The Mom Crowd

The Barenaked Ladies recently came out with a new children’s album called, “Snack Time.” You can download their song, “789″ for free here.

If you are traveling this weekend: Be careful and stay safe! If you are having a StayVacation (according to Good Morning America) at home: Have lots of fun! Remember to put on loads of sun screen.

Check back on Monday for an exciting announcement here at The Mom Crowd!

UPDATE:

My pastor preached about remembering the Sabbath this morning at church. So my husband and I took the day off today. Our video podcast, “The Mom Crowd Show” will be debuting on Tuesday, instead of Monday. Which is fine, because hopefully most of you will be off with your family and bar-b-que-ing tomorrow! Happy Memorial Day!

I have a subscription to several parenting/mommy magazines. 5 to be exact. I have gotten all of them as gifts–some I really wanted and some I didn’t even know about until they showed up in my mailbox. I’m curious about what all you look for in a mommy magazine and what you like about them. I thought I’d give a summary of what the ones I subscribe to are like:

Parents: Probably the most popular mommy magazine. It has its own toy line! Parents seems like it reaches a broad range of moms and it has sections on different child stages, making yourself beautiful and my favorite parts are the “what worked for me” and the “embarassing moments” sections. I love the practical and funny. I have gotten several recipes from the magazine since they are usually quick and simple. It is also very commercial but I enjoy getting it every month and usually read it from cover to cover.

Parenting: Parenting magazine is not too different from Parents magazine. It has the same commercial and broad appeal. It basically has all the same sections that Parents has minus the embarrassing moments. There is a funny cartoon section in the back of the magazine that takes some aspect of mommyhood and caricaturizes it. I like this magazine too but wouldn’t miss out if I didn’t get it. I think choosing between Parents and Parenting is just a personal preference. Some may like the layout better in Parenting over Parents.

Mothering: I love, love, love this magazine! I fall on the more “crunchy” side of mothering and this magazine speaks to that part of who I am and things I am interested in; natural birth, cloth diapering, breastfeeding, living green, eating healthy. It only comes out 6 times a year but I wish I got one every month. I read it cover to cover as well and usually keep them around because the magazine has a lot of articles I refer to in my birth classes.

Wonder Time: This, I think, is a new magazine. It feels like the “Real Simple” style of a parenting magazine–not quite as commercial as Parents or Parenting– and it has had some interesting articles in it that are much more dad friendly than other parenting magazines. It still has a recipes section and covers some child products like other magazines do. The latest one had a funny article about why kids think talking about poop is so funny (something we are currently experiencing on a daily basis in my house–ahhh the joy of 3 and 4 year olds!), an article about what dads are thinking in the delivery room, and summer traditions to start with kids. I find the simple design and less commercial feel refreshing.

Cookie-This is also a new magazine and I would have to say the least liked. I don’t like the design and its focus must be to high income families–not families living on a graduate school budget (like our family), for sure. Last month’s issue had an article about redoing your kids playroom and all the ideas cost a fortune! It seemed a little unrealistic to me to spend thousands on an artistic play area for kids. It also has a high focus on children’s fashion. I don’t like the way the magazine is laid out because it feels like one huge advertisement. The only section I do like is toward the back where it reviews books for children. It has some great book picks and suggestions but I don’t think that makes it worth buying.

I always look forward to getting my magazines in the mail because when the children are napping or when the baby is nursing I can sit back and have some escape time. You may have figured out by now that I love reading so it feels like a little minivacation when something new comes in the mail. I always feel sad when I am done reading the magazine. Is anyone else like that?

What magazines do you like? What do you look for in a mommy magazine?

You may have already heard that Angela Kinsey who plays Angela Martin on the hilarious NBC series ‘The Office’ gave birth to a baby girl on May 3, 2008. Isabel Ruby was born at 12:50 p.m. and weighed 6 pounds and 14 ounces.

I didn’t even know she was pregnant! What kind of a fan am I? As I think about the last few episodes it makes sense why we only saw her face. I bet it was pretty awkward to film the ‘love scene’ with Rainn Wilson (Dwight).

Angela is married to Toby’s brother. Warren Lieberstein is Paul Lieberstein’s (Toby) brother. Maybe they met at an office Christmas party.

I found these three gems on NBC’s website: Angela’s surprise baby shower; Oscar and Brian (Kevin) share a message with Angela’s baby; and Leslie (Stanley) gives baby name advice.

Since, we are on the subject: What did you think of ‘The Office’s’ Season Finale?

Darah and I attended a Music Together class when she was 18 months old. It was one of the most enjoyable things I’ve done with Darah. In Music Together, we sang a lot of fun songs, did a lot of dancing and silly movements, played with cool instruments, and just had a really good time! The teacher encouraged the parents to get very involved during the classes, and we all just fed off the teacher’s high energy and zany personality. For the past six weeks, I have had the wonderful opportunity of attending a Kindermusik class with Darah (now 3 1/2) and Connor (17 months old). At first, I was going to attend with Darah only, but due to the difficulty in arranging sitting for him during our class, I decided to sign him up as well. Kindermusik is very similar to Music Together, however the Kindermusik class seemed to explore the body and movements while singing or listening to music, while Music Together seemed to explore the actual music more. I think you get just as much out of both of the programs, just a little different.

The first week of Kindermusik was difficult because Connor didn’t want to attend to anything we were doing and I was split between both children. If I think hard about it though, none of the children were perfectly attending to the class, so I think I probably was more stressed out about it than necessary. Since that first week, the kids have grown so much in their music exploration. Darah really never had much of a problem attending to the group songs and activities like Connor did, but she still has learned how to follow the direction of the teacher, move fast-and-slow, start-and-stop her instrument or movement, transition between songs and activities. Connor, though has grown up so much during our class. The first session, he threw major temper tantrums when it was time to transition. When we would put up the maracas, he would cry and run away with his maracas. When the teacher started singing her “drums away” song, he would grip his drum even harder while crying. I left thinking he just wasn’t mature enough for a group activity like Kindermusik. By week two, he got a little better about it, and even though I would have to pry each instrument away from him when it was time to transition, the crying didn’t turn into all out temper tantrums. By week three, though, he would start putting his instrument up when the teacher started singing the transition song. There were still tears, but he was following direction. Last week, he actually seemed to look forward to the transition to see what was coming next. He eyed the hoola hoops the whole time and every time the transition song would start, he’d clean up and run over to the hoola hoops, hoping this was the transition that was going to lead to them. There were still some tears, but he was in no way uncontrollable, and I loved that he was following direction so well.

The last six weeks has been a very enjoyable time for me and my children. I am so glad that I didn’t find a babysitter for him during the music class and went ahead and signed him up as well. I’m sad that this session is finishing, but you better believe we’ll be signing up for another one!

I strongly recommend you find a Kindermusik or Music Together or Gymboree music class in your area to try. Most locations will let you try out a class for FREE!!

Have you been to a Mommy and Me Music class? What did you think? What other fun activities have you done with your baby or toddler?

1. A five-point harness strap system that won’t tighten small enough to keep your baby from squirming out and climbing on to the tray.

2. A buckle that hurts your hands when you squeeze the sides to open it.

3. A comfy and cushy seat cover that is Dry Clean Only and requires you to hand scrub every dried spot of sweet potato.

4. A space large enough that your baby can recline and not be able to reach on top of the tray.

5. A tray that is twice the size of your kitchen sink and spills water on your floor every time you clean it.

6. A chair that takes up at least 3 square feet of your limited kitchen floor space.

7. Corners and crevices that attract every crumb and piece of bread to be eaten by baby at the next meal.

8. A seat cover that is difficult to remove and place back in with buckles too large to squeeze through the tiny slots in the cover.

9. A tray with shallow sides that allows your baby to drop food on the floor when they were trying to pick up the food off the tray.

10. An aesthetically pleasing seat that matches your kitchen but makes feeding and cleaning a dreaded experience.

Last week I left my daughter alone strapped in her high chair for a minute. When I came around the corner I saw her sitting on top of her tray. I have wanted a new booster seat and this was the straw that broke the camel’s back for me. I purchased a Safety 1st Recline and Grow 5-Stage Feeding Seat and I love it!

Even though it doesn’t have a 5-point harness it is small enough to keep Ace in her seat. Also, I need to be careful to pick Ace up as soon I pull out the tray, because she leans forward when I pull the tray out. The new booster seat is so easy to keep clean.

I had no clue what to look for when I registered for a high chair. I assumed that all high chairs were the same and I picked the one that matched closest to my kitchen colors. Boy was I wrong!

Here are some high chair buying tips from Consumer Reports.

Do you use a high chair or booster seat? Which one do you use? How would you advise a new mom that is shopping for a high chair?