The Return of Sparkling Adventures - Merge

[already hungover]

Call me a prude, but if she does get pregnant, I hope she spares us all the up close and (extremely) personal footage of her quivering asshole as she gives birth this time.

I am also incredibly curious whether she'll pick another E name or just go straight on to F.

[lilith]

It appears that David's mother is in Bali with Lauren - maybe she funded the trip?

[August]

You have got to be kidding me ... bare feet!?

I haven't been to Bali, but I have been to other tropical less developed countries. For those who have been, is there the messy street issue? And what about diseases which burrow through foot skin?

ETA: looks like they definitely have hookworm - larvae crawl away from infected stool and burrow through foot skin to infect you.

[truthseeker]

It appears that David's mother is in Bali with Lauren - maybe she funded the trip?

[attachment=0]ImageUploadedByTapatalk1368523992.210977.jpg[/attachment]

Is 'fishjourner' David?

[lilith]

Is 'fishjourner' David?

One of his brothers, from memory.

[tuckerphez]

If she's pregnant, I bet that she is going to use an F name.

Elijah was too important to her, and she would probably wouldn't want to feel like she was erasing him.

Besides, she gets to answer the question "why are you missing an e?" and we know she loves answering questions about herself.

[Trudestar]

Barefoot in the streets of Bali? Crazy!

Now the girls are drinking coffee.....apparently Calista loves it since starting to drink it in Bali. WTF?

Is it just me thinking this is seriously wrong for a child? The comments on fb are all saying how their kids drink coffee too.

What next? LSD so the children can expand their minds? I know it's a big jump from coffee to acid, but bloody hell, coffee affects the nervous system etc etc, can't be good for their little bodies.

At least they look clean, even the haircuts look decent.

[Blahblah]

Coffee isn't very holistic and natural and organic and mung bean-ish is it? How on earth is she letting them drink that? Doesn't seem to fit in with her ethos at all.

My eleven year old isn't allowed to have caffeine of any sort, not even cola.

[lilith]

Coffee isn't very holistic and natural and organic and mung bean-ish is it? How on earth is she letting them drink that? Doesn't seem to fit in with her ethos at all.

My eleven year old isn't allowed to have caffeine of any sort, not even cola.

I don't let my kids have caffeinated soft drinks either, but plenty of people do, I've even seen primary school kids buying energy drinks at the local shops.

For some reason people get more worked up about coffee than equally caffeine filled cold drinks - I also see kids drinking iced coffee quite a bit.

I sometimes buy my nine year old decaf cappuccinos and get looks and comments that parents whose kids are drinking coke don't.

There seems to be a sudden trend for kids drinking huge cups of frozen coke at cinemas and fast food places - I can't imagine giving kids a bucket of sugar and caffeine like that, or dealing with the aftermath, but many people who in every other way seem like good, sane parents do it.

That said, there is no way kids that age should be drinking caffeinated coffee in my opinion. It seems odd for Calista to have suddenly developed a taste for it too, unless she is piling in sugar and milk. It could be that it's the milk she really wants, as Lauren has cut most dairy out of their diet and generally only uses soy.

[miffy]

I've had a taste for black coffee since I was about 6 or 7. I wasn't allowed to have it often until I was about 13, but boy did I like it! Also I was allowed to have a sip of beer/tiny bit in a glass from a very young age. Worked out well because I stuck to a couple of cans of UDL while my friends would get wiped out every weekend when we were teenagers. Stuff isn't as cool if you are allowed to have it.

[Trudestar]

Oh yeah I agree on the whole caffeinated drink thing. I can't believe those kids are drinking coffee.

I see kids drinking those energy drinks, and giant cokes, and it makes me cringe.

We have a diabetic child in the family, and recently had a birthday party, totally sugar free. It was verrrrry noticeable how well behaved all the kids were, no meltdowns of any sort all day. There's usually different kids having a cry at some stage at kids parties, with the massive highs and lows from the usual sugar overload.

In saying that, I'm not at all keen on artificial sweeteners either, but occasionally a few sugar free lollies and soft drink for a diabetic kid seems fair enough. Better avoided altogether, but its to be expected at a party.

[DaffyDill]

As caffeine is a diuretic, I would also think it a good idea for the girls not to be drinking it in a tropical area where dehydration becomes even more of a risk.

[dora]

My seven year olds drink coffee, as in half an espresso cup of filter coffee, half milk, once every two or three weeks. Yet people make a huge deal of it, even though lots of kids drink coke.

My kids were preemies and had caffeine in their IV for the first few weeks of their lives. A lot of my friends with preemies have said their kids really like coffee too.

[lilith]

I've had a taste for black coffee since I was about 6 or 7. I wasn't allowed to have it often until I was about 13, but boy did I like it! Also I was allowed to have a sip of beer/tiny bit in a glass from a very young age. Worked out well because I stuck to a couple of cans of UDL while my friends would get wiped out every weekend when we were teenagers. Stuff isn't as cool if you are allowed to have it.

My kids have little sips of my drinks sometimes too, and I let my daughter have about a fifth of a glass of champagne mixed with soda water when she stayed up to watch the royal wedding - she sipped it over an hour and felt very grown up!

The reason I sometimes buy my daughter decafs is cause I let her have a sip of my coffee when she was a toddler, thinking she would realise she didn't like it and stop trying to get it (I drink coffee unsweetened) and she actually really liked it and wanted more.

[CheeseDeprived]

I've told my tween to drink coffee rather than energy drinks, should he ever seriously need the boost. So far he hasn't shown an interest in either, but I'd definitely be happier for him to have something without loads sugar and flavours and all the other stuff they put in energy drinks.

With my younger child, I've been trying to get her to try coffee to see if it would help with some of her ADHD-ish behaviours (she's most likely a type II, runs in the family), but so far she only likes the froth.

I was allowed coffee quite young but it still took me until my mid thirties to really get hooked on the stuff. ;)

[Nothing2CHere]

I was allowed to have coffee as a child, but it was a treat in the morning when I was spending the night at my grandparents' house, and it was always served to me diluted with a lot of milk. I don't ever remember drinking it at home, even when in high school. And in college, I only really drank it as a treat in mocha form with lots of whipped cream. Even today, coffee is now still really only a weekend drink for me, and I need at least a splash of milk in it.

[Flossie]

Reminds me of when I was a first-time mother. Even though I came from a largish family and my mother also babysat her first few grandkids, Mom always did all the actual work so the first time I changed a diaper was when the nurse in the hospital showed me how to do it the day after my baby was born. Yes, I really was that sheltered. Even when I babysat for neighbors in high school, I never had to change a diaper, the parents always had the infant in bed when I arrived and the little ones always slept through my shifts.

Anyway, when my oldest was about 5 months old we were living in a little trailer park in the boondocks and it was a hundred degrees outside with no AC inside. A neighbor told me to make sure I gave the baby plenty of liquids, but she wouldn't drink more than a bit of water. Then I got the bright idea to let her taste my sweetened iced tea. All I can say is that I was worried about dehydration, and tea seemed healthier than pop. Well, my little darling loved it! I was thrilled to find something that she'd accept, so I let her have a whole bottle. My stupidity didn't end there, though. Sure, I noticed that my little girl was happy and squirming all around, and didn't want to take a nap. I just thought it was too hot for her to sleep. A few hours later I let her have another bottle. As the evening progressed and it cooled down, my daughter got obviously tired, but couldn't seem to sleep. She cried and fussed for hours. Sometime during that time I realized that the sugar and the caffiene was causing her problems.

I felt so bad that my daughter had to go through that, definitely not a MOTY moment. The only thing I can say now is that I learned from that mistake. I didn't let any of my kids after that have pop or tea until they were at least three, and I've always kept it to a reasonable amount. They're all old enough now to make their own decisions about what they indulge in, but at least I gave them the best start I was capable of providing.

[August]

Coffee isn't very holistic and natural and organic and mung bean-ish is it? How on earth is she letting them drink that? Doesn't seem to fit in with her ethos at all.

My eleven year old isn't allowed to have caffeine of any sort, not even cola.

She's somehow not into holistic and natural and mung bean-ish. Too lazy. Plus, you're all talking about 'allowed'. Allowed this or allowed that. These girls aren't 'allowed' to do anything, they're autonomous individuals who choose for themselves what to do or not do. Even the three year old.

[mausi]

I don't usually comment on the Lauren threads, but have been keeping up with the drama.

The thing that makes me give her a little side eye regarding the coffee is the fact that I seriously doubt the girls are getting much actual food to eat alongside the coffee. This could just be my personal experiences, or the way my body reacts, but I find that I can't drink coffee on an empty (or nearly empty) stomach and not feel a little... off. Jittery, nervous, etc. On the other hand, it does make me feel 'full'-- particularly if it's a milk-based espresso drink. I didn't see the photo, so I don't know what the little girl is drinking, but if it's a latte machiatto or cappuccino I bet the girl drinks it to help her feel full when she doesn't get enough to eat.

So I guess what I'm trying to say-- I hope the girl isn't drinking it as a substitute for solid food (because her mother is too selfish to feed her daughters actual meals).

[yewchapel]

Coffee is much lower in caffeine than most energy drinks or even coke, if the coffee is instant. Over here it's normal for kids to drink tea (with milk) and as long as there's no added sugar, that's got to be much better than soda. Those dessert-in-a-cup 'coffee' drinks from Starbucks are another story though!

[martian]

As far as I've read, coffee has quite a lot more caffeine than soda, and caffeine leaches calcium from the body. Maybe decaf wouldn't be too much of an issue. Coffee and tea are also acidic and bad for a child's teeth, but how bad compared to soda I couldn't say.

I had to do a little reading recently since I had taken to letting my toddlers have the occasional half cup of weak (very!) tea, and my husband was giving me the serious side eye. Off the top of my head, the issue with tea is mainly the caffeine and, also, the tannins. Tannin interferes with iron absorption and too much of it can lead to anemia. It was funny - when I got to googling to see what other people thought, it seemed like all the discussions were on UK mum boards. Seems like a huge taboo in the U.S., but I'm another one who can't see the buckets of soda kids drink being better. I admit to feeling a bit defensive about it now, but it was just a fun treat for the kids to have tea "like Mommy" with their animal crackers. My son just liked to hold his cup and pretend to drink, but my daughter guzzled hers right down. Loves the stuff. I could only drink my own cup in peace if she had her own little half cup.

All that (defensively) said though, if Lauren is letting her girls have caffeinated coffee whenever they can get it, it's obviously not good. When problems result from decisions the girls make, I wonder if Lauren views that as fully their fault and none of her own. I have some family like that. It's such a lot of weight for kids to bear. It's too much to be alone in the world even surrounded by family.

[lilith]

As far as I've read, coffee has quite a lot more caffeine than soda, and caffeine leaches calcium from the body. Maybe decaf wouldn't be too much of an issue. Coffee and tea are also acidic and bad for a child's teeth, but how bad compared to soda I couldn't say.

I had to do a little reading recently since I had taken to letting my toddlers have the occasional half cup of weak (very!) tea, and my husband was giving me the serious side eye. Off the top of my head, the issue with tea is mainly the caffeine and, also, the tannins. Tannin interferes with iron absorption and too much of it can lead to anemia. It was funny - when I got to googling to see what other people thought, it seemed like all the discussions were on UK mum boards. Seems like a huge taboo in the U.S., but I'm another one who can't see the buckets of soda kids drink being better. I admit to feeling a bit defensive about it now, but it was just a fun treat for the kids to have tea "like Mommy" with their animal crackers. My son just liked to hold his cup and pretend to drink, but my daughter guzzled hers right down. Loves the stuff. I could only drink my own cup in peace if she had her own little half cup.

All that (defensively) said though, if Lauren is letting her girls have caffeinated coffee whenever they can get it, it's obviously not good. When problems result from decisions the girls make, I wonder if Lauren views that as fully their fault and none of her own. I have some family like that. It's such a lot of weight for kids to bear. It's too much to be alone in the world even surrounded by family.

I also gave my toddlers weak tea with lots of milk, and still do now they are older. I'm in Australia, so it may be a similar cultural thing. You can get low tannin low caffeine tea bags, which I use for them.

[already hungover]

My kids were preemies and had caffeine in their IV for the first few weeks of their lives. A lot of my friends with preemies have said their kids really like coffee too.

Weird, I was a preemie and I loved coffee as a kid. I was allowed to drink it whenever, and made a mean cuppa by the time I was 6 or 7. I still drink multiple cups daily, and I only like it strong and black. For me part of it the ritual of making it and the sensory aspects - smell, something warm, etc. Also I grew up poor and I always related to the passage in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn where Francie and Neeley are allowed to have as much coffee as they want, and Francie relishes just being able to "have" something when they have so little else.

I really don't think letting her kids drink coffee ranks particularly highly in the Annals of Shitty Red Gypsy Parenting Decisions. The barefoot in the tropics thing is really, really grossing me out. I am a little more skeeved by filth than average, however.

[martian]

I also gave my toddlers weak tea with lots of milk, and still do now they are older. I'm in Australia, so it may be a similar cultural thing. You can get low tannin low caffeine tea bags, which I use for them.

I did not know about the low tannin tea bags! Thanks! I had just been making a weak cup for the kidlets with the tea bag I'd freshly used for my cup - and I pretty much steep the life out of a bag for myself. There were mentions on the UK boards of a brand of tea for kids, but I don't know that it's available here. Yeah, the cultural differences are interesting. Tea and coffee for kids is Not Done here. But maybe there is a class difference too. My family is working class and my husband's is very much not. Still, it was an awesome, cozy little ritual and the kids and I all loved it, so I want to go back to it.

[Freyacat]

Oh yeah I agree on the whole caffeinated drink thing. I can't believe those kids are drinking coffee.

I see kids drinking those energy drinks, and giant cokes, and it makes me cringe.

We have a diabetic child in the family, and recently had a birthday party, totally sugar free. It was verrrrry noticeable how well behaved all the kids were, no meltdowns of any sort all day. There's usually different kids having a cry at some stage at kids parties, with the massive highs and lows from the usual sugar overload.

In saying that, I'm not at all keen on artificial sweeteners either, but occasionally a few sugar free lollies and soft drink for a diabetic kid seems fair enough. Better avoided altogether, but its to be expected at a party.

Sugar does not actually make kids hyper. It's a myth, helped along by the fact that kids often eat lots of sugar at events like parties and holidays, where they are hyper (but possibly just because they are so excited, not because of the sugar). Maybe the party was just at a good time of day for the kids involved, or the activities were not too overstimulating. I think the sheer noise and hectic activity causes a lot of those birthday party meltdowns! :)

http://theincidentaleconomist.com/wordp ... ids-hyper/

http://www.sfgate.com/health/article/Su ... 994648.php

Re: the coffee, I don't really think it's a big deal unless we know Calista is drinking a lot of straight up coffee. I am a big coffee drinker, so my preschool son wants coffee because he wants to be like a grownup. At breakfast if he asks, I will put a tablespoon or two in a cup of milk for him and it's a big thrill to him. It's just enough to get a bit of a coffee taste, but not enough for the caffeine to be a worry. It's possible Lauren is doing something similar for Calista, or that the coffee is made weak in some other way. Even if it's fully caffeinated black coffee, that's not great, but honestly it concerns me a lot less than, say, the lack of shoes or the constant poorly supervised play in dangerous water areas. YMMV.