Kid quote of the day

Cameron, 6, on trying to complete his worksheets in school:

"I'm trying REALLY hard not to be silly but I just can't STAND it!"

Parenting tip of the day

Picky eater? One of my boys is like that, too.

Registered nutritionist Lianne Phillipson-Webb of Sprout Right, shared a great tip when we were chatting at the Babytime show.

When you're making a fruit smoothie, try this veggie sneak: Throw in a handful of baby spinach leaves. Pulverized by your blender, the offending greens disappear, particularly with a mix of colour-rich fruits such as blueberries and raspberries.

My 2-year-old has not been noticing that his "Lightning McQueen" novelty glass contains spinach-enhanced smoothie each morning. If you're able to get your child to drink a smoothie, take advantage of the opportunity for covert nourishment!

Here are some more nutrition tips from Lianne.

Read yesterday's "tip of the day."

Not sure how to make a smoothie? Check out the Star's recipe data bank.

Please share your parenting tips and tricks by commenting on this post.

Life in plastic

As if pregnant women needed anything else to feel guilty about.

The latest news on the harm that plastics can cause children is in today's piece on fetal exposure to plastics in utero. It suggests that boys exposed to the plastics known as phthalates during pregnancy will display fewer masculine behaviours during play.

This was a relatively small study, and I'm not sure what great tragedy it is that these boys engaged in slightly less gun play than others. But it does add to the growing body of evidence that plastics exposure is just not good for us at all.

Other recent stories on plastics include this one on how exposure to bisphenol A during pregnancy can lead to more aggressive behaviour in girls. These are from a different family of plastics, but how confusing is that? Less masculine behaviour in boys and more masculine behaviour in girls? (That's assuming we equate aggressive with maleness, which is not necessarily fair.)

And we've also had:

Bisphenol A can build up in babies

Are household items poisoning us

Plastics have been on my mind recently, particularly because I'm in the middle of a big purge of toys and baby equipment. As my friend and I were hauling large plastic toys and baby equipment to her van the other day, I couldn't help wish I'd known as a first-time mom what I know today. That a lot of this would seem very wasteful and unessential with a few years parenting experience under one's belt. That a firm conversation with grandparents is in order to minimize those super-size, stage-specific toys that won't endure. And most importantly, that hundreds of micro-exposures to plastics could have negative health repercussions that we're just beginning to understand.

But to those expectant moms now looking askance at their shower curtains and linoleum floors, please don't freak out, berate yourself and call a contractor on the same day. You've got enough to endure without the comforts of sushi and shiraz.

That said, I think I'm going to get serious about replacing my Tupperware with glass containers. Not because of this article, but because the overall picture does not look good and hasn't for some time.

This Christmas, I'm also discouraging new plastic toys that aren't a part of my sons' current obsession with Lego. I'm quite certain that my grandchildren will play with the Lego.

I can't say the same of the made-in-China plastic doctor's office (complete with defibrillator paddles and pretend IV pole), cute but long forgotten.

Parenting tip of the day

Here's a school-lunch cheat you might like to copy on a hurried morning.

When I'm in a local bakery, I've been grabbing a stuffed croissant as an occasional sandwich boredom buster for my son in Grade One.

It's admittedly a bit of a treat because of the high fat content (though Cameron is so skinny he has a little 6-year-old six pack), but there's goat cheese, spinach and roasted red pepper inside. Pickier eaters might prefer ham and cheese, or even the variety stuffed with a sausage, which kind of makes it like a big, portable hot dog.

I've been picking these up about once a week. The cost is around $2.50.

What are your lunch-box secrets?

Girls have a right to ice

It's been an important day for Toronto girls who play hockey.

 

Threatening the City of Toronto with a Human Rights complaint, the Toronto Leaside Girls Hockey Association scored a victory in a nation-wide and decades-long fight for equal access to ice time.

Citing costs of $1 million in ice time rented mostly from private arenas, the organization alleged there was systematic discrimination against girls who play hockey. Traditionally girls hockey leagues have found themselves coming a distant third in priority sequence for access to rinks, after boys' hockey associations and adult men's teams.

My colleague Jennifer Wilson-Speedy, yourhome.ca editor and hockey player, remembers playing at 10 o'clock at night after the local Old Timer's team was finished. Coming after boys and beer leagues? That's simply not acceptable.

And today David Miller agreed.

He said men's leagues would have to move over so the City can address the imbalance.

Good for these girls, and good for the hardworking association president, Ron Baker, who stood up for their rights.

Kid quotes on H1N1 flu

Natasha, 6, wearing loofah bath gloves, "I'm going to eat dinner with these on and wear them to school tomorrow. Germs, germs."

---

Cameron, 6, on his teacher returning from several days away. "I still don't know what happened. The only sickness that's popular right now is the H1N1."

---

Cameron: "How was your day?"

Me: "Oh, fine."

Cameron: "Did people talk too much about the H1N1? Because if that happens you should just do this (demonstrates putting a finger in each ear) for two minutes, so you don't have too much talking about the H1N1."

---

Cameron: "How many flu seasons have you experienced in your life?"

Me: "Um, I guess 35."

Cameron: "Did you count this one?"

Me: "Yes." (laughing)

Cameron: "What?! I don't always understand what everything that you're talking about so I just try to get information."

Me: "That's reasonable."

Pause.

Cameron: "What would be NOT reasonable."

Me: "Um, asking for a 25-scoop ice cream sundae right before bed...?"

Cameron: (giggling)

Cameron: "Mom..? Oh never mind. I'll skip that question."

---

Have your kids had some funny observations on the flu? Share them by commenting on this post.

And find the latest on the H1N1 on our pandemic flu page.

Today's must reads for parents

Do you own a Maclaren stroller? If so, you need to know about a massive recall of about a million Maclaren umbrella strollers. It's kind of a gruesome story, but in the United States, 12 children have had fingers amputated after getting them stuck in the hinges of the strollers. The distributor there is offering to send parents a special hinge-pad cover to make the stroller safe. Meanwhile, Health Canada is trying to reach the manufacturer in Hong Kong to determine if the strollers sold in Canada also have the same defect. Read more to get the list of affected models, including Volo, Triumph and others.

Here are some other developing news stories parents won't want to miss:

A Catholic school board trustee is offering a "bootcamp" for new trustees to outline appropriate expensing habits, among other things. This follows a spending scandal at the Toronto Catholic School Board that involved trustees charging taxpayers for everything from Dairy Queen treats to holidays.

There are 172 Ontario schools slated for closure due to declining enrolment.Yesterday the advocacy group People for Education suggested the empty school should be used to accommodate all-day learning or turned into child and family resource centres.

Academic Pandemic: Does flu get worse on the day of the test? Education reporter Kristin Rushowy looks at whether schools are sending students home at the first sound of cough or sniffle, and whether kids are taking advantage.

In other H1N1 news, parents may be interested to learn the latest on hospital board members and other VIPs who say they are entitled to their pandemic vaccine shots before children five years of age or more. Better news, Ontario received some new swine flu vaccine yesterday, but clinics haven't been extended to any additional groups, including school-aged children. Here's where you can find the latest on vaccine clinic hours.

Downtown Toronto could become a child-free zone Developers showed up at city hall last week to oppose a regulation that would require them to make at least 10 per cent of new condo units family-sized.

A program to help young single moms graduate high school will soon be out of funding. Catherine Porter explores the unique program in her new column.

Check out our latest on the Santa Claus parade!

Parenting when you're sick

You bend over to pick up a toy, and your sinuses throb. Every 20 seconds, you cough like a 70-year-old smoker. When you kneel to zip up your kid's coat, you feel faint.

Welcome to Sick Day: the Parent Edition.

Between daycare germs and the pandemic flu year, it's hard to imagine any parent will come through this season without spending at least a few days parenting under the influence of Mr. Nasty McViruspants. More often than not, you may be looking after sick children while you struggle to resurrect your crumbling immune system.

With some sort of nasty chest cold or mild flu knocking out everyone in our house - including the caregiver - I found myself alone with my youngest coughing, feverish boy on a day I could barely get out of bed this week. When our babysitter called in sick, I wondered how I'd possible look after him.

But we made it through with cups of hot chocolate and a morning viewing of the movie "Cars."

How do you manage to look after your children when you're under the weather? Please share your tips.

Here are some pointers from the Public Health Agency of Canada on how to look after someone who has the flu.

And here's a list of frequently asked questions on the H1N1 flu, including tips for getting through this germiest of seasons.

Find everything you need to know on our H1N1 page.