Toddler Times
Take in the sights from your balcony and let the adventure come to you!
When I think about taking a cruise, images of turquoise waters, sandy beaches, and palm trees mostly come to mind. To me, cruises equal sun, surf, and sand. I mean, what’s the point of going on a cruise if you can’t bask in the sun’s golden rays?
Turns out, I am literally missing the boat when it comes to some of the coolest cruises around.
I just spend the last half hour reading Deborah Abrams Kaplan’s first-hand account of Cruising Alaska with a Toddler and man does it have me anxious to embark on my own Alaskan adventure.
Here is how Kaplan’s account kicks off: Continue reading »
Mom - 0, Violet - WINNING
Violet is three and a half. Yes, I said three and a half. None of this 42 months business for me. I mean, seriously. At some point in toddlerhood you’ve got to switch over to years people or I’m stuck counting on my fingers every time I ask someone the age of their child.
I’ve actually had moms tell me stuff like 27 months. Just say 2 years old!
But I digress.
Violet is three and some change and she has reached a — how do I say, interesting — stage. What I should say is she’s straight up being a jerk, but, well, she might read this some day and I love that girl with every beat of my heart so let’s just stick with interesting.
Here’s a bit of what’s going down over here at the Bielanko homestead:
Kid's Pool on the Norwegian Gem cruise ship.
I hear the phrase “take your toddler on vacation” and it pretty much sounds like an oxymoron to me. Doesn’t the word toddler mean “no vacation” in Latin or something? Anyone who has a toddler knows you can’t sit for five minutes with one on the loose, let alone take an actual vacation.
Wait! Stop! Maybe you can! Lately I am hearing more talk about cruises being the way to go for two parents who can’t ditch the kids. See, the ship is huge but, unlike basing yourself out of a hotel room and then having to walk or drive miles and miles to see the sights, you are staying in the middle of all the action. And cruises are increasingly catering to children even offering discounts for kids under two! And what hotel is going to offer group babysitting while you and the hubs go have a night on the town of whatever port? That alone is worth the cruise.
Still, traveling with a kid can be overwhelming, but not if you prepare wisely. Below are a few things to know before you go!
Guilt-free vacation for the mom who doesn't want to leave the little one behind.
Yes, you read the title of this post correctly. I said seven reasons to take your toddler on a cruise, not eight reasons to take your toddler to grandma’s while you go on a cruise.
Sounds crazy, right? It’s actually not, as I recently discovered.
If, like my husband and I, you don’t really have anyone available with whom you could leave your toddler for a significant period of time but you are hardcore jonesing for a vacation, why not take your toddler with you?
You’re still skeptical, aren’t you? Well, check out the eight reasons to take your toddler on a cruise and let me know in the comments if you still think I’m crazy for even considering it.
I’m not sure whether I think this is fantastic or if I’m totally weirded out by crazy genius toddlers.
Regardless of how I feel about it though, Mensa is pretty excited to welcome another toddler to its ranks. As Yahoo reports, at 2 years old, Anthony Popa Urria is the youngest Canadian ever admitted into Mensa and has an estimated IQ of 154. The toddler can recite the alphabet backward and forward, count to 1,000 and name the planets in the solar system.
You may remember Emmelyn Roettger, 3, becoming a member of Mensa last month. She’s familiar with the concept of mitosis and metaporhosis and with an IQ of 135, she’s the youngest U.S. member of Mensa.
To put the intelligence levels of these two toddlers into perspective, Albert Einstein’s IQ is estimated at around 160. Continue reading »
Where did you get that? That's not a toy! Well, it is but it's mama's toy!
Yesterday, in the span of one hour, I pretty much said every sentence you’re about to read.
I was bathing my daughter Violet while trying to keep an eye on Henry and get myself ready for the day. Ambitious of me, I know.
As most moms who are home with their kids all day can attest, a five minute shower wherein you barely manage to shave your pits and your legs from the knee down is considered a rousing success.
But as moms can also know, A LOT can go down during that five minutes you’re trying to focus on yourself. And this is just five minutes, people! During an entire day some of the wild stuff that I hear coming out of my mouth surprises even me!
Behold! Begging someone to please let me wipe their ass and 7 other insane things I find myself shouting on a fairly regular basis.
Oy vey.
So far I have no regrets. My favorite photos of my own childhood are the candid photos taken by mom or dad. The “professional” photos snapped in a studio always feature us looking rather awkward, mouths upturned in stiff smiles as we look beyond the camera at the strange person behind the lens who is spanking a rubber chicken and committing other atrocities in a desperate attempt to get us to laugh.
For my birthday Serge bought me a new camera and I got busy on Easter snapping photos of Violet and Henry. The results are some of my favorite photos of my children and I wanted to share them with you guys as further proof that you don’t need a pro to snap the best photos of your children.
Check ‘em out: Continue reading »
Mary L Weimer 
Beth Anne Ballance 
Ilana Wiles 
Natalie Holbrook 
Monica Bielanko 
Emily McClements 
Danielle Elwood 
Naomi Odes Aytur 
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