Poor old Thomas the Tank Engine...all those recalls on his friends. I wonder how many little guys regret chewing on those trains.
Remember my freak-out in pregnancy world when I realized all the hazards associated with what I was eating/inhaling/imbibing? Apparently little bambino made it through the copy toner and coffee just fine. But now there are other hazards lurking...
Someone was remarking in one of my mom's groups this week how paranoid she is of plastics with her second baby, whereas she never gave it a second thought when her first kid. And then, once she'd thought she'd rid her home of all the leaching plastic storage containers, bottles, and binkies, she finds out this week that all the little thomas trains and polly pockets are full of lead paint. Scary!
It is great that people are finally recognizing some of the dangers inherent in creating so many steps and processes between product and consumer that no one knows exactly what is in anything anymore, but since most of our products are created in a highly industrial arena, it seems like almost everything is dangerous if you look hard enough.
I'm wondering lately if ignorance might really be bliss when it comes to raising kids int he modern age. As a constant seeker of new information and self-education, I'm not one to really condone active ignorance, but I think it would save me a lot of headaches down the road if I stopped paying attention. Silas hasn't even started crawling yet and I'm considering whether it might be practical to ask the landlords to replace the old vinyl and carpeting with some chemical-free alternatives before he does, while making sure to open the windows regularly just in case our wall paint and 2-year-old futon are still off-gassing and contributing to future adhd or brain cell loss. Poor kid.
Besides worrying about toxic toys, I've been considering some new employment this week. I'll have my third interview tomorrow for a part-time position as a researcher with a pretty awesome environmental organization. It seems doable - the office is in town, the hours are flexible, the salary is good. But I've so enjoyed getting to be with my boy-o every day, it'd be tough to share his care with someone. And harder to do all the visiting we've been trying to do. But the income and the intellectual outlet would benefit us all, I think, so wish me luck!
Well, no job. And, once again, it came down to me vs. one other candidate. I get so far in the process and then...who knows. But now I have more time on the horizon with my baby guy, and more time to think about visiting people (though not much of a budget to work with.)
