As one of seven children, ill fitting, bargain shoes were - not surprisingly - the norm. And while it didn’t bother me in the least back then, resulting bunions (a major nuisance for this shoe addict) have left me particularly sensitive about the fit and comfort of Laurel’s footwear.
While there are some terrific soft-soled play shoe options on the market, we love that
pediped makes typically unyielding, uncomfortable baby/toddler dress shoes a thing of the past. Offered in sizes 0-24 months, pediped’s
collection includes stylish, fun Mary Janes, patent shoes, penny loafers, sandals, and athletic shoes. And perhaps because of the soft-soled construction, their
boy and
girl kicks can work both at your next party, or just out and about every day, giving parents more bang for their shoe buck. Podiatrists also give this footwear line a
thumbs up due to the cushioned leather soles, wide toe box, and soft leather uppers.
The new, funky
Zoe shoes in metallic pink are a must have for girls (shown; $29). With cute star cutouts, a glimmering finish, and super comfy construction (not to mention easy on/off Velcro fasteners for parents), your babe can and will want to wear these everywhere.
Our new pals at pediped want to share the foot love with our readers; use code
bostonmamas4 for free shipping.
In anticipation of summer travel, I’ve started sussing out cool, compact travel toys, and was reminded of one of our favorites: Lauri’s fabulous manipulatives. Lauri's Primer Pack
is an expanded version of a small tote we own (no longer available), and offers great bang for your buck. Made of textured, easy to handle rubber, the set includes a 25-piece "locktagon" construction set, lacing and tracing cards and shapes, an alphabet puzzle, and four little shape puzzles.
Another great Lauri item for home and travel is the Stacker Pegs & Pegboard
set. As homage to her love of all things covered in frosting, Laurel has taken to serving her finished pegboard creations as cake.
Coming from a family of 7 where hand me downs were the norm, middle school offered tough love on the fashion front. At lunch, the exclusion factor was especially obvious via a table of girls who set inclusion parameters as owning at least 5 pairs of Guess jeans and 5 Benetton sweaters.
Some great friends kept me grounded during that time, but it’s hard not to feel disheartened that Laurel no doubt will face her own version of this scenario in the future. The good news is that today, our parent education specialist 
Hot yoga is all the rage these days, and the practice’s popularity often leads to steamy, crowded classes where balance is essential to prevent yogi dominoes. Today, guest contributor 
provides traction and grip as you tip. Place the towel over your regular yoga mat; the face up side is absorptive while the face down side features silicone nubs that grip the mat, keeping hands and feet in place even when the sweat starts to flow (a little sprinkle of water on the absorptive side pre-session also helps get the traction going). Now you can meditate and breathe into the burn of a pose rather than worry whether your wheel is going to be a back flop, or if your headstand is going to land you in the hospital (or atop a neighboring yogi).
During a recent toy rotation (we’re big fans of “what’s old is new again”), we rediscovered Laurel’s nifty 
game. We have yet to play with the game in intended bingo style (the chipboard set includes four playing boards showing 9 baby animals each, and 36 individual animal tiles to match to the boards), but little animal enthusiasts will dig the game pieces regardless. As a toddler, Laurel loved looking at the animal pictures, and then one day blew our doors off by matching all the tiles to the boards. We do more of the same now, but accompanied by rounds of “Old MacDonald.”
Once upon a time, baby clothes were nondescript, forgettable, easily misplaced items. That’s all changed in this era of baby chic, and you won’t be able to take your eyes off of the vivid designs from 
Sometimes you just don’t have the steam to get dinner together at the end of a hectic day. If you’re looking for take out meals suitable for the whole family (I have yet to meet a kid who doesn't like pasta and cheese), guest contributor 
Ever since the weather warmed up, Laurel’s gone bonkers over her big kid trike (a generous hand me down from her cousin). It’s heart breakingly cute to see those little legs pedaling away, and the steering handle makes for easy-on-the-back work for parents. Laurel’s Charton trike isn't readily available online anymore, but the 
Ironically enough, my wild and crazy college student behavior emerged after finishing undergrad (suspiciously correlated with my meeting Jon, still an undergrad at the time…), complete with the requisite tattoo/belly ring ruminations. And while visiting a dingy Boston piercing parlor promptly scared me out of the idea, now it’s possible to make a rocker chic impression (that’s physically impermanent) through the designs of 
If you persistently badger your partner for back rub relief, your back likely could use a little preventative TLC. This morning, new guest contributor 
Pursuant to our recent post on Lilypad’s 
(classic style shown in blue; 
for an alternative model). Julie writes, “…we couldn’t have gotten through the initial (or even later) stages of feeding without our rubber bib from Baby Bjorn. It’s easy to clean and even comes with a lip to catch dropped food.”
More in the bib means less on the floor for you to clean up. Rock on. Thanks, Julie!
Kids can be incredibly variable with their food; some days eating very little, and other days eating as if hibernation season is around the corner.
Last week, Laurel knocked off a prehibernation-like lunch, including half a tuna melt, a couple of raisins, a few pieces of stinky (bleu) cheese (pilfered from my salad), one kiwi, half a pear, a couple of chunks of avocado, and two rice cakes. We joked about how she was just like 
, which currently is one of her favorite books. This beautifully illustrated classic is a must have; in addition to offering a means for kids to learn about counting, food (Laurel of course goes nuts on the junk food bonanza page), and the cycle of life, more recently the book has helped us teach Laurel about being more aware of her body. Specifically, if she’s on a food bender, demanding more, we ask her whether she’s really hungry or if her belly is already full. And now she’ll pause for a moment, sometimes rub her belly or wiggle side to side, then tell us that she is, in fact, still hungry, or that she’s full and doesn’t want to get a stomach ache like the very hungry caterpillar.
Good things can happen when Daddy stays home.
Live as of last month, stay at home dad inspired 
One of my favorite signs of spring is “amoeba soccer,” the sight of a clump of little kids chasing a soccer ball with a spirited oblivion to the fine art of positioning and passing.
Clumping or not, budding enthusiasts, serious players, or parents in need of a means to move to a beat beyond “Get me more Cheerios, Mommy” ought to check out 
, 
, and 
goals also are available at Amazon.
Obesity is a critical public health issue for adults and children in the U.S., and one whose complexity goes beyond the seemingly simple factors of intake and exercise. Mama reader Erica from Northampton just wrote in about 
Jon and I recently met downtown for lunch and I couldn’t help but feel doubly sheepish; the last time we carved out time to meet midday was back in November, after I was put on the hot seat by New York City marriage and family therapist 
. During the Q&A I asked whether she had suggestions for, generally, how to connect better on a day to day basis; that our workloads and daily to do lists often left Jon and me scurrying to achieve household or e-mail tidiness after Laurel went to bed. Perel asked when I last went out to dinner with Jon. I stammered about the challenges of having anyone other than Auntie Sha-Sha put Laurel to bed. She asked whether Laurel was in day care and then asked when I last met Jon for lunch. I explained that since I left my downtown job it took more time to meet up midday and that I already felt pressed for hours in the week. Even as I scrabbled for these justifications I knew that I just needed to make the time; that finding connection with my partner was worth those couple hours (and that the household chores, fortunately and unfortunately, would always be there another day).
I’m thrilled to formally introduce