“Parents who choose a stroller that seats their baby facing away from them could risk long-term development problems in their children, according to a study published Friday.”

Really? Great. I’ll add this to my list of things I am doing wrong as a parent. Not sure where it goes on the list, either above “too much peanut butter is a choking hazard,” or “bedtime is at 8. Yes, I mean it.”

How much time does a child have to spend in their stroller before this is an issue? In the study, children were strolled for one mile, so I’m guessing about 30 minutes or so.

What about long car trips when infants are in car seats facing backwards in the car? How stressful is that? Should the people who are studying children’s emotional health get together with the people who are studying physical safety? It seems that one recomendation doesn’t jive with the other. And as a parent, this one just tells me one more thing I am doing wrong that can be remedied by either not using the stroller that I have (crazy idea) or buying a new one (also a crazy idea since I am a typical broke parent).

Read the article on CNN.com.

This year we joined others who share a passion for stage makeup, wigs and social commentary and participated in Zombie Walk on Saturday, Oct. 28. About 200 zombies lurched and growled their way through Carytown, and raised a few bucks for charity.

We didn’t think twice about taking Sophia. She loves a crowd. And although there’s an abundance of fake blood, zombie walks are actually rather tame.

In the spirit of George Romero’s “Dawn of the Dead,” my husband insisted that we go as everyday zombies. Not the kind who rose from the dead wearing their Sunday best, but everyday folks in jeans. For baby zombie’s costume, we searched for child-friendly makeup but couldn’t find anything to use on children under 3. We ended up splattering fake blood on our outfits, and Max and I covered our faces in white and grey makeup and darkened our eyes. I must admit that our costumes were sub-par compared to others at zombie walk.

Sophia was not the only baby zombie in the crowd, and there were about a dozen other young kids who were there with their parents.

My mom thought that it sounded like great fun when I told her about it on the phone. My mother-in-law, on the other hand, was concerned that we scared Sophia. I’m confident that we didn’t. In fact, The Kid enjoyed herself so much that she started growling along with the other zombies.

We’re already talking about what to wear next year. I vote for a family theme, but expect that my husband will want to stick with “come as you are” zombies. For the kid, we have a year to work on the growl.

On the “screen time” topic, I’ve been giving this some thought lately and I’ve relaxed my original goal of no screen time before 2 years old. We’re not parking the baby in front of the television, but she does watch a couple of cartoons and I’m OK with this. “The Backyardigans” is often on following the morning news, and “Sesame Street” is on the approved list as well. In practice Sophia doesn’t do a good job of watching the shows, and still wants to play and read books the whole time the TV is on. My husband and I both grew up on “The Street,” and our brains didn’t completely rot. As long as we keep it in check I think it’s OK to expose Sophia to some fun and educational shows. I don’t buy the whole “watch this video and your child will be a genius,” approach to child rearing, and the cartoons and shows we let Sophia watch tend to be background noise for snacks and play breaks.

Even if we locked up the televisions, Sophia’s world contains more electronics and screens that mine did as a child. She plays with our cell phones and has learned to use the keypad. She doesn’t know who she is dialing, but Nana’s numbers are programmed in and she regularly gets calls. Sophia sees her father and I use laptop computers every day; her baby monitor has a video screen; when we leave the house and visit stores and restaurants, televisions play all around.

I’m more concerned about balance and sharing the best of the world, instead of pieces of the world. Screen time is part of modern culture, and as a modern parent it’s my job to provide balance.

Following her beatbox lesson with Biz Markie, The Kid may want to learn more of his tunes. My mom still tells the story about how I could recite “The Night Before Christmas” on my first Christmas. If this year Sophia entertains the family with her version of “Just a Friend,” I’ll be proud of that as well.

Sophia had a out of itchiness last winter. (Read The large itchy child belongs to me (and I love her) )

She has clothing from Carter’s, but her rash was not contained on her back. Looks like we just have excema and dry skin.

This video follows a weekend with my mother who thinks that Sophia eats too much dairy and is too big. If it was up to Nana, as she calls herself, there would be no naps and no regular bedtime. My 13 month old would be constantly on the go so that her body never has a chance to develop a fat cell. She would drop in the floor and pass out from exhaustion. She would like celery. There would be no cheese.

Since that wasn’t an effective approach with me 32 years ago, I’m passing on the advice.

Today is no different; I just need to share a funny story.

My daughter, who is 13 months old now, is hungry. She runs around all day like a little crazy woman and burns calories faster than a twentysomething on diet pills partaking in her third aerobics class of the day.

After eating Cheerios, raisins and a cereal bar this morning, The Kid was standing in the kitchen wanting more. I offered her half a peanut butter sandwich cut into small pieces.

She seemed pleased, and then she put the piece of sandwich that I offered her in her ear. She inspected it, moved it toward her mouth and then made a last-minute decision to put the bread bits pressed together and oozing peanut butter in her ear instead of her mouth.

I grabbed a napkin and started cleaning out her ear and hair as fast as I could, but she still smelled like peanut butter when the babysitter arrived. She decided not to eat the sandwich and downed another sippy cup fill of milk instead.

I’m sure there is a parenting, and perhaps life, lesson here, but I admit that I am not sure at the moment what the lesson is.

No doubt that my husband I are both getting less sleep, have less money and in general look at little more worn down than we did in the years before our daughter was born. But if that’s the trade-off, then it’s a fair trade.

My baby girl turns 1 year old today and we are starting the next chapter in our life. Change was around every corner during the first year – for both Sophia and I – and I am sure the next year will bring more of the same. This year, I watched the tiny baby I cautiously brought home from the hospital grow into a walking, talking, eating machine who has an amazing personality and lights up every room.

We endured a couple of illnesses, months of fending for ourselves while my husband finished graduate school out of town and the ongoing pursuit of the perfect bottle and sippy cup.

I’ve laughed more than ever, I’ve cried in the shower, and I have found that a few moments of sleep sure do beat nothing at all.

My family and friends are gathering this weekend for a picnic to share some time together and a cupcake, and to take turns playing with Sophia while celebrating her first amazing year.

As is the way these days, I’m scrambling at the last minute for what to eat, what to drink and a couple dozen balloons. If all fails, I’ll just pick up a bunch of tacos for us to share. We’ll be together and that’s what counts. I am going to push to pull it together, though, because I want to tell my daughter that we all enjoyed her first birthday. I know that she will not remember our picnic, but I want to get the people in my life who have helped me the most in the past year together and say thank you in my own, somewhat disorganized way.

While the pace of my life the past few years has kept me from such activities, I’ve made time when I could to meet-up with friends, sip coffee and talk about what I’m reading, listening to and watching. My friends are the best source for new music, good books and movies and I need their opinions about as much as I need the dose of caffeine.

It turns out that toddlers, though, are looking for a little more stimulation. Not of the caffeine variety - that would be a big no-no - but more along the run, jump, laugh, play, do-it-all-again variety. Essentially, babies are just not French.

Imagine my excitement when I read Louis Llovio’s article today about Cartwheels & Coffee in Carytown. It’s a coffee shop for parents - what more could a girl want. Kids play in supervised play areas while parents enjoy coffee. I have been waiting for a place like this.

Shortly after reading Llovio’s article this morning I dressed Captain One Sock, called a friend to join us and headed to Carytown. Imagine my disappointment when we arrived to learn that Cartwheels & Coffee was closed. It’s Labor Day and there were other businesses closed on Cary Street, but it’s too bad that this one was closed on the same day that it was mentioned in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

We ended up at Starbucks and ordered iced drinks to go and then strolled through Caytown stopping at a few of the businesses that were open. The Kid loves moving from store to store and we always make a friend or two along the way. We’ll try Cartwheels & Coffee again; I just hope that next time they’re open when working parents and their kids are out and about together.

I confess that I have not spilled it all online on this site, but plan to keep it in mind in case I need an outlet for my thoughts and frustrations.

Wait - isn’t that why I have this blog?

Check it out http://www.truemomconfessions.com/

While I make no claims about running a green household or always making green decisions (I drive to work, I don’t carry my own Starbucks mug, etc.), I do take opportunities to conserve when I can. And with a baby, the amount of trash is just more than I could have imagined. My husband and I have commented a few times on the amount of paper towels we use. Prior to having a child we used about one roll of paper towels a month, perhaps less. We’re just not that messy. These days, though, we’re buying a new roll every week. I keep a stack of dish towels in the kitchen, but we’re still rolling through paper towels.

And then there are the diapers…

Check out the article