I was first exposed to the world of Baby Einstein videos when my friend - an occupational therapist - and her family stayed with us a for a few days. Her son was less than a year old and an extremely high need child . They took drastic measures from a darkened room with music and a special swing just to get him to sleep. (It ended up being severe GERD and the poor kid was in pain.)

One thing that always calmed their little boy down were Baby Einstein videos. They limited his viewing time, and only relied on the videos when they needed a break. My friend worked with many special needs children and knew that the videos were a great tool in getting her son comfortable and quiet.

In August 2007, Frederick J. Zimmerman, PhD., Dimitri A. Christakis, MD, MPH, and Andrew N. Meltzoff, PhD. came out with a study published in the Journal of Pediatrics that supposedly found that among babies ages eight months to 16 months, every hour spent daily watching programs such as Baby Einstein translated into six to eight fewer words in their vocabulary.

The media picked up on it immediately and Disney asked for an apology. Yet, no one pointed out that the study was preliminary and not very scientific. In fact the researchers were very biased since Dr. Christakis had a reputation for blaming TV for a variety of behavioral problems in children  and had been targeting Baby Einstein videos since 2005. I was so ticked off that I wrote “The Real Scoop on Watching Baby Einstein (just because you have a Dr. in front of your name doesn’t mean you’re right).”

I’ve been a big defender of QUALITY videos and television ever since. In fact, I support groups like the Smart Television Alliance, a coalition of nonprofit organizations committed to helping parents use technology to find and watch quality television programming. With this in mind I whole heartedly support parents use of Baby Einstein videos so they can take a break to shower, eat a snack, answer the telephone or make dinner.

Videos like Baby Einstein - Baby’s First Moves are meant to be shared with your child. In fact, the Baby Einstein website gives parents tips on ways to use the videos. Here’s one:

Make it a Family Affair
Consider using DVD time as a way to interact with the whole family. If baby has an older sibling(s) around, you can invite them to watch the DVD with you. (Nathan enjoyed watching videos like this with Lucie when she was a baby.) Encourage your older child to point out the names of the animals, say the colors or even make animal sounds. They will love playing with baby and will be excited about showing off how much they know!

Also, it’s not about your baby sitting like a big lump in front of the TV watching a video and drooling. With Baby Einstein - Baby’s First Moves, which was sent to me by Baby Einstein/Disney to review, it’s about getting up and moving! The video is an interactive “celebration of babies’ movement milestones.” This includes walking, clapping, jumping, and dancing.The purpose of the video is to get parents and their children discovering movement together. So grab a copy of Baby Einstein - Baby’s First Moves and get your jiggy on!

Hello and Happy Mother’s Day from Switzerland, the land of chocolate. We are visiting my sister, Michele, her husband Ingmar, and my two nephews, Adam, 3, and Oliver, 4, and having a wonderful time.

I hope your family is treating you like the Queen you are this Mother’s Day, and that you’re indulging in something yummy. But if you’re watching what you eat, and want to find a healthy alternative to chocolate desserts, try this recipe from Cooking Light magazine via The Denver Post.

Chocolate Mousse
Recipe from Cooking Light Dessert
Serves 8

Tofu is incredible at masquerading as a creamy dairy product in nearly any dessert, including chocolate mousse. When tofu is whirled in the food processor or blender, it becomes smooth and creamy without the gritty or grainy consistency that low-fat dairy products can sometimes have. After its transformation, it becomes a peerless base for smooth-textured sweets.

Ingredients:

1. 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted (find the best quality of chocolate you can)
2. 1 (12.3-ounce) package reduced-fat extrafirm silken tofu (such as Mori-Nu)
3. 1/4 teaspoon salt
4. 3 large egg whites
5. 1/2 cup sugar
6. 1/4 cup water Fat-free whipped topping, thawed (optional)
7. Grated chocolate (optional) (again, the best quality)

Directions:

1. Place melted chocolate chips and tofu in a food processor or blender, and process 2 minutes or until smooth.
2. Place salt and egg whites in a medium bowl, and beat with a mixer at high speed until stiff peaks form.
3. Combine sugar and water in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook, without stirring, until a candy thermometer registers 250 degrees.
4. Pour hot sugar syrup in a thin stream over egg whites, beating at high speed.
5. Gently stir one-fourth of meringue into tofu mixture; gently fold in remaining meringue. S
6. poon 1/2 cup mousse into each of eight (six-ounce) custard cups. Cover and chill at least four hours. Garnish with whipped topping and grated chocolate, if desired.

Per serving: 147 calories (34 percent from fat); 5.6g fat ; 5.2g protein; 22.5g carbohydrates; 0.2g fiber; 134 mg sodium; 26 mg calcium

While you’re having your mousse, enjoy some Mother’s Day story books:

• I Like Noisy Mom Likes Quiet: A Mother’s Day Story
• Biscuit Loves Mother’s Day
• The Mother’s Day Mice
• Mother’s Day

Now that Thanksgiving has passed, I’ll be giving book, craft and recipe suggestions to go with all the holidays coming up like Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Year’s.

But first A CONTEST!!!!

The folks at Sand Dune Publishing gave me four Between Me and You relationship keepsake journals to give away - two Between Me and You (MOM) and two Between Me and You (GRANDMA). The journals contain questions like, "Which have been the most interesting times during your life with my granddad?"

They’re a great way for families to bond while passing down memories.The journals will make wonderful holiday gifts, and once filled out with handwritten responses, will be cherished by your family forever.

Here’s how to enter:

1. If you have a blog, post about my contest on your site. You have from today until Monday, December 4 to do so.Then come back here and post the weblink (the link to the actual post) in the comments section below along with your email and blog addresses. Please specify which journal you want!
2. If you do not have a blog, no problem! Just leave your name and email address in the comments section below. Please specify which journal you want!
3. I will pick the four winners’ names out of a hat and will contact them via email for their names and mailing addresses.
4. The winners will be announced on this blog on Thursday, December 7.
5. I will mail out the books on Friday, December 8 via Media Mail, which should take about a week to get to you.
6. Please do not enter this contest if you are unwilling to email me your name and mailing address. Of course, I will not release your private info to the public.
7. This contest is open to readers in the continental U.S. only. (Since these are holiday gifts, I want to make sure you receive them in time. So no Canadian contestants allowed for this contest. Sorry, but it takes too long for shipments to get through customs.)
8. This contest is also open to ClubMom bloggers.

If you have any questions, email me.

This contest is featured at competizione!

Technorati tags: journals, holiday gifts, family memories

I’ve already given thanks for Reading is Fundamental (RIF) for their work in encouraging kids to read by getting books into their hands. I also love them for the family reading activities ideas on their website. I especially like this month’s Family Cookbook project since it’s a terrific way to spend time with your kids, while recording family memories. This makes a great holiday gift for everyone who contributed, too!

For children ages 9 and up (though younger ones can participate) help your children gather up favorite recipes from family members. With holidays like Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa and New Year’s coming up this is the perfect time of year to do this.

First, have children solicit the recipes. Have them call up (or email) grandparents, aunts, uncles, godparents, and adult cousins to request a copy of their favorite holiday recipes. Photocopies can be mailed to your children or recipes can be emailed as well.

Have your children sort the recipes by menu categories: appetizers, soups, main dishes, side dishes, desserts, snacks, and so on. (Younger ones can help here.) After organizing the recipes, older children can check spellings on the ingredients lists, clarify any confusing directions, and credit the contributors.

Assembling the Recipes
There are many ways to assemble the recipes into a book: You can volunteer to type up the collection on your computer. Older children who know how to use a word processing program can help organize and edit the recipes.

Children with good handwriting can copy the recipes neatly on sheets of notebook paper. (Do this for shorter recipes. It could be a daunting task for long, complicated ones.) You can scan this or photocopy it later.

Don’t forget to create a table of contents.

Artwork Ideas
Younger children help create the artwork. Have them draw something that goes with the recipe, like apples for an apple pie, if drawing the dish is too hard. They could also create a collage from magazine photos. If you’re really ambitious, make a few of the recipes and take a photo to use in the cookbook. (Family photos can be used too, especially those ones around the holiday table.) Scan the artwork and put it in your computer document.

Finally, have the children create art for the cover.

Copying Options
DIY on your home color ink jet printer If you’re only making a few copies. Otherwise, print out (in color if possible) or take the file(s) to your local copy store, and have enough copies made to make a booklet for each person who contributed a recipe.

Binding Ideas
Your copy store can collate the booklets and bind them in several different ways depending on the thickness of the book. Have them give you a quote first so there’s no sticker shock.

Or you can put two pages (front and back) into a plastic sheet protector and put them in a three-ring binder (use a view binder to display the cover art). This may be more expensive than the copier store option (and more pricey to mail out). However, the advantage is that you can continue adding to this collection year after year.

Other Options
If you’re a scrapbooker, you may want to make this into a scrapbooking project. However, since the point of this project is to share it with all the family member who participated, be prepared to make several books if you go this route.

Finally, there are several online services that can print cookbooks for you. (They’re usually used for community, family reunion, or fundraising cookbooks.) If you have a large family and lots of contributors, this may be the way to go. PLEASE check out prices, terms, obligations, etc. before signing up.

• Your Own Cookbook
• The Great Family Cookbook Project
• The Cook’s Palate
• The Cookbook Company
• The Cookbook Maker

Technorati tags: giving thanks, cookbooks, family activities, recipes