Moms

Remember those late nights trying to soothe a colicky baby? Or how you spent days bribing your three year old with M&Ms to pretty-pretty-please-poop-on-the-potty? We complain and grumble about these mundane, less-than-glamorous moments of motherhood, but I don’t know, the next phase of parenting looks pretty freaking scary to me. As my six year old prepares to “graduate” from kindergarten, it suddenly feels like he’s one step away from junior high and falling in love and getting a driver’s license. When I really stop and consider some of the challenging and – yes – painful mom moments that are undoubtedly ahead of me, it makes me appreciate (and dare I say, enjoy?) these days when my biggest parenting dilemma is whether I should let my kids watch those obnoxious “Bubble Guppies” for the umpteenth time. Here are the ten moments I dread most… 1. When my kids ask me whether I ever smoked cigarettes, drank in high school or did any other naughty things and I have to decide whether to flat-out lie or tell them some version of the truth. 2. Changing my son’s sheets when he’s a teenager and finding evidence of … well … you know … 3. Having “the talk.” At least my husband and I each get stuck with initiating one, since we have a son and a daughter. But we moms get screwed. We’re the ones who have to sing the praises of tampons and explain how babies exit a woman’s body and make “You’re going to bleed every single month for the next 25 years!” sound exciting. 4. Being told “I hate you!” when it sure sounds like they mean it. 5. The first time one of my kids gets bullied: whether it’s online, at recess or by the local “mean girls.” I’d like to think it’s never going to happen, but it just seems kind of inevitable these days. 6. Living with a moody, dramatic, hormonal teenage girl. There’s only room for one moody female in this house and you’re looking at her. This is going to be fun. Oh, and yes, Mom and Dad, I realize this is what you call karma. You can stop laughing now. 7. Realizing I am no longer capable of helping with my kids’ homework (algebra, anyone?), which leads them to believe they are smarter than me. 8. Setting curfews and then staying up late, staring at the clock, waiting for them to walk in the door safely. Thank God for texting. Remember having to make that awful 11:30pm call to your parents to tell them you were going to be late? 9. Two words: driver’s permit. 10. The minute I go from being “Mommy” to just “Mom.” What inevitable moments do you dread? Author informationJessica GrimesJessica blogs about her attempts to juggle a full-time job, family, motherhood, marriage, fitness, some semblance of a personal life -- and, most importantly, her sanity -- on Keeping Mommy Sane. She lives in the Boston area with her husband, 6-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter. Keep up with her (mis)adventures on Twitter and Facebook.The post 10 Dread Worthy Mom Moments appeared first on Scary Mommy: An honest look at motherhood.

So, about two weeks ago, I decided to sign one of my daughters up for ballet class. It doesn't begin until July. I had a great big problem, though. There were only a couple of places with which I felt comfortable enough to send my child. I know an awful lot about dance, and I did not want a "recital school". The school that I attended is no longer in business. I went to one other down the street from my kids school, and I know the director, but I got very bad vibes when I went in the building.  I didn't want a school that would put a three-year-old onstage. I wanted to school that took dance seriously, a place where she would learn all of the things that she needs to learn, and that had the potential to move her further if she had the desire as well as the skill. I thought about every school in the area, discarding them one by one. I knew there was one school that met the criteria, although it is not in my city. It would mean a 20 to 25 minute drive, but I was willing to do it. After all, it's near the musical training my opera singing daughter attends. I went downtown to the school, sat in on a class, and found everything to be exactly as I remembered. There were six studios, classes full but with a good teacher/student ratio, and absolutely zero discipline issues that I could see. Excellent floors. I know the school well - you see, I had trained there for a year when I was 20. It is one of the best schools in the area, in my opinion, and, like I said -  I know an awful lot about dance. So I signed her up for a six-week dance camp, one class a week. While I was there, I asked about adult classes. And then, without even thinking about it, I paid for a single class. For myself. I was alternate parts euphoric and petrified, but I thought that, well - I could try one class and see how it went. And then today happened. I grabbed my new leotard and tights - I'd ordered a set for myself when I ordered my daughter's - and my old slippers (found in my dance bag) and started driving. To say that I was nervous would be a gross understatement. What if I hated it? What if I was the fattest person in the classroom? What if I couldn't remember anything? What if everyone laughed when they saw me there? Ballet dancers don't have tattoos. What in the hell was I doing, going back to a ballet class, at age 43, when I haven't danced for close to 15 years? What if I was absolutely terrible? I'm usually fairly self-critical, but I thought that I was a pretty good dancer - maybe I had exaggerated my dance skills all those years ago. Maybe, there was no way the world I would belong in this class. I drove. I called my mom and talked to her and decided To Heck with it - I'd already given myself a nervous stomach and I was really pissed off with myself for even debating the issue. You are going, and that's it, so stop even thinking about it! I arrived at the school. No one was there. Doors were locked, lights were off, no one answered the doorbell. I went back to my car and I did my hair, remembering the high bun and the bangs back from my face - a look I haven't sported in, well, forever.This is ridiculous - maybe no one will have their hair up. But, it's a really professional school - of course everyone will have their hair up. No one came. I told myself that it was early, class didn't start for twenty minutes. Fifteen minutes. Ten Minutes. Five minutes. Four other students arrived, but I sat in my car, too nervous to get out - because, really, I probably didn't belong here. No one had their hair up, no one had tights on - I started to feel like a first class fool, someone that was taking this whole thing WAY too seriously. And a teacher never showed. I left thirty minutes after the class was set to begin, after the other students hugged and kissed and waved good bye and I wondered what, indeed, was I doing there. I left a message and no one called me back. And I'm left wondering if I should try the Friday class, or get

Summer has arrived – finally – and the mommies are coming in for a “quickie” podcast to discuss kids in 5Ks, expecting more from our growing children, escaping with the kids for a weekend out of the country, and whatever else comes to mind. Links mentioned: Sharon Timlin Memorial 5K Race to Cure ALS | The Rapture | Great Wolf Lodge | JetBlue - Boston to Buffalo | U.S. Customs and Border Protection - Child traveling with one parent or someone who is not a parent or legal guardian or a group | Become a Notary | Moms In Motion | Jury’s Verdict Leaves Heather Boyum’s Family Disappointed | Bath salts (drug) | Scribblenauts Listen: iTunes | mp3

When the kids and I road tripped to Washington DC nearly two years ago, as we were crossing into Delaware on the Delaware Memorial Bridge, I spied a giant statue of Mary on the side of the road. I didn’t know anything about it at the time, and we snapped the best picture we could from where we were. When we were on our way to Baltimore two weeks ago, and I was going through the Roadside America app, the statue of Mary popped up as one of their roadside attractions along our route. And this is when it came full circle. And quickly got added to our list. One, because it was pretty cool to check out, given how super-sized it is. And two, because I knew our littlest road tripper would love it. Case in point. When I told her last week that I had signed her up for a week of Bible Camp this summer, her response was “Oh that’s awesome! You know how I’m all about God!!” And so it is. Whether you’re religious or not, this statue of Mary is a pretty awesome sight. All around the statue are plaques with the stations of the cross. Tucked in by Mary’s feet were some rosary beads that visitors had left, and a few notes asking for prayers. Although Catholics traditionally don’t offer up prayers directly to Mary, she is often seen as a go-between to her son. The statue is made by sculptor Charles Parks, a Delaware native, who had made several others, including one that is just two feet smaller and currently in Santa Clara, California. While it looks like it might be solid stainless steel from a distance, it’s actually constructed from strips of stainless steel that are shaped and welded together, giving it an unusual but awesome textured appearance. It cost $500,000 to build and Parks and his assistant worked on it in various stages as the money was raised. I think this picture is my favorite one. It weighs 4.2 tons, and although we haven’t seen it at night ourselves, it’s said to be beautifully lit then as well.   With the kids in front of the statue, you can really appreciate just how massive Mary stands. Holy Spirit Catholic Church Halcyon Drive, New Castle, DE (New Castle exit) 302-658-1069 Tomorrow? A visit to a Delaware museum and the home of the world’s largest frying pan. Wednesday? A new cookie recipe. Thursday? Pre-School graduation! Friday? Fifth grade graduation! Coming next week? A full week of book reviews and summer reading program information!

Let me start by saying that I actually do love my kids. All of them. Most of the time. Okay, all of the time. But some days . . . Well, some days, I don't really like them. Some days I want to place an add that reads like this: For Sale! One Slightly Used 14-Year-Old! Tired of having leftovers that go uneaten? You won't anymore with this amazing 14-year-old who can pack away food like a goat. Or an elephant. Or a garbage disposal. CONTINUE READING HERE!

Of all the things we did in Alaska the Mendenhall, Glacier was the most amazing. We began with a helicopter flight up to the glacier. This was the first time Bill or I had been in a helicopter so we weren’t sure what to expect. I was situated in the front seat with the pilot while Bill was in the backseat with an Indian couple. Of I had to sum up what it was like I would say that I felt like I was flying like an insect does. Lifting off vertically and hovering the way a bee does. Being in the front seat was slightly more unnerving. I could see the 20 something year old pilot twisting and turning and slightly adjusting tiny knobs with his thick gloves on. He was pushing this button, then that one, all the while driving the helicopter with what looked like a large Atari joystick. Needless to say the flight was amazing and a great rush of adrenaline. Once near the glacier we saw it’s beauty, the amazing blue pools of water we stunning. Once we were on the glacier they got us outfitted in crampons so we would be able to walkabout the glacier with ease. It had snowed the night before on the glacier so there were patches of new snow. It was overcast while we were there but that didn’t take away from the beauty. At one point there was a crevasse in the glacier and there was no water running in it. The guide used his walking pole to chip a couple of pieces of ice from the top and as they went down the crevasse they made the most melodious tinkling sound, kind of like a rain stick but instead of beans it was like glass on glass. So beautiful. I was so caught up in the moment of it all that I didn’t think to take video of the sound. Along with the musical crevasse there was another crevasse we walked to that had a beautiful water flow going down it. It was amazing. http://www.flickr.com/photos/fivebrowns/9014108008/ On the glacier there was a beautiful blue river of glacier water that fed into a pool. At this point they encouraged us to fill our water bottle with glacier water from the source. The water was cool and crisp and clean tasting. We even brought back the bottle full for the kids to try. They were decently impressed. This was definitely worth doing, in fact I would absolutely do it again. Exploring the glacier was like nothing I had ever seen before. What a wonderful way to celebrate our 20th Anniversary.

I love summer!  I love not racing to school.  I love not saying “have you done your homework”, not packing lunch every day and dodging the dog pooh that lines the walkway near my daughter’s school. I love getting to … Continue reading →The post Summer planning with a rising 3rd grader… harder than it should be… appeared first on Cool Mom - Funny videos on parenting and pop culture.

This mango storage tips post was inspired by a gift sent to me.  No one asked me to write it.  All opinions are mine and mine alone. I recently attended BlogHer Food in Austin, Texas and learned a ton of great information.  While we spent a lot of time in classes learning to be better food bloggers, we also had the chance to meet several brands as well. One of the brands that I met was the National Mango Board.  They were nice enough to send me a box of mangoes to enjoy.  I’ll be totally honest with you here.  The only way I have ever tried a mango before was in a fruit cocktail. Yes, I’ve walked by them in the grocery store a number of times but I’ve never been sure exactly what to do with them once I brought them home. Mango Storage Tips Now, here I was faced with not one but five mangoes. I realized that I had knew nothing at all about mango storage.  I wanted to make these treats last as long as possible so we can enjoy them.  Here is what I learned about mango storage. Mangoes can be stored in your pantry or on your counter for two to five days until ripe. If you want to them to ripen faster, you can store them on your counter in a brown paper bag. Once mangoes are ripe, they should be stored in the refrigerator.  They will stay good for about five to seven days once they are ripe. To freeze: wash, peel and slice mangoes. Freeze them on a cookie sheet & then transfer to plastic containers. Store ten to twelve months. Of course, I have found that one of the best things to do with mangoes is to eat them when you get them.  They can be sliced and added to yogurt or cereal or eaten fre.   I also discovered that they are delicious in a smoothie! Tropical Mango Smoothie Save Print Author: Ellen Christian Recipe type: Drinks Serves: 2 Ingredients 1 ripe mango (peeled and diced) 5 frozen strawberries 1 cup chopped fresh pineapple 1 cup orange, pineapple or mango juice Instructions Put all the ingredients in a blender & blend on high for about two minutes. Serve immediately. 3.2.2029 What’s your favorite way to enjoy mangoes? This mango storage tips post was inspired by a gift sent to me.  No one asked me to write it.  All opinions are mine and mine alone. The post Mango Storage Tips & Smoothie Recipe appeared first on Confessions of an Overworked Mom.

Granted this is not earthshaking (like my tub) but I'm working my way through Martha Stewart's Homekeeping Handbook, and even a small project can drive you nuts. Cleaning candle... Visit my blog for the full crazy suburban fa la la..

It’s been a tough week for my son and I. I blame it on the end of year insanity, which for those unfamiliar, is when the school tries to cram in every class trip, performance, project, field day, picnic and other fun activity into the waning days of the academic year. I know the cramming is well meaning, but we are done. D.O.N.E. Done. And hovering dangerously close to the breaking point. There are days when I honestly feel like nothing in my life has equipped me to understand or provide any kind of meaningful guidance to my own child. You know – I start to worry we are doing a crappy job. But then we have a moment that fills me with hope. One of those moments arrived unexpectedly this weekend when the kids and I attended the 10th Annual Sharon Timlin Memorial 5K Race to Cure ALS.  Having decided to upgrade her registration from the 1 mile kids run to the full 5K, Sophie started to get a bit nervous about the race. Enter Anders, a pro having completed his first 5K a few weekends before, to offer her encouragement and words of wisdom. Kind of kills you, doesn’t it? I will tuck this moment away, storing it in my admittedly overtaxed brain, as something I can hold onto when we hit another rough patch as a reminder that maybe, just maybe, we are doing something right.