The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), in cooperation with Graco Children’s Products Inc., of Atlanta, Ga., is announcing the recall of about 2 million Graco strollers due to risk of entrapment and strangulation. CPSC and Graco have received four reports of infant strangulations that occurred in these strollers between 2003 and 2005. In addition, CPSC is aware of five reports of infants becoming entrapped, resulting in cuts and bruises, and one report of an infant having difficulty breathing.
Entrapment and strangulation can occur, especially to infants younger than 12 months of age, when a child is not harnessed. An infant can pass through the opening between the stroller tray and seat bottom, but his/her head and neck can become entrapped by the tray. Infants who become entrapped at the neck are at risk of strangulation.
The recall involves older versions of the Graco Quattro Tour™ and MetroLite™ strollers and travel systems manufactured prior to the existence of the January 2008 voluntary industry standard which addresses the height of the opening between the stroller’s tray and the seat bottom. This voluntary standard requires larger stroller openings that prevent infant entrapment and strangulation hazards.
This recall involves Graco Quattro Tour™ strollers and travel systems manufactured prior to November 2006 and MetroLite™ strollers and travel systems manufactured prior to July 2007. The strollers and travel systems were distributed between November 2000 and December 2007. The model numbers are printed on a label at the lower portion of the rear frame, just above the rear wheels or underneath the stroller. The name “Graco” appears on a label on the stroller tray and the headrest.
The strollers were sold at AAFES, Babies R Us, Burlington Coat Factory, Fred Meyer, Meijers, Navy Exchange, Sears, Target, Walmart and other stores nationwide between November 2000 and December 2007 for between $90 and $190 for the strollers, and between $190 and $250 for travel systems.
Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled strollers and contact Graco for a free repair kit. To order a repair kit, contact Graco toll-free at (877) 828-4046 anytime, or visit the firm’s website at www.gracobaby.com.
NOTE: When using a stroller, parents and caregivers are encouraged to always secure children by using the safety harness and never leave them unattended. To learn more about the importance of stroller safety, download CPSC’s safety alert: www.cpsc.gov/CPSCPUB/PUBS/5096.pdf
When I read this article onBabble.com, not only did it touch me deeply but I thought it was perfect. The suggestions that author Melissa Taylor gives on ways to support Moms who are fighting cancer are right on target. When my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001 we endured 5 years of watching her valient fight against this terrible disease. As her family, all we could really do was be there to support her and care for her. It was during this time that my dear friend was also diagnosed with breast cancer. At the time, her four children were school-aged. Again, being there was the most important role I had in her life and the life of her children. Although this may be difficult to read for those who currently know someone with breast cancer, please read on and share with those around you. YOU do make a difference.
No one wants to read this article. I recommend you skip it if you don’t have any female friends. Except you do. And cancer happens. Even to people like you and me. Breast cancer is the number one cause of death in women 15 to 54, according to the National Cancer Institute 2005 Fact Book, and The American Cancer Society says that by age forty, the probability of developing breast cancer is 1 in 68; by fifty, it’s 1 in 37. That means it’s likely that we will know a woman with young children who will be diagnosed with cancer, a mom friend whose life is overturned by the diagnosis, who, instead of going about her regular day with work and kids and friends, must fight for her life. She’s researching, visiting doctors, scheduling treatments, and she’s scared. You are her friends. You can help.Learn the many things you can do to support a mom with cancer. Here are some practical ideas to get you started.
1. Babysit. Schedule times to watch her kids. If you want to get really fancy, set up a babysitting or playdate schedule on the Signup Genius website.
2. Food. Feed her family. The Caring Meals website organizes meals and delivery. Don’t forget about yummy kid snacks and treats, too.
3. Money. Set up a fund for medical and travel expenses through your bank or PayPal. Even with insurance, co-pays and medicine add up.
4. Blog. Set the family up with a free Caring Bridge blog. Updates go to friends and family all at once, so mom doesn’t have to give the same update sixty times in one day.
5. Books. Kids and parents benefit from reading stories about other’s experiences. Older children benefit from knowing they’re not alone; stories often are the best way, support groups are another.
Children’s Picture Books about Cancer:
Let My Colors Out
Mom and the Polka-Dot Boo Boo
Mommy Has to Stay in Bed
Tickles Tabitha’s
Cancer-tankerous Mommy
6. Normalcy. “Treat the kids normally,” says breast cancer survivor Michelle Holbrook. “Play with them, feed them (often I was too sick to do this myself); love them. Attempt to show them that all is okay, life goes on, even when the road gets a little bumpy.” Allison Donohue, a child life specialist at Children’s Hospital in Denver, adds: “Providing choices and honesty are the best ways to help a child. Keeping them a part of the treatment team can be very healing and empowering.” She recommends saying something like: “Today mommy is having her chemo medicine. This is the one that makes her tummy upset and tired.” Donohue also suggests giving the children jobs to make them feel part of the treatment. You might tell them, “When mommy gets home tonight, she would love to have a card from you or have you lay down with her and read her a story.
7. Listen to the kids. Elizabeth MacDougall’s sister has stage-two breast cancer. MacDougall shares, “My nine-year-old nephew, Sam, gave his mom a note to give to me. It said, 'Please take good care of my mom, I’m really scared.'” MacDougall realized she needed to spend more time with Sam to help him process his fears through talking, drawing, or workbooks. You may see poor behavior from the kids, says MacDougall. “We saw a lot of acting out — fighting and tantrums. The kids were used to my sister, Paige, being a stay-at-home mom, but she couldn’t always take care of them anymore. Other people were staying with them, and they were going on lots of play dates. They just didn’t know how to handle it.” The poor behavior comes when a child lacks the coping skills to deal with his or her emotions. “Allow them to cry, be sad, be scared. These are all very normal and healthy reactions to learning of a mom’s cancer,” says Holbrook. Same goes with the mom — treat her normally. Don’t call every day to check on her sickness. Understand that she might want to talk about regular life, not cancer. (How about the price of grapes these days?)
8. Toys for the kids. Kimmie Dolls are unique dolls especially for children whose moms have cancer; chemo bears are bears in a t-shirt or scrubs.Remind the children that their mom loves them very much, that her doctors are very good and they are using the best medicines to make her get better. Sometimes children think that they did something wrong and somehow caused their mother’s cancer or that it might be contagious. Reassure them that those things aren’t true.
Carrie Host, a mother of three and author of the memoir Between Me and the River, Living Beyond Cancer, writes how much she loved her children’s gifts. She vividly remembers a poem her daughter wrote “literally began the healing process.” Host often gave her kids the job of “playing quietly” with the promise that when she woke up, she would spend time with them.
Another idea from Host is using pretend play to help children understand treatments. She recommends acting out scenarios with stuffed animals to explain chemotherapy, radiation, surgery or losing hair. The stuffed animals can be the children, the mom or the doctor. Pretend play gives children a safe way to express their feelings. If facilitated by an adult, the play can be instructional and used to explain the words and concepts of cancer.
Host confesses how hard it can be: “Cancer makes you feel like you’re failing as a mother by having cancer. It’s terrible.” But she learned to embrace Theodore Roosevelt’s philosophy: “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” About the Author: Recently awarded the Scholastic Best Book and Reading Blog Award for her playful learning blog, Imagination Soup, Melissa Taylor is a learning junkie, recovering teacher, freelance writer and mom of two — an introverted roller skater and an extroverted fairy princess.Let’s do what we can for our mom friends with cancer.
Cold wet weather has arrived. The days are shorter and the nights longer, ringing in fall just in time for Halloween. Little ones excited to wear their favorite costume and parents, well, we are dusting off the bins of Halloween decor; many of us just as excited for Halloween as our children. In the following article we share Halloween ideas and traditions old and new and provide you with links to sites that offer fun, family friendly Halloween tricks and treats. So, grab your pumpkin latte and have a seat as you feast upon Halloween ideas the whole family can participate in and will love! Feel free to tweak these ideas for your family, make them your own and Enjoy!
Decorate For Halloween The First Weekend In October: This allows you plenty of time to really enjoy the season. Gather your family, dust off the boxes in your garage and have a decorating party. Allow your children to decide where the decorations should go. Don’t be afraid to decorate inside as well as outside and don't worry about it looking pretty or coordinating with your decor. Have fun with it and let loose!
For our big project this year, we will be cutting out silhouettes of ghosts and witches to hang in front of the windows for a haunted Halloween look. We'll create some back-lighting too so that the silhouette are illuminated at night. I was inspired by the lawn scene above that I found on Martha Stewart.
Boo Your Neighbors: A tradition my family enjoys is "Booing" our neighbors. Booing is a lot like Secret Santa but for Halloween. Start the season by secretly placing a festive gift on a neighbors door step. Inside are a poem and a sign that reads, "I've Been Booed" with instructions on how to keep the fun going. Once you start, watch how quickly your good cheer spreads as house after house begins displaying their "I've been Booed" sign. It's fun to watch my children hold in their secret and listen to neighbors try and figure out who booed who. I have to admit though, it's hard to keep a straight face and not spill the beans, er...pumpkin seeds.
We've created a FREE printable sign and poem for you to use. Once it's printed, simply follow the instructions and voilà, you've begun a fun new tradition your family and your neighbors will love.
Make Halloween Treats For Your Kids Lunches: There are so many clever web-sites offering a huge range of fun and crafty projects you can do with your children. Here's just one of our favorites.
1 small tube green food coloring 1 package red licorice rope
1 package chocolate candy googly eyes
1 package mini M&Ms
1 tube black cake decorating icing
Cooking Instructions: Prepare vanilla cake batter according to box directions. Add 7 drops or more of green food coloring to batter and mix thoroughly to achieve desired shade.
Remove white paper separators from foil cups; pour batter into baking cups and bake in 350-degree oven for 17 to 20 minutes, or until you can stick a toothpick into the center and remove it cleanly.
Remove cupcakes from oven and let cool completely.
In a small bowl, add 5 or more drops of food coloring to icing and mix until desired shade of green is achieved. Top cupcakes with colored icing.
To assemble cupcakes: Add googly eyes to top of cupcake. Cut red licorice rope into smaller strips to use as hair and small pieces to use as teeth. Add green M&Ms to make the nose; use decorating icing to make a mouth. Top black icing with red licorice pieces.
Substitution(s)Use mini-Oreos or white Lifesavers as eyes instead of chocolates; use black licorice rope instead of red to create hair and mouth. Preparation Time: 10 minutesFor more great recipes check out Kaboos.com.
Prank Your Kids and Your Husband: I love a good prank – well let me rephrase that – I love pranking others. So, I love this idea from MarthaStewart.com. Place a baby monitor in a carved pumpkin and as your family walks up to it make it "talk". You may have a tough time holding your composure once you see the looks on their faces. Carry this on through Halloween and let your children have the fun scaring trick-or-treaters.
Choose A Family Costume Theme: Children love when parents dress up for Halloween and especially love when everyone is dressed in a theme they are familiar with. One year our family dressed in costumes with a Peter Pan theme. Our little guy was Peter, I was Wendy, my husband was Captain Hook and our daughter was the Indian Girl. It was a lot of fun; especially when Captain Hook and Peter started to sword fight.
Looking for a fun idea for a family Halloween costume theme? How about The Dr.'s? We thought it would be fun to pair up our baby / toddler scrubs with our friend MaryAnn Rachas' designs. She is the owner and founder of YoUnique Scrubs and will custom make scrubs for you. She will even use your own fabric!
Visit the Pumpkin Patch: Find the coolest pumpkin patch in town and take your children. My favorite is our local pumpkin patch that is over-the-top country bumpkin. They have hay rides pulled by a tractor, pony rides, corn stalk mazes and of course lots and lots of pumpkins. We can easily spend a couple of hours there. I prefer to go in the evening when everything is lit up and we can bundle up in our fall clothing.
Host A Neighborhood Pumpkin Carving Party: This is a great event if you have new neighbors or if you are new to you neighborhood. Invite your neighbors over, pumpkin in hand, for a pumpkin carving party. Give everyone a printed stencil; we have listed a couple of great sites below where you can print free stencils, serve light snacks and drinks and have fun! When everyone is finished carving take a group photo. Get everyone's e-mail address and send a copy out to everyone who participated the next day.
We came across some great FREE printable Disney Character Pumpkin Stencils on Disney Family.com that are sure to be a hit with your kids. For those of you who are seasoned pumpkin carvers and like a little more "spirit" to your jack-o-lantern check out the FREE printable patterns we found on About.com. Spooky cool!
Roast Pumpkin Seeds: I love roasting the seeds from our pumpkins. There are many recipes out there but I like this one. It's easy and traditional.
RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
2 cups pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
Rinse the seeds in cold water, rinsing away any fibrous strings. Pat them dry. Place clean seeds in a large bowl and add the vegetable oil and salt, stirring well to coat the seeds with the oil. Spread the seeds on a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake until crisp and golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Taste for seasoning and add more salt if desired.
Have a Green Halloween: Looking for ways to make Halloween more eco-friendly? Here are some ideas form our FaceBook friend Corey Colwell-Lipson. Swap costumes with friends or neighbors and pass down costumes from older siblings. Check out National Costume Swap Day for more information. Discover new ways to make your Halloween green at Green Halloween. Who knows you may be inspired to start brand new traditions. Here's one that I think I'll do this year. Organize a post-Halloween neighborhood clean up. On the day after Halloween, get together with some friends and your parents and walk through the neighborhood picking up any trash you find.
Watch Your Favorite Classic Halloween Movie Together: Depending on the ages of your children, pull out or rent your favorite Halloween movie. My children love Hocus Pocus with Bett Middler and Sarah Jessica Parker so, when it comes on we make it a Halloween Family Movie Night by popping popcorn, turning out all the lights sitting down together and chillin'.
Over-the-TopZombie Cake: You and your kids will really enjoy this video from an episode of TLC's The Cake Boss. Watch as this amazing team designs and creates a ghoulish Zombie Cake - for, of all things, a "Zombie Walk". See the video.
