Cragmama

Dec 20 2015

It’s tradition this time of year to take a stroll down memory lane and revisit the most popular posts of the year. As a writer it gives me a helpful perspective on what my readers responded to most. As a reader it gives you guys a chance to catch up on what you may have missed and, if you’re new around here, get a big picture of what this site is all about. In looking back over the posts, I realized I didn’t write anywhere near the amount of posts as I have in year’s past. Now that there are two kiddos in the mix, writing time is at a premium. But my mantra for 2015 ended up being, “Do the best you can with what you’ve got,” and I feel like I did that, so no regrets! That being said, I hope you’ll enjoy this list of my most popular posts of 2015.

ADVENTURES

Wyoming Adventure Part 3: Last Days in Ten Sleep – One of four recaps from our adventures out west this summer (the rest of the recaps are found here.)
3 Climbing Milestones in 1 Weekend – Mama’s day out, a (safe) fall, and a hard (for me!) send

CLIMBING

Big C’s First Project: Big Emotions, Little Body – This one seemed to resonate with readers because we’ve ALL been there…even if we haven’t left the gym whining and crying!
To All the Guy Climbers: A Rant and a Salute – Perhaps this one gets the “most controversial” award for the year…let me reiterate, I love my guy partners, and am thankful I don’t have to deal with this with them!

GEAR REVIEWS

Winter Footwear for Kids From Stonz – How Stonz helps keep little feet (and hands) warm.
Wee Woollies for Wee Explorers – More gear for warm kiddos, this time in the form of baselayers!

GREEN HOUR CONNECTION:

Kindergarten and Bike Commuting – How we roll (literally), when it comes to getting to school on time!

CREATING A CRAGBABY

Climbing w/a 5 Month Old: Reader Question from Megan D. – I get a lot of really good questions from readers, so this year I decided to feature some of them on the blog, especially if they were broad enough to apply to others.

HOMESTEADING

This was actually a whole new CATEGORY of posts, and here are the top two (find the others here.)
DIY: Homemade Larabars
Finding Time to Make Your Own Yogurt

REFLECTIONS

From 1 Kid to 2: How Outdoor Adventures Have Changed – This one was in response to another reader question.
The Stinkbug Saga – On finding the moments that “matter” during the day.

SENTIMENTAL SNAPSHOTS

You’re a Good Mom – Passing on words of encouragement that had previously been passed to me.
The Perfect Hand-Me-Down: 3 Kids and 1 Down Suit – The gift that keeps on giving!

IN THE NEWS

Exciting Announcement: The Guidebook is FINALLY Ready – So this was the ONLY post in this category for 2015…but I’m still psyched about it!

And s-t-r-e-t-c-h…

TRAINING

How to Make Reachy Moves – I sometimes find myself referring back to this one to take my own advice…
Rock Climbers Training Manual: Performance Phase (aka Results) – The final report card after spending a spring training under the Rock Prodigy Method.

While I do wish I could log more time at my computer, I certainly wouldn’t trade time with my family for it! So you can continue to expect a steady (but sometimes trickling!) amount of posts for the first part of 2016. Once the fall comes around and Baby Zu starts preschool a couple days a week, that amount might increase a bit. But until then, let me know if there any particular topics you’d like to read about – specific logistical questions, gear, etc. (And if you need some more holiday reading, feel free to dig around in the archives with the most popular posts from 2014, 2013, 2012, and even 2011!)

Gear to Get Your Toddler Psyched on Bikes

Gear Reviews. Biking.

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Dec 14 2015

Most parents would agree that biking is great for kids. It’s great for exercise, self-esteem, and even the environment. But despite all the benefits, a lot of parents are unsure how to get their child started in the world of biking. And thanks to a lot of great products out there, your child might be ready to hit the road (or track…or dirt) sooner than you think. Here’s a few gear staples that our family has relied upon throughout the different stages of learning for each of our children, along with the ideal ages for each.

14 month old Baby Zu getting ready for a beach ride.

BIKE TRAILER (<1 to 4): If the whole family likes to bike, odds are good that your child’s first biking experience will be in a trailer. Our first trailer was a Chariot Cabriolet (reviewed here), which we received as a Christmas present when Big C was 9 months old. Baby Zu took her first ride around that same age in our newer Chariot Chinook (reviewed here), but since she was significantly smaller than her brother at the same age, we rigged it with her infant carseat for the first few months (as a disclaimer, that was our idea, not Chariot’s, so use your best judgment.) The bike trailer was a must-have for family outings throughout the preschool years. It has shown our children that biking is fun as well as functional, since our most common usage with it has always been commuting to school.

BALANCE BIKE (18 months+): Big C got his first taste of two wheels at age 2…but his interest was hit or miss until he was exposed to the “good kind” of peer pressure from an older friend at age 3. In my opinion, balance bikes are THE best way to teach your kids how to ride. The idea is simple, but brilliant – no pedals to deal with allows your child to focus solely on balance. Once he/she’s got that part down, the transition to the big kid bike is smooth and seamless.

3 year old Big C (balance) biking his way through the New River Trail tunnels in VA.

TRICYCOO (18 months+): This innovative product from Joovy is the newest addition to our arsenal of biking gear. (And while provided for free for purposes of this review, all opinions expressed are my own honest ones!) It’s designed to be there for both you and your child during each stage of learning. We never had a trike for Big C, but now that we have this one for Baby Zu, I don’t know how we ever lived without it. With an older brother constantly zipping circles around her on his stunt scooter, the Tricycoo lets Baby Zu feel like she’s a big kid too. With the bike trailer/stroller, she’s merely a spectator on family outings, but the Tricycoo allows her to be an active participant. The surround bars and parent push handle keep her safe for now, and once she’s ready to start pedaling (and I can trust her to hold on!), they are easily removable. And the Tricycoo does for pedaling coordination what the balance bike does for balance – Baby Zu will be able to focus on one skill at a time. Once she’s got both down, she’ll be ready to inherit big brother’s old 16″ ride, but for the time being, we are thrilled with the Tricycoo!

Big brother taking a turn to push!

4 year old Big C and I out for a Weehoo ride together.

WEEHOO (2+): If you can’t tell by the name, this one is just plain FUN! (Reviewed here.) It’s like a trail-a-bike, but much safer and more versatile, thanks to the harness system. Riders have the option of pedaling along with the grown-up or sitting back and enjoying the view….unless there’s a big hill. Then our family rule is all hands (feet) on deck to help out! It was perfect for that in-between stage starting around 4 years old where Big C was too big for the trailer, but too small for longer rides (or commutes with road traffic.) At 20 months, Baby Zu has yet to take a spin on it, but we are excited to try it out with her this spring.

A word of advice on HELMETS, other than “make your kid use one,” which should go without saying! The easiest way to ensure that your kids like, or at least tolerate, wearing a helmet is to insist on it from the beginning. Right now Baby Zu is obviously not cutting tricks in her Tricycoo, but she already knows that if she wants to ride, she’s got to helmet up. We actually had trouble finding one small enough for her tiny noggin, but once again, Joovy came through for us. The Joovy Noodle fits perfectly, and has removable padding that will come in handy as she grows.

In the 5 years that Big C has been on wheels, he’s always donned his brain bucket, but never really had a crash where it seemed to matter until a couple of weeks ago when a piece of gravel sent him into a flying face plant. He walked away with some pretty badass bumps and scrapes, but still had all teeth in tact, thanks in no small part to the brim of his hard hat (that now has a crack down the front and will be replaced asap.) So I’ll end this post with a PSA to wear your helmet ALWAYS – you never know when you’ll need it!

Styling in the Tricycoo with her Joovy Noodle Helmet.

Oh, and if you still need more reasons to get you kids into biking, this post from the archives will give you 6 more!

Deuter Junior for the Crag-Kiddo (aka a New “Cookie Pack”)

Gear Reviews.

2 Comments.

Dec 07 2015

The original cookie pack, circa 2012, at the Red River Gorge.

Does your family ever ascribe unconventional names to everyday items? We do this ALL. THE. TIME. Sometimes it’s an abbreviation for an often-used, long word. Other times the creative moniker is merely a victim of mispronunciation by one of our children that happened to stick (in our household we use “constructions” to put together Legos.) And because we are creatures of habit, we tend to stick to these nicknames long after the reason it was created has expired. (Which is why Caleb and Bennett, two of our favorite climbing partners, will forever answer to “Cockie” and “Butt-Butt” even though my 5 year old has been able to say their names correctly for years.)

Big C’s “cookie pack” is another such example of a label that has stuck with us for the long haul. Back when Big C was just a Little C and first started hiking in by himself, we got him a tiny backpack for him to carry a few toys in (contents usually consisted of plastic bulldozers, a few rocks, and a lot of dirt.) We christened it the “cookie pack” because it had a giant cookie monster face on the back of it. But this pack was ~~cheap, Walmart quality~~ not made to last, and passed away after about a year of use.

I then let him inherit the Speedster 14 running pack I’d received for review (here). Of course it looked nothing like a cookie, but by then it was too late, the name had stuck. Whatever Big C carried to the crag was always and forever doomed to be known as “the cookie pack.” It only seemed strange to me when I caught the sideways glances from other groups at the crag when I told Big C (often repeatedly) that it was “time to pack up your cookie pack” at the end of the day.

Getting ready to head down the Honeymooner Ladders at Endless Wall

And now that he’s getting older, he’s certainly packing in more than just a few bulldozers (although there’s still a fair amount of dirt, and I did dump out a few rocks recently.) He carries in all of his own food and water, and often a couple of extra layers…and for a while now that poor cookie pack has been busting at the seams! So when we recently got a chance to upgrade to the Deuter Junior, we jumped on it.

Photo courtesy of deuter.com

What Cragmama thinks:

This pack offers great functionality in a kid-friendly package. For a small backpack (18 liter capacity, weighing in just shy of a pound,) we sure can stuff a lot in it. It also seems to be pretty comfy, no doubt thanks to the padding in the back and on the straps. We load it down pretty heavily, and even on long approaches there are very few complaints (so long as I have an ample supply of “hiking bears.”) My favorite features are the d-rings and cording that are on the lid. They are a God-send not only for bulky items like helmets, but also for attaching extra layers on the outside of the pack on those days that start out cold, but end up warm!

What the CragBoy thinks:

First and foremost, he loves that it’s blue. Secondly, he loves that it has mesh side pockets on the outside just like Mommy and Daddy’s packs. He also really likes the multiple zip pockets on the outside, as they are perfect for storing little nature trinkets that “need” to be easily accessible.

This pack is designed for kiddos 5 years old and up, and appears to be very well-constructed out of durable fabric, so I’m hoping that it will last him for years to come (and maybe when he finally grows out of it, he can pass it on to his sister!) There’s a smaller, 8 liter version, that’s intended for 3+ years, which would DEFINITELY have been a better option than the original cookie pack…but then we wouldn’t have adopted the name!

What are your favorite adventure packs for kiddos? (And do you have names for them, or is our family weird?)

Exploring the fall foliage at the New River Gorge, WV

The Stinkbug Saga

Reflections.

2 Comments.

Nov 30 2015

Last Monday we were almost late to school because of a stink bug. Yup, a stink bug. Actually, a brown marmorated stink bug to be exact. But that’s how the saga ends, not begins. Let me back up.

It had to be at least a month ago when I first noticed him (her?) motoring around the walls around our kitchen table. “Look at the stinkbug!” I announced to Baby Zu, pointing. Her eyes lit up as her gaze followed him around the room, and her tiny pointer finger bobbed up and down excitedly. “BUH!!!!! BUH!!!!!!!” she sang out. We watched together for a few more moments, until she eventually lost interest and turned her attention back to her avocados.

Ordinarily by this time I would have removed the intruder with a napkin and relocated him outside (much to his dismay, I presume.) But this particular stink bug had positioned himself just out of reach, courtesy of the vaulted ceiling in our breakfast area. I guess I could have gotten a ladder, but that seemed like a big ordeal for just one little stink bug. After all, stink bugs are generally considered pretty benign. I mean, if I have to find a bug in my house, I’d definitely choose a stink bug over a lot of others. They don’t do gross, unmentionable things to your food like a house fly. They don’t bring an army of their friends with them to raid your pantry like an ant. And most importantly, they do not fill me with a nauseating terror the way a palmetto bug does. (I am generally not bug-o-phobic, but when it comes to those I just can’t deal. It’s what my nightmares are made of.)

Anyway, THANKFULLY our insect du jour was none of the above. I kept an eye on him periodically throughout lunch, but to be honest forgot all about him.

Then a few days later he showed up again. “BUH!!!!! BUH!!!!!!!” Baby Zu happily announced. I looked up and sure enough, there was our stinky friend running laps around the ceiling again. And once again, we watched for a while until we got bored, then went back to our lunches without giving him a second thought.

Then the following week he reappeared…and then again a couple of days after that. Every time the scenario was exactly the same – the same bug, walking around the same place, at the same time. This happened at least 10 or so times over the course of several weeks.

Until that fateful Monday morning I mentioned earlier, the one that almost made us late. “I SEE THE STINKBUG!!!!!!” Big C shouted with glee as we were all putting away our breakfast bowls. “BUH!!!!! BUH!!!!!!” added Baby Zu. I walked over to the table to find both children on the floor observing intently as the subject of their investigation wiggled his legs frantically around, trying to right himself out of the upside down position they’d found him in.

I looked at my watch – 7:55. It was pouring down rain so we’d already decided to take the car instead of biking, but needed to be pulling out of the driveway in the next 5 minutes to make it before the bell rang at 8:15. My first inclination was to swoop in with a napkin, scoop up the bug, and tell the kids to get shoes and jackets on while I tossed him outside. That would have been most efficient. But then I looked at the awe and wonder on my children’s faces. Despite his constant ceiling scans at dinner, Big C had yet to see the stink bug until now. (In fact, he and his father were starting to doubt my stories altogether until at one point I’d managed to produce a picture.) Baby Zu was pointing and jabbering away, head cocked to one side.

I took the napkin, but instead of snatching him up, I flipped him over. Both children giggled and squealed as the bug began to move. “Don’t squash him, you’ll make him stink us!!!” Big C warned Baby Zu, who can sometimes be a little overzealous with her pointer finger. The next few minutes were amazingly adorable, and I’m so thankful that I didn’t make us miss it in a rush to get out the door.

As it turns out, the rain had caused delays everywhere, and the carpool line stretched for almost half a mile. “The whole school is in the carpool line!” Big C commented as we drove around the corner and traffic came to a halt. So while we WERE in fact late, the bell was delayed because everyone else was late too, so it didn’t matter. But you know what? Even if we would have missed the bell and had to walk in to get a tardy slip, it still wouldn’t have “mattered.” Because our potentially hurried and hectic morning had been blessed with a stop-and-smell-the-roses, er, stinkbug kind of moment that you don’t get everyday. The older my children get, the more I’ve learned to welcome and savor those moments, because they are the ones that bring light and life to your day. The “stink bug moments” are the ones that matter.

Veyo Mittyz: World’s Best Mitten for Kids!

Gear Reviews.

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Nov 24 2015

Initial reaction...definitely tolerable!

Her first impression: “Tolerable. I won’t rip them off.”

This post is for all of us out there that have had to endure the painstaking process of gearing up a child under the age of 5 to play outside in cold weather. (If you HAVEN’T experienced the ~~agony~~ pleasure, tag along with a mom friend one morning at the park…it’s the stuff birth control is made of.) But for those of you that are wrestling with boots, gloves, hats, scarves, coats, and cranky toddlers every morning, here’s a little something that might just rock your world a little bit.

They’re called “mittyz,” and they are made by Veyo Kids, a small family company out of Salt Lake City, UT. I might not be entirely sure how to pronounce them, but I now pronounce them “world’s greatest mitten,” because this product has completely streamlined our getting-out-the-door process on cold mornings. (I say mornings, because down here in the South we haven’t had too many “all day cold” days yet.)

Hands down these gloves are the easiest to put on that I’ve ever seen. You just pull ’em on, and cinch ’em up! No more battles with tiny fingers and even tinier thumb holes, and no more stuffing bulky jackets down narrow glove sleeves. The Veyo website sums it up pretty nicely: “Win the thumb wars once and for all!”

But it takes more than just a few “easy-on” features to make a good glove. It obviously has to keep little hands and fingers warm and dry as well. And the Veyo Mittyz do just that. Our testing conditions were admittedly not arctic, but what we lacked in snow was made up for in sub-freezing mud puddles.

Ordinarily Baby Zu is not too keen on any sort of glove, but these got a decidedly “okay” reception at first glance. I mean, really, who could resist those little penguin faces?!? Once she realized the gloves were there to stay, she decided to try to actually use her hands, and appeared to be pleasantly surprised. She toddled around clapping her hands and stacking rocks all morning with a reasonable amount of dexterity. Most importantly, when I took them off, her hands were toasty warm.

“Ok mom. If I have to wear gloves, these are cool!”

There are two other features that we haven’t gotten to try out yet, but are worth noting. First, the entire glove can be turned inside out for easy drying. To me this sounds far superior than dealing with separate liners and outer shells that never seem to fit back together the right way. Additionally, the entire glove is soft, as opposed to just one spot, which will hopefully go a along way to preventing chafing during the runny nose season.

That being said….who wants a pair?!? To enter, all you have to do is enter your email below!