Wondering if your child is having some developmental issues? Who doesn't?

Hawaii has a free information and referral source called H-KISS. They can arrange for a keiki evaluation and will refer you to services as needed.
Here's their flier. They have a list of provided services as well.

My child's a caveman?

According to Dr. Harvey Karp, author of "The Happiest Baby on the Block," she is. After watching her throw a fit because I wouldn't let her give her doll a bath in the toilet I have NO doubt he's right.

Dr. Karp has come with a revised version of his book, "The Happiest Toddler on the Block." The New York Times has a great article about it that includes tips on how to deal with tantrums. It's called Coping With the Caveman in the Crib .

Super Garage Sale and Craft- March 1st

The MWR Super Garage Sale and Craft Fair scheduled for March 1st.

Location:
Richardson Field (across from Aloha Stadium and next to the Arizona Memorial)
Kamehameha Hwy
Honolulu, HI 96800

Time:
0800-1200

Keen Sandals

Keen actually makes shoes for the outdoor infant and toddler. They're rather obscenely priced but I did find them in select colors on sale at Sierra Trading Post.

Fun in the Sun

Lands' End has the funniest Swim Critter Diaper Covers. Just click on the pink to see my personal favorite.

Shoes (for J and L)

Target currently has free shipping with a $50 minimum purchase on select items. They have some great toddler and prewalker shoes.

The Circo Prewalkers were my favorite because they were easy to put on, could be worn with or without socks and didn't squeeze E's plump feet like leather slipper/booties with elastic.

Speech and Language Milestones

I had a conversation with a friend of mine about the different things I've worried about as E had gotten older. Now that we're through the SIDS fears I've moved onto worries about speech and language development. I found a few great site...
http://www.comeunity.com/disability/speech/milestones.html

I would imagine that my next worry will be Autism. First Signs has some great links.

To go with that convertible car seat...

Before E and I traveled to Florida last year I went on the search for a car seat bag with wheels for the airport. Instead I found the gogo Kidz Travelmate. It was AWESOME! It was really easy to install. E actually slept from the plane to our next gate without me taking her out of her seat. I just put the wheels on when we landed, placed the seat in the aisle, and wheeled her right off the plane.

Car seats for bigger toddlers

For those of you who haven't moved up to a convertible car seat...

The Baby Center store has their Britax products at 15% off with free shipping.

Amazon also has some of their Britax seats on sale with free shipping.

There may be places where the seats are less money but I was looking for companies that ship free to Hawaii.

We love our Roundabout! It's one of the top ranked seats by Consumer Reports.

BPA (a.k.a. something else to worry about)

Over the last year there's been all this bad press about BPA (bisphenol A). It's a molecule used in some hard plastics. According to the FDA and, of course, the plastic industry, it's harmless but others blame it on a myriad of problems ranging from diabetes to ADHD.

Being the freaky parent that I am, I'm on the hunt for BPA-free sippy cups. There are quite a few out there. The hip newer ones start at $7.99 a cup. Ridiculous! I don't spend that much on my glasses and they're used for years. I figured there had to be cheaper alternatives out there and there are. It seem that the plastic to avoid is #7. It contains BPA. Plastics #1, #2, #4, and #5 are OK. I have no idea about the other ones but according to one group all others should be avoided because they have other BAD things. UGH!!!!!!!

Z Recommends has some great reviews of various cups and bottles.

starting out...

Today I attended one of my playgroups and came away with a list of things I needed to research and forward for various people. It appears that I'm still suffering from placenta brain, an as of yet, undocumented medical condition. When I sat down at my computer I couldn't remember who wanted what. I figured this blog would be my answer. That way I'm not sending things to people that they have no interest in.