Ohio Moms Blog

So Young, So Busy

My husband came home the other night, having spent an hour and a half at a Scout meeting with our six year old son.  It was well past his bedtime (our son's, not my husband's) and he was overtired, cranky, and in need of some serious pillow time.

After getting him settled in for the night, my husband said to me, "I don't know if he's really enjoying this."

"Well, if he's not," I answered, "We can take it off the calendar."

Don't get me wrong; this post isn't about Boy Scouts as a program.  I happen to have two brothers who are Eagle Scouts and my dad volunteered with as a Scout Master for years and years.

But, as I pointed out to my husband, my brothers didn't start Boy Scouts until they were about nine, not six like our oldest son.

"Kids are just plain busier now than we ever were," I said.

Why? I wonder.

When did it become de rigueur in our society to spend the early years of our children's lives racing from Gymboree classes for infants to Mommy & Me classes in the pool, to preschool at two, and then to Candy Soccer leagues at three?  When did it become the new normal to have select leagues for soccer, dance, and cheer in first and second grade? To have every night of the week filled with not one but two or even three activities for our school-aged children?

Driving Around Ohio

 The job I recently accepted (a very part-time position as a newspaper photographer) has me driving all over Ohio. Now, to be fair, meeting and dating my husband had me driving in and through Ohio but that was mostly on 70. Now I get to travel the back roads in counties that desperately need to repaint the lines, all the more evident in the rain or snow, to schools that appear out of nowhere, sitting right in the middle of a corn field.

I'm not exaggerating.

I'm also not complaining. I'm enjoying myself. Not only am I getting some quality think time by myself in the car (you know, without children asking for a tissue or an apple slice or a drink or for me to turn up the radio) but I'm getting to know more about how certain roads are connected, what counties are where and exactly how fast you can go around a bend. It's a learning experience for sure!

SV Moms Group Blogs about Haiti

Collectively, we have a powerful voice.  Our messages and stories of aid, sadness, fear, shock and even hope made its way through the internet and social media tools upon learning about the devastation in Haiti.  We want to help and let the Haitians know that they are not alone.  In both small and large ways, the blogging community is here, getting the word out and using our united voices and sites to share love, concern and messages of hope.

CLICK HERE TO SEE ARTICLES WRITTEN BY SV MOMS GROUP CONTRIBUTORS ABOUT HAITI ........

The President came to my town & all I got was this photo

 I have to admit that when I heard President Obama was coming to Elyria I got a bit excited.  Our town of about 55,000 residents was going to host the President of the United States.  

The day before his visit the schools decided that they would close for the day so that they could ensure the safety of our students.  I got the automated call from Elyria City Schools at 6:00 P.M. telling me that school was going to be closed-thankfully my girls were excited that they would be missing school so I heard all about it when I got home.  

Local businesses in the area near the college had to shut down because of the road closure.  In fact, our city was a gridlocked mess for a good chunk of the day because they wouldn't tell us which streets they were going to be closing so people could avoid them.  

Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky by Chris Greenhalgh: A Silicon Valley Moms Group Book Club

Love affairs in Paris, culture, style, genius. Typical mom stuff, right? Join us as Silicon Valley Moms Group bloggers talk about the book Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky by Chris Greenhalgh.

• Sophia from Moody Mommy ponders Me? Naked?
• Christina from Hooey Critic explains that in German it would be called 'Ehebruch'
• Sam from Temporarily Me Dot Com thinks about Love. Elsewhere 
• Lisa from Hannemaniacs' revels in her luxurious life
• Melanie from Tales from the Crib discusses faithfulness
• Jessica from It's My Life has a little Coco Chanel flashback
• Heidi from Coast 2 Coast Mom wonders how Coco Chanel would have done a mom uniform
• Leticia from Tech Savvy Mama finds that member-only sale sites feature Coco Chanel and designer duds for less
• Kim from I'm Not the Nanny found herself examining family vs career aka SAHM vs working moms
• Erica from wellthoughtoutspot wonders what Coco would say about her unfashionable side
• Vanessa from Chefdruck Musings Puts Down the Paintbrush to Find the Right Tool for her Creativity
• Stacy from Laptop TV Mom discusses Coco Chanel and Tiger Woods
• Michelle from Wife and Mommy reveals her special talent
• Ana from Finding Bonggamom has a love affair with pearls
• Linsey from Me Too You talks about independence and balance

Silicon Valley Moms Blog is hosting the book club discussion this month. Please leave a comment below and join in the discussion.

Past Silicon Valley Moms Group Book Clubs have included:

• See Mom Run by Beth Feldman
  
• Close Encounters of the Third-Grade Kind by Phillip Done
• This is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Topper
• Do One Nice Thing by Debbie Tenzer
• Birth Day by Mark Sloan, M.D.
• What Happened to the Girl I Married? by Michael Miller
• Testimony by Anita Shreve
  
• Comfort Food by Kate Jacobs
  
• Much to Your Chagrin by Suzanne Guilette
  
• It Started with Pop-Tarts by Lori Hanson
  
• Who By Fire by Diana Spechler
• The White Trash Moms Handbook by Michelle Lamar
• Writing Motherhood by Lisa Garrigues
• The Vaccine Book by Dr. Robert W. Sears
• The Other Mother by Gwendolen Gross

Click here to read all about the Silicon Valley Moms Group Book Club.

This is not a paid for post. The publisher of this book did provide free copies to Silicon Valley Moms Group bloggers to use for this book club.

Ohio is for (Pet) Lovers

Roughly a year before I was born, my family bought a dog.  Cleo was a toy fox terrier and was the baby of the family.  At least, until I came along.  Once I was born, Cleo stopped getting all of the attention and she developed quite an attitude.  Especially with me.

As I grew older it didn't matter to me that Cleo hated me and snarled every time I came near her.  I loved her anyway.  It also didn't matter that she didn't appreciate my love for her until she was old, deaf and nearly blind.  She was so elderlyand frail that she may not have even known it was me, but my love for her never wavered.  Cleo made me a dog person, even if it took 15 years to earn her loyalty. 

There have been a lot of dogs in my life since Cleo died.  Roscoe, Alex, Buttons, Ozzie, Bowse, Boomer, Brutus, Scout, Blue and Daisy.  Each one a different personality.  Each one holding a special place in my heart.

I have often written about the two dogs we have now.  They keep life interesting and fun, even if that fun is riddled with dog hair and muddy paw prints.  As an occasional pet blogger, I was excited to hear about BlogPaws, which is a new site dedicated to the on-line pet community.  It will be a place where I can share things with other dog lovers, get new ideas and gain insight into content creation that pet owners will appreciate.

Don't mess with my sweet baby's bottom

Are you a diaper snob?  I used to be, until Pampers sold me down the river by downgrading the quality of their premium diapers.  There are very few products that compel me to be brand loyal, particularly now that I have two children and no job.  I expect a certain amount of loyalty from those companies – insomuch as I don’t want to be surprised by major changes to my favorite products.  It came with no warning - I purchased our usual value box of Pampers in December, upsizing my new daughter to cruisers because she’s growing like a weed.  As soon as I opened the first diaper I could tell the design had changed – the honeycomb inner liner layer was gone and the size of the absorptive material had been drastically reduced. 

I called to confirm the design had changed, hoping somehow that I’d just gotten a flawed box.  The service rep confirmed that a new design was being phased in and that I was the (not so) proud owner of the latest and (not so) greatest design.  I explained the various reasons why I wasn’t pleased with this new design, and with each sentence the service rep indicating that I must be doing something wrong.  (Maybe I should increase the size of my diapers again.  Maybe I wasn’t changing often enough. Maybe something - ANYTHING - was causing my problems other than her product.)  I have to be pretty upset with a company to spend my time to call and complain.  When I do, the last thing I want to hear are a litany of reasons why it’s my fault that the product failed.  In an effort to try and keep my business, I was offered a coupon for a jumbo pack of the newly inferior diapers.  Can anyone tell me why I would want a coupon for a product I’m not happy with?  In one last backhanded attempt to convince me that my recent problems were my own fault, P&G included this information in the note with my free coupon:

Creating a Good Brushing and Flossing Foundation

My dad was diagnosed with cardio-myopathy four years ago and had two massive heart attacks two days before the Christmas of 2006. His difibulator/pacemaker combo saved his life. I had never given thought to heart disease in my family before, but now I think it about it all the time. The scary event of almost losing my dad made me do a bit of research on heart disease and ways to prevent it.  In my research, I found that one third of deaths among women is caused by heart disease (womensheart.org). That number scares me, especially considering I am now a mother of two very young children and they count on me. I also became privy to the fact that studies are going on that may link periodontal disease with heart disease. Wow, I thought, a very easy and cheap way to help keep my body healthy; but, more importantly, to teach my children good oral hygiene for more than just healthy teeth and gums. Good brushing and flossing routines could potentially save their lives.

From what I understand, the plaque build up between teeth causes harmful bacteria that not only eats away at the teeth, but also have a direct link to blood vessels that go to the heart.  When I was pregnant my midwife told me to floss, but I had no idea the powerful impact flossing and brushing could have on my heart health. I just thought flossing was important for a healthy pregnancy and I did it. Before pregnancy, I was an off again/on again flosser, not even thinking that toothpaste and mint-flavored string were just as important as my trips to the gym. Now that children are in the mix, I am more concerned about my health and I look at brushing and flossing differently.

The Gift of Family

On a rare trip to the mall last weekend, I found myself rummaging through sales racks of clothes in a meager attempt to spruce up my look.  Shopping for clothes isn't something I particularly enjoy, especially at a mall, but a couple of times of year is fun.  One reason I don't go to the mall, other than just not liking overpriced crap, is that I have small children who I would have to take with me most of the time.  This would make mall-shopping quite unenjoyable for all parties involved and thereby something to avoid.

As I poked around, my relaxed mood came to an abrupt halt when I heard this mother screaming at her two boys.  "Sit right here!" she screamed as she pointed to the mall floor, in the main isle way of JCPenney.  "Don't move, speak or anything!  Do you understand me???!!"  Many of us shoppers couldn't help but notice the commotion as well as the look on her two little boy's faces.  They looked completely humiliated, and yet somehow used to the 'routine'.  The mother marched back to the sales rack to shop, satisfied with her manipulative-parenting style.  I racked my brain to think of something I could give the boys to pass the time, some crayons or paper....darned, my purse is unusually clean.  Then, I noticed a large man, who resembled the boys, walking up to them.  Could it be Dad to the rescue??  Good 'ole Dad can take the boys to the play land and let them get their wiggles out, or better yet take them home and let the witch shop alone.  But to my horror, "Mommy Dearest" comes over to her husband and gives him a piece of her small mind.  Pop hangs his head in shame and takes his place next to his boys.  What an invertebrate.

The busiest girl in the world

My five-year old has been very active lately. She bounces herself everywhere and on to every thing. She sings constantly. Her mind is going a mile a minute as are her moods and her feet and her little motormouth. She is as apt to shout as she is to talk. She is as likely to leap into your arms as she is to say hello. 

Madison has always been this way but it revs up when the weather turns gloomy and keeps her indoors or if she's going through a growth spurt and doesn't know what to do with the sudden rush of nervous energy or if she's too tired or too hungry or too excited. It's who she is. She is a whirling dervish of a little girl and has been since she was three months old and first figured out how to propel her body forward. Crawling in earnest by four months and taking her first steps at eight months, she hasn't stopped moving.

I do not want to fight the Madisonness of Madison anymore than I have to, which means changing my expectations. We want her to sit still during dinner but we don't expect her not to twirl as she chatters in the kitchen on her way to set the table. We expect her to pick up her toys but recognize that she won't see the mess unless we point it out to her repeatedly. Raising Madison means finding ways to welcome her energy, which isn't always easy. Especially since the higher her energy rises, the more ours seems to drop.