Five for Friday

Five things I’ve been meaning to blog about:

1) This article. M already multi-tasks while she chats on any number of phones she can find around the house. FRIGHTENING. She beelines for the kids computers at the library (although she just bangs on them at this point). But she’s not all that into TV, and we try to enjoy the silence at home. I know she listens to a lot of music at daycare, but they don’t do TV of any sort. Toward the end of the article it talks about how children need to learn patience and delayed-gratification, and that will help with academic and life pursuits. That’s the Montessori Practical Life curriculum in a nutshell.

2) Fat pants. Had to break them out today for work–all my casual capris were dirty, I had a tour to give so I couldn’t wear the standard jeans today and…..none of my long-work pants seem to fit quite right. They able to be buttoned, but they weren’t pretty. And since most of the people I come into contact are right at ass-level, I didn’t want to scare anyone today. So I busted out the Fat Pants–you know, the pair in the back of the closet for emergencies. High-waisted, zipper-on-the-side, baggy yet-dressy black pants. Pants that, should they ever not fit, you may as well call into work because your ass will certainly not fit in your car if they don’t fit into those pants. Yes, those pants. I HATE them. But I suffered through it, nibbling on carrot sticks and fruit all day, and coming up with a plan to fit back into my long pants before it gets really chilly. Yikes!!

3) Teething. Seriously, will it EVER end??

4) I thought there was a # 4. Maybe I was wrong.

5) I’m going to a concert tonight!! I’m so jazzed!! John Mayer and Sherly Crow. Weee!!

Real and Purposeful, or duh, I Knew That

Thank you, everyone for comments on the last few posts. And I mean everyone, not just my pal Adoptive Mama who likes to sing baby M’s praises.

Anyway, I title this post such because it’s Montessori tenant #101–children need to do things that are real and purposeful. So OF COURSE the Divine Miss M wants everything in techno-black, because her parents are using everything in techno-black (see previous post).

I knew this to be true about toddlers, and preschoolers especially, but hadn’t really thought about the implications for babies. That’s why she wants THE remote, not A remote. That’s why she wants MY cellphone, not A cellphone. IMO, at the tender age of 7 months she’s already figuring out what’s real and purposeful.

I could wax on about other assorted Montessori tenants all day, but I already wrote those papers when going for my Montessori diploma. So instead I leave you this link, it takes you to my FAVORITE Montessori supply company. There are lots of great parenting articles there too.

Now should you click through and start reading all about the floor bed, the silliness of bottles, the toilet training at 1 and think, “OMG! I had no idea that Michelle was SO out there!”, I say, take it all with a grain of salt.

If you’re Uber-Mom with a kid who lives in a bubble, MAYBE you could test every theory. If not, just take what works. Afterall, the Divine Miss M is currently in a “baby container” known as the exersaucer and doing just fine!

I think that’s it for today. And if you haven’t been lately, check out our photoblog . It’s the Babe’s 7th Month photos posted!

Toys I’d Like to Market

Like most babies, the Babe has more toys than she could possibly explore in one lifetime. I try to rotate through the cache, and lately she’s been really excited by her Fisher Price piano, Fisher Price Learning Pots and Pans and a few other things. But she’s also been really interested in EVERYTHING we use on a daily basis–cellphone chargers, powercords, sunglasses, cell phones, so on and so forth. It seems that she’s really drawn to black plastic.

So yesterday afternoon I tidied up her toys, and gathered all of the black techno items and placed them in a basket.

the “baby” toys

the “big people” toys

I put her in the middle of the room, and what do you think she went for? The unattractive black basket filled with every day stuff.

So I think we are going to stop going to the toy store and start going to Goodwill. There, we will purchase broken appliances and gadgets, and she will be in 7th heaven.

Seriously, whoever thinks that babies are drawn to bright colors is obviously wrong. I think a line of industro-techno black plastic toys (no sharp edges, no cords long enough to strangle) would do quite well. Of course, if they were 100% safe, I guess that would take the fun out of them!