Archive for April, 2010
Apr
30
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
By Aisha Sultan, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Our baby sitter showed up at the door in the throes of a crisis.
It was the Bay of Dresses, and my closet was last chance at detente.
She carried in the “surprise” her mother had picked up for her at the mall the day before: a full-length fuchsia, flower-embossed silk dress with a high mandarin collar. It would have been the perfect dress if she were going as a geisha to a Halloween party, but it was less than ideal for her high school prom.
Sana, our 17-year-old sitter, and her mother had spent more than 20 hours at local malls trying to find a dress they could agree on.
“My mom wants me to dress like a nun or something,” she said.
Sana found a one-shoulder number and...
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Apr
30
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
By Christina, Ohio Moms Blog
One benefit of living in Ohio is that we get to experience all four seasons. We get the blanket of snow in the winter, wet and cool springs, the sizzling heat of summer, and the crisp dry air of fall. Just when you start to get sick of one season, another comes along to bring you all new wonders and challenges.
But there’s one aspect of all of this season-changing that I could do without: those annoying weeks where you’re stuck in-between clothing seasons. This isn’t a problem for my clothing, but it drives me mad when dealing with my kids’ outfits.
Right now we’re suffering through one of these periods. One day it’s sunny and 75, the next it’s 47 and cloudy. My daughters’ dressers...
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Apr
29
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
By Julie Landry Laviolette, McClatchy Newspapers
Most children who drown in swimming pools were last seen in the home, had been missing from sight for less than five minutes, and were in the care of one or both parents at the time of the drowning.
“When you move into a house, and it has a pool, you have to take responsibility,” said Kim Burgess, Drowning Prevention Coordinator for Broward County. “Parents will put their child in a car seat, wear a seat belt, and lock up their loaded guns, but they won’t get serious about pool safety.”
THE SAD STATISTICS
Most drownings occur in residential pools while children are unattended.
For every child who drowns, four others are hospitalized for...
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Apr
29
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
By Marla Jo Fisher, The Orange County Register
It’s sad when you have to admit that your children have a disease, and even sadder when you can’t seem to find a cure.
Even though this disease is very common, I have yet to see a telethon, a 5K run-walk, a hospital wing or even a magnetic bumper sticker in support of its sufferers.
This disease is called Closeophobia, and I’m sorry to say my children are both sufferers.
Closeophobia, also known in psychiatric lingo as Shutophobia, is the fear of closing anything they have previously opened.
This disease can be transmitted to anything that the sufferers have touched.
Commonly affected items:
- Kitchen drawers
- Kitchen cabinets
- Bread...
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Apr
28
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
Newsday
Never written a children’s book but always wanted to? Here’s your chance to show off your skills to millions of cereal-eating readers. Write your best story; the winner will be paired with an illustrator. The winning book in the fourth annual contest will be packaged free inside millions of Cheerios boxes in the spring of 2012. The contest is open to entries in English or, for the first time, Spanish. The winning book of the 2009 Cheerios contest, “1 Zany Zoo,” is currently in 2.2 million Cheerios boxes.
- For: Never-before-published children’s book authors
- Sponsor: Cheerios, www.spoonfulsofstoriescontest.com
- Entry deadline: July 15
- What...
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Apr
27
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
From Nemours/KidsHealth.org
On Mother’s Day, May 9, flowers are sweet and breakfast in bed is yummy. But if you really want to thrill M-O-M, take these 5 steps:
- Wash your hands without being asked at all those important hand-washing moments (after the bathroom, before eating, etc.).
- Make your bed, but don’t stop there. Make HER bed.
- Don’t fight with your brothers or sisters. Or, if you must argue, do it quietly and don’t involve mom.
- Let her sleep in.
- Make her laugh. Tell a joke, do a silly dance, or ask her to remember what you were like when you were little. Did you ever wear your underpants on your head? We thought so!
Need a gift for Mom? Try these mom-pleasing Mother’s Day...
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Apr
27
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
Disney FamilyFun magazine
For a unique Mother’s Day gift (and a fun father-daughter activity), try this photo-matching idea.
First, find a photo of Mom when she was about the age you are now. Then, set up a shot that matches the photo as closely as possible, paying attention to hair, clothes, props, and setting.
Feel free to improvise: in our example, the daughter’s pink coat is a sweatshirt with black buttons attached with glue dots.
Print out your new photo and frame it with the old one to show Mom just how small the generation gap can be....
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Apr
26
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
By MARTHA IRVINE, AP National Writer
CADILLAC, Mich. — The parents of a Michigan teen who killed himself last year are taking on the topic of bullying in schools.
Tom and P.K. Harrison say a Michigan State Police investigation determined that their son Alex was harassed and ostracized before he died in February 2009.
Their story is resonating with students, especially when news of bullying-related suicide has become more common.
In one high-profile case in Massachusetts, several students have been charged in the death of a 15-year-old Irish girl.
The Harrisons have started a campaign called “See It. Hear It. Stop It.” It encourages students and teachers to report bullying.
Meanwhile, Michigan lawmakers are reconsidering a...
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Apr
26
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
“Kids’ Container Gardening”
by Cindy Krezel, photography by Bruce Curtis
c.2005, 2010, Ball Publishing
$14.95 / $16.95 Canada
72 pages
By Terri Schlichenmeyer, Philadelphia Tribune contributor
If there’s one thing you’ve learned in your years as a kid, it’s this: never say “I’m bored” in front of an adult.
You say “I’m bored” and you’re gonna be put to work. And guaranteed, it’s not going to be fun. But summer’s coming and you know you probably will be bored at least once or twice. What can you do?
Grab “Kids’ Container Gardening” by Cindy Krezel, photography by Bruce Curtis. With this book, a few easy-to-find containers, and some inexpensive garden seeds, you’ll weed the boredom right out of your entire summer. …
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Apr
25
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
nameberry.com
I’ve always been intrigued with the names of the characters played by movie stars, especially the iconic figures of the Golden Age — the interplay between actor and character name, and the roles those names played in establishing and perpetuating their screen personas.
It certainly comes as no surprise that John Wayne played numerous heroes named John and Jim or that Cary Grant portrayed three Nicks or how many good girl Pollys and Pennys there were, played by the likes of the young Shirley Temple and Judy Garland. But there were a lot of interesting aberrations for example, though to most of us Clark Gable will always be Rhett Butler, he was also Ace, Blackie (twice), Candy, Duke and Patch; Humphrey Bogart may live on eternally in video...
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