My Little Bat-Witch Celebrates Halloween

Izzy awoke slightly sulky on Halloween morning.  Instead of eagerly awaiting trick-or-treating, he was fretting over his costume.  He had thought he would be his favorite heroine, Franny K. Stein, mad scientist, but decided that since he had already sported that costume for his birthday (and several other times thereafter), it was no longer very interesting.  In search of new costume ideas, he emptied out his drawers and turned his room upside down.  It was then he came up with this fetching get-up, that of a "Bat-witch".  With that out of the way, he could concentrate on the days amusements.

First up was pumpkin carving with this papa.  Leave it to A. to come up with a biting pumpkin.  Exactly what we needed to complete our festive front stoop display.  Seeing it illuminated was even better.

After pumpkin carving, Izzy spent the early afternoon at his friend J's birthday party, revving himself up by eating eyeball cupcakes.   After the party, at 5 p.m. it was time for trick-or-treating.  Oh, the creatures we saw!  In less than two hours, Izzy amassed enough candy to rot his teeth for years to come.

Back at home, warm and cozy, Izzy dumped his spoils upon the floor and sorted them out, putting most of it aside for the Switch-Witch.  He knew he could keep a small bowlful for himself but I didn't even have to tell him that he couldn't keep it all.  He was more than happy to give it up for the promise of books.

May future Halloweens prove so simple and easy. 

Doughnuts and Carnival Kitsch: Doughnut Plant/Park Avenue Armory Carnival

How can I choose?

Starting at the Doughnut Plant, followed by several hours at The Park Avenue Armory and ending with pizza at Artichoke Basille, today we crammed in as much old school food and fun as we possibly could.

I had earmarked The Park Avenue Armory Carnival as the perfect outing for this three-day weekend.  Just the mention of a 50 foot Ferris wheel inside a building was enticement enough.  Never one to just go into the city without planning where to eat, I quickly hatched a plan to stop on the Lower East Side for doughnuts, before continuing on to our destination.

The Doughnut Plant has been on my radar ever since it opened so I was anxious to finally give it a try.
We arrived to find a line out the door of the tiny store front.  Izzy patiently awaited his turn, spending his time pondering the selection.  There were yeast doughnuts and cake doughnuts, glazed and more. With fillings such as blackberry jam,  creme brulee or chocolate pudding, it was a tough choice.  When it was finally our turn, we chose two creme brulee, one chocolate pudding and a vanilla glazed.  By the time we left the doughnut shop, it was already lunchtime and Izzy knew that we needed to eat before we had our treats so I tucked the doughnuts in a bag and we ventured off in search of lunch (which I hadn't exactly planned for since only doughnuts were on my mind).

As we were on the Lower East Side we weren't far from somewhere to decent to eat.  We meandered over to Clinton Street and had lunch at Cafe Pedlar.  There we lunched on "Lancaster County Eggs" to fortify us for the adventures ahead.   Lunch over, we hopped on the "F" train traveling uptown and made our way over to Park Avenue.

Stunned by mirrors and lights

The scene at the Park Avenue Armory was oddly alluring.  Crowds thronged the vast hall where there were but a few rides, the Ferris wheel played the starring role, backed up by an elephant ride, a large slide and the Trabant.  Yet the other features of the carnival more than compensated.  I had the sensation of being privy to a Coney Island sideshow in the middle of Manhattan.  The roving hula hoopers were quick to engage kids as they waited for the rides and as you can see, Izzy was always game to join.  Oh, and don't let me forget to mention that there were plenty of snacks to be found, including freshly made cotton-candy, popcorn sold in small white paper bags and Prosecco by the glass for the grown-ups.

Izzy hoops

After testing out all of the rides, Izzy led me to the show corner where we watched a contortionist and other circus-type performances. He was particularly entranced by the fellow below, who could not only balance on one chair but also managed to stack up several and do a handstand.  Talented as he was, so glad he is not my son, as the worry would be too great!

Please don't fall

When all was said and done, I was exhausted.  Izzy, however, wanted pizza.  In keeping with my desire to make every morsel count , we cabbed it back down to 14th street where I was able to cross off yet another "must" from my "where to eat" list, Artichoke and Basille.   Not surprisingly, we were met by throngs outside this oft-lauded store-front pizzeria with an extremely limited menu.  We ordered a slice of their signature artichoke pizza and one Marguerita, and had each cut in two, to share.  The artichoke slice was thick, filling and unlike any other pizza I have ever tasted.  The Marguerita, on the other hand, was fragrant with basil and somewhat akin to the pie at Di Fara.  We finished the former and merely tasted the latter.  Our bellies were full and we were happy.  We left the second slice in the box.  It was time to go home.

La Festa Italiana 2010: The Tradition Lives On

Aunt Mary's rice balls are back at the Holy Rosary Church and Izzy and I walked over in the rain, post-fire, to grab a few for dinner the night of the disaster.  Somehow they had lost their allure.  Perhaps eating them on the couch, after the day's trauma didn't help.  Or perhaps just eating them away from the noise and lights of the feast didn't improve their flavor.  Whatever it was, I knew that when we returned for a feastly encore I would need to eat something else. 

Pure and Simple Flatbreads

I immediately zeroed in on something that I would have to try next time:  Pizza from a traveling wood-fired oven, something I have never encountered before.  The pizzas emerging from within looked awfully tempting.

When we returned to the Festa tonight I headed over for a closer look.  The kiosk for Pure and Simple Flatbreads (no website to be found) offers pizza and pizza alone.  The only accompaniment seemed to be large bunches of basil which were set out along the counter.  I watched as pie after pie emerged from the oven, looking slightly charred and inviting.  I ordered one for Izzy and me and was quite pleased to find pizza far better than any in Jersey City.  The $10 price tag might seem a bit steep for a personal-sized pizza but it was definitely worth it.

We took our pizza, along with my glass of peaches and wine and found a place to sit with our friends amidst the exceedingly large crowd of revelers behind the church.  Our friends were all about the rice balls which still seemed to delight them,  while Izzy ended up sharing pasta with his papa.  Dessert was also part of my agenda and I managed to find some just-filled cannoli and some chocolate cream pie.  The line was too long for Zeppole  which is a good thing since we already ate some on Thursday and I imagine one hunk of fried dough a year is probably sufficient. 

Grateful for the short time meeting up with friends (wished it had been longer) but by the time dessert was finished, the lights and noise had begun to overwhelm me.  So bellies filled, Izzy hopped on his papa's shoulders and we made our way home.  If you haven't made it over there, you still have tomorrow to try out that pizza.  In the meantime, I hope that pizza truck makes jersey city its permanent home. 

To give, To Get, To Give Away: Willy Wonka and The Switch Witch on Halloween

To give: "Wonka Bars" and Yummy Earth organic lollipops, small bags of homemade popcorn and meringue ghosts.


To get: All manner of sticky, sugary, dyed treats; the usual chocolate suspects (m&m's, nestle crunch, mounds, etc.) lollipops in many colors, pretzels and surprisingly, no candy corn.

Does Izzy really need to accumulate other candy? That lollipop (the perfect accessory to his Willy Wonka costume) from Papabubble should last him until at least the age of 20!


To give away: Over 3/4 of his loot.

Izzy was quite the competitive trick-or-treater, racing in front of his friends to be the first to grab handfuls of whatever they had on offer, whether he would eat it or not. Odd considering what happened after he brought all of his loot home.

Like last year, he dumped it all out and sorted it into categories. It was then I brought up the "Switch Witch" a most clever way to help diminish overflowing Halloween candy bags and save your kids from sugary meltdowns. I had planted the idea of the "Switch Witch" in his head the other day so the idea was not new to him. In my version, a witch would come and take some of his candy, in exchange for books. He was certainly intrigued. Today I mentioned that she might bring his favorite books and asked how much candy he would be willing to give up. He said, "All of it." I told him that he could keep a small amount and that the Switch Witch would take the rest. He happily bagged it up and even double tied the bag!!! Any takers for the leftovers?

The Ice Cream Man Didn't Do It

Apparently, parents everywhere, are complaining about the ice cream man. He is on playgrounds and parks, hawking his wares each and every day throughout the summer, luring their precious spawn into begging for frozen treats. All this whining about how the ice cream man is always around, even at times when they don't want to purchase ice cream. Don't they realize that the ice cream man is not responsible for their children's ice cream issues?

Surprisingly (to me at least) these parents are not necessarily opposed to the ice cream in principal, they are just opposed to hearing their darlings whine for it, each and every day, at inopportune times. Don't get me wrong, I too have issues with the ice cream man but they are not the same. The difference is, I am not disturbed by his presence. He can turn up wherever he pleases (except in front of our house at Izzy's bedtime where the noise keeps him awake) but I will rarely, if ever purchase anything from him. The ice cream he sells, for the most part, is pure junk food, those cartoon-shaped pops being the absolute worst.

Izzy does not beg or plead for ice cream on a regular basis and for that I am grateful. I have made it quite clear, from early on that we just don't buy ice cream from the ice cream man. I certainly do not deprive Izzy of ice cream, as it is one of my favorite desserts. We either make it ourselves or buy it at ice cream parlours. We do buy the occasional ices from the ice lady and while at the beach we purchased a Froze Fruit (which has gone from being a reasonably healthful snack to a corn syrup laden pop) but that's about it.

Bottom-line: Parents need to stop blaming the ice cream man for causing meltdowns. Just saying NO to ice cream will go a long way towards teaching children to make better food choices. At the same time, be sure to offer other snack options so that your children don't feel deprived.

Channeling Violet Beauregarde: Izzy's First Gum

I'll admit, I was a chewing gum fiend. Rarely without a piece in my mouth, I praticed chomping, cracking and bubble blowing as if they were my occupation. My friends and I planned trips to the Cottage Inn just for pieces of individually wrapped Bazooka Bubble Gum ( as much for the gum as for the collectible comics inside). My grandma and first stepmonster S. bought me endless packs of Trident Sugarless and my grandfather constantly told me I looked like a cow, chewing "cow gummy ".

Gum chewer that I may have been, I have long kicked the habit and hoped to keep Izzy gum-free for as long as possible. He had led a gum-free existence thus far, reaching the age of nearly six and a half, without any gum at all. Occasionally he has remarked that his friends are allowed to chew (some quite often at that! ) but never made a fuss over not having any. Then we read Charlie and The Chocolate Factory and gum appeared ever more prominently on his radar. What it is that appeals about the gum cracking Violet Beauregarde it is hard to say but I too longed to chew one piece of gum for a record-breaking number of days and Izzy has fallen under the same spell.

He has been pestering me for gum ever since we saw the film and I mistakenly promised him some from a health food store. I managed to stall for a few weeks but we finally found ourselves at one today, Pangea Naturals in Manahawkin, the only health food store in close proximity to Long Beach Island. There I bought him some type of fruity gum with Xylitol, which I didn't know much about. I had heard that it actually helped prevent cavities but apparently the evidence to support that claim is rather scant. Not only that but Xylitol is not the miracle sweetener I had imagined, but rather an industrially produced sugar substitute that may cause diarrhea.

Izzy popped that gum into his mouth and was instantly smitten. He relished every chew, marveling over the novel experience.



Izzy may be stuck on gum but I don't intend to allow him to chew it on a regular basis. The question is: Which gum should he be chewing? It comes down to deciding which is the lesser of two evils, artificially sweetened gums that don't cause tooth decay but may ultimately cause something else, or natural gums made with cane sugar which will rot his teeth. At the moment I am leaning toward Glee Gum.

That Festival Time Of Year: La Festa Italiana 2009

The Holy Rosary Church Feast is a Jersey City August tradition that has become our own. I couldn't actually say how many summers we have attended but Izzy and I start looking forward to it as soon as June rolls around. I have even taken to planning our vacations around it, so we are sure not to miss it. Last year we made it for at least two nights but this year, one will probably have to suffice.

This festival is always a hit with the kids, especially if they get the $14 bracelet which allows them unlimited runs on the scary blow-up slide, obstacle course, and bungee apparatus. Izzy and friends could not get enough of it.



Our evening began with rides and games and ended with food. Izzy worked up an appetite for the usual rice balls and pizza. His dad tried the stuffed cabbage and pierogi which looked pretty good, considering it is an Italian feast, not a Polish one.

We completed the evening with cotton candy and cannoli. Our friends, who had never before experienced the wonders of an Italian feast, marveled at the kitsch factor and politely tried our favorite foods. Thing is, I am not sure they were as dazzled as we were by the offerings. Izzy's friend was more enthusiastic than his parents, happily gobbling the rice balls and cannoli!

We only chose cannoli because we were too late for the infamous cheesecake which was sold out (yet again) by the time we made it to the pastry table. Perhaps tomorrow's feast goers will be luckier. No matter, though, cheesecake or other, there is much fun to be had at this community event.

Izzy Makes The News..

A photographer from the Jersey Journal, captured his image for posterity, with a forbidden lollipop in his mouth! They were giving them out at the Kitten Adoption Bonanza Event and I didn't have the wherewithal to say no since he had been such a trooper all day. Candy seems to show up in the unlikeliest of places. I usually try to have a replacement on hand but not so since I never associated kittens with candy...

First S'more

We unexpectedly dropped in on Izzy's friend M. and his family during an impromptu bbq. They were kind enough to invite us to join in and although we did not partake of the burgers etc, dessert was hard to resist. They were making s'mores.

Other guests were surprised to hear that he was over six years old and had never tried one before. I just hadn't gotten around to preparing the s'more of my dreams. I do love a good s'more but I wanted his first one to be the best. I had envisioned a s'more, prepared with homemade marshmallows, homemade graham crackers and a superb chocolate. That will be for next time.

This first s'more was of the classic variety. Hershey's Chocolate, Campfire Marshmallows and Honey-Maid Grahams (or Nabisco). It may not have been exactly the s'more I had imagined but clearly he was smitten.

Sugar Smack...Doughnuts For Snack

A similar issue came up at a neighborhood school, earlier this school year. My friend L. was appalled to find that her three year old was being fed doughnuts for breakfast and the staff defended this choice. Reason enough to switch schools, which she eventually did, for that and other reasons.

Never did I imagine that I would encounter a similar problem yet just the other day, Izzy informed me that his snack consisted of "these round doughnut things, kind of like bagel buttons but softer". Now I can forgive doughnuts for one snack during the week but when the next day came and he told me that doughnuts were on offer again, I became a tad less forgiving.

Of course switching schools is entirely out of the question, as we love Izzy's school. What makes this situation particularly sticky is that at Izzy's school, parents provide the snack. To what extent can the school monitor the snacks brought in? Parents are encouraged to provide "healthy" snacks but apparently healthy is interpreted quite loosely.

Thinking ahead to next year I ask, what is a health-conscious mama to do?



p.s. I am not opposed to all doughnuts. Say if you wanted to bring an occasional doughnut from here, you would find no opposition on my part!

A Second Grade Syrup Tasting: Maple or Aunt Jemima?

Which one was the winner?



I received a call from my dearest friend L. this morning and she recounted the following tale:

In honor of maple syrup season, she paid a visit to her daughter S.'s 2nd grade class to read a story about how maple syrup is made and then conduct a taste test, to see which syrup the children preferred, pitting real maple syrup against Aunt Jemima.

She brought in two unmarked bottles of "syrup" and had each child taste a spoonful of each. Out of 20 students, the disheartening news is that 17 preferred Aunt Jemima over the real maple syrup. They were instantly able to recognize it as the syrup they ate at home and showed a clear preference for it. I did not find this especially surprising, simply disheartening.

After the test, L. explained to the young students that Aunt Jemima did not even have anything maple in it and then she explained why maple syrup was healthier, encouraging them to consider eating the real thing. Even if they don't, at least they have been exposed to it.

What I had to wonder was why so many children were eating Aunt Jemima rather than real maple syrup, particularly in an upper middle class neighborhood where cost might not be a major issue? If fake syrup reigns supreme, clearly the advertisements maligning high fructose corn syrup have failed. Given another demographic, I might entertain the argument that cost was a factor but then in defense of using real maple syrup I would suggest that a little goes a long way and you needn't douse your pancakes or waffles in it but rather drizzle it sparingly on top.

Once again, more evidence to support my mantra "Eat what you love and your children will follow." What they eat is up to you.



P.S. I would love to poll these children years from now as to their syrup preferences. There is certainly hope since I was raised on Aunt Jemima myself and haven't touched the stuff since I started buying my own food.

The Undercover Candy Police

Truly, I can't make this stuff up...

At the dinner table this evening, Izzy got an impish look in his eye and proceeded to tell the following tale...

"_____stirs up trouble. ______was doing it in the park today. ______had a plan to eat candy so that the teachers wouldn't see. I heard ____ and ____talking about it. But quiet as a mouse, I snuck up and saw ____ and _____eating candy gum. They were hiding from the teachers. " [at this point I wondered if he had joined in]

Me: What did you do?

"J. and I went over to the teacher and told her and she went over to them and said, "No gum allowed in school!"


The candy eaters don't stand a chance with the perfect undercover candy police team:
Izzy (you know where he gets it) and his friend J. (whose mom is a dentist).

Green Expectations (or The Many Shades Of Green)

"Green" conjures up images of many things. From the choices we make in the way we live, to the vibrant colors of the many wonderful vegetables we eat. Today green was all of those things and then some. It was also a green I'd rather forget: Namely, green gobs of frosting on cookies that Izzy was eating. Of course I prefer to think of the former but can't get my mind off the latter. In some way, they are intertwined.

In small ways we try to raise Izzy "green" given the environment in which we live. This means doing things like hanging our laundry on the line (weather permitting), living without a/c most of the summer and walking or taking public transportation whenever possible. Every little bit helps. Izzy helps recycle and it certainly helps that his school encourages that as well. Izzy's "sculpture" creations, made from discarded food packaging (what packaging is recycled is another story, don't even ask what ingredients are listed in the package below) are just one way he is learning to be "green".



We also try to guide him towards selecting earth-friendly toys (apparently not a guarantee of anything) and he is fortunate to have many handmade ones like the ferry above, made by his Grandpa T.

Most importantly, if you read this blog you know, being "green" greatly influences how we shop and eat. Our major efforts towards being "green" are certainly concentrated in the food realm. We try to eat local, organic foods whenever possible. It is my wish to instill in Izzy, a lifelong love and respect for healthy, delicious foods. This afternoon, I prepared an organic green-split pea soup, made with local or organic vegetables. It may not have been the most beautiful pale shade of green, but topped with sauteed leeks (more green), it was warming and nutritious on a cold, rainy night.



In the late afternoon, while the pea soup simmered on the stove, I took Izzy to join his classmates for a small holiday celebration. The children were offered cookies with gobs of green frosting and small green Christmas trees. Not wishing to be a Grinch, I allowed him to indulge, knowing full well what the aftermath might be.

I tried to be festive but couldn't help but be disturbed. Why were they being fed food dye and why the color green?

Food dyes have been consistently shown to cause hyperactivity in children. Current research continues to confirm this. It is truly best to steer clear of them if at all possible. There are organic dyes available and certainly other ways to be festive.

Secondly, why the choice of color. Is green the seasonal color? Not if you celebrate Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or Diwali. Not that another color would have been healthier but how about equal opportunity dyes?

As I mulled over these thoughts, it came as no surprise when Izzy and his friends turned from chattering children to rolling, romping creatures, piling up on one another, causing the parents and teachers to reign in their behavior, caused in part, by the foods they were served.

I was more than happy to take Izzy home for his dinner. Hopefully the green split pea soup would be both nourishing and calming.

I continue to ponder how challenging it is to be "green" here in lovely, toxic, Jersey City. It is especially difficult when not everyone shares the same mindset. Learning to eat better is one way to counteract the negative effects of our environment, as we live in the shadow of the Holland Tunnel. We all do not have the opportunity to raise our children on a farm, as this amazing woman does but we do have a chance to teach our children about good greens and bad.

The Case of The C@&$y Cupcake:

Who dunnit and Why?

My day was going along swimmingly. I did everything I needed to do before it was time to pick up Izzy from school. I even bought some luscious "pains au chocolat" from Bouley Bakery, which would be a real treat for him and his friend T...

And so, in fine spirits, I went to pick him up. We said our "Happy Thanksgivings" and were on our way. All of a sudden he remembered that one of his teachers had forgotten to give him something, a cupcake. There was a frenzied rush to go back and retrieve it. I didn't think much of it but he insisted on going back for said cupcake, which he informed me, came from the Yellow Room. I figured it must be a special, homemade cupcake but was unsure why it belonged to him, since he is not in the Yellow room.

We followed Izzy as he zoomed around the corner in his quest, just as Miss L., his teacher arrived with a cupcake, still in its plastic box. When I saw it, my face must have crumpled (or so said my friend S.) I thanked his teacher but told Izzy we would have plenty of goodies at home but we wouldn't be taking the cupcake.

Oh the tears that fell. How could I have done this? On and on he wailed.
I didn't realize the anguish it all would cause, not only to him but to me.
We made it home and thankfully his friend T. perked him up.

And then I was left wondering. What were Izzy's teachers thinking? I do love them but were they blinded by some holiday, sugar -induced cloud? I surely am not opposed to cupcakes, and especially love baking and eating them, so long as they are special cupcakes. Made with love or from Baked! But why was this cupcake bequeathed to him and not the other children?

I must be missing something. As was Izzy, who at bedtime asked why I didn't let him have the cupcake. Perhaps it was a special cupcake after all, in which case I am awfully sorry that I kept him from eating it. If not I'd still love to know the story behind it.

Little Boy Blue

Izzy revels in the rare indulgence of a blue lollipop. Giddy with delight, isn't he?

Never you mind that the very idea of blue food makes me cringe. But if Mama doth protest too much, there is that awful chance that my dear boy might begin to covet blue foods.



He fished this lolly out of a bag of party loot that has remained tucked away in a cabinet since last weekend. When I remarked that there was too much candy for him to possibly eat he generously offered to give out the rest as Halloween candy. I could barely believe my ears. Maybe he doesn't love the stuff all that much after all.

Perfect Timing, Puppetry, Pizza, Pinata Piercing: Notes From A Birthday Party

Party invitation for Sunday at 1:30 p.m. How perfectly civilized and highly unusual. No need to suffer from the Sunday night "We ate too much at the party but are still a little hungry" blues. We were able to have lunch first and be in perfectly good spirits, eat cake and sweets at snack time and still have room for a real dinner. Parents (me too!) take note..this is a great time for a party. AND you don't even need to serve copious amounts of food (which today's gracious hosts did..there was wonderful-looking pizza and penne but Izzy and I did not partake as we were still full from lunch).

The party was centered around a rollicking puppet show, with time for pumpkin decorating and pinata piercing. The highlight for Izzy (and others)was the pinata. He scooped up handfuls of candy, grabbing more than enough to keep a few dentists in business.

Later on he requested an "empanada" at his own party. Now you know how much I adore these things, which always seem to bring out the best in the little guests. But today something seemed different. The children were less frenzied..perhaps a result of the good timing of it all?

Could I actually stomach the idea of a pinata at Izzy's party? Well might be able to manage since I discovered that I could actually fill the pinata with goodies of our choosing. The idea seems more appealing than I had previously imagined. Organic lollipops? Fair trade chocolate..anything is possible.

Doughnuts For Breakfast? What is a Health-Conscious Mama To Do?

Indeed that is what the children in a certain preschool in JC are served on a regular basis. My friend L. just cannot wrap her head around the fact that three year olds are given such fatty, sugary foods to start their day. And this by the very people who are charged with taking care of them. When she pressed for answers, she was told that these doughnuts were not just any doughnuts, they were Super Doughnuts. After careful research, I know I wouldn't be to pleased to find Izzy eating them for breakfast either.

In her own words:

"Yesterday it was doughnuts and today "Coco Roos". While the menu says there is supposed to be fruit every day with breakfast, and I was told when I asked, that they get "fresh fruit" not canned with their meals, they have not been serving any fruit at all with breakfast. When I inquired about whether they would give the kids fruit with their "breakfast" (if you call chocolate doughnuts and chocolate cereal breakfast) on one particular day, I was politely told that if I wanted my son to have fruit with breakfast, we could bring our own!"

L. is struggling with how to handle this situation. On the one hand she recognizes the importance of her child eating healthy foods, while on the other, she would rather not have him feel uncomfortable eating something different from his peers. She is attempting to enact change from within but that could be slow in coming.

In the meantime, what do you think she should do? You can surely imagine what I might say but I will hold my tongue for the moment. I would love to hear from others.

Surrounded By Sweets: Trying To Remain Reasonable

But other moms in the park make it soooooooo difficult. Don't they know that I have waited until my child was over five years of age before introducing him to "The Ice Lady"? Isn't it bad enough that he now demands "Icy" every time we go to the park?

Today was a "No Icy" for Izzy day. I mean he had snacked upon a juicy nectarine topped with homemade whipped cream before going to the park. Shouldn't that suffice in the dessert realm?

I made sure to remind Izzy that "Icy" would not be an option today. Note: If you are trying to monitor your child's sweets consumption, it is always best to set out the rules in advance. Diminishes the chances of major tantrums since they know what is in store.

Once at the park, Izzy began to play with a couple of children who were happily licking some "icy." He merely noted what they were eating and went on playing. He then asked for some of his snack to eat along with them. He happily grabbed some cheese cubes and ran off. I was glad to see that he remained unfazed. After all, I very well realize that I can't prevent other kids from eating junk food, it is simply my job to keep Izzy from getting into a tizzy over it.

He handled it marvelously, even when he came back to point out that just moments after finishing their icy, those very same children then went to the ice cream truck and were allowed to purchase soft ice cream cones!

I would have thought he were fibbing, had I not witnessed it with my own two eyes. He remained surprisingly subdued, merely musing aloud as to how it was possible to have both. I, on the other hand, remained speechless, having no explanation.

The Ice Lady Cometh

We managed to bypass the ice lady and the ice cream man for all these years. How is that possible? I'm not exactly sure. The ice cream man makes his rounds to both sides of Hamilton Park and in front of our house on a daily basis. Even though his friends eat it he never really asked for it. Maybe once or twice he mentioned it but I nonchalantly explained that it was made of chemicals and that we didn't eat it.

For most kids, the ice cream man's jingle is cause for celebration. For Izzy it is cause for irritation as he admonishes from his bedroom window, "Shut up you stupid ice cream man. I am trying to go to sleep!"

As for the ice lady, well I just told him that ices were too sugary and we didn't eat those either. But lately I have changed my mind. Yes, that does happen occasionally. His friend I. had been eating ices in front of him over the past week and when Izzy asked why he couldn't have any I couldn't come up with a reasonable answer. When I examined the goods I decided that the coconut flavor appeared benign enough..no evil food coloring at least.

So I handed him a dollar and let him run off with I. and I. to give it a try. We shared it and we were both hooked. Which is precisely what I was afraid of. Now he seeks out the ice lady on a daily basis, and we have eaten it three times since. The second time we discovered one could combine two flavors in a small size. We tried tamarind and coconut. Today it was coconut and mango (too fake). Not the worst habit to have but still...

Every day since his first taste I have been asked, "Do you think the ice lady will be in the park today?". I feign ignorance, knowing full well that as long as summer is here, the ice lady cometh.

The Skinny Eater: Spending The Day With A Size Zero

Not that I am immense by any means but like many of us, I wouldn't mind losing a few pounds. I used to be the sort who could eat enormous amounts of anything and not gain an ounce. Sadly those days are over so now I marvel at the way some of us (my husband being one) manage to stay astonishingly slim while still eating.

I recently spent the day with my friend H., who is quite slender and petite. I was curious to see what she consumed. In a nutshell, not much.

We met up late morning so supposedly H. had already had breakfast. Maybe it was an egg and toast, whatever it was, wasn't very big. The rest of the day went as follows:

Elevenses: 1 chocolate-chip orange scone (only because I brought them)
Lunch @1:00 p.m.: 1 mini sandwich with tomato/basil/ mozzarella (which I had brought along)
Late afternoon snack: 1 cherry (I had a bag. She said, "I'll take one." Who eats only 1 cherry???)

Meanwhile I had yogurt and fruit for breakfast, 2 scones, 2 sandwiches and at least a fistful of cherries and probably some other nibbles that I can't even recall. No wonder I am not a size zero.

If there is a secret to being a size zero, it is a simple one. Eat miniscule amounts. If only it were that easy for me!


p.s. I just dined with H. again this evening and once again, was amazed at how little she manages to eat. What I need to know is if it is simply willpower or lack of appetite. If only I could manage on that amount!