Yoga Really Is For Everyone!

Two books from two different publishers arrived in the mail today: "Itsy Bitsy Yoga for Toddlers and Preschoolers" and "Yoga for Arthritis."


A quick web search turns up the following yoga books:


Yoga for Wimps
Yoga for Dummies
Yoga for Golfers
Yoga for Regular Guys
Yoga for Your Hands
Yoga for Suits
...and lots more, including my favorite:

So that means I'm waiting for someone to write these books:


Yoga for Barbarians
Yoga for Knitters
Yoga for Bad Drivers
Yoga for Presidential Campaign Managers
Yoga for Goldfish


Any takers?

How the Bunny Sold Out

Yes, yes, happy new year, best wishes for 2008 and all that. Can I have some rant time now? Here's the first thing in my email Inbox to boggle my mind in 2008:


"Pat the Bunny" is coming out on DVD in March.




That's "Pat the Bunny" as in probably your first touch-and-feel book ever. And that's "touch-and-feel" as in soft fluffy fuzz and scruffy scratchy stubble. Actual objects affixed to actual pages. Who thought this would be a good idea for a video?





The text of the press release reads, in part: "Baby's first friend, Bunny, is off on a brand new adventure when pat the bunny® playdates™ hops onto DVD for the first time.... "


(Wait a minute. I thought Baby's first friend was her parents.)


"Heralded as the first interactive book ever produced, the pat the bunny touch-and-feel book encourages children to use their senses to explore the world around them. Continuing this tradition, while incorporating new technologies, the pat the bunny playdates DVD is the perfect gift for new caregivers. ...."

(Maybe those "new technologies" make your computer or TV screen feel fluffy?)


"Each of the 4 15-minute playdates on the DVD invite children to 'touch' the world by exploring sounds, tastes, sights and smells. Baby's first friend, Bunny, encourages you to make the most important playdate of all - the one with you!"

...But only after Baby has had her playdate with this DVD, apparently.

Readers of Richmond Parents Monthly might recall that I've groused about electronic media for young children before--for instance, DVDs that are supposed to make your babies smarter. As many educators and parents point out, no matter how good a video is, real life holds something developmentally more appropriate for a young child.

Of course, now we get to the part where I'm supposed to say, "Okay, my children watch TV, but...." And then I'm supposed to come to the happy conclusion that everything is fine in moderation, with the implication that moderation is that only way to go.

Yes. My children, ages 4 and 11, do watch TV and DVDs and play on the computer, and have since they were younger than 2. They get more screen time than I'd like them to have. Such compromises, negotiations and concessions are a part of married life, since my husband and I disagree about the role of electronic media in our lives.

However, I feel compelled to say that it is possible to raise a child without a TV or video player. Such was my childhood experience, which wasn't THAT long ago. (Few parents want to go this route, but hopefully not because they think they can't.) Moderation is not necessary!

In fact, sometimes I think it's moderation that gives us absurdities such as a pat-the-bunny movie, as if we're supposed to think that just because it's not Grand Theft Scooter, it's good for kids.

Speaking of sleep...

Two books about sleep arrived in our offices recently. Both are excellent choices for parents-to-be to read or skim through.

Just last week, we received "Sleep Deprived No More" by Jodi A. Mindell, Ph.D., the associate director of the Sleep Center at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

Earlier this year, we received "The Lull-a-Baby Sleep Plan" by Cathryn Tobin, MD, a pediatrician and midwife and member of the Canadian Paediatric Society and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons.

"Sleep Deprived No More" is primarily given over to helping parents, especially mothers, manage their sleep needs from pregnancy through the first months after childbirth. Only one chapter is devoted to information and advice about infants and sleep. The premise seems to be that if parents understand their own sleep needs and are well-rested, they'll be prepared to tackle the needs of their baby with empathy and rationality.

"The Lull-a-Baby Sleep Plan" focuses on preventing sleep problems by using what the author calls the Window of Opportunity (beginning at 6 to 8 weeks of age and lasting until 6 to 9 months of age) to instill good sleep habits in children. The Window of Opportunity is the time when an infant's brain is most receptive to forming sleep patterns--so why not make them good sleep patterns?

Both books are written in short segments with plenty of break-out boxes, lists and real-life examples. Both are about 200 pages long and $15 retail, but ask your local library if they're available for check-out.

Shhh... There's a flower fairy hiding in my house.

Don't tell Helen, but this is one of her Christmas presents:

"How to Find Flower Fairies" by Cicely Mary Barker, a pop-up book published this October by Warne. Info here, but you can order it through a local independent bookstore!