Children are...boring?

A mother in London wrote an article recently in the

Daily Mirror

going on and on about how bored she is with parenting. I find this article intriguing and obviously it's hit a nerve between the SMUM's (smart, middle class, uninvolved mothers) and the women who actually enjoy being a parent. The talk shows and blogs are having a field day with this.

No doubt about it, parenting is hard and exhausting work. I can speak from experience having just returned from an airplane trip with two kids under 3 by myself. I do agree with the article, that you can't do EVERYTHING for your child or they will never think for themselves. But, I think there can be a balance between parenthood, marriage, work and just life. On the reverse, if this woman finds herself bored with the experience and would rather go shopping...then perhaps she shouldn't have had kids at all. I completely respect the decision NOT to have kids, it's not for everybody. But for me at the end of my life, I'm not going to look back and say - 'gee, i wish I could've worked another day' and 'damn, that was a good sale at Barney's in 2006'. I'm going to want to look back on some great memories we made and say, 'I raised two lovely, contributing humans to society.' Period.

What are your thoughts? Are you bored with being a Mommy?

Things My Mom Would Never Say

1. "How on earth can you see the TV sitting so far back?"

2. "Yeah, I used to skip school a lot, too"

3. "Just leave all the lights on ... it makes the house look more cheery"

4. "Let me smell that shirt -- Yeah, it's good for another week"

5. "Go ahead and keep that stray dog, honey. I'll be glad to feed and walk him every day"

6. "Well, if Timmy's mom says it's OK, that's good enough for me."

7. "The curfew is just a general time to shoot for. It's not like I'm running a prison around here."

8. "I don't have a tissue with me ... just use your sleeve"

9. "Don't bother wearing a jacket - the wind-chill is bound to improve"

- Anonymous

Having a First Child...

Ok, just a silly story: A man and his wife were making their first doctor visit, the wife being pregnant with their first child.

After everything checked out, the doctor took a small stamp and stamped the wife's stomach with indelible ink.

The couple was curious about what the stamp was for, so when they got home, the husband got out his magnifying glass to try to see what it was.

In very tiny letters, the stamp said, "When you can read this, come back and see me."

- Anonymous

Sibling Rivalry

It's only like this sometimes...

Birthday Party Tips for Children's Parties

Do you ever get home after a birthday party and think "How did she do that? Every thing was perfect the kids had fun and Mom and Dad seemed so calm!"
Was she actually organized and prepared? I didn't know this could still happen! Especially now that I have 2 kids.

Many moms believe that hosting a birthday party requires more energy, creativity and patience than they can muster.
Not true!

BASICS
Children remember what they did at a party much more than what they ate, what the plates and napkins looked like or whether the house was spotless. Don't sweat the little details! Cupcakes rather than cake seems to be a popular fad right now....

The best party times are......1:00 - 3:00 or 2:00 - 4:00. AND BONUS- You can avoid serving a meal.
For little ones try 10:00am -11:30 to work around nap time.

INVITATIONS
The Invitation Equation:
Child's age + 1 = happy kids
For children under 8 years old, invite as many children as the child's age plus one. Some parents choose to add 1 or 2 to this equation. Only you can know your limits. Obviously as your child gets much older the formula will need a little "tweaking".

Who to Invite
Parties for very young children, more often than not will include family members; cousins, siblings etc.
As your child gets older, invite only your child's closest playmates. This would probably include friends from daycare, school, mommy and me groups and neighbors.

"I don't want to leave anyone out!"
This is a common dilemma, especially when your children begin to attend school. Try to be discreet by mailing the invitations. Speak with the teacher about coming in for a brief and simple class party. At my daughter's preschool the norm seems to be bringing in pizza and cupcakes. You could bring a small party favor for each kid if you felt inclined.

WIN or LOSE
No one should go home a Loser!
Competitive games are enjoyable only for the people who win. A party should be Fun...Avoid tears by selecting games that everyone gets a chance to succeed. NOthing worse then a group of crying 3 year olds.

BE PREPARED!!!
Set up activities. Prepare ALL of the activities, games etc. before the party. This enables you to focus on the kids when the party begins. The mamasnap kids, who both turn three next month and are having a joint party, will have a build a butterfly sticker craft "station", a jumper and a pin the ladybug on a leaf game.

Ask a friend , family member or neighbor to help with the party. It's likely you have a neighborhood teenager who would love to help, when offered a few dollars for their time.

In choosing party favors, it's better to spend more creativity than money. Guests should be given some wonderful little item/items that have to do with the party—a flower pot and seeds for a garden party or in our case, a bug viewer filled with plastic bugs, butterfly bubbles and stickers.
You can even send the kids home with an item they have made during the party. The birthday child should hand out the favors. This will remind her to say "thank you".

Remember to have fun and enjoy the celebration of your child's bir

United We Stand.

A nice picture for today. Why not? Hug a girlfriend today!

The Way Children See Things...

This was sent in by a fellow blogger...a collection of stories from Mom's nationwide. Enjoy!

NUDITY
I was driving with my three young children one warm summer evening when a Woman in the convertible ahead of us stood up and waved. She was stark naked! As I was reeling from the shock, I heard my 5-year-old shout from the back seat, "Mom! That lady isn't wearing a seat belt!"

HONESTY
My son Zachary, 4, came screaming out of the bathroom to tell me he'd dropped his toothbrush in the toilet. So I fished it out and threw it in the garbage. Zachary stood there thinking for a moment, then ran to my bathroom and came out with my toothbrush. He held it up and said with a charming little smile, "We better throw this one out too then, 'cause it fell in the toilet a few days ago.

OPINIONS
On the first day of school, a first-grader handed his teacher a Note from his mother. The note read, "The opinions expressed by this child are not necessarily those of his parents."

KETCHUP
A woman was trying hard to get the ketchup to come out of the jar. During her struggle the phone rang so she asked her 4-year-old daughter to answer the phone. "It's the minister, Mommy," the child said to her mother. Then she added, "Mommy can't come to the phone to talk to you right now. She's hitting the bottle."

MORE NUDITY
A little boy got lost at the YMCA and found himself in the women's locker room. When he was spotted, the room burst into shrieks, with ladies grabbing towels and running for cover. The little boy watched in amazement and then asked, "What's the matter haven't you ever seen a little boy before?"

ELDERLY
While working for an organization that delivers lunches to elderly shut-ins, I used to take my 4-year-old daughter on my afternoon rounds. The various appliances of old age, particularly the canes, walkers and wheelchairs, unfailingly intrigued her. One day I found her staring at a pair of false teeth soaking in a glass. As I braced myself for the inevitable barrage of questions, she merely turned and whispered, "The tooth fairy will never believe this!"

DRESS-UP
A little girl was watching her parents dress for a party. When she saw her dad donning his tuxedo, she warned, "Daddy, you shouldn't wear that suit." "And why not, darling?" "You know that it always gives you a headache the next morning."

SCHOOL
A little girl had just finished her first week of school. "I'm just wasting my time," she said to her mother. "I can't read, I can't write and they won't let me talk!"

Sex May Cause Labor...duh

You see, I always suspected this even though my doctor said - 'oh no, it's fine.' It just didn't make any sense. You are HUGELY pregnant and you're telling me that having sex will NOT pop that bubble? Well here's the science to prove my hunch was right.

According a recent study published in the medical journal Obstetrics and Gynecology: Women who have sexual intercourse during late pregnancy are more likely than abstinent women to have a spontaneous delivery at 38 to 40 weeks' and less likely to require labor induction, according to results of a study conducted in Malaysia. Here's the entire article on from

Reuters

So ladies, if you're looking to deliver naturally and not be induced, here's how...

School Lunches Get Healthy...maybe

I applaud this effort before my kids make it to full-time school - it's about time. Remember that horrific mac and cheese that acted like glue when you smooshed in your milk carton and turned the tray upside down to see if it stuck? Schools are promising to keep closer tabs on student lunch trays, pull sugary treats from vending machines and classroom celebrations and encourage more pulse-raising activities during the school day. The nation's public schools are under orders to adopt nutrition and exercise goals before classes resume in the fall. The written wellness policies are required by a federal law that took effect July 1.

"Some school districts and school buildings have already made a lot of these changes and some have done nothing just because they've never been required to," said Alicia Moag-Stahlberg, executive director of Action for Healthy Kids, a 50-state nonprofit network. "Frankly, schools that have never had this conversation are having it."

The law's primary objective is straightforward: combating rising childhood obesity rates. Overweight children miss more school than their average weight counterparts, according to the National School Boards Association. Backers also argue that reducing sugar in students' diets leads to greater focus in the classroom. Some states are making similar efforts through new laws and policies, and the federal law gives school boards wide latitude, causing vast differences in their approaches.
In Tennessee's Williamson County, for instance, the broadly worded policy runs 23 lines; in Hampton, New Hampshire, the five-page plan is so detailed it suggests elementary students have "at least two colors other than white and brown as part of their lunch meal." Committees comprised of administrators, teachers, parents and students are looking well beyond the cafeteria for ways to promote healthier eating habits and more physical activity.

In St. Paul, students will find water, fruit juice and milk in vending machines that used to dispense soda. In Farmington, Utah, schools are holding recess before lunch so kids don't give short shrift to their meals in the race to the playground. Teachers in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, will encounter restrictions on goodies they can give out in their classrooms. Lollipops and sodas will be no-nos. Rhonda Dunham, a principal at an elementary school in the district, will try other rewards for students who meet homework goals or display good behavior. One plan is to set up elegant lunches, where kids get specially prepared meals at tables with linen cloths, china and glassware. "They feel a bit more grownup that way," she said. Classroom candy also has lost favor in the northwestern Minnesota district of Perham Dent. "The truth is, one Jolly Rancher isn't bad, but 13 years of several Jolly Ranchers a day is a bad habit to learn," said superintendent Tamara Uselman. Her district is incorporating more movement into the school day as well. One geography teacher is setting up stations in her classroom so students are on the move every 20 minutes.

Many school districts are making clear that recess is valuable exercise time and shouldn't be withheld as punishment.
While school leaders and health advocates generally laud the law's intent, concerns do exist. Congress didn't give schools money to implement the policies or offer compensation for the potential loss of vending sales proceeds. An Illinois education panel noted another barrier: Schools have difficulty setting aside time from their other pressing priorities such as the federal No Child Left Behind law, which carries consequences if students don't show progress in core subjects.

The wellness directive requires school districts to measure progress but doesn't contain consequences for those that don't live up to the law. "I don't think the federal government put enough teeth into this," Dunham, the elementary principal, said. "We are accountable basically only to ourselves. In some school districts, I could see this going by the wayside."
And don't expect the wellness policies to, um, bear fruit overnight. "It's like eating an elephant," said Brenda Greene, the National School Board Association's director of school health programs. "You need to do it one bite at a time."

Source - AP

President Upsets Future Voter

6 am laugh

This Sunday morning I was up at 5am to feed my 1 month old. Between suckling, gnawing, burping and actually eating he takes about an hour for each feeding. He does this twice in the night so I feel like I am never really getting any sleep. Today at 5:45am my three old daughter,Lulu, woke up. She used to get up around 6:30-7am but since the baby was born, she has been up earlier. Anyway- she called from her room for her Daddy. My husband went in, got her and brought her into our bed. She lay there for about 5 minutes then went back into her room and brought in a pile of books. My daughter likes to lay on my arm and cuddle as I read to her. Before Oliver was born we did this every morning. I try to continue the tradition but I am just so tired and it is really hard to do with an infant latched on to your breast. I really try to cherish these times because I know they won't last forever. Then again.... I think I am thankful they won't? I am torn....
So during all the morning "activity" I had a good laugh when, while sandwiched in between my kids, my husband looked at me and said "Remember the days when we used to sleep in until 6:30?"

Training your husband....

Does your husband have habits that drive you crazy? Mine does....he leaves his shoes in the middle of the floor, he misplaces pretty much everything and he leaves stubble in the sink after shaving. Other then that I feel like I have married the most perfect man for me. Who knew that there are ways to train your husband/mate to be closer to what you imagine "perfect" to be?
"What Shamu Taught Me About a Happy Marriage" by Amy Sutherland is a MUST read article that was published in the New York Times on June 25th, 2006. It is not only enlightening but very funny. I actually think her methods will work! So give it a try! I know I will!
Click here to read this great article!
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/25/fashion/25love.html?pagewanted=2&ei=5070&en=0bddee2b931e817e&ex=1152417600

Disney's Dirty Duck

Save the Skin You're In!

While slathering my kids with sunscreen over this holiday weekend, I googled skin and here's what I came up with: diet, exercise and sun safety are all factors to consider when protecting the largest of the human body - the skin. According to the American Cancer Society, the best way to protest your skin from harmful ultraviolet rays is to limit your time in direct sunlight especially between 10 am and 4 pm. For those of us that live in Los Angeles, this isn't very practical. Here are some summer skin savers and some reminders for you and your kids:

Always wear sunscreen outdoors during the summer months, even if it's just a simple errand like going to the grocery store.

Choose a sunscreen that has a sun protection factor (spf) of 15 or higher. SPF corresponds to the amount of time you can spend in the sun w/o getting burned. An increase in SPF however, does NOT mean an increase in time allowed in the sun. Sunscreen needs to be applied regularly and consistently for it to remain effective over any length of time. It takes approx. 1 ounce of sunscreen to cover an entire adult. That's one fourth of a standard 4 ounce bottle.

Excercise regularly. Consistent exercise helps in the prevention of such diseases as cancer and it also benefits the skin's appearance by increasing blood circulation and delivering oxygen to your skin cells.

Good skin health occurs at the cell level as well. Experts recommend 3 - 4 servings of green vegetables per day which are high in antioxidant properties needed to help neutralize free radicals that are known to damage cells and tissues.