We wake up pretty early in my house having a toddler and a puppy too.  You never know which one is going to wake you up.  Today on the Today show they had an interesting segment on “Princess Culture.” Having a daughter myself, it is something that I have been concerned about for sometime.  Luckily, my daughter is a little over two, so princess culture has not hit her yet, although when she starts preschool next year I am sure that we she will want to explore it.  Author Peggy Orenstein in her book Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture discusses how media and culture are influencing  girls at an early age that appearance and being “saved” by their prince charming take precedence over values such as hard work and intelligence.  I really think that this is an interesting read since girls at an earlier age seem t o be growing up so quickly. The message that I liked from the interview is not to forbid your daughter from seeing or liking princesses, but instead to expose them and immerse them in other things as well.  I think that is the best thing you can do as a parent is to expose your child to all different experiences relevant to their age.

Kids love to bring their stuffed animals with them wherever they go, but when you bring them out often they get dirty and need to be cleaned.  My daughter has a handful of animals that she likes to sleep with and bring around with her.  I regularly wash these animals at least once every 2 weeks to keep them clean.  Here are my tips for cleaning the animals.

1.     Get a lingerie bag.  This works great for the small bean bag stuffed animals and you then can throw a whole bunch of them in the machine at the same time.  A pillowcase will work too, but you must tie it in a knot, and sometimes the knot will come out and then you have animals all over the machine.

2.     Read the label on the tag. Often it will tell you if it can be washed or not.  I have found that most say only surface clean, but I still have thrown them in the machine and washed them anyway and have not had a problem.  It is really a judgment call.

3.     Make sure if there are any loose parts that you sew them up first.

4.     Add your favorite detergent to the washing machine.  While woolite is best for this any detergent can be used (except bleach) just make sure that it does not have fabric softener as this can be a problem for some plush.

5.     The washing machine should be set to the cool setting on the gentle cycle.  Now if you are trying to sanitize the animal because your child was sick and want to use hot water, hot water may make certain dyes run so if the animal has multiple colors on it, it is not advisable to do this, but if the animal is one single color you can do it but the animal may fade.

6.     You can either air dry or use the dryer for some plush.  I have noticed that when I use the dryer on the animals that have the longer hairier plush that the plush tends to clump together, which doesn’t bother me, but may bother some other people or children.  If in doubt air dry.

7.     You can also use a hair dryer and a stiff bristle brush to “fluff” up the animals hair.  It works for some of the shorter pile fur, but is not recommended for longer furs or very loose pile.

8.     To kill dust mites a steamer is highly effective.  You can also vacuum stuffed animals to remove dust mites.  A   hair dryer is also an effective way of removing surface dust from stuffed animals.

9. Having a handy book like Restoring Teddy Bears and Stuffed Animals is a great resource to have to get additional professional advice on how to care for your animals.

DO NOT WASH OR DRY MOHAIR, WOOL, RAYON, ALPACA, SHEARLING, OR REAL ANIMAL FUR STUFFED ANIMALS.  ALSO NEVER WASH STUFFED ANIMALS THAT HAVE BUILT IN SOUND EFFECTS IN THEM EVEN IF YOU REMOVE THE BATTERIES.

I was watching the Today Show and saw the interview with Amy Chua author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother.  In Chua’s new book she describes her experiences in what some would call “extreme parenting.”  I really think from a sociological perspective this book explores different types of parenting, which as a parent, is always important to study.  Some people suggest that her way of being a “Chinese Mother” as she describes in her book is harsh and at times cruel.  I really think that the whole point of the book is to explore a different approach to parenting with more of a focus on hard work, determination and not letting your children settle for less.  In her interview Amy Chua even admitted that she learned herself that some of her techniques needed adjusting, but I think that is the point of parenting.  Honestly I think that it is worth a read, weather you agree with her techniques or not.