True North Launches!

As many of you already know, my partner Nicole Oliver and I have been working tirelessly for the last couple of months on launching Central Oregon's first online parenting magazine, True North. Our launch date was the 15th of this month, and believe it or not, it was up by 11:59PM last night!

We are so pleased with the site and eager to share it with everyone we know as well as all of the parents and grandparents residing in Central Oregon. Please note that the local directory and calendar of events are a work in progress. There is so much to post in both of these areas that my partner is compiling information on all of the local businesses and events, double checking the facts, phone numbers, and links and sending them off in large batches. Over the next couple of months you will see both the directory and calendar grow to become Central Oregon's single most in depth resource for local parents.

If you like what you see after checking True North out at http://www.truenort hparenting. com/index. php please pass the link along to anyone you know who might enjoy or benefit from it. Also, we would appreciate any and all feedback on the site and what we can do to enhance and improve the quality of the content and/or the usability of the site.

Finally keep your eye out. True North will be going to print in April of this year. We will be passing along more information about our print issues as the time draws nearer. Take care and enjoy!

Sincerely,

Annette Benedetti
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True North
Chart your own course.
annette@truenorthpa renting.com
www.truenorthparenting.com
541.728.0332
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When a little magic goes a long way.

My oldest daughter is about to lose her first tooth. Everyday she wiggles it with excitement and fantasizes about what the tooth fairy will be bringing her. She, of course, is sure that some magical fairy dust will be left behind for her to use, after all, her little girlfriend at school swears she got some.

So, today my business partner and I stopped by Bambini of Bend while we were out handing out our True North advertising packets. If you haven’t checked this store out yet you absolutely should. It’s filled with unique toys and beautiful clothing items for young children. Anyways, I happened to see a little blue silk tooth fairy pillow while browsing the isles. It is made out of blue silk with pretty little fairy on the front and a small pocket sewn on the back, and it fits right in the palm of my hand. It is also lightly scented with lavender. The moment I saw it I knew my daughter would fall in love with it so I bought it and brought it home.

Right before bed I told my daughter I had a special gift for her but that she couldn’t use it until her tooth came out. Oh how big her eyes got when I took out the pillow. I told her that it was a magic pillow and that the lavender was meant to specifically attract her tooth fairy. I told her how the tooth fairy would be able to track it down once her tooth was placed in the pocket just by the scent. She asked if she could hold it and I let her but I told her it would have to stay in my drawer until her tooth finally came out.

She gave me the biggest hugs and told me how much she loved her pillow as we walked all the way up the stairs and in to my bedroom. As I tucked the pillow into my drawer my daughter turned to me and said “When I grow up and have my own little girl, and when she turns five and starts to lose her tooth, I will give that special pillow to her.” Then she gave me a big hug and told me I was the best mom in the whole world.

I gave my daughter a big hug and took her into the bathroom where she let out a little sob and said “Oh mama, I’m a little sad because I am so happy. I am so happy you gave me that pillow that it makes me a little sad.” Then she gave me another big hug and a smile.

My little girl is losing her very first tooth. One of the ones I eagerly counted as they came in. What’s even more important is that she is learning the depth and breadth of her love and what it means to be thankful.

I’m so happy that it makes me just a little bit sad.

This is what happens when...

you go hunting for a Christmas tree in the dark.




What I have learned...

Lodgepole pines are good for building furniture,
not making Christmas trees.

By the way....

We were looking for a fir tree...not a lodge pole pine...

A fir tree.

KNOW THE LAW WHEN CHOOSING A CHILDCARE OR PRESCHOOL

This post was inspired by some recent claims against a local preschool. I hope this post, along with the included link will help parents when looking for care for their children, and when questioning the practices of current child care providers.

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As a provider, I think it’s very important for parents to empower themselves with knowledge and find out exactly what the rules are for certified, registered, and exempt childcare/preschools. Beyond that, parents need to sit down and decide what is really important to them when it comes to finding care for their children.

This can be very difficult in Bend where the resources and available care is limited, however all parents need to realize that there are good options out there and you all are in control of, and should remain in control of how your children are treated and cared for as well as how you are treated by those caring for your children.

Things you need to know

Withholding food and water as a punishment is not allowed. Do I even need to explain why? When children are thirsty they absolutely should not be denied access to water.

For Certified caregivers:
No more than 3 1/2 hours between meals and snacks for children over 12 months! ( Every 2 to 2 ½ hours is much better).

Children less than 12 months of ages must be fed on his/her own feeding schedule!

Children may not be restrained. Unlike babies who need to be in a high chair, toddlers and up are able to sit in a chair at a table (child sized) on their own. While it may be frustrating when they get up and down at inappropriate times, it is completely developmentally inappropriate, arguably abusive, and illegal to restrain a child with ties, straps, buckles, or physical holds in regular childcare setting. Only specialized, therapeutic childcares or residential settings that are licensed and hired specifically trained staff may use these techniques. The bottom line is that this type of restraint can be traumatizing to children and is a fire hazard at the very least.

By law you are always allowed access to your children. No one, and I mean NO ONE can refuse to let you see or have contact with your child/ren at ANY time. Providers may ask you to work around naptime for coming and going to help the little ones sleep better (the quiet time is often needed) but they can’t keep you from picking your child up regardless.

I would also recommend that you drop in unannounced and check in on your child’s preschool/childcare. Take some time and listen to how they talk to and treat the kids:

• Do they use a respectful tone with the children?
• Do they get down on the child’s level to communicate?
• Do the children seem at ease around the teachers or afraid?

Consider it a HUGE red flag if your caregiver has a problem with you doing this.
While on occasion it is normal to pick your child up as or right before they need changing, if your child is ever left unchanged for more than a few minutes after vomiting, or having diarrhea, I would seriously reconsider the provider you have chosen. Children should be taken to the potty and changed at regular intervals throughout the day.

Please note that while these are rules that apply specifically to certified child care facilities – ALL high quality establishments should at the very least, adhere to these basic standards.

If you would like to know more about the rules and regulations for certified and registered family child care homes you can contact the Childcare Division of WorkSource Oregon Employment Department (www.childcareinoregon.org). They will actually send you the booklets of information for free! And if you have concerns or legitimate complaints call the local certifier.

Remember, you are your child’s best advocate. No childcare provider should have the ability to bully or intimidate you.

The Man Cold

A good friend of mine and fellow blogger (Earth Mom)sent me this. Sooooo funny. What woman can't relate?

The Man Cold. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mz6DktXFvg4

Odd

I didn’t have a sweet tooth before I met my husband. I almost never had dessert. Then he came into my life and brought chocolate and ice cream. It became our favorite part of date nights and romantic rendezvous.

I have never been in as good of shape as I was before I met my husband. In fact, I have been consistently 15 lbs heavier.

So every month or two I make him vow not to bring sweets into the house. I work out like crazy and bounce down about 5 to 7 lbs. In general, James has been fairly good about keeping things healthy for my sake. He doesn’t really have to worry about his own physique. Years of hard labor and a love for the outdoors keep him from getting soft. Sooo aggravating.

Anyways, tonight James produced a couple of chocolate covered cherries from seemingly out of nowhere (they are my favorite). Any self restraint I might have otherwise had snapped and I begged him to tell me where the box was.

He wouldn’t of course.

It made me mad… and frustrated. I tried to throw a fit and tell him that he was being insulting. But he wouldn’t budge. I even tried to spy on him to find out where they were hidden. But he caught me every time.

Then just about 10 minutes ago, while he was working out in the shop, I went through the whole kitchen and found his stash. And jeeze oh flip, does he ever have a stash. I’m talking a huge box of chocolate covered cherries and several chocolate bars. They were hidden in a drawer I never look in.

My instant reaction was one of several conflicting feelings at once:

Joy – because I am in the mood to dive into chocolate and I don’t have to run out into the blizzard that is currently raging to get some.

Anger- he is supposed to be supporting me in my fight against the extra fat he brought into my life.

Shame- maybe I shouldn’t let him know I found the stash so that I can sneak some whenever I want.

Concern- how long has this been going on behind my back. After all what kind of a marriage do we have if he has been keeping secrets from me.

Any advice on how to handle this situation? I guess I’ll just have to take some time to think things over while I take a bath and eat some of those delicious chocolate covered cherries.

38 Degrees (Our New Favorite Family Restaurant)

It’s the end of a week spent playing, teaching, cleaning, potty training, and running after 30 plus children 10 and a half hours a day (not to mention the evening hours with my own). Tonight as the door closed behind the last child and their parent, James and I sighed and then cringed at the thought of making dinner.

We both decided we wanted to eat out. Eating out with kids is tricky for us. We spend sooo much time with children all week the last thing we want to do is go to Red Robin and join the masses of parents eating out with their kids. It’s so loud and over stimulating, and though our girls love to go, I break into a cold sweat at the thought of it.

Luckily, a few weeks ago a friend recommended 38 degrees when I asked her for a recommendation on a nearby family friendly restaurant. We were leaving her son’s birthday party and they lived only a few blocks away. When we first walked up to the door dressed in jeans and toting our sugared up children we thought our friends had been mistaken. Peering in the window the restaurant had a Spa-like feel to it with beautiful stone work, dimmed lighting, and calming fans to keep the air moving and fresh. The menu looked amazing, upper end but yummy. We immediately turned to head back to the car.

Before we made it 4 steps the host poked his head out the door and asked us if we needed any help. We told him that we’d love to stay but we didn’t want to disturb anyone with the kids. He laughed and told us to come on in and that they even had a children’s menu. Well, what could we say? I mean he stepped out into the wintery night to invite us in!

Once inside we were sat at a nice table for four with some soft seasonal music playing in the background, and get this … they had sippy cups! Can you believe it? Sippy cups! How cool is that? This took 90% of the stress out of eating out right away, and strangely, my kids mellowed out almost immediately. It seems that the relaxing atmosphere they are attempting to create is a huge success, even with the kids. The entire night was wonderful. The food was amazing, the service was incredible and the kids were happy and well behaved.

So tonight we decided that we’d give 30 degrees another shot. James warned me that I had set high standards for the restaurant and not to expect it to be quite as good. After all such a pleasant eating experience with 2 young children must be a fluke right?

Wrong!

Tonight was even more amazing! The lasagna that I had was divine and James loved his dish too. The lulling effect was even more pronounced. The girls were cuddly and relaxed and enjoyed the appetizers, bread, their meals, and desert without even one unpleasant outburst. Our waitress was perfect. She even remembered us from our previous visit. She was polite and returned just often enough to meet our needs without interrupting our family time.

James had a glass of sangria, which was yummy and festive. I had a pear wine that took the last bit of tension out of my body and warmed me from head to toe. And desert was just the way to top off the perfect evening out with the girls.

Even our oldest daughter went on and on about how she loved her food and wanted to come back every Friday night. Ok, so it might be a little too expensive for every Friday night but it will certainly be a regular spot for us to go as a family, or on a date night.

It’s so nice to finally find a family friendly restaurant that can allow the adults to feel adult and the children to enjoy themselves with out being bombarded by loud noises, video games and television.

Check out Bend Oregon Restaurants blog to get some more input on eating out at 38 degrees.