The Mom Crowd

Being a mom can at times be very overwhelming, especially when you are dealing with potential health issues with your child. Typical things like runny noses and fevers are stressful enough, but when something happens that seems completely out of the ordinary, you have to learn to trust your instincts.

When our son first started showing signs of diabetes, I called the pediatrician. The on-call doctor told me to stop giving him juice and his frequent thirst and urination should subside. After trying that for a few days and not seeing any changes, I insisted he be seen and tested for diabetes. Sure enough, my poor baby had a sky high blood sugar and was gravely ill from going too long without being diagnosed. I can’t imagine what would have happened if I had just gone along thinking that the changes he was going through were just due to drinking too much juice!

More recently, he had a few drops of blood in his urine. Of course this was cause for concern and we rushed him to the pediatrician. It turned out that he was ok and that all of his lab work came back okay. I was a little embarrassed to have taken him in and him have nothing wrong, but the pediatrician reassured me and told me that they would rather see a million healthy kids with parents who are alert and taking charge of their children’s health than one kid who was sick.

Here are a few things to remember when you are trying to decide if it’s worth calling the pediatrician over:

• If your child is experiencing something out of the ordinary and you feel uncomfortable with what is happening, call and at least talk to the doctor or nurse.

• You know your child better than anyone else and you know what is and isn’t normal for them. Don’t let someone tell you that what is abnormal for your child is okay if you don’t think it is.

• A high fever usually requires a doctor’s visit, especially in a baby or toddler.

• When in doubt, call!

All of this is just to remind you that God gave you certain instincts and it’s best to follow them, even if it turns out that nothing is wrong. The worst thing you have to deal with, if that is the case, is a trip to the doctor and a few minutes of embarrassment. Better to have a red face than a sick child!

For a short informational video on when to call the pediatrician, visit the following link…

WebMD – When to Call the Pediatrician

Have you had times when you felt torn about calling the pediatrician?  What advice can you give other mom’s when it comes to trusting your instincts?  Have you ever followed your instincts and been thankful that you did because you caught something that could have been very serious?

Photo Courtesy of Exployment Now

I happen to be one of those people who spend hours comparing prices in grocery circulars and clipping coupons twice a month. (Ok, so truth be told, I do coupons weekly!) I make an extensive list of meals that I can make for the following two weeks and shop only to that list and of course to the other little necessities that we use daily. I go to at least 4 different stores on my twice monthly grocery run and do my best to do it all very early on a Saturday morning when my husband is home to watch the kids. But there are just sometimes that early Saturday shopping trips just aren’t workable and I have to venture out during the week with my kids to do major shopping.

I’ve found that for short trips to places like Target or Wal-Mart, the kids do fairly well and are entertained as long as we stop by the dollar section or toy section first, even if just to browse, or if I promise that we will visit it within a few minutes of arrival. But on those occasions when I need to focus on my list and purchase more than just a handful of items, the following “survival tools” are essential! 

1. GET ORGANIZED BEFORE YOU GO! – If you are familiar with the store you are going to visit, write your list out in order of how you normally go up and down the aisles. Even if you aren’t 100% familiar with the store layout, you can organize your list by produce, meats, dairy, baby items, household goods and processed foods. The less time you take looking up and down the aisles for exactly what you need, the less time you have for your kids to act up.

2. GO EARLY! – don’t wait until naptime or right before to do your shopping with your kids if you can avoid it. Meltdowns are inevitable if you are pushing that threshold. All it takes is one “no” and you’ll have a screaming child for your entire trip!

3. TAKE A SNACK! – Who can be cranky when they have something to stuff in their mouths?! Bring along some Cheerios or fish crackers in a snack cup or give them a special treat and pick up a fun-sized box of their favorite snack food at the store. As long as you aren’t going through the do-it-yourself checkout lane, it won’t matter if they’ve eaten some or all their snack!

4. GET YOUR CHILD INVOLVED! – Go down each isle and have your child pick out 5 things with blue packaging, get them to help you find exactly what you are looking for (even if you know where it is), or have them count the items in your basket. If your kids are older, use the grocery store to teach them about nutrition facts by having them read and compare labels of their favorite foods. Another fun trick is to have them keep a tally of how much you have spent with a small calculator. It will help keep you in budget and will teach them basic math skills.

How do you manage shopping trips with your children? What tricks or tips do you have that help keep the peace?

Photo Courtesy of Joe Thorn