A sun smart guide to a summer without regret

Summer is time for building sand castles at the beach, playing in the lake and taking swimming lessons.  It's all great exercise but the sun can take a toll on young, delicate skin.  According to the Skin Cancer Foundation,  just one severe sunburn in childhood doubles the chances of developing melanoma later in life.  With a family incidence of moles and displastic nevi (a precursor to cancer) I wasn't taking any chances with all the arms, legs and noses I'm responsible for.  I am always thinking about how to minimize the amount of sun exposure for my kids while not turning into the fearful killjoy who threatens to lock the children indoors.  A smart mom (or dad) needs to manage the risk, letting kids enjoy life while taking preventative steps wherever feasible.  Along the way, I've found some products to make playing outside safer.

Our first line of defense is trying to schedule outdoor play first thing in the morning.  Our kids are early risers so heading to the beach when we're on vacation at 8AM (sigh) isn't a problem and that keeps us out of the most intense rays of the day.  Next, we create a shade situation where the kids can choose to play.   A large
umbrella like this one and/or a pop up tent like this one can help provide some shade for little diggers.  But since nobody stays in the same place very long, both boys are used to wearing their sun protective beachwear.  I am a big fan of Coolibar hats and long sleeve rashguards from Lands End.  I wash them gently so the specially designed fabric doesn't lose any of its sun protective properties as the weave breaks down.  I replace them seasonally and now and then test them by holding them up to a lamp or window to see how much light filters through.  I strongly recommend getting children accustomed to sun protective gear sooner rather than later.  My kids have been wearing long sleeve rashguards to the beach their whole lives so they don't know to complain about it!

The last line of defense is sunscreen and I've tried plenty of them.  I've also read a lot about them because there's a lot of information out there about the chemicals used in sunscreens and whether or not they may be too harsh for a child's skin.  I prefer to balance out the physical and the chemical blocks used in my products while the jury is out on micronization and nanoparticles.  If you care to read more, check out HealthyChild.org.

My husband's dermatologist likes Blue Lizard sunscreen and I really like it too but it's relatively expensive and hard to find in stores.  It rubs in easily and doesn't leave a white residue.  More accessible
choices which I also like are BabyGanics Cover up Baby which is also available at my local Toys R Us and Badger sunscreen face stick which I can pick up at Whole Foods.  The Badger stick is easy to swipe over little noses anxious to get back to playing.  All of my personal picks are also on the Environmental Working Group's list of "Best Beach and Sport Sunscreens." 

Do you have any must-have techniques or products to keep your kids safe in the sun?

First Look: Old School Pizza in Wellesley

If there's one thing Wellesley has plenty of it's banks and pizza places. The latest addition is Old School Pizza which takes up space vacated by College Square Pizza which mysteriously disappeared last year.

According to The Townsman's Teddy Applebaum Old School is owned by Joe Perdoni Jr. with help from highly regarded Tutto Italiano's Bobby Palizzolo. Though they don't have delivery (yet) we decided to try Old School for this week's Family Pizza Night. How was it? I'm glad you asked.

Ordering the pizza for pick-up over the phone was an interesting affair. I was left on hold for 3 minutes and able to hear what sounded to be a crowded and hectic restaurant. I got disconnected, called back and placed my order:

• 1 Small White Clam Pizza ($14.99)
• 1 Small Tomato Pie w/Mozzarella and Mushroom ($8.99 + $0.75)
• 1 Greek Salad ($6)

Total: $36

A little pricey but we could have kept he cost down if we'd gotten 1 large instead. I wanted to try a couple different pizzas so I think it was worth it. Good start.

Pick-up was a little hectic. We had to pay for parking across the street and there was a line for pick-up. Our food was ready by the time we got through the line, we got what we wanted, and it was still warm by the time it got home.

The Greek salad was nicely loaded with toppings including stuffed grape leaves. The dressing was typical pizza house quality. A good salad for $6.

The White Clam pizza is described as coming with "Whole Belly Clams, Grated Cheese, Fresh Garlic & EVOO, Basil & Shaved Parmesan." I'm not a big clam guy but visually the pizza looked and smelled delicious. Our 6 year old blurted out an unsolicited "this is better than Upper Crust!" My wife said it was "garlicky" - and she likes garlic.

I went with a simple mushroom pizza wanting to compare it to one of my favorite pizzas I've had the past year - a mushroom pizza from Upper Crust paired with a 2006 Radio-Coteau La Neblina Pinot Noir. The combination of earthy and slightly sweet notes in each combined with their focused flavors was a brilliant pairing.

That said, I think the Old School mushroom pizza was better. The mushrooms were sauteed to perfection, and the crust found that perfect combination where it's crunchy on the outside but still soft on the inside. And the sauce - the sauce! Ripe tomato flavors with a touch of sweetness with the perfect amount of saltiness for my taste. I can't think of a better sauce I've tasted. A delicious pizza.

Overall Rating:
4/5 Stars: Very Good/Outstanding

Conclusions and Outlook:

Old School Pizza is a welcome addition to the crowded Wellesley pizza scene. Add delivery and we'll look forward to trying them again. I thought the simple mushroom pizza was delicious and some of the "Favorite Pies" on their menu look intriguing.

Further Reading:

• A first look at Upper Crust
• Why doesn't anyone eat at the CPK in Wellesley?

Check 'em out:
http://OSPizza.com
781-235-8300
No delivery (yet)

Roku: First Impressions

I bought a Roku from Amazon – it arrived yesterday.

Setup took less than 10 minutes. The reason I bought it over the Apple TV is that it works with our old SD TV but it’s also capable of streaming 1080p HD.

First thing I did was Netflix and streamed the kids favorite Busytown Mysteries for free. Loved it.

Next thing was hook up Pandora. Nice interface, connects to your existing account and remembers your stations. It works with or without the TV on and hooks to the stereo with an optical cable. Sounds great through the house.

Then, a free kids movie via Amazon. Amazon has started streaming some content free for Prime subscribers.

Finally: The big creshendo - Breaking Bad Season 3!! I bought the season from Amazon in SD for $16.99 (13 episodes) less a $5 credit I had for some past Amazon digital purchase. Haven’t been able to find that anywhere else yet.

It doesn’t have YouTube, it doesn’t stream podcasts, it doesn’t play nice with Apple products, and it can’t stream from our music collection without some effort.  But for $99 it does a whole lot of stuff that I like. They make a $59 model too but I liked the optical audio out, the better wireless networking, and the 1080p streaming for the future.

Things To Avoid: Guardsman Furniture Insurance

We bought a bunch of furniture from Domain 3 years ago.  Though I normally avoid extended warranties and insurance - especially for stuff like this - one of the pieces was a light-colored upholstered sofa.  We didn't want to have some type of protective chemical applied to any of the furniture so we were going to decline the protection plan.  But the beauty of the Guardsman plan, or so we thought, was that it insured the furniture for 5 years against accidental breakage and even damage inflicted by youngers without applying any products to the furniture.  It's just a financial protection plan.  We paid $99 to insure the 4 pieces of furniture we bought.

We had a feeling the kids might mar the sofa in some way - and they did.  A red marker stain now stretches about 4 feet across the sofa.  It took a few days to track down the policy information and figure out the procedure for filing a claim with Guardsman.

I called them to report the damage about a week or two after it occurred.  While I was going through the hassle, I thought I'd get them to repair the back of an upholstered leather chair that was coming loose.  When I called they took down all my information and then E-mailed me claim forms.

One of the requirements spelled out on the claim forms was to submit a copy of the sales receipt showing we purchased the Guardsman protection.  I was hoping they'd have our information on file already but no such luck.  If we couldn't produce the sales receipt we'd be denied coverage.

Fortunately after much searching I was able to track down the sales receipt.  I filled out the forms, faxed them in, and waited.  A couple weeks later they left a message saying they needed some additional information.  I called back and they told me they were denying the claim because I took too long after the damage occurred before filing the claim.  They said their policy is that claims need to be filed within 5 days of when the damage occurs.

When I filled out the forms they asked when the damage occurred.  I arbitrarily said December 1st, not realizing it would be the information they'd use as justification for denying my claim.  The thing is - the loose back on the upholstered chair was a gradually occurring condition that didn't have a definitive date.  I told the claim agent I thought it was a ridiculously tight time frame to report a claim.  She said it was important to have a tight time frame because they didn't want stains to set before they sent a repair technician out to the house.  If that's true - why does it take 3 weeks to go through a claims process?  And what sense does that make in the context of damaged furniture having nothing to do with stain removal?

I think it's just one of many ways they deny claims based on technicalities.

The only thing that annoys me more than the aggressive sale of extended warranties and insurance plans is when the companies behind them make it difficult to file a claim then deny claims for minor technicalities.

I spoke to two agents, the second being Kristen, employee ID number 7001.  She seemed entirely too comfortable rejecting a claim outright for such a minor technicality, as if she did it all day.  I've filed a complaint with the Massachusetts Consumer Affairs Division of Insurance, and I wrote this blog.

With that, Guardsman, you're dead to me.  It's not the end of the world that our stupid furniture has some damage, but we paid you money to insure it and you failed to live up to your end of the bargain.  You know your operation is a sham.  I hope you go out of business soon.