Tag Archives: genetic disorder

Walking Around with a Sippy Cup

In the past two days, I have witnessed two “sippy cup incidents” and I thought this might be a good place to discuss them. The first one, I was taking a cross-town bus and there was a two-year-old (or so) sitting in front of me(or standing, actually) alternating licking the condensed and foggy bus window and pouring juice from his sippy cup into the ridges around the window and down the wall. The second was last night at a fairly swanky art gallery show opening for three local artists. I quickly assessed that one of the artists was a twenty-something … Continue reading →

This Week in Television – August 15, 2007

Noggin to go 24/7 This is the news that stay at home moms will either love or abhor to hear. MTV, owners of both Noggin and the N, have decided to split the channel into two separate channels by the end of the year. In case you do not have a toddler or teen, Noggin is known for playing shows geared towards preschoolers. My toddler personally loves Blues Clues, Go Diego Go!, Maisy, Max and Ruby, the Wonder Pets, and Wow Wow Wubbsy on Noggin. But, at 6 pm EST, it turns into the N, the super cool network for … Continue reading →

Wash Tubs , Play Dough Containers & Shoe Hangers – a Few Clever Craft Storage Tools

I have always been an avid crafter. I love to paint, create with clay, draw and build. Needless to say, I have a pretty chaotic craft room, or as my husband not-so-politely calls it…a “crap” room. My craft room became even more cluttered when my daughter turned three. She definitely got my crafty…(and slightly disorganized) genes. Suddenly my already crazy craft room was also filled with preschooler essentials like coloring books, crayons, beads, buttons, tissue paper, and left over toilet paper rolls. In an attempt to regain order, I came up with a few creative ways to store all of … Continue reading →

Beta Fish, Hermit Crabs and Bulbs, Oh My!

Have you ever bought your child a toy, or a gift that they were so excited about that you just had to step it up a notch? Yesterday afternoon, my three year old daughter and I went to Target. They have this great new little dollar section in the front of the store that I refer to as the “bribe aisle”. She was an angel yesterday while I was picking up a few odds-and-ends, so when I finished shopping, we made a bee-line for the bribe aisle. She started shuffling through fake earrings, princess tiaras and plastic shoes. Suddenly she … Continue reading →

Has Your Child Been Screened for Fragile X Syndrome?

When my son Kyle was first being evaluated and diagnosed, one of the things he was tested for was fragile X syndrome (FXS). It’s a good idea for any child who falls on the autism spectrum or has unexplained mental retardation to be screened for this condition. Fragile X syndrome is the most common known single-gene cause of autism or autistic-like behaviors, and is typically associated with mental impairment. 2% to 6% of children diagnosed with autism are eventually diagnosed with fragile X. What is fragile X syndrome? Like the name indicates, fragile X syndrome is a congenital condition resulting … Continue reading →

Agonizing Journey: The Undiagnosed Child

When a child is born with (or develops) physical problems, parents experience a sense of panic: What is wrong with our baby? The anomalies might be obvious or subtle. Sometimes it is only a parent’s “gut feeling” indicating that something just isn’t right. There are few things as frightening as having a baby or child with an unknown medical condition. When Parents Become Medical Researchers Many parents find their feet set upon this difficult, frustrating path. They become their child’s own medical researcher, trying to find a diagnosis that matches the baffling symptoms. Along this mysterious journey, their child might … Continue reading →

Spiderman Undies

It’s about 10:00 in the evening right now. My kids were put down hours ago, but as usual, my five-year-old little boy has not stayed put. He just popped out of bed, peeking his head around the doorway to my bedroom. When he knew that I saw him, he came in, in his t-shirt and little Spiderman underwear and promptly started reciting The Pledge of Allegiance. And he did well, especially for 10:00 at night. I couldn’t help laughing and reached out and hugged him. “I adore you, Bailey,” I told him, just one of those little statements I frequently … Continue reading →

Academic Readiness Skills for Young Children

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When you are home schooling your young children, you can use this list to identify things that you need to work on. However, I would like to add a small note about reading. Teaching reading in the early years is a moderately recent concept. It is quite normal for children to not be able to read until 8 or even 9 years old. The recent push for children to pick up reading early is two fold. First of all, there are more and more children who have several of the risk factors that are correlated to poor performance in school: … Continue reading →

Friday Parenting Funnies: Jeeze, Louise—Is It Bedtime YET?!

It was one of those days, those nutso days–you know the kind–where you wake up hoping to have a nice, leisurely cup of vanilla coffee. Yet just as you sit down to drink it, WHAM! Out of nowhere a teenage mutant ninja turtle comes flying directly into your cup. That was the first sign the day might not go smoothly. Then, a little while later, while attempting to write, my children decided to play musical couches. I came into the room to find them leaping from the sofa to the loveseat. My five-year-old knows better. But my two-year-old found out … Continue reading →

Putting on a Brave Face: Children with Facial Disfigurements

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Facial disfigurements can be caused by birth defects, genetic conditions, or traumatic injuries. Parents of children with facial disfigurements feel a tremendous amount of pain for their child’s sake. That’s because they recognize that going out into the world with a facial difference takes an enormous amount of courage. Children with facial differences are often teased, bullied, humiliated, and shunned. “I know what it is to be left out of things. On more than one occasion, kids would whisper behind my back, sometimes even throw things at me. I never knew what it was like to have a boyfriend much … Continue reading →