Fluoride is a drug so unregulated that the FDA’s official classification is “Unapproved New Drug.” And yet, it’s still pumped into the water supply of over 180 million Americans, including infants and the elderly, with no way to control who gets it, how much they get, or what effect this mass dosing has on any given individual. I encourage you to find out how much fluoride is in your local water so you can better control your exposure!

Please watch this video “Professional Perspectives” by the Fluoride Action Network and share with your friends and family! It’s well produced by medical professionals who have studied the effects of fluoride extensively.

A few key takeaways:

Visit www.FluorideAlert.org to learn more!

We’ve written about the importance of Vitamin D as it relates to health and the body’s ability to ward off illness in previous Babyminding articles. Vitamin D deficiency is common in people of all ages. The sun is the best source of Vitamin D.  However due to skin cancer concerns and the subsequent application of sunscreen, the body’s ability to produce Vitamin D is reduced by as much as 95%. As a result of this reduced exposure to the sun, it is necessary to supplement with Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) in order to keep serum d blood levels of the body above 30 ng/mL.

Over the past year the amount of recommended supplementation has increased from 400 to 800 IU for adults and from 200 to 400 IU for children. New guidelines just released from a study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, offer additional guidelines that increase the recommended dosage of  Vitamin D supplementation to maintain optimal health. The new guidelines recommend different doses of vitamin D for those at risk of vitamin D deficiency as follows (all listed in International Units (IU) daily):

• Age 0 to 1 year:      400 to 1,000
• Age 1 to 18 years:   600 to 1,000
• All adults over age 18:    1,500 to 2,000
• Pregnant or nursing women under age 18:    600 to 1,000
• Pregnant or nursing women over age 18:    1,500 to 2,000
• Because fat stores vitamin D, obese people may need to take two or three times the usual dose of vitamin D.

Need a recommendation of which Vitamin D3 supplement to take?  BioVeda Health & Wellness Centers offer a liquid form that is perfect for the whole family. You can order through Amazon.

Read more about the Vitamin D Study at WebMD.

PRESS RELEASE; CONTACT: USDA Office of Communications (202) 720-4623

First Lady, Agriculture Secretary Launch MyPlate Icon as a New Reminder to Help Consumers to Make Healthier Food Choices

WASHINGTON, June 2, 2011 – First Lady Michelle Obama and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today unveiled the federal government’s new food icon, MyPlate, to serve as a reminder to help consumers make healthier food choices. MyPlate is a new generation icon with the intent to prompt consumers to think about building a healthy plate at meal times and to seek more information to help them do that by going to www.ChooseMyPlate.gov. The new MyPlate icon emphasizes the fruit, vegetable, grains, protein and dairy food groups.

The MyPlate icon is available to view and download in PDF and JPG formats.

“This is a quick, simple reminder for all of us to be more mindful of the foods that we’re eating and as a mom, I can already tell how much this is going to help parents across the country,” said First Lady Michelle Obama. “When mom or dad comes home from a long day of work, we’re already asked to be a chef, a referee, a cleaning crew. So it’s tough to be a nutritionist, too. But we do have time to take a look at our kids’ plates. As long as they’re half full of fruits and vegetables, and paired with lean proteins, whole grains and low-fat dairy, we’re golden. That’s how easy it is.”

“With so many food options available to consumers, it is often difficult to determine the best foods to put on our plates when building a healthy meal,” said Secretary Vilsack. “MyPlate is an uncomplicated symbol to help remind people to think about their food choices in order to lead healthier lifestyles. This effort is about more than just giving information, it is a matter of making people understand there are options and practical ways to apply them to their daily lives.”

Originally identified in the Child Obesity Task Force report which noted that simple, actionable advice for consumers is needed, MyPlate will replace the MyPyramid image as the government’s primary food group symbol as an easy-to-understand visual cue to help consumers adopt healthy eating habits consistent with the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. MyPyramid will remain available to interested health professionals and nutrition educators in a special section of the new website.

ChooseMyPlate.gov provides practical information to individuals, health professionals, nutrition educators, and the food industry to help consumers build healthier diets with resources and tools for dietary assessment, nutrition education, and other user-friendly nutrition information. As Americans are experiencing epidemic rates of overweight and obesity, the online resources and tools can empower people to make healthier food choices for themselves, their families, and their children. Later this year, USDA will unveil an exciting “go-to” online tool that consumers can use to personalize and manage their dietary and physical activity choices.

Over the next several years, USDA will work with First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’sMove! initiative and public and private partners to promote MyPlate and ChooseMyPlate.gov as well as the supporting nutrition messages and “how-to” resources.

The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, launched in January of this year, form the basis of the federal government’s nutrition education programs, federal nutrition assistance programs, and dietary advice provided by health and nutrition professionals. The Guidelines messages include:

Balance Calories

• Enjoy your food, but eat less.
• Avoid oversized portions.

Foods to Increase

• Make half your plate fruits and vegetables.
• Switch to fat-free or low-fat (1%) milk.
• Make at least half your grains whole grains

Foods to Reduce

• Compare sodium (salt) in foods like soup, bread, and frozen meals, and choose foods with lower numbers.
• Drink water instead of sugary drinks.

Coupled with these tested, actionable messages will be the “how-tos” for consumer behavior change. A multi-year campaign calendar will focus on one action-prompting message at a time starting with “Make Half Your Plate Fruits and Vegetables.”

“What we have learned over the years is that consumers are bombarded by so many nutrition messages that it makes it difficult to focus on changes that are necessary to improve their diet,” said Secretary Vilsack. “This new campaign calendar will help unify the public and private sectors to coordinate efforts and highlight one desired change for consumers at a time.”

As part of this new initiative, USDA wants to see how consumers are putting MyPlate in to action by encouraging consumers to take a photo of their plates and share on Twitter with the hash-tag #MyPlate. USDA also wants to see where and when consumers think about healthy eating. Take the Plate [link to downloadable plate image] and snap a photograph with MyPlate to share with our USDA Flickr Photo Group [http://www.flickr.com/people/usdagov/].

For more information, visit www.ChooseMyPlate.gov. Additional resources include: www.DietaryGuidelines.gov and www.LetsMove.gov.  For the MyPlate Graphics Standards (terms of use), click here: http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/Publications/MyPlate/MyPlateGraphicsStandards.pdf

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USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Ave., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (800) 795-3272 (voice), or (202) 720-6382 (TDD).

“Jacquelyn’s Story” is a series of posts about my daughter who has a neuro-behavioral disorder. You can read the first post in the series here.

Today Jacquelyn is seven years old, and this is a big day for our family for a couple of reasons. Not only is it our first child’s birthday, we are also one day away from her last session of occupational therapy. We enjoy a much different Jacquelyn today than we did about 13 months ago when we received a diagnosis of multiple sensory processing disorder and motor delay disorder. Jacquelyn’s biggest issues last year continued to be a pronounced aversion to noise and touch. Her aversion to and anticipation of these types of sensory input caused her to have a clinically significant level of anxiety, to the point that it was interfering with her ability to enjoy a “normal” life. I didn’t yet understand how auditory and occupational therapy could help her with these issues, but I was about to find out…

We first began Berard Auditory Integration Therapy, which “efficiently retrains a disorganized auditory system and improves hearing distortions and sound sensitivity.” It requires listening to some strange sounding music each day through special headphones. My husband and I waffled back and forth about whether or not this expensive therapy would help Jacquelyn. We finally pulled the trigger and hoped for the best. We woke up early one morning before school to get started. I had crayons and paper ready to keep her busy while she listened. As the music started, she threw the headphones on the counter and screamed. The specialized music she had to listen to was painful for her. I assured her it would help and told her she had to do it. She put her head in her hands after putting the headphones back on, resigning herself to what was to come. As the crocodile tears dripped from her eyes onto the coloring pages in front of her, I silently thought, “Please let this work.” She trusted me, and I was leading her down an unknown path.

I am not exaggerating when I tell you that within 10 days she, without being prompted, began to use the bathrooms all the other children at school were using rather than the bathroom in the nurse’s office. Her fear of flushing toilets has subsided enough for her to walk into a regular bathroom without being forced to do so! This was huge. The improvements continued from there, and we saw an immediate improvement in her general anxiety level.

We began occupational therapy soon after. Her therapist taught us all about proprioceptive input and how joint compression can override tactile defensiveness. All that is a fancy way of saying that the more she jumped, pushed, pulled, and compressed all the joints on her body, the more she would tolerate touch. It worked like charm! Before long, she was able to give real hugs and interact with children even when they were rambunctious. I quickly realized it wasn’t that she didn’t WANT to interact with children, but her fear of being touched prevented her from doing it. She had a lot of catching up to do, and the past year has consisted of weekly therapy sessions at a sensory gym as well as an intensive at-home program called NeuroNet. There are many more victories, small and large… too many to list. Seeing her interact with other children typically and calmly has brought me to tears several times over the last year.

As we finish professional therapy and transition to only an at-home program, I feel it’s important to point out that Jacquelyn’s SPD hasn’t been cured, nor do I believe it can be. Is she still super sensitive? Yes. In fact, just the other day she screamed and nearly cried at the sound of toast popping out of the toaster. She yelled that she would NOT make her own toast until she was eighteen years old. Just today, she bristled and began to grunt when her classmates crowded and bumped her while I tried to take a birthday picture. She still can’t stand being in the sun and has a lot of self-imposed rules about how and what kind of clothing and shoes she can tolerate. She can’t ride a bike without training wheels and even then, the bike has to move slowly on flat surfaces only. She can’t stand the feeling of water on her face. Automatically flushing toilets can still cause a panic attack, depending on what kind of day she is having.

But here is the light at the end of the tunnel…all these therapies, combined with my constant “training” approach to her behavior, has given us an immeasurable gift. It is the difference between a child who self-injures at the sound of a door knob clicking and a child who runs out the back door to play. It is the difference between a child who paces and speaks like “Rain Man” and a child who can say “I don’t like that noise.” It is the difference between a child who, at times, was nearly crippled by anxiety and a child who giggles and enjoys life. It has given Jacquelyn a fair shot at happiness, and that is all I ever wanted.

Each year Environmental Working Group puts out a list of the “Dirty Dozen” – the 12 types of produce that show the highest levels of pesticide residue based upon US Department of Agriculture Pesticide Testing Program. It’s meant to serve as a guide for consumers who are wanting to go organic on a budget, giving a list of the top 12 produce that are most contaminated and thus should be bought as organic. You can view this years list in the Babyminding Guide section.

There has been much controversy as to whether organic produce is better than its conventional counterpart. Organic produce can be a lot more expensive depending on the item and many people wonder if it’s worth spending more. Pesticides are toxic and are designed to kill living organisms.

“Children have been found to be especially susceptible to the harmful effects of pesticides. A number of research studies have found higher instances of brain cancer, leukemia and birth defects in children with early exposure to pesticides, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council.” – Wikipedia

The question that commonly arises when comparing organic to conventional is whether the amount of pesticide residue on conventionally grown produce is harmful to humans. I think it depends on how much exposure you have on a daily basis.  You have to look at overall exposure from all sources not just a single apple or banana. For instance, our exposure to pesticides goes beyond eating conventionally grown food – thereby increasing the levels of exposure:

• Food – Most of the foods we eat have been grown with the use of pesticides. Therefore, pesticide residues may be present inside or on the surfaces of these foods.
• Home and Personal Use Pesticides – You might use pesticides in and around your home to control insects, weeds, mold, mildew, bacteria, lawn and garden pests and to protect your pets from pests such as fleas. Pesticides may also be used as insect repellants which are directly applied to the skin or clothing.
• Pesticides in Drinking Water – Some pesticides that are applied to farmland or other land structures can make their way in small amounts to the ground water or surface water systems that feed drinking water supplies.

That said, let’s see how a couple of the fruits and vegetables listed on EWG’s list this year measured up in terms of pesticides detected.

Celery: The worst of the bunch with 95% of the samples tested showing pesticide residue and an average of almost 4 different types of pesticides detected. Total number of pesticides found across all the samples tested…67!!

Peaches: 96% tested positive for pesticides. Peaches had been treated with more pesticides than any other produce, registering combinations of up to 67 different chemicals.

Strawberries: We eat a lot of these in our house (organic and often home-grown!). 92.8% of the conventional Strawberries tested showed pesticide residue!

See the complete breakdown of data from this study on the FoodNews.org website. Keeping these pesticides away from expectant moms as well as children is more important than ever, given the recent report that came out regarding how pesticides effect IQ:

“Three studies published last week, for example, found that children exposed to the highest levels of pesticides before birth had lower IQ scores than other kids.”

“The Berkeley study found that the most heavily exposed children scored an average of 7 points lower on IQ tests compared with children with the lowest pesticide exposures…”

“These pesticides are often used on crops, and people are exposed to them through eating fruits and vegetables, Eskenazi says.”

You be the judge. Organic Produce vs Conventional Produce: What do you want your kids eating?

**Note: Even if you continue to buy conventional produce over organic, you can lower your pesticide consumption by nearly four-fifths by avoiding the 12 most contaminated fruits and vegetables and instead eating the least contaminated produce, according to EWG calculations.

There is a new reality show on TLC called “Extreme Couponing” that follows a few self-professed super moms and dads who spend only a few dollars a month on groceries after hours of clipping coupons and strategically planning a visit to the grocery store. The parents took great pride in leaving the grocery store with hundreds of dollars worth of groceries having spent only a few dollars. While I admire their tenacity and ability to plan and organize such a trip, I couldn’t help but notice their entire carts and subsequently their homes were filled with processed junk food and in one case 1000 bottles of body wash. Every nook and cranny of their homes had been turned into a grocery store shelf filled with whatever was on sell or had a double coupon that week. One mother had 75 boxes of “junk” cereal and bottle after bottle of a popular sugary sports drink made with artificial colors. While I’m the first to admit that we eat some of those items occasionally, not one parent had any fresh fruit or vegetables in their cart. Their goal was saving money with what seemed like no focus on healthy eating, and their homes looked like that of a well organized hoarder. Is extreme couponing about saving money or has it become an obsession?

While I recognize that in this economy people are struggling to make ends meet, and saving money has become even more critical to so many families, I’m betting all the families featured on this show have cell phones and paid TV. In fact, they most certainly have computers and internet connections so they can print extra coupons to combine with coupons from their local newspaper. What’s my point? Food has become so low on the priority list for many families that non-necessities like cell phones, TV service, and internet access eat up way more of our budget than quality, healthy food does. Why not spend the 10 to 30 hours a week these parents spend on couponing on growing a garden instead? Families could still fill their homes with food for a fraction of the cost but it would be fresh produce rather than processed junk food. I think for many of these people accomplishing the goal of free groceries has become an obsession that trumps healthy food choices. After all, I’ve never seen a coupon from a local farmer for fresh tomatoes, apples, or some other fresh produce.

What do you think of extreme couponing and what does it say about America’s relationship with food? Babyminding wants to know!

Watch this if you want to understand the rise in food allergies and cancer in the United States. Please, please, please watch this – only takes 18 minutes and will change the way you think about food!

Robyn shares her personal story and how it inspired her current path as a “Real Food” evangelist. Grounded in a successful Wall Street career that was more interested in food as good business than good-for-you, this mother of four was shaken awake by the dangerous allergic reaction of one of her children to a “typical” breakfast. Her mission to unearth the cause revealed more about the food industry than she could stomach, and impelled her to share her findings with others. Informative and inspiring.

About this speaker

Robyn authored “The Unhealthy Truth: How Our Food Is Making Us Sick and What We Can Do About It.” A former Wall Street food industry analyst, Robyn brings insight, compassion and detailed analysis to her research into the impact that the global food system is having on the health of our children. She founded allergykidsfoundation.org and was named by Forbes as one of “20 Inspiring Women to Follow on Twitter.” The New York Times has passionately described her as “Food’s Erin Brockovich.”

Before we released our speaker’s names, we featured a series of Speaker Teasers. Here, Robyn’s:

Real food, is that too much to ask;

Big industry, I take to task;

It’s time that we reclaim our plates;

from food forced into altered states.

Who’s banning Bisphenol A (BPA)? Europe? Canada? United Arab Emirates? China? US?
Answer: Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. NO!!!

These other countries have banned the use of hormone disruptors such as BPA because of their unproven safety and the myriad of studies that show potential harm. The United States however, still refuses to regulate toxic substances such as BPA. Sarah Janssen, a scientist from the Natural Resources Defense Council writes:

Instead of protecting vulnerable populations, corporate interests have continued to trump public health and common sense in the U.S.  BPA is a chemical known to mimic estrogen and which has been linked to increased risk of cancer, altered brain development, early puberty and other metabolic changes. It really shouldn’t be in our food supply.

It’s time for all of us to start demanding changes in our chemical legislation and stop letting the chemical industry make decisions on our behalf. But in order to be advocates for a cause, we must first understand the issue at its core.

What are Hormone Disruptors?
Hormone disruptors, also known as endocrine disruptors, are fast becoming one of the biggest threats to human health. The endocrine system secretes hormones in response to environmental stimuli and orchestrates developmental and reproductive changes. Hormones are the body’s chemical messengers and regulate various bodily systems to maintain balance. Hormone disruptors, on the other hand, are substances that mimic hormones and can bring about long term changes that disrupt the balance of the body’s various systems.

What substances contain potential hormone disruptors?

• DDT & Other Pesticides - DDT is one of the most well-known synthetic pesticides.  It was banned by the US in 1972, but DDT is a persistent organic pollutant that is extremely hydrophobic and strongly absorbed by soil. Depending on conditions, its soil half life can range from 22 days to 30 years. Other pesticides, such as triclosan, are currently still in use and are of concern.
• Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB’s) – PCB’s were banned in 1979 but still remain an environmental toxin due to the total global production amount used (over 1.5 million tons) and it’s ability to persist in the environment over time.
• Bisphenol A (BPA) – BPA is a plastic found in baby bottles, the lining of food and formula cans, polycarbonate plastic with the recycle #7.  BPA is currently being banned by many countries and is already banned in Canada, United Arab Emirates, Europe and China.
• Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE’s) – PBDE’s are flame retardants used in children’s pajamas, mattresses, sofas and other furniture.  Walmart recently made the decision to ban PBDE’s.
• Phthalates (such as PVC) - PVC is used to soften plastic.  Phthalates are used in shower curtains, outdoor table cloths, pharmaceutical coatings on pills, detergents and surfactants, packaging, children’s toys, modeling clay, some personal care items such as perfume, eye shadow, moisturizer, nail polish, liquid soap, and hair spray - recycling code #3

Why are these hormone disruptors bad?
Health effects attributed to endocrine disrupting compounds include a range of reproductive problems (reduced fertility, male and female reproductive tract abnormalities, and skewed male/female sex ratios, loss of fetus, menstrual problems); changes in hormone levels; early puberty; brain and behavior problems; impaired immune functions; and various cancers.

• DDT is linked to diabetes, developmental and reproductive toxicity and cancer.  A recent study found that 30 out of 37 widely used other pesticides tested by the group blocked or mimicked male hormones.  And most of these pesticides are actually fungicides applied to fruit and vegetable crops, including strawberries and lettuce. Traces of the chemicals remain in foods.
• Researchers have linked developmental exposure to BPA to reproductive harm, increased cancer susceptibility, and abnormalities in brain development.
• PBDE’s bioaccumulate in blood, breast milk, and fat tissues.Published studies express concern because exposure to PBDE’s impairs development of the nervous system and has shown. PBDEs have also been shown to have hormone-disrupting effects, in particular, on estrogen and thyroid hormones. Studies have also shown that even a single dose administered to mice during development of the brain can cause permanent changes in behavior, including hyperactivity.
• In studies of rodents exposed to certain phthalates, high doses have been shown to change hormone levels and cause birth defects.

Ways to Avoid:

• Reduce use of plastics in favor of glass and natural fibers (organic).
• Buy BPA-free
• If you must use plastic in the kitchen, avoid heating foods in it.  Heat can cause the toxins in the plastic to leach into your food.
• Switch to organic cotton sleepwear and a healthy mattress, such as Naturepedic.
• Look for phthalate-free body care products.
• Avoid using pesticides around the home and instead use an integrated pest management (IPM) approach or consider keeping spiders, ladybugs and even bats around to help control pests,  naturally.  There are also botanical based pesticides available that are safer than the toxic alternative.
• Avoid conventional detergents and instead opt for organic or natural detergents such as Seventh Generation.
• Eat organic!

How do you avoid harmful toxins such as hormone disrupting substances in your home?  Please share by leaving a comment!

From HealthyChild.org
WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL ABOUT PHTHALATES? Phthalates are everywhere from cosmetics to plastic items that people use every day.

My very favorite children’s author, Theodor Seuss Geisl would have been 107 today if he were still alive (he passed away in 1991). I particularly love his story “The Lorax”. It was before it’s time, a metaphor for environmental responsibility. The story speaks for the trees in defense against human impact and at one time was actually banned from some schools and libraries due to it’s anti-forestry industry content. I am also partial to “Green Eggs and Ham” which was the first Dr. Seuss book I ever read. I loved it so much that my mom would make me green eggs and green ham for St. Patrick’s Day every year!  And, I was such a fan of his books growing up that I fashioned a “The Cat in the Hat” costume one year for Halloween. It’s nice to know that Dr. Seuss’ literature is still honored, as students across America will celebrate his legacy during Read Across America .  And, be sure to check out a great website for Seuss fans for games, coloring pages, and more:  Seussville.com.

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss…Thank you for all of your wonderful stories, life lessons and vibrant characters!

We’ve written about interactive websites for kids and now with the explosion of tablet computers and smartphones, it’s time for a list of our favorite apps and games for kids.

Jack and the Beanstalk Children’s Interactive Storybook [$.99]: This is an interactive storybook keeps the attention of both my 6 and 3 year old. It tells the story of Jack and the Beanstalk but also offers interactive features such as hidden games and treasures. It’s a pretty big file at 105MB but worth the download!

Intro to Math by Montessorium [$4.99]: My 3 1/2 year old daughter loves this educational app for both the iphone & the ipad. She’s learning the fundamentals of mathematics in a fun and engaging way. The same developer also offers apps called Intro to Letters & Alpha Writer.

Let’s Make Shapes [$.99]: Another hit for my 3 1/2 year old.  This is a great “freestyle” way for preschoolers to learn to recognize and draw their shapes. It keeps my daughter’s attention for quite some time, which is not always an easy feat!  There’s also a lite version of this app that’s free. Interbot, the developer of the app, has several other apps such as Let’s Do Math! and Let’s Write Japanese! Pro.

Doodle Buddy – Paint, Draw, Scribble, Sketch – It’s Addictive! [free]:  This drawing app allows children of all ages to let their creativity flow and it’s free! You can change brush colors and use a variety of stamp shapes.  The stamps even have funny sounds paired with them.  My daughters particularly like the “burp” stamp…  Unfortunately the latest update has a lot of ads that pop up, but a lot of people are complaining. I hope they release a new update without ads.

WeetWoo! [free]:  A free app that gives  your child filtered access to free videos on YouTube.  It offers thousands of parent-screened videos organized in a kid-friendly age-appropriate playlist for hundres of hours of entertainment.  Some of the shows available are Between the Lions, Charlie and Lola, Clifford, Dragon Tales, Little Einsteins, Thomas & Friends, and Winnie the Pooh.

School Zone Apps [$.99 to $9.99] Each of the School Zone apps is arranged by grade as well as preschool. These are more expensive than some of the other educational apps available, but they are comprehensive learning apps for each grade/age level. Jennifer has the first grade and preschool ones and both her kids (4 & 6) like them. Some of their apps include: Phonics Pencil-Pal: Learning Game, Preschool Pencil-Pal: Learning Game, and Spelling 1-2.

Handy Manny Workshop [$2.99]: Handy Manny’s Workshop offers 5 different activities.  From searching for missing tools, memory match and puzzles to coloring and singing, this app is sure to please for any Handy Manny fan.  Jennifer’s son definitely approves!!

Dinosaur Train Eggspress [$2.99]: This app challenges your child’s matching skills as well as offers themed coloring pages, and of course is a great app for any fan of dinosaurs!

This is not to say that we condone hours of screen time each day! However, we recognize that we live in a digital age and that the influence of technology is impossible to eliminate completely  - nor should it be, as it is an important part of a child’s education today. So, while we still advocate that kids get outside and play, these apps are great learning opportunities for a rainy day.

Have a favorite educational or kid-friendly app?  Please share by leaving a comment!