Whether it’s sunny or cloudy, make sure your kids are wearing sunscreen whenever they’re outside. Many people will skip the sunscreen on cloudy days but UV Rays still get through and baby’s skin is much thinner than adults. Remember that even one sunburn in childhood raises the risk of melanoma. For babies under the age of six months, pediatricians recommend staying out of the sun entirely and for older kids, as well as adults, try to stay out of the sun when it’s at its strongest, usually 10A – 2P.

Beware of ticks! Because we had such a mild winter, the ticks were never killed off and they’re going to be a big problem this year. Always do a tick check every time your child comes indoors, paying particular attention to the hairline, groin and other folds of skin. If you do find a tick pull it off gently, as close to the skin as possible to insure you remove the entire tick.

While it might seem difficult to enforce, getting your toddler to wear sunglasses is important. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, unprotected sun exposure can contribute to the development of cataracts and cancer. You can buy glasses with headbands for little ones and for toddlers, if you start making sunglass wearing a part of the routine for going outside, they’ll start getting
used to it.

Be careful of dehydration, it can happen quickly. Newborns, and especially preemies, don’t sweat effectively so don’t assume they’re not overheated if they’re not sweating. Nurse and offer liquids frequently. Signs that your baby might be dehydrated are:

• No wet diaper in over 3 hours
• Dry, sticky mouth
• Sunken eyes or fontanel (soft spot on the baby’s head)
• Lethargic

Never leave your child in a car, even for aminute! Internal car temperatures canrise above 100° even on cooler days. When your schedule is chaotic or there’s been some sort of change, it’s easy to forget your baby in the backseat. Put a post-it note on your car door handle to remember to check for the baby before you get out of the car.

And, to help keep your little one safe in the sun, our friends at Episencial have provided us with tubes of Episencial Sunny Sunscreen SPF 35 to give away to some lucky readers. To be eligible, simply like us on Facebook and follow @Episencial on Twitter. Each Friday in May, we will be randomly picking three winners.

Mattel

Last week Mattel hosted a major press conference in New York City and announced that Barbie was running for President of the United States.  Yes, the blonde icon with the body that launched many an eating disorder was, as the press release announced, “standing on her own two feet” and announcing her candidacy.  Apparently the fact that this Barbie is standing on her own two feet…”just like other powerful leaders”  is supposed to be a big deal.  Are you kidding me??

OK, I’ll give Mattel credit in that they tried to spin this as a “girl power story” by teaming up with The White House Project , a national  non partisan non profit women’s leadership development organization that will act as her campaign advisor.  At their annual gala in November one lucky girl will be presented with the Barbie I Can B Award.   I can just see a bunch of PR guys…and I do  mean “guys”…sitting around a conference room and dreaming this one up.  “Yeah, this will appease those women who  think Barbie objectifies women and promotes an unhealthy idea of beauty,” they rationalized.

If I hadn’t read the press  release myself I wouldn’t have believed it. Having been in PR, I realize it’s their job to promote the product as
best they can, but was the poor publicist who wrote this release really able to keep a straight face as  he/she talked about how this doll promotes and inspires girls to be leaders and reach for their dreams and in the next sentence talk about Barbie’s “glam-paign” on her quest for “The Pink House?”

What platform is Barbie running on might you ask? It’s the B Party with the slogan “B inspired”, “B informed”, “B involved.” I guess grammar shouldn’t be a concern for young girls or POTUS Barbie. Probably what most disgusted me was the description of President Barbie: “A true fashionista both on and off the campaign trail, Barbie® keeps her political style classic and sophisticated, wearing a pink skirt suit with red, white and blue trim. She accessorizes with a sophisticated pearl (their italics, not mine) necklace and earrings and proudly sports a B Party campaign button, representing girls nationwide. Vote for Barbie!”

Once again the message coming through to our girls is that brains and substance don’t’ matter, as long as you can accessorize, you’ll be a success. Shame on you Mattel!

Contact: Michele Bennett

Michele@safetymom.com

203-246-7859

Toyota of Stamford and National Family Safety Expert Alison Rhodes Team Up to Promote Safe Driving

Stamford, CT – April 12, 2012 — It was announced today that Toyota of Stamford has partnered with national family safety expert Alison Rhodes, The Safety Mom, to help promote safe driving initiatives through the dealership.

Toyota of Stamford has been serving the Fairfield area for nearly half a century and is committed to educating the public about distracted driving, assisting parents in proper car seat installation and providing tips on safe driving for everyone in the family especially older adults.

“It’s appropriate that we announce our relationship with The Safety Mom during National Distracted Driver Awareness Month,” explained Brandon Campbell, General Sales Manager of Toyota. “Distracted driving has become a national epidemic and is the number one killer of American teens. As a company, we are committed to raising awareness and offering programs that will help save our children’s lives.”

Consider these statistics on distracted driving:

• While over 90% of teen drivers say they don’t drink and drive, nine out of 10 say they’ve seen passengers distracting the driver, or drivers using cell phones. (National Teen Driver Survey)

• An estimated million people each day chat on their mobile or send text messages while driving. (The Herald)

• Over one-third of all young drivers, ages 24 and under, are texting on the road.

• Talking on a cell phone while driving can make a young driver’s reaction time as slow as that of a 70-year-old.

As one of the nation’s pre-eminent voices on family safety and a Fairfield County resident, Ms. Rhodes form a relationship with Toyota to help raise community awareness on all driving safety issues. “It seems that every week there is another report on a tragedy involving distracted driving. I’m thrilled that Toyota of Stamford is committed to working with families, the media and local organizations to make driving safer for everyone.”

Toyota of Stamford has launched their first initiative in combating distracted driving as the exclusive car dealership distributor in Fairfield County of FamilyTrack™, a service that allows parents to monitor and track their child’s cell phone usage. Once FamilyTrack™ is installed on a phone, the parent can prevent incoming or outgoing texts and calls when the car reaches a certain speed. Location-based alerts can also be set up so a parent knows when their teens arrives and departs from a specific location or does not arrive there.

In addition to offering FamilyTrack™, Toyota of Stamford will be working with The Safety Mom to offer car seat safety clinics, family safe driving seminars and other events. Toyota of Stamford customers will also receive discounts on in-home safety child safety and senior home modification consultations through Safety Mom Solutions.

About Toyota of Stamford

Toyota of Stamford has been serving the Fairfield County area for nearly half a century and is committed to educating the public about distracted driving, assisting parents in proper car seat installation and providing tips on safe driving for everyone in the family especially older adults.

About The Safety Mom

Alison Rhodes is a nationally recognized expert on family safety. She is an author and speaker who appears frequently on local and national television providing tips on family safety. Ms. Rhodes is the founder of Safety Mom Solutions and Safety Mom Senior Solutions which provides baby proofing and senior safety home modification services in the tri-state area.

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A word of warning – if you have a child that still believes in Santa Claus, The Tooth Fairy and The Easter Bunny, be sure they’re not reading over your shoulder!

The other night my pre-teen daughter and I had one of “the talks.” I have to admit, I’m a bit surprised at how much she already knows about sex but I guess I shouldn’t be when she’s constantly exposed to older kids at school, tabloids at the supermarket check-out line and commercials on TV.

So, I’d have to say she pretty much knows all of the facts about the birds and the bees, a big milestone in my opinion. She knows what’s going on and she’s not going to be naïve enough to believe wives tales and myths that she might hear from her friends. But, no sooner did I dry a tear over her lost innocence, than she threw me for a loop. She reminded me that she was close to losing another tooth and she needed to find her tooth fairy pillow.

Her tooth fairy pillow – was she kidding me!?!?!? She just learned how babies are made and she really thinks that little people are flying through her window at night?

On the one hand, I was sad my little girl was growing up but on the other, I was thinking about all the money I could save on teeth, chocolate bunnies and the extra present from Santa Claus every year. These fictional characters have really started putting a dent in my wallet. Last year I wanted to curse some girl in school who told my daughter about the Christmas Elf. This shouldn’t be confused with the dreaded Elf on the Shelf who just causes mischief. No, this blasted elf would grant a wish every night leading up to Christmas if the child left a note in one of her shoes. Apparently this little girl got diamond earrings. Seriously??

My husband’s ex-wife started a tradition of the Lucky Leprechaun who brings gifts at St. Patrick’s Day. I’m not Irish so I felt I had an excuse. Of course it didn’t help when my step kids showed off all the loot they received.
Of course if said pre-teen is not the youngest in the family that’s bound to cause problems for the little ones. I’m sure there will be a time when my daughter’s angry at her little sister and will spill the beans on all of these treasured beliefs and then I’ll be paying off her therapy bills for the rest of her childhood.

But really, I was sitting there the other day just itching to say – THEY’RE NOT REAL!! I just have a hard time talking about sex and Santa in the same conversation. I mean can’t we save the money that I need to dole out at all these holidays and take a nice family vacation?

Let me hear your thoughts – how did you break the news to your kids and when?

To celebrate its 10^th anniversary, Hershey’s^® Chocolate World^® Times Square has added the “Wrap Hershey’s Happiness” experience, where you can create your own personalized wrapper for a Hershey’s chocolate bar.  Wrapper designs include Times Square themes as well as seasonal options.   You also have the opportunity to include a photo and personalized message.  Wha’s really neat is that if you decide to  add a photo to your customized wrapper, you will can see your completed design on the store’s outdoor marquee in the heart of Times Square.   And, if you cannot make it to the store, you can create your personalized wrappers online at www.HersheysStore.com.

Other new happenings at the store include the “Taste Hershey’s Happiness™” station, which will feature different Hershey’s samples, including ew products and special offerings and the ’Mix Your Favorites” experience, where you can create a customized mix of Hershey’s^® Miniatures, Hershey’s Kisses Milk Chocolates and Reese’s^® Miniatures candy.

The Hershey Company is also giving back throught the “Share Hershey’s Happiness” program and you can help decide how the money is allocated.  Anyone who makes a purchase at the Times Square store will receive a wooden token, which can be used to vote for the following supported charities: the Children’s Miracle Network, the United Way and the World Cocoa Foundation. The Hershey Company will donate funds to each organization based on the percentage of votes that each receives.

For more information on Hershey’s Chocolate World Times Square and the new experiences, visit www.hersheys.com/chocolateworld/visitor-locations.aspx

Here are the new statistics:

• The diagnosis of an ASD has risen by 78% in the past decade. That’s not to say that there’s been a dramatic increase in ASD but probably better diagnosis.
• For boys, the rate of an ASD diagnosis is 1 in 54 – almost 5 times higher than in girls
• More children are being diagnosed at an earlier age (3), but still most are being diagnosed at 4 or 5 years of age.  Early diagnosis is critical.

While my son doesn’t “officially” have a diagnosis of ASD, he has special needs and, in my opinion, the label doesn’t matter because his disability is quite similar.

As many of my readers know, I’m pretty much of an open book.  I talk about all the issues and challenges that I deal with because it is my hope that I can help someone else not feel as isolated or even share some insight.  I realize this isn’t true for many parents with special needs children.  For many reasons they wish to remain private and I understand that.  Unfortunately too often our kids are still labeled, judged and discriminated against.

That needs to change.

Here’s something that I’ve been thinking about a great deal lately.  This population of ASD kids is going to grow up and need to become productive members of our society.  They will want to go on to college, work, drive, live independently, have personal relationships, get married and have kids.  I know that I want that for my son and he wants it for himself.  Not too much to ask in my opinion.

In order for this to happen though, neuro-typical peers need to start gaining a better understanding for what it means to have ASD or some other disability.  I’m so proud of the Top inclusion program at Wilton High School.  For those of you not aware of this program, it was started by a few high school students who recognized the importance of helping every student feel included.  Their mission statement is simple: “To encourage students to work together to promote the inclusion of all students in our school and community.”  Participants team up with special needs kids as buddies to support them both during school and at after school activities.  This has also led into another great program, TOP Soccer, which works under the same principal.

These types of programs need to happen all over the country and the stigma of ASD and other special needs must be eliminated.  Both adults and children need to become more aware of the characteristics of ASD and how they affect someone socially.  I’ve felt the pain as kids, not understanding my son’s special needs, laugh at him behind his back.  As our kids grow up, these challenges will become even greater.  Imagine how frustrating it must be to be turned down for a job because, even if you’re qualified, you’re unable to effectively manage a job interview?  Think about trying to navigate through ordinary tasks such as grocery shopping or asking for directions when interacting with people is difficult.

This is not an issue that will only affect a few families, this is now an issue for our society.  How will we embrace these special needs young adults and allow them to have the same opportunities that everyone else has to lead a happy and productive life?

Several weeks ago a Utah man was watching the evening news with his son when he realized that it was his son in some surveillance footage ransacking an electronics stores.  The story went on to say that over $65,000 in merchandise had been stolen.  The dad had a tough choice – call the police on his son or pretend he didn’t realize it was his own son who was the thief.  The dad persuaded the son that he needed to turn himself in and they drove to the police station together.

It’s easy for us to teach our children to “do the right thing” and “accept responsibility” but what happens when this goes from theoretical to practical?  Would you tell your child to admit to a crime let alone turn her in yourself?  It’s a tough question and I’m certainly not going to say I’m sure what I would do.  The need to protect your child is great but teaching them accountability is crucial.  Both decisions can have devastating consequences. 

Here in Wilton we’ve been dealing with this issue for several years.  While I never met Nick Parisot nor his family, I certainly know the story as do many Wilton residents.  For those of you who don’t, Nick Parisot was a 13 year-old boy who died from neck trauma when he was riding his motor bike and ran into a rope that had been intentionally strung across the path.  While no one has ever been arrested in the case, police confirm they have a suspect and Nick’s family has filed a civil suit against another family and their minor child.  And, according to Nick’s mother there are several other minors who have information but their parents have never allowed them to come forward and speak.    This happened almost four years ago and still no one is talking.  This isn’t a case of your kids having a party at someone’s home who’s away on vacation and deciding whether they should fess up (as was recently discussed on The Patch) This is a child who was killed and a family who desperately needs closure. 

Whether it’s the family of the suspect or the parents of one of the other kids who has information, I would assume they go through their own agony every day.  Yes, they’re our children but, as a parent who’s lost a child (to SIDS), more than anything we need closure and we have a right to it. 

For the 16 year-old girl who stopped on Saturday, she and her family will never be the same.  But, at least she’ll be able to sleep at night knowing the she did the right thing.

So what would your teen do?  And what would you do?