Damn You, Parents Magazine...You Push Me to Do STUFF...

Damn you, Parents Magazine. Here I was...thinking I was a pretty cool, creative mom. And then you go and make me feel inadequate with your latest fall issue. O.k. so I made myself feel inadequate by reading it and seeing all the ideas I haven't thought of myself. And then the Today show made me feel stressed out all morning with the Mattell recall of 900 toys. Oh thank god Lucy doesn't like Polly Pockets or Diego. But we did have a couple of the Elmo toys in our house. Yikes! To the trash they went, and one call to the pediatrician later...not so worried about it.
But you know what? A few things have been nagging at me...and this Parents magazine issue has propelled me to do a little more, work a little harder, and get my creative juices flowin'. I guess I just needed a "babysitter afternoon" and a little kick in the ass to make it happen...
1. Lucy is a movin' and a shakin' 3 year old and maybe needs to work her brain more. I don't think I was giving her enough credit. She's so damn smart (yeah, you can puke now) - she shocked me by writing her name on the chalkboard by just me telling her the letters. I mean, what do I really know is developmentally appropriate? But I thought it was impressive. So today at Michael's, I bought her a little Disney princess letter writing book. What the heck...if she's in the mood...guess we'll get going on it.
2. I've been meaning to get her age appropriate puzzles. I hear they are great at this age. I only had toddler-type puzzles and others for older kids. Michaels had GREAT 25 piece puzzles for only $3. Done!
3. To help with the whole "playdate thing" (aka not sharing and being naughty), I purchased some great $1 crafts that we can do together when a friend comes over. I think it will distract from the negative behavior and be a fun activity for both kids and I! I found the CUTEST $1 wooden stand-up dolls and bought fun feathers, balls, etc. that the girls can decorate their outfits with. Just call me Martha, I tell ya.
4. I've been feeling slightly guilty about what the kids are eating. In the grand scheme of things, they eat very healthy. We aren't a 100% organic family, by any means. But lots of whole grains, and weekly farmer's market fruit and veggies. But o.k...so she has a couple popsicles a day. And I have been KNOWN to hit McDonalds after the beach/park on a busy day...so sue me. And the dinners have been pretty lame lately. Cheese ravioli, anyone? So I bought some nice/new items that I was inspired by in Parents magazine. Ingredients for a great looking and simple paella recipe I think they'll like. And I'm going to start making new kinds of sandwiches for the kids. Cream cheese/ham rolls, broccoli/hummus, trail mix/peanut butter wraps, etc. I bought a few more organic items on sale (I am such a miser, it kills me) and am going to start clipping coupons and watching for sales more closely on those kinds of things.
Oh yeah...just one step closer to the uber-mom status...HA!