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Operation Reduce TV Time

Written by Elizabeth on .

kidtv

Blogger: From Practice to Parenting, Upper St. Clair

Leo watches more TV than I care to admit. He watches between 40-60 minutes in the morning when I get dressed and feed Emilia, and about four days a week he ends up watching another 1.5 hours in the late afternoon when we are all tired out. He doesn’t nap, so this feels like the only way for both of us to get some much needed downtime.

I’ve noticed that on days when I try to skip the afternoon shows, we usually end up with a meltdown on our hands around 4 or 5 pm. I do think a little TV is better than a big fight, and clearly he is getting some rest from it if watching it in the afternoon helps him to keep it together until bedtime. But, still. I am relying on TV more than I would like. Enter: Operation Reduce TV Time.

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Elizabeth is a child clinical psychologist and mother to 3-year-old Leo and 6-month-old Emilia. She writes about her experiences as a parent through the eyes of a psychologist, weaving her personal stories with bits of psychological theory and research. She hopes this approach will help other parents learn something new, while being comforted that even the "experts" get stumped! This is her first post on PlayGround.

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My Best Friend is a Two Year Old

Written by Tara Darazio on .

2yrold

Blogger: A Passion for the Pen, Greensburg

I’ve come to the realization that my two-year old son is technically my best friend. No offense to my “big girl” best friends, I still love all of you, but for blog purposes, let’s just explore my title a bit further.

As a work at home mom, I spend more time with my son than any I do any other person on this Earth. That said, we are together through the ups and downs of every single day. That’s something I haven’t even experienced with my very best friends. We always had time when we were separated in the physical sense, it was never 100% interaction all the time.

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Tara Darazio is a freelance writer, social media strategist, wife, and mom to a vibrant little boy. She has a BA in Advertising and Public Relations and a BA in Mass Communication from Point Park University. Her post on motherhood and tattoos was previously featured on PlayGround.

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You Can't Shame a Woman into Breastfeeding

Written by Tamara Reese on .

breastfeeding

Blogger: Tamara Reese, Squirrel Hill (for Kveller.com)

Nothing has ever made me feel more inadequate as a mother or as a woman than my nursing challenges.

After 11 weeks of shame and tears I called the health department as my final Hail Mary pass. They sent to my home, free of charge, a lactation consultant who just so happened to be a La Leche League leader.

She wasn’t afraid to look into my bloodshot eyes. She saw my desperation and how much being able to nurse my baby meant to me. The first thing out of her mouth, I will never forget, was:

You are a wonderful Mama and you’ve done a beautiful job with him.

I went on to nurse my firstborn for 25 months.

I successfully breastfed a toddler and yet I was terrified to nurse my second baby.

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Tamara Reese is a qualitative epidemiologist turned stay-at-home Mama turned consultant for Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh and contributing editor at Kveller.com. She is the mother of two boys and her passions include child injury prevention, gentle parenting and breastfeeding advocacy. Her posts on baby name battles and the killing at the zoo have also been featured on PlayGround.

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Borrowed Fear

Written by Burgh Baby on .

marathon

Blogger: Burgh Baby, South Hills

"It's not my fear to own," I thought to myself.

It felt like an act of defiance to march out of the house and pile into the car. While other parents were huddled in their homes, carefully guarding their words from small children, I was out and about. Alexis and I were on a mission to eat dinner together and go shopping, even as other parents and their children discussed bullets flying through the neighborhoods of their city that was completely shut down.

It wasn't my fear to own. I could borrow it, but I wouldn't keep it.

Read more about trying to keep things kid-friendly the night the Boston Marathon bomber was captured...

Burgh Baby has previously been featured on PlayGround for her posts about the equal-opportunity holiday of Halloween, strawberry-monster cupcakes and rolled tacos.

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An Airplane Horror Story

Written by Anya Sostek on .

planehorror

We thought we've had bad experiences flying with kids. This is worse. Devorah Pasternak, of Akron, Ohio, sent us a copy of her letter to AirTran about her experience flying from Pittsburgh -- or rather, not flying. She and her 2-year-old twins got kicked off the plane when one twin wouldn't stay seated in her own seat. AirTran's response is after the letter...


Dear AirTran Airways, Customer Relations:

I am writing to inform you of my experience onboard Flight 471 (nonstop from Pittsburgh to Ft. Lauderdale). This flight was to be my first time flying with my twin daughters, Tirtzah and Rivka, who turned two years old in January. I was five months pregnant at the time and did much to prepare to fly with my girls for the first time, including several calls and/or e-mails to AirTran re: regulations, documentation, baby snacks, car seats and other miscellaneous questions. I booked three full priced tickets, given that my girls would be 2 years old, and I was told car seats were optional.

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