Another parenting tip

Before Kassy was born, Hads and I started frequenting the library. We would go to story time where the man with the marvelous voice would introduce us to kids' lovables like Froggy and that snoring Bear. I would fret about how my almost-two-year-old wouldn't sit still and listen and how she wouldn't color for more than two minutes. If you asked me about such struggles now, I'd smile and say, "Don't worry. Everything's fine. She's only two."

Like most good libraries, the picture books were in low bins so the little kids could look at, touch, and explore the books. One day Hads picked out a book called, Lanny's Lost Mommy. The girl on the front was little and had on a bright yellow dress. Lanny taught Hads and me a valuable lesson, a lesson I knew, but had forgotten to pass on. Lanny got lost in the department store at the mall. The book taught us both things like if you get lost never leave the store you are in, look for store employees to seek help. Remember your mommy or daddy will always come back and look for you. I added to the basic ideas in the story lessons about how to identify store employees and that if all else fails, find another mom with kids. Another mom is as close as you can get to a guarenteed safe person.

I wish I could tell you to check out the book. But I haven't been able to find it, even on Amazon; maybe it's still in the Des Moines Public Library System. Even without the book, you can teach young kids, as young as two, what to do if they get lost in a store. Unlike some other lessons, this one has a higher likelihood of happening if your child is as wiggly as my Hads.