100 things about me

1. My favourite colour is Red
2. I was born in Montreal
3. I was raised in Nelson BC by my mom
4. My mom has been married twice
5. My mom has been widowed twice
6. My Dad is still alive
7. My mom’s first husband and the first man that I saw to be my dad was gay… he died of Aids in 97
8. I met my dad when I was 9
9. I met Simon through a BBS
10. I got married in 1999 at 21
11. I wore my “Docs’’ sandals under my wedding dress
12. He wasn’t my “style” but I fell in love with him instantly
13. I never wanted to get married when I was younger
14. I have never thought I could feel so comfortable with someone
15. I hate when he is not home
16. I have two amazing little boys
17. I am Tandem nursing the boys and will nurse them until they self-wean
18. I feel sorry for kids that have never been breastfed
19. I was never breastfed because my mom needed to take meds and was told that she couldn’t breastfeed me
20. I want to have 4 kids
21. I am an only child
22. I have a half brother and a step-brother
23. I have always wondered what it was like to have a real sibling
24. I have always wanted children
25. I want to adopt
26. I want to homeschool
27. I want to have a hobby farm
28. I would love to live in a communal setting
29. I hate crowds
30. As a child we lived in a house without electricity or a bathroom
31. I also lived in a ‘62 ford Econoline
32. I also lived in a tent for about 6 months
33. I have attended 11 schools, 6 of them before grade 6
34. I was in Foster care twice
35. My mother is/was a drug addict/alcoholic (and denies it)
36. My godmother used to shoplift meat by stuffing it into my coat
37. I have a love/hate relationship with my mother
38. I Have never had a ‘boys are yucky’ phase
39. I took 3 years of figure skating
40. I was in a choir for 4 years
41. I was in Air Cadets for 6 years
42. I was a officer for 2 years and taught drill and music
43. I hate Cadets and military
44. I played Trombone for 8 years
45. I was in two plays in high school
46. I did two musicals in College (Hair and Jesus Christ Superstar)
47. I designed/drew a poster for a play in College
48. I started College in Liberal Arts, I graduated in Creative Arts
49. I went half way across the country to study Native Studies and stayed only one semester
50. I graduated with a degree in Religion
51. I learned Hebrew
52. I am an Atheist
53. I have never believed in a god
54. I went to many different churches when I young
55. I don’t know what I could do with my degree
56. I love a good debate
57. As a child I was addicted to Archie comics and Judy Bloom novels
58. My favourite books are: The Pillars of the Earth, Wicked, Harry Potter, Narnia,
59. My favourite kid books are: The Butterfly Ball & the Grasshopper’s Feast, No Kiss for Mother,
60. My favourite movies: The Big Lobowski, Oh Brother where art thou?, Ghost World, Amadeus, Harold and Maude ( and well almost anything by Tim Burton)
    
61. My Favourite music: Barenaked Ladies, Great Big Sea, Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, Nick Cave, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Chris de Burgh,
62. I don’t wear make up
63. I don’t dye my hair
64. I only have 2 pairs of pants that I wear for days at a time
65. I only wear PJ’s at home
66. I hate having things (socks and shoes)on my feet
67. I get insulted if someone doesn’t take off their shoes coming into my house
68. I always remember the smell of people's homes
    
69. I have always wanted to write a book
70. I have worked as a cashier, receptionist, office temp, at a vet, grocery store sample lady, portrait photographer.
71. I am lazy
72. I bake bread every 1-2 days
73. I like window shopping
74. I am very sensitive to scents
75. I get offended if someone smokes close to me or my kids
76. I am a Leo
77. I was born in the year of the snake
78. I once saw a Lion up close at a sad little Cliffside “zoo” in Monaco
79. I have 2 tattoos : a sleeping lion cub on my ankle and a dove on my back
80. I love to travel
81. I have long strawberry-dirty blond hair & blue eyes
82. I am not afraid of getting older
83. I have two cats “Nelson” and “sparky”
84. 15 year old Nelson pee’s everywhere but I can’t imagine “putting him down”
85. I would start woodworking but don’t have money for tools
86. I want to make toys
87. I watch too much TV
88. I love to sew
89. I love to knit (Nelson peed on my last project though)
90. I have Asthma
91. I have had several operations: Tonsils and adenoids (removed), Appendicitis (removed), ruptured ovarian cysts, bleeding polyps in my gall bladder (removed) & a Spitz Nevus (Juvenile melanoma) on my cheek (removed)
92. I was once attacked by an army of ants
93. I was once attacked by bees (I had about a dozen stings)
94. I once came face to face with a bear
95. At 5 years old I persuaded a teenager to put me on his back while he dove off a 100 foot cliff into a swimming hole
96. I almost drowned in a lake at 1 year old, after a friend of the family dove three times and finally found my foot and brought me to the surface I squeeled ‘encore!’ (more!)
97. I don’t go to the doctor
98. I am scared of Dentists
99. I love staying at home
100. I would like to have more friends IRL

Can't make any excuses....

Cleaning up the playroom we found the recumbant bicycle... not that the 150 pound thing was really lost it was just conveniantly out of the way... Simon asked me what I wanted to do with it.. I told him that we could put it away cause I don't get the chance to use it much... he looked at me and said... 'No, guess what... every night after supper when you want to go on the computer you are going to do at least 5 min"
I can't get around it... no excuse will work... I have been putting it off and I shouldn't make excuses... When I bought it I was actively losing weight, and I started with 5 min every 2-3 days and within a month I was doing 30 min every morning...
Thanks for the kick in the but sweetie!!

A few posts that I am writing...

I am in the process of writing a few posts that will appear soon...

"AP may be my religion but Sears is not my god"
"Parenting and Guilt"
"Holier-then-thou? who's really doing the judging"
and "100 things about me"

But for now....

Add your self to the Map
&
Open question period... Ask me anything and I will answer!

The season's a coming....

First of all... in light of tomorrow… happy turkey day to my southern neighbours...For the rest us you... well... happy Thursday!

I was thinking about the Traditions of the holidays and what my family traditions have been and what traditions I want to keep and make for my own…

To begin with…
I come from a typical Catholic French-Canadian Family.
When I was younger Xmas was celebrated by having a late supper at my grandmother’s on Xmas Eve with all of the traditional French-Canadian dishes…

- Ragoût de boulette et de Pattes de cochon (meatball and pig feet stew)
- Tourtière (Meat Pie)
- Turkey
- Cranberry sauce
- Mashed Potatoes and Peas (I didn’t eat the peas)
and for desert Sugar pie and  Ice Cream Yule Log

At midnight we would all gather around the tree and exchange gifts…

At about the time I met Simon, my grandmother moved into a smaller home and we stopped going there for Xmas eve… us kids were growing up and having other places to go and it was just becoming a lot of work for my grandmother to do by herself…
The traditional supper was moved to New Years day…
For 2 years I went to Simon’s mom’s and sister’s home for Xmas eve while my mom started a new tradition… she and my step dad would invite a few friends over who didn’t have families to go to and have a Chinese Fondue and just eat for hours on end… with entrée’s of all different kinds of cheeses and bread, smoked salmon and escargot….
The third year of this I decided to stay and partake of this supper also and since then it has become a tradition…
When Xavier was born we no longer had the extra friends come over and instead invited Simon’s mom and Sister and we started to do this at our home instead of at my mom’s home…
This has been our tradition since…
With the death of my step-dad last December it was a hard time last year and wasn’t a very joyous occasion at all…  and this year my mom’s new boyfriend will be the new face… and I am still not sure of my reaction to this…

Because Simon’s mom and Sister don’t sleep over Xmas eve the kids get their presents before they go to bed and the rest of the gifts are opened on Xmas morning…

What traditions I miss and want to bring back or introduce…

-the traditional supper… it is the supper that my great grandmother would make when she was the head of the family and the one that I have just always associated with Xmas… I think it is one tradition that I would love to bring back… it may be a weird menu for people that have never tasted it but for us me it brings me back to my roots… and the smell of sage, savoury and thyme just mean Xmas for me…

- putting the presents out while the kids are asleep… usually they just accumulate under the tree appearing when they get wrapped….

-  I would love to make it a big deal of telling stories that deal with the traditions of the holiday… Why we have a tree, why there are lights on the tree, the meaning of the star why we exchange gifts and  all of the pagan roots of the holiday etc…

What are your traditions? I would love to get more ideas….

To make believe or not make believe....

In the Jolly old man I mean...

This is the dilemma that we are now facing as the holidays come up…

Like you have read (or maybe not) in my profile, I am an Atheist and so is Simon… we celebrate the holidays and Xmas because it is something that is traditional in our household and we believe that there is a certain magic to Xmas and we don’t want to leave it behind. We also don’t see anything religious about Xmas either… (Besides the name)

Santa Clause is an icon of Xmas that I have not always been comfortable with… I have always seen Santa as being a lie and I don’t want to lie to my children but on the other hand I like the magic of the stories of St. Nick…

At this moment Xavier believes in Santa just because that is what he is learning from his environment… this is what the kids around him are led to believe and what the other adults that he knows tell him…

Simon and I are still at a loss of what to do… do we tell him about the magic of the season and the origins of all the stories and symbols… or do we make him believe in something that is just a lie… Do we have him write to Santa so that he can get a letter back for his scrapbook and have presents under the tree from Santa or do we just tell him right away that there is no such thing… or do we let others talk about it, not say a word, not encourage it, not lie but not tell the truth and let his imagination do the rest… isn’t that as bad as lying though?

I would really love to have ideas from others…

Can the magic of Christmas be without the lie of the jolly old guy?

I guess I hit a nerve....

I deleted a comment on the last post because it was just full of insults and nonsense and I just won't have it... I really don't mind people disagreeing with me... I actually like exchanging ideas with people that I don't agree with so that I can see the arguments that they are presenting...
However... I won't let someone outright insult me... not here anyways.... so I have put the moderation mode on the comments... I won't delete a comment because someone doesn't agree with me but I will not let it go through if it is insulting....
As for the comment it was from an anonymous poster.... and pretty much said that formula by prescription was so dramatic that I should be writing for soap operas and that I was stupid, didn't have an education, can't read studies etc etc....


side note...
All the comments that I make are not at all against the users of Formula, it is about the substance itself (I know people might see it as being the same but it really isn't) ... and the Hate that I have is against Formula is mostly toward the companies that make it.... they are the ones that have made people actaully think that Formula is an equal (and good) option.... they are the ones that hide the dangers of Formula etc.... We all want what is best for our children... I just want the truth about formula to be known and the truth is that it can be very dangerous and is not at all a equal choice as the Formula companies make it out to be...

CLSC last night...

I gave a Pre-natal last night and I got home at 10pm!... The nurse asked me if I could present some wraps and slings at the end of the class and I of course gladly accepted... We did the whole class, there was about 10 couples one of the biggest groups that I have had to date and also the most talkative. One mom in particular was very off the idea of breastfeeding and really had a head full of outdated info and tons of myths... she is having her second child 20 years after her first and I think is still dealing with guilt issues of her first parenting experience... Anyways I suffered through the stupid breastfeeding video from the 80's that they have to show (I have seen it at least a dozen times now and it is just getting old!!) and then at the end of the class I showed the wrap and sling... everyone thought it was great and they all took my card... just as I was packing up a mom came up to me, asked about price, when she could call, where I live etc... and then asked if I always have some at home... I had brought the slings that I have left with me so I showed her what I had and she bought one right away...
The nurse came back in the room at that point and we started talking... the girl that bought the wrap is a local police officer and she and the nurse our friends... we started talking and something she said really surprised me... she HATES giving the classes because she doesn't like what she has to say... she has to stick by the rules and they are the rules that she herself doesn't adhere to... We talked about how hard it was to have to recommend things, teach things that we just don't agree with. We have to put our own feelings and experiences aside and give the 'blanket recommendation' (Vit D supplements, co-sleeping etc)
We talked about how hard it was to talk about breastfeeding, talk about how important it is, talk about how easy it can be, talk about it being the best when you know very well that you are wasting your breath....
We both wished that we could stop talking about the importance of breastfeeding and could just focus on the dangers of Formula....

If Breastfeeding reduces the risks of :

Cancer (breast, ovarian, and uterine for mom and baby girls),
obesity,
asthma,
Crohn's disease,
diabetes (and insulin requirements in diabetic mothers),
Allergies,
Helps prevent post-partum hemorrhage,
Ear infections,
diarrheal infections,
bacterial meningitis,
respiratory infections,
rheumatoid arthritis,
Hodgkins disease,
protects baby against some vision defects,
osteoporosis
etc…etc…etc….

AND Breastfeeding is the NORMAL way to feed our child…

Then it can be easily concluded that Formula is a CAUSE of many of these diseases…
Again… I am Tired of talking about the benefits of breastfeeding when it is the dangers of Formula that we should be focusing on… but that will never happen because we don’t want to make moms feel ‘guilty’ and there is no money to be made by breastfeeding….

This of course is proof…

Anyways… it felt good to talk with someone that is in the same situation and it makes me feel good to know that there are more and more with the same ideas as me, people that I can share with and have great conversations with….

Today was a fun day...

I got some housework done and did a lot of art work and playing with the kids... Xavier played with play dough, chalk board (made his first "stick man"), painted, did crafts etc... Colin played with the chalkboard, had a few foot prints in paint and coloured...
I love days like this... here are a few pics...

Xavier

November 1621
Originally uploaded by paxye.

Colin

November 1581
Originally uploaded by paxye.

Colin colouring

November 1471
Originally uploaded by paxye.

Xavier playing with Play dough

November 1401
Originally uploaded by paxye.

Colin

November 1361
Originally uploaded by paxye.

Xavier's first "Stick man"

November 1431
Originally uploaded by paxye.

Kiss

November Kiss
Originally uploaded by paxye.

Defining a woman in our society…

It saddens me that in our culture that women are often so self oriented. The women I see around me, those I talk to, often work out of the home, need to get out once a week for dinner and a movie with their significant other, go for lunches on a regular basis with girlfriends, get their nails done, their hair done and all of the other stuff that they seem to find ‘important’… all the stuff that they did before they had children. Yet don’t see the importance of raising their kids completely, don’t see the importance of being a full time mom. They see motherhood and their kids as being a threat to the way that they define themselves. They cling to the identity that they had when childless and don’t want to leave any of that behind. They define themselves as women, as feminists, as working moms, as ‘themselves’…
I really don’t have anything against moms that work out of the home, they have their own reasons I guess and I can’t argue with them because they see it as doing what is right for them. However, I personally can’t understand it….
I can understand that there are some moms that are alone and that need the money and don’t have a choice… I can understand that it is sometimes the mom that makes more money, I can’t understand why the dad wouldn’t stay at home, I can’t understand the ones that say they “need” the money for their second car, the big house, the trips and the plasma screen TV …. I can’t understand how people say that they are the ones raising their kids when their kids are in daycare 5 days a week for 10 hours a day…
I know a few moms that have their kids in daycare full time and see the reality that the daycare has a great influence on their child’s life (negative as well as positive)… the daycare workers are the ones that often see the first steps, hear the first word, kiss booboo’s away, teach and take care of the children… others that I know don’t see the daycare as being anything more then a place that they take their children for a ‘few’ hours and they are the only ones “raising” their kids….
Yes, maybe there are women that really just do love their jobs and want to continue to work and to them I would just have to agree to disagree because I love my job as mother too.

Before I had kids I was in school, working, went out, had fun, got married and had time with my husband to get to know him, I was myself, doing what I wanted to do when I wanted to do it... When I had kids, I stayed the same yet changed. I became a Mom. I took on a definition to my life that I don’t see as being contradictory to myself but complimentary. Sure I don’t do all of the things that I did before and sure I miss it sometimes but for now, especially while the kids are so young my job is to be a mother and I can be myself while doing that. I understood that I only have a few years to raise my kids, to teach them, to discover them, to make them feel like they are the most important beings on the face of this earth. When they are a bit older, I can do more of the things that I did before (if they still interest me). Raising my children is the most important job that I could ever hold in my life, and they reward me everyday for doing so.
I know that for some women working out of the house is what they equate to being equal to men… I understand the ‘equality’ issue… however, the most common complaints that I have hear about the ‘traditional’ nuclear family has often been how the mom was the one raising the kids while the dad was the one that came home tired and cranky at night and that was seen on weekends… Is this what women really want? To be away from their kids as much as the men in the past?
I don’t see myself as inferior for staying home and raising my kids… there are women that provide childcare as a living… am I inferior to them? No, I am not paid. But I am doing the same thing… I am just doing it for myself instead of paying someone else to do it for me…
I guess I am lucky in the fact that I have a husband that acknowledges that what I do is important and that I work hard. He expects of my to raise my kids, not raise him, he doesn’t expect that the house is spotless but smiles when the kids have drawings or crafts to show him. He is hardworking out and in the home. He sees me as an equal and treats as such.
I think the overall problem with the image of women is the home stems from the image of man being dominant because of it… The problem with this though is that the way to change this view is to change the mentality of the men and doing so can only be done by showing that being a mom is a job like any other and that the other stuff just needs to be equally divided between the mom and the dad…
The other problem is the constant conception that those who actually love to be home with their kids on a full time basis are really lying to themselves and are just trying to be Martyrs are second class citizens and are not 'modern' women etc...

If you really want to work then do so.. I don't think that everyone should and has to be a SAHM... but it doesn't mean that it isn't a valid choice and that it isn't as important a job... but I truly believe that in choosing for both parents to work outside of the home that it also means that you are willing to share and leave the responsibility of raising your kids with someone else....

Afterthought: don't we all think of things the morning after ;)

I think the important thing is that we have to understand that a woman doesn't have to lose herself to become a full time mom...
She doesn't just take on the challenge of taking care of her children but takes on the challenge of redefining herself. Some things are left behind and forgotten and they are often the petty things, leaving the core of who we really are and then we rebuild from there. Past friendships may dwindle and be left behind leaving time and space for another generation of friends that we will keep for a lifetime. It does take a village to raise a child and through the friendship that I have made I am building my village, friends for my kids, other kids that I can kiss booboo’s for, other adults to give and get ideas and support, and share with.

I didn’t lose myself by staying home but redefined and enriched myself.

Weird things in charting world.... may be Too much info for some ;)

AF came for me today... however, she is weird....
At the end of a 43 day cycle, she came at only 10 DPO with a big temp dip in the morning to put me on watch....
It is weird because she is not full force as she usually is on the first day of arrival....
For a few hours I was wondering if it was maybe implantion spotting... I don't think so though... Fertility Friend started a new chart for me as soon as I put the info in.... So I guess We'll try again ;)

Things for Sale ;)

I have received a few questions about the wraps and slings that I now sell…
So I have put up a site to show what I have to offer… there are still some things missing but most of the stuff is there…
Ellaroo,
Maya wrap,
Maman Kangouroo and a
New babywearing Poncho
that is locally made and is just going on the market…

I also sell Cuddy wrap, buckwheat pillows, buckwheat nursing pillows and a wide array of teething necklaces… I will be adding them to the list soon…

If you’re interested in something… come see!

A few things about Formula...

What the WHO (World Health Organization) says:

"because of the hazards associated with using breast-milk substitutes, infant formula was no ordinary consumer product, but that, up to the age of four to six months, it should be treated more as a nutritional medicine that should be used with the advice and under the supervision of health workers. The report also noted that, even seen from the viewpoint of fostering competition, direct advertising to mothers with infants in the first four to six months of life was singularly inappropriate because:
· advertising infant formula as a substitute for breast milk competes unfairly with normal,
healthy breastfeeding, which is not subject to advertising, yet which is the safest and lowestcost method of nourishing an infant; and
· advertising infant formula as a substitute for breast milk favours uninformed decisionmaking, bypassing the necessary advice and supervision of the mother’s physician or health worker.
In this respect, the report concluded, it can be considered that advertising of infant formula fails to achieve the objectives of ensuring best quality and the lowest cost and creating an informed public, which are among the benefits assumed to be a result of direct advertising."
"Those who suggest that direct advertising has no negative effect on breastfeeding should be asked to demonstrate that such advertising fails to influence a mother’s decision about how to feed her infant."
"Proper use of infant formula should rather be the result of informed decision-making based on objective and consistent advice, and appropriate supervision. This message is implicit in the final paragraph of the preamble to the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, which states:
Believing that, in the light of the foregoing considerations, and in view of the vulnerability of infants in the early months of life and the risks involved in inappropriate feeding practices, including the unnecessary and improper use of breast-milk substitutes, the marketing of breast-milk substitutes requires special treatment, which makes usual marketing practices unsuitable for these products.
No breast-milk substitute, not even the most sophisticated and nutritionally balanced formula, can begin to offer the numerous unique health advantages that breast milk provides for babies.
Nor can artificial feeding do more than approximate the act of breastfeeding, in physiological and emotional significance, for babies and mothers alike. And no matter how appropriate infant formula may be from a nutritional standpoint, when infants are not breastfed or are breastfed only partially, feeding with formula remains a deviation from the biological norm for virtually all infants."
http://www.who.int/nut/documents/infant_formula_trade_issues_eng.pdf"
18. The vast majority of mothers can and should breastfeed, just as the vast majority of infants can and should be breastfed. Only under exceptional circumstances can a mother’s milk be considered unsuitable for her infant. For those few health situations where infants cannot, or should not, be breastfed, the choice of the best alternative – expressed breast milk from an infant’s own mother, breast milk from a healthy wet-nurse or a human-milk bank, or a breast-milk substitute fed with a cup, which is a safer method than a feeding bottle and teat – depends on individual circumstances.19. For infants who do not receive breast milk, feeding with a suitable breast-milk substitute – for example an infant formula prepared in home-prepared formula with micronutrient supplements – should be demonstrated only by health workers, or other community workers if necessary, and only to the mothers and other family members who need to use it; and the information given should include adequate of inappropriate preparation and use. Infants who are not breastfed, for whatever reason, should receive special attention from accordance with applicable Codex Alimentarius standards, or a instructions for appropriate preparation and the health hazards the health and social welfare system since they constitute a risk group."


Other interesting articles:
The Deadly Influence of Formula in America Linda Folden Palmer, DC

http://www.babyreference.com/InfantDeaths.htm

Dangers of Formula
http://www.lactivist.com/dangform.html

Government Pressured by Formula Companies to 'Water Down'Breast-feeding Ads

http://www.organicconsumers.org/school/milk061004.cfm

Just sharing...

I've decided to share my chart... (fertility chart of course ;) )
For those who have never charted this may not mean anything but for those who have they know what I mean... Right now I am in the 2 week wait of my first PPAF (post-partum "aunt flo")
It has been a long cycle and I am starting to get impatient... but at least my temps are up for now... we'll see in a few days whether they head back down or stay up...
For those interested.... here is my chart...

Breastmilk in the news....

Sometimes I just check out what is happening in the news when it comes to one of my more passionate topics... breastfeeding...

Africa...
Anti-HIV agent found in breastmilk... this agent could also help prevent infection in adults

Canada
Mothers milk is high in Transfats... it is one of the highest sources of transfats found... Solution? A change in mothers diet can cut it out within days...

UK
A Hospital dealing with preemies is running low on their supply of donated breastmilk...

India
Hospital in Mumbai has set up a "Breast Milk Bank"

Norway
Experts now recommend that children be breastfed up to the age of two or three because of a range of health benefits

USA
Breastmilk causes more cavities then Cow milk... Tests in Rats... using Cola, honey etc... no saliva in rats... all of the substances left to "pool" in mouth... Breastmilk comes in second best after Cow milk... somewhere in the article it mentions that formula is equalto/less then breastmilk.. but of course breastmilk remains the culprit...
(don't they know that breastmilk DOESN'T pool in the mouth when baby falls asleep?!?!)


Breast feeding is often in the news... however... where are all the stories about the dangers of Formula...
I will never understand why someone would CHOOSE to give such a horrible substance to their child, something that clearly causes Cancer, Allergies, Digestive problems, Obesity, Diabeties and even Death... the WHO even states that Formula is only to be used as a last resort and is the 5th and last choice to Infant feeding...
I am tired of talking about how Breast is Best... Breast is the norm and the rest is inferior and dangerous and should only be used as a last resort after all other possibilies have been tried...
It is time that Formula gets into the news... It is time that the companies pay for all the crimes they have commited and all of the children they have killed....

Just a few things....

The kids are napping at the same time!!! Yeah!!!
I finally have a few minutes for myself... I could catch up on some sleep, or do house work... but nah... I want to sit here and write a few minutes...

A little while ago I realized that the kids where watching way too much TV... I am sure it isn't as much as most kids but it was too much for me... We finally kicked the habit in a way that makes me happy... Xavier watches about 30 min (which is usually Little Bear) in the morning and then the TV is closed until I start making supper around 5-5:30 pm....
At first it was a bit hard for Xavier, he kept turning the TV back on but I just put it at either the Talk Radio station or the kids music station so that the TV was on but not for the picture but just the sound...
Though in a perfect world, TV wouldn't be part of their lives at all... I am OK with just a small bit and it being very age appropriate shows... I only let him watch Treehouse channel which is only pre-school oriented and commercial free...and his favorites right now are Little Bear and Max & Ruby....
I have seen a change in the way that he is playing since the TV is off though that makes me even more aware of why too much TV is not a good thing... But I think in moderation it can be OK....
---------
As for other habits that are changing in the house... I am slowly starting to clean the house mor in depth... I am a packrat... I admit it and I am now starting to work on it... slowly I am getting rid of 'stuff' that I just don't need and clutter that is just getting in the way... The more I do, the more I feel better but it isn't getting any easier...