I have some thoughts and a lot of gripes, yet many of them don’t need their own post. Here are some of them:
Picasso Tiles instead of Magnet Tiles
Magnetic tiles are great toys, easily tier 1. They are fun, promote creativity and fine motor dexterity, are durable, and best of all they are easy to clean up. Who doesn’t love the click clack of a tile stack coming together in moments?
But, these delightfully colored pieces of plastic and magnet are expensive. At my house, we have basically a single 100 piece set (not even sure it’s 100?) of Magnet Tiles that we bought a few years ago and so far have rebuffed requests for more. However, in the last year or so I’ve become more familiar with Picasso Tiles. Just another brand which I have always assumed was somehow worse or not compatible with our existing Magnet Tiles. But lo, they are the same dimensions, still very durable, still magnetic, still fun, and they are about 40-50% cheaper than equivalent Magnet Tile sets.
If you are bemoaning Magnet Tile prices, check out Picasso Tiles instead.
Driving “5 over”
Don’t do it. Particularly in residential neighborhoods. In Minneapolis, the unposted speed limit is 20mph, which applies on most residential streets.
When my wife was pregnant with our first child my perspective on this came into very clear focus: If I were to hit a kid in my neighborhood, do I want my defense to be “but I was only driving 5 over”?
Ask About Guns
I wasn’t going to mention it until I saw the above graph, but my perennial suggested topic for Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) classes is that we talk about gun safety and kids. Specifically, be aware of guns and ask people if they have guns, where they keep them, and if they are locked up. It’s sort of an awkward question, especially if it’s not been asked until the moment you are at the door. And keep in mind that just because their kid might know to not touch them, it doesn’t mean yours understands that.
If you have guns, keep them responsibly locked up (not with the key in the lock) and please be upfront about having them. Go a step further and invite the visiting parent to check it out if they want to.
Guns are the leading cause of death for children in the U.S. There are a lot of reasons for that (which is tragic), but feeling shy about asking is not an answer.