Delano Herald Journal

Serving the communities of Delano, Loretto, Montrose, MN, and the surrounding area

Denise Rosenau Column, 5/6/02



Lately, it seems that I have been hearing
quite a few ideas and household-type hints that I think are so
great that I have to share them.

The best one, which is absolutely ingenious,
is from our daycare provider, Rosetta Clark.

Rosetta has been doing daycare for forever,
so when it comes to kids, she really knows her stuff. She has
made sure every kid in her daycare, including mine, enjoys naps.

She bought each kid in the daycare a snow
“sled-bed” to sleep in. Each kid has his or her very
own sled-bed, complete with personal stuff, like blankets, pillows,
and special bears.

The kids just love the idea of sleeping in
a sled, which is just the right size for little people, and saves
her carpeting from any naptime accidents.

My almost two-year-old laid right down the
very first day without a sound, and has been sleeping soundly
there every day since. (This is the same kid who doesn’t like
his new bunkbed, although I don’t know if he dislikes the bed
so much as the sleeping part. He is a toddler, after all.)

Another great idea came from my sister-in-law,
Carrie. Carrie also has children, so she understands when I say
that my house doesn’t stay as clean as I would like it to stay.

Here’s the scenario . . . The phone rings
and it is your mother-in-law (whom I love dearly) saying that
she is going to stop by. You look around the house and your jaw
drops, and you find yourself turning into a human Tazmanian Devil,
with cleaning supplies in hand.

STOP.

Rather than breaking out seven different cleaners,
just go straight to the kid’s room and get the baby wipes. They
clean everything, sanitize, and are easier to carry around than
seven bottles of cleaners, unless you enjoy wearing a tool belt.

I will always have baby wipes in my house,
even long after I have a child that requires them, solely for
cleaning purposes. Quick clean-ups are a breeze.

Another thing that I came up with on my own
is to send my eight-year-old out to play with a walkie-talkie
hooked to his belt loop.

I don’t mean the walkie-talkies you find in
the toy department. I mean the ones in the electronics department.
We got ours for Christmas, and they were just $25. These puppies
go over two miles – clearly.

When our son is outside playing and it’s time
to eat, I go straight to the walkie-talkie and call him in. He
gets a little more freedom, and I have a little more peace of
mind. It has already saved my voicebox.

I have a bunch more ideas that I have picked
up over the years. Someday when I am short on writing ideas,
I will throw some more your way. In the meantime, please feel
free to e-mail me your ideas.

I love stuff like that . . . Call me a geek
if you must . . .

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