn a blank piece of "doodle paper" into an original masterpiece. And this is an activity that I can share with Jack as I doodle along right with him. What a great way of teaching the benefits of sharing as we pass the "big dip o' ruby" color back and forth.

Early Retirement? Not quite.

When my wife and I finally made the decision for me to leave my job as a sales manager at a publishing company to become a stay-at-home dad, some of my work colleagues referred to it as "early retirement". In a way, so did I. After all, as a full time dad, I was now going to be making my own schedule, which included getting out of bed whenever I wanted, and watching Sportscenter as often as possible. What could be better? It didn't take long to discover that this was not going to be as easy as I was hoping.