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Review of Nokia Phone App, "Dad's Cab"

I was recently contacted by a media group representative doing some work on a Nokia phone application, who asked if I would write a blog post about a new app they were targeting at fathers.

A few comments up front:
  • I do not own a Nokia phone, therefore I have never used this application, nor do I have access to use this application.  My knowledge of this application is from screen shots, documentation, and videos provided to me by the media group rep.  
  • My daughter is not yet at the age where I am carting her around to various sporting and social events, so I'm not the exact demographic targeted for this application.  However, I was once a multi-sport teenager with various extra curricular activities and can relate to the burden I put on my parents and their vehicles.  
So with these statements made, I here is a conceptual review of the Nokia Phone Application, Dad's Cab.

How It Works
As the name suggests, Dad's Cab is a Nokia phone game aimed at fathers and their children, which plays on the stereotype of kids using their fathers as chauffeurs, whereas the dad drives them to and from school, friend's houses, sporting events, and other childhood activities.

The application uses GPS on Nokia cell phones to track the distances traveled, and 'bills' the young passengers accordingly.  Once the ride is over and the fare is calculated in British Pounds, the passengers are expected to pay for the journey, but instead of using cash, it recommends payment through a barter scheme where the child must fulfill a favor or request for the dad, such as "Introduce Me To Your Friends" or "Don't Complain When I Cook".

Continuing the taxi metaphor, the fare can be increased by the father by adding predefined "Extras".  While city cab fares increase based on tolls and number of passengers, in the Dad's Cab application the parental driver can apply extra costs like, "Toilet Stop Surcharge" or "No Hello / Thank You Toll".  Again, the resulting fares are translated from Pounds into tasks for completion by the child.

My Take, Pictures, and a Video demo at:

"What the hell is that?" So, Your Child Has a Hemangioma

Note: I'm not a pediatrician or dermatologist, but most of what I write here is information gathered from real doctors.  All situations are different, please always consult your physician when making decisions about your child's health.

My daughter was born with a hemangioma on the left cheek of her face and as of this posting it still appears somewhat prominently.  Figured it would be helpful to post our experience with hemangiomas and pass along some advice and perhaps a baseline for comparison. 

What is a hemangioma?
The clinical definition is the abnormal buildup of blood vessels on the skin or internally.  For skin hemangiomas, the size, location, and color can completely vary.  For more medical talk see https://health.google.com/health/ref/Hemangioma

It basically looks like a red mark or wound-looking blemish on the skin (see pictures below).

What causes it?
Nobody knows - you're either born with one or you're not.  Some say it might be genetic, but there is no definitive link to a cause for this skin condition.  Funny enough, we asked some immediate family members if there was any known history of hemangiomas and my Aunt (my mother's sister - my daughter's great aunt) had a mark on her face at birth that may or may not have been a hemangioma. Back then the doctors recommended immediate removal of it with a heat treatment, which left my aunt with a small patch of discolored skin (hardly noticeable most of her life).  Hard to say if that is a genetic link because the science around skin was probably not as advanced in the 1940s as it is today.

How do you treat it?
You don't, and the doctors we have spoken to indicate that a majority of hemangiomas go away on their own over time.  They can also be removed through surgery, and in some cases surgery is recommended if the growth is invasive to breathing, eating, seeing.

Through my interactions with pediatricians and pediatric dermatologists, there is no ointment, medication, or general treatment for the removal of a hemangioma.

For our daughter, the hemangioma is on her cheek and does not hurt her or cause pain in any way. 

When did you first notice it?
It's a funny thing - when my daughter was first born she had a small dimple-like mark on her cheek.  We didn't think much of it, just figured it would be a birth mark and at that point we were so elated with her that we had little care for a small facial dimple.

After about 2 months it began to develop into a red mark, at times looking like a scab from a wound.  At an early appointment, our pediatrician recognized it as a hemangioma and explained the background.  Fast forward a year and the mark settled into a red and deep-blue color, looking similar to a bad black-and-blue bruise.

Overall, there were some significant changes in the first 2 years of her life and looking back at some of the pictures it's amazing how much it changed.  Take a look a the shots below and you can see the progression.

To see the pictures and read the rest of the article, visit FunctionalFather.com: http://functionalfather.com/what-the-hell-is-that-so-your-child-has-a-hemangioma/

Toddler Play Area at JetBlue's Terminal 5 in JFK

My wife, daughter (21 months at the time), and I recently flew on JetBlue out of their brand new Terminal 5 facility at JFK Airport in New York.  I've always been a fan of JetBlue and a steady customer since they first popped up as an airline.  There's not much not to like - flights with more legroom, leather seats, TVs in every seat, cheap flights, etc.

So, it was only fitting that when they recently opened their brand new state-of-the-art terminal at JFK, the same thought, care, and customer-first attitude would go into planning the facility's layout and amenities.  Some highlights include great food options (Dunkin' Donuts, full-service deli), bars, shopping, free WiFi, beautiful structural features - marble flooring, calm lighting, clear informational screens.  

One additional hidden gem is a welcomed feature for parents...

Continue reading the story at FunctionalFather.com - http://functionalfather.com/toddler-play-area-at-jetblues-terminal-5-in-jfk/

Dealing with a Toxoplasmosis Scare

During the first trimester of pregnancy with our second child, an early test of my wife's blood indicated a potential for a Toxoplasmosis infection.  I had heard of Toxoplasmosis before - we have a cat and it's usually something the doctors will tell cat owners or an annoying family member will shout out when trying to show-off their knowledge of pregnancy facts and grill you about owning the litter box maintenance.

With our first child, I took over litter box duty and we never had any indication of issues.  With our second child we had a scare.

Read the full article at FunctionalFather.com: http://functionalfather.com/dealing-with-a-toxoplasmosis-scare/

Airplane Travel with a Toddler Car Seat

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One of my favorite tips for parents travelling on a plane with a toddler is to buy an extra seat and bring their car seat on the flight.  It goes without saying, but this is only a useful tip if you can afford to purchase the extra seat for your toddler.  Children under the age of 2 can be held on your lap and you do not have to pay for a seat.  I still recommend buying the seat and bringing the toddler's car seat on  board.


Why bring car seat on the plane?
For our daughter, it was due to a few factors:
  • My daughter has a proven track record of relaxing in the car seat, and it will be the safest, securest way for your child to travel.  
  • The alternative to buying a seat and bringing a car seat is holding your child on your lap.  Good luck with that!
  • As you must know, toddlers just want to move, run, climb, jump all over the damn place.  Take that fact and add a new, exciting environment with tons of people and it could spell a disaster.
  • If your kid sleeps in the car seat while driving, then chances are they have associated 'sleep' with 'car seat', and sleeping on a plane will translate into a stress-free flight.
Tips:

Storage of Human Milk

When our first daughter was born, my wife and I hired a lactation consultant who came to the house to help with the breast feeding initiative but also inform us on the world of breast feeding and breast milk.  Below is some information that was provided that we constantly looked at as a guide - how long is breast milk good for and in what setting.  Posting this detail so I have it in a central place going forward, but also hope that others can use the detail as well.

Freshly pumped breast milk can be left out:

  • 3 to 6 hours at room temperature
  • 3 to 6 days in the refrigerator
  • 3 to 6 months in the freezer (use back of the freezer and keep away from defrosting air vent)
Adding to already stored milk:
  • cool down newly pumped milk
  • add to refrigerated milk (if adding to frozen milk, the new milk should be a smaller amount than the frozen milk)
Defrosting frozen milk:
  • hold under warm running water - shake often
  • never microwave - this can cause dangerous hot spots

Choosing Your Child's Sports Team Allegiance

I am a die hard New York Yankees fan.  My wife is a die hard New York Mets fan.  Our kids will be....

When my wife and I were first dating the fact that we supported opposing baseball teams in New York was more of a cocktail joke than anything else.  As comes naturally, most Mets fans despise the Yankees for their greatness and pretension, and Yankees fans are condescendingly sympathetic with Mets fans and love to highlight years of disappointment and dismay.  I remained a relatively friendly Yankees fan, as I was very much interested in my wife (then girlfriend) and just psyched that I found a girl that loved to drink beer and watch baseball and any other sport.  Yes, I'm a lucky man.

Inevitably, once we announced we were having a baby, after the standard questions about finding out the gender, due dates, boy or girl, the questions landed on baseball team allegiance.  In a joking way my wife and I would both claim that the child would be a Mets or Yankees fan, respectively, and then jab at each other about emotional stability, personality, and attitude of the child if he/she were to become a fan either team.

But joking aside, this topic was a critical decision that my wife and I both had a vested interested in the outcome.  Now the diplomatic thing to do is just wait for the child to be old enough to pick for themselves, but this could end up being a popularity contest and puts a lot of pressure on the child to not upset the other parent or be forced to pick his/her favorite parent, and by extension, his/her favorite baseball team.

So, what did we do?  

Continue reading at FunctionalFather.com

BBC: Tough love 'is good for children'

BBC Article from Sunday, November 8, 2009

Somewhat validating article from the BBC covering recent research that indicates a 'tough love' approach helps build important character traits in children.  I wouldn't say that I'm a real hard-ass with my daughter, being that she's only 22 months at the time of this article, but I do like to stand tough when she is crying about not getting her way.  I also try to ensure she doesn't become overly dependent or accustomed to anything - pacifier, DVDs in the car, running around during dinner.

While I won't comment on the socio-economic implications of the study (the article investigates those aspects), I will say that it's probably harder for today's parents to raise 'tough' kids compared to the baby-boomer generation or before.  Struggles were definitely in a different context in previous decades.  I'm sure a child in the 60s cried about not getting a lunch box, but it's starkly different than complaining about a lack of X-box today.  There's a remarkable difference in context for parental toughness today compared to our parents, and in some ways it makes our job as parents harder.  Good thing I was raised with some tough love as well.