Playground Safety At Its Finest

While we were at the park this afternoon there was a little girl younger than Kyle playing in the same area. After watching her a few minutes, we looked around to locate her parents because she was performing some pretty dangerous moves. Well, the parents were no where in sight, but later we realized who her mom was and she was sitting on a bench across the park smoking a cigarette. I couldn't resist and had to snap a couple of pictures because I couldn't believe my eyes. She was climbing up a twisty pole and once she reached the top she would jump in mid-air to a platform. She was also climbing on top of a tube slide. John thought we should leave so we wouldn't be responsible in case she fell and hurt herself. I felt as though we should stay and make sure she was going to be alright. John had to help her a few times before she fell and injured herself. The pictures below will show the dangerous tricks she was performing.

Unfortunately, this isn't the first time I have witnessed a child being left unsupervised. I feel as though I have to watch Kyle's every move while we are in public and I don't understand how some parents can be so negligent, especially with a child this young. I feel it's part of being a responsible parent to keep an eye on your child because accidents can occur in the blink of an eye.

What's For Dinner?

Parenting sure can be hard! I'm sure every parent encounters certain challenges when raising a child. I have always been a worry wart and becoming a mother, especially to a 25 weeker, certainly hasn't helped me in this department. One of the main struggles we have had with Kyle since he was a baby is eating. Unfortunately, this still is a constant, daily struggle in our life. Recently, I was reading a parenting magazine which stated that toddlers don't need to eat as much since they aren't growing as rapidly as when they were infants. The article also stressed the importance of giving your toddler a vitamin. We have always been very diligent about giving Kyle vitamins...he loves the My First Flintstones...especially the grape flavor! Kyle grows up (height), but doesn't grow out (weight). I've come to the realization that Kyle will most likely be a string bean for many years to come. I can't believe he is my son because I LOVE to eat...LOL!

In the past I've heard a lot of hype about a book called Deceptively Delicious. I recently purchased the book and am on a mission to locate some good recipes to assist with Kyle's eating...mainly in the vegetable department. Unfortunately, Kyle has two bad eating habits; the first being the fact he is a big snacker and second, he loves to drink (milk and juice). We need to work on limiting intake in these two areas to make sure he is hungrier at mealtime. Does anyone have any great recipes from this book or any other cookbooks geared to feeding children? Hopefully, the book will have some brilliant ideas to help me answer the question...What's for dinner? If I locate any that Kyle particularly enjoys I will be sure to share them with everyone...because if Kyle will eat it...it must be good! I would love to hear any great ideas that may help me answer the question as well. Thanks!