Pedigreed Housewife World

This week I was challenged by a friend with a 3-year-old, who knows the elements and how to put them together into basic compounds like H2O, to introduce molecular chemistry to the kids. Ok, I wasn’t “challenged” per se. She posted pictures on Facebook of her kid doing it and I wanted my kids to be able to do that too. Hey, I’m not perfect. I get that Mommy jealousy thing like everyone else. My undergraduate degrees are in chemical and biomolecular engineering (with a math minor) and I am a packrat so I still have my old modeling kit from organic chemistry. I dust it off and bring it downstairs to show the kids with one takeaway message for the kids – atoms are attracted to each other and bond together to make molecules. First I ask the kids if they know any chemical names. I expect them to ask what that means, but instead Briana says “CO2”. She can’t remember what CO2 is but she remembers the name is a real chemistry name. Abby fills in the gap “CO2 is ...

Summer is all about passing the downtime. Sure there are days with camp, swimming, playdates, and activities galore, but there are also those days when you are left to your own devices. Those days, in my memory, were filled with reruns of the The Brady Bunch and The Addams Family at times, but mostly they were filled with sprinklers, freeze tag, My Little Ponies, and trying to catch little bugs in the yard.   I decided this summer that my kids need those downtime days, with no planned activities. I was excited to see them explore the backyard, build sand castles and playdoh towers, and the ever-fun catching of bugs in the yard. Instead they opt for Netflix and LeapPads. When I take those electronic time suckers, the kids stare blankly at me for what to do. Me! The grown-up! Today they sit for a good thirty minutes asking me what they are supposed to be doing. I reply, “Anything you want!” expecting them to squeal with delight, not say, “like what?” I point out...