PARENT YOU SHOULD KNOW
Patricia Tanumihardja
BY HEATHER M. ROSS
What was the inspiration for
your book?
couple of years because he has a job that
requires him to travel 25% of the time. We try
very hard to make sure we set aside time for
family. I make sure to go to my son’s games.

I take him to practices. One thing is for sure,
sometimes my husband can’t make it home for
dinner every night, but I make sure my son and
I have time at dinner. We make sure we have
time for family, even if it’s just playing a board
game for an hour or two. If there’s a time I have
back-to-back deadlines and I can’t spend [the]
time, I’ll make up for it. Family meals together
are definitely a must.

The main inspiration is actually my son.

He’s now 13, but he absolutely loves noodles.

Starting from a young age, we brought him to
his first ramen restaurant when he was 3 or 4,
and he just loves noodles. I was observing the
relationship between my son and my husband,
and what little boy doesn’t totally look up to
his dad, right? He wanted to do everything
his dad does.

I’m also a cookbook author. When I was
writing “Ramen for Everyone,” I was also
working on some ramen recipes for an
upcoming cookbook.

What do you hope your son
The ability to transfer my thoughts into
words. My brain is always filled with so many
ideas and thoughts, and I just love being able
to go through the creative process. I’ve done
a couple book events. I went to my son’s old
elementary school a couple weeks ago, and
there’s just so much joy in bringing books to
children. Being a person of color, being able
ood brings people together. This to see kids who look like me see themselves
is something
author Patricia reflected in books is totally amazing. The
Tanumihardja knows well. While her biggest joy is interacting with the kids who are
name is typically found on the covers of reading and enjoying my books.

cookbooks, she recently cooked up something
new — her first children’s book. “Ramen for What do you love most about
Everyone,” released earlier this year, is a being a parent?
story seven years in the making, inspired by There’s so much to love about being a parent.

Tanumihardja’s own family, including herself, As a parent, you want the best for your children
her husband, Omar, and her son, Isaac (13).

and you do everything you can for them. And
They live in West Springfield, Virginia, to see the result of all your sacrifices and
where she spends her time testing out recipes, hard work—when I see that my son has taken
baking for fun and doing craft projects.

what I taught him to heart and he does those
Tanumihardja, who was born in Jakarta things, it just makes me so happy to see that.

and grew up in Singapore, has long had an To see him growing up to be an accomplished,
affinity for weaving food and culture into kind, gentle soul is amazing. I see him being
compelling stories. But it wasn’t until her son so compassionate and kind to people and his
was born that she realized how much she loved friends, and it just warms my heart.

children’s stories.

In “Ramen for Everyone,” she celebrates How do you balance work and
the bond between father and child as young family life?
Hiro tries to make a bowl of ramen as delicious With great, great difficulty! It’s been really
as his dad’s.

tough for me and my husband in the last
F 26 Washington FAMILY JUNE 2023
learns from you?
So many things! That it’s not all about you. I
grew up in a family where you always thought
about other people before yourself, and it’s
not the easiest thing to do, but I realize that
you also have to put on your oxygen mask first
before you help others. [I hope he learns] to be
a kind and compassionate person. I hope that
he’s able to be empathetic and know how to
put himself in other people’s shoes. T
FAMILY FAVORITES
Meal: Ramen!
Dessert: Tres leches cake
Vacation spot: Hawaii; My sister
lives on Oahu
Local place: Marumen in Fairfax,
[Virginia] Family activity: We enjoy
going hiking.

Game: It’s a toss-up between “King
of Tokyo” and “Dragonwood.”
LOIS COHODAS PHOTO/CHANTAL NASTIS-CN PHOTOGRAPHY
What do you love most about
your job?



HEALTHY FAMILY
Your Guide to Baby-proofing
Your Home
BY HEATHER M. ROSS
B BABY: LOSTINBIDS/ E+/GETTY IMAGES PLUS; HEADSHOTS PROVIDED
aby-proofing is an important step
in every parent’s journey. As chil-
dren grow, so does their curiosity.

The goal is to make your home a safe place
for them to play and explore without risking
injuries. To create our baby-proofing guide, we
reached out to two pediatricians — Jonathan
Miller, who practices at a Nemours Hospital
clinic in Wilmington, Delaware, and Rachel
Plotnick, a member of GMBC’s Pediatric
Group, in Towson, Maryland.

Both have three children of their own, and
each pediatrician has more than 16 years of
experience. Here’s their advice on how and
when to baby-proof.

The Time is Now
Baby-proofing needs to be done by the
time your little one is rolling, crawling and
exploring, and most parents wait until then,
but Plotnick recommends doing it before
the baby is even born. Once the baby is
here, you’ll have your hands full, she says.

So where to start? Miller recommends
a somewhat unconventional method: get-
ting low.

“When I talk to families about child-proof-
ing and safety, usually when kids are around
6 months old, I encourage people to get
down on their hands and knees and crawl
around their home. You’ll find outlets [and]
cabinets that have things you don’t want a
baby to have access to,” Miller says.

Here are some of the top hazards to
address when baby-proofing:
Stairs Miller says falls down the stairs are one of
the most common mishaps he sees. Stair
safety should include baby gates at both the
top and bottom of the stairs, he says.

“Teach your child how to navigate the steps
safely by crawling. Bring them to the steps,
position yourself below them and teach them
how to crawl down the steps feet-first. That
way, if they do find themselves with steps,
they know how to do it safely,” Miller says.

Burns Another common injury Miller
sees is burns to the face and
chest from children pulling hot
Jonathan Miller
Rachel Plotnick
foods or drinks off of tables.

“Think about anything you
put on a surface or near the edge of a surface Plants
that infants may not see but can get their Plants in and around your home are usually
hands on,” he explains. “Don’t put hot, sharp harmless, unless you start putting them in
your mouth. Many common plants can pose
or breakable things near the edge of a table.”
a danger to infants, including unripe toma-
This is important guidance to give visi-
toes, potato sprouts, nightshade, azaleas and
tors, too, Miller says, because more often
oleanders. Even peace lilies can pose a seri-
than not, it’s a friend’s or grandparent’s cup
ous danger to young children.

of coffee.

Review CHOP’s poisonous plant guide
Furniture at chop.edu/centers-programs/poison-control-
Think about things that could fall down if center/poisonous-plants.

shaken or climbed on, such as bookshelves Water
or dressers. These items can be anchored “Kids can drown really quickly and really
to the wall to keep babies safe. Another risk silently,” Plotnick says.

area, according to Plotnick, is around cor-
According to the Children’s Safety Net-
ners and furniture with sharp edges.

work, nearly 900 children in the United
States die every year from unintentional
Doors Toddlers will open doors before you’re ready drowning. Drowning doesn’t always hap-
for it. Occasionally, they’ll open doors they pen in a regular pool; it can happen in a tub,
aren’t supposed to open—the scariest of those a kiddie pool or even in a bucket. Children
being front doors, Miller says. Add childproof should always be supervised around water,
and bathtubs should be drained right away
knob covers and make a habit of locking any
when not in use.

doors that can lead out of the house.

Medication and Drugs
Small Items
Another common household hazard par-
Some of the most dangerous things to look
ents should pay special attention to is
out for are the smallest—those small enough
placement of medication or recreational
to fit in an infant’s mouth or be swallowed.

substances like cannabis or liquid nico-
When Plotnick’s children were born, she tine. Liquid nicotine from e-cigarettes,
switched away from laundry pods entirely. e-hookahs, vape pens and other elec-
The brightly colored pods can look appe- tronic nicotine devices can be absorbed
tizing to young children, who often explore through the skin or swallowed. Even a
with their mouths.

small amount can be fatal in the hands of
Other small items with a big risk attached a toddler.

are button batteries. “Button batteries can
“Know when you have these products in
cause damage in three ways,” according your house and store them far away, and be
to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia careful when you use them,” Plotnick says.

(CHOP). “They can create an electrical cur-
Prescription medications often arrive
rent, put pressure on sensitive tissues and from the pharmacy in childproof bottles. Be
leak harmful chemicals, which can cause sure not to transfer them to baggies or other
easier-to-open containers.

burns to the throat and stomach.”
WashingtonFAMILY.com 27