Motherhood Uncensored Reviews and News

Back to School

My back-to-school memories are limited to the first few elementary years, mainly because I was homeschooled from 6th grade on. And the few years before that were spent on an oddly time school season since was living overseas.

But I distinctly remember my first day of first grade.

The New Jersey fall season was already in full bloom -- leaves were turning and the air was crisp, even at just past labor day. My next door neighbor and I anxiously awaited the school bus at the end of our cul-de-sac. Our hair was tidily styled, our clothes were pressed, and our shiny new lunchboxes were held firmly in our nervous grasps.

As we boarded the bus and searched for a seat, I remember the cool breeze blowing in from the slightly open windows. The bus was loud but it was muffled by the constant chatter of everyone on our bus. Being from a tightly knit neighborhood in a small town, we knew almost everyone on the bus and almost everyone in our classes. In fact, my first grade teacher lived in my neighborhood.

I was fortunate that my early elementary years were filled with wonderful experiences -- friendly kids, caring teachers, and a positive learning environment. There was still a level of innocence, not only from the kids, but from their parents. Technology was limited -- there were no big brand clothes, or shoes, or anything else to covet.

I'm not sure if my daughter will have the same experience, but I can hope that amidst all that has changed since 1981, she'll still be able to find the joys of back to school.

And remember them as vividly as I have.

Join Parent Bloggers Network and Hanes Kids in sharing your back to school story. You can win one of five $50 gift cards!

Generation Cures: Caring and Curing Through the Power of the Web

If there's anything I want my kids to learn and learn well, it's the value of giving. Of course, taken to the extreme, giving can turn into something pretty negative. But being able to differentiate giving up everything about you and who you are just to please someone and giving to others as a powerful human force is something I take very seriously.

The only problem? It's pretty hard to teach it to little kids.

If there's one thing you can do when your kids are little it's volunteering, helping, and donating yourself. Your kids will see it. It will be a typical, everyday occurrance for them, and they won't even think twice when it's asked of them.

This could be as small as volunteering together at a local nursing home -- it's something I did as a young child (playing violin every week in their dining hall) and it stuck with me through college and beyond. In fact, my first career choice (and college degrees) is a helping profession. 

As they get older, I'm inclined to have them purge through their own drawers, closets, and toy boxes to contribute to a donation box that will go to our local Goodwill or other charitable organization. I also want to make sure there is always some component of giving to others at every gift giving and receiving holiday. That means having folks bring a can of food and a gift to a birthday party. That means choosing an angel for the Toys for Tots tree.

I can't say enough about Generation Cures, a new website that helps us as parents teach our children altruism through computer games and animated stories. The free website is aimed at tweens and their families and is totally and completely free. Donations are always accepted and go towards furthering the research of the doctors and scientists at Children's Hospital Boston.

It's sites like these, and efforts from fellow parents and the community that help teach our kids that living in this world is not just about taking. It's about giving too.

Help spread the word about Generation Cures by writing your own post on how you teach your kids how to help others. The Parent Bloggers Network is donating $30 to this cause to five random bloggers who participate, and you'll be entered to win some cool GC swag as well.   

Better Late Than Never

I had the mom who refused to give in to any toy craze. As a kid, I felt like God had cursed me with evil parents who didn't care about me.

As a parent, I sort of understand what she was trying to teach me.

Truthfully, I've never really understood the toy craze. I imagine it has a lot to do with the fact that I was homeschooled, so I didn't have people around me talking about the latest and greatest. But even now, it's hard for me to get why people will wait in line come rain, snow, or sleet just to snag a toy.

A ticklish Elmo. A weird looking doll with two names.

Okay, so maybe I can understand the Wii thing. A little. And maybe the iPhone.

But really, it never bothered me to have something after the craze. In fact, I almost felt sort of cooler to have it much later when people had already been done with it.

Chances were that I got it on sale and I didn't get lumped in with the crowd.

Check out these Extreme Toy Shoppers and tell your own story (on your own blog, of course). You'll be entered to win some amazing prizes from Hasbro. Speaking of which, they've got a big sale going on -- all their hot toys ship free through 8/2.

America's Worst Cook: Not the Winner But Maybe a Tie for Third

I have decent prowess in the kitchen, but little desire to cook anything but take out. I suppose that's not really "cooking" but I do think heating things up is definitely an art in and of itself.

I've definitely cooked a few terrible dishes that no human mouth should have eaten (and thanks to the garbage disposal, one never actually did eat an entire mouthful), and I've forgotten an ingredient or two on more than one occasion.

But overall, my cooking isn't that bad. I figure, it can't be that hard to follow directions. And on most days it isn't.

What is difficult for me is to actually have the motivation and desire to cook. I realize there are people out there that LOVE to cook. I think those people are called chefs. For me, it comes down to the fact that I can never just cook; I have to shop for everything, put it away, cook the entire meal, and then on most nights, clean it up.

If it was just me cooking and that's it, I imagine it could be enjoyable. I love good food and I enjoy giving my family good food. But quite frankly, the better food takes too long to cook and too much brain power.

And I'd rather just save that for something else and use my tired fingers to dial up someone else who'll more than gladly cook it for me.

Are you America's Worst Cook? Seriously. You should enter the American Egg Board's contest, then go over to your own blog and write your post for ours. We've got some great prizes!

[This post was written for Parent Bloggers Network as part of a contest sponsored by the American Egg Board.”]

Lake Effect

I grew up with cedar lakes. To be honest with you, I have no idea why they are called "cedar lakes" but that's what I'm told they are called. They're dark and now that I look back at them, pretty darn gross.

We didn't have pools, unless you were a member of a fancy swim club. As kids, we'd drive up the road about two minutes and hop into a dark cold lake with hundreds of other kids. We'd lay and play in the sand, take swim tests to be able to swim out to the island platforms, and meet up with our school pals on a daily basis.

You'd often see canoes and kayaks riding by, and every summer late in August there would be a canoe carnival, where folks would snazz up canoes and parade them by on the water.

No one ever thought twice about the lakes. It's just what we did.

I recently visited these lakes again, and since becoming an adult and now a parent, I have to wonder how the hell my mom and the gaggles of other parents let their kids swim in what is basically dark murky dirty stinky water.

I imagine over the years it's gotten progressively worse, but the innocence of youth has definitely worn off. I can only think about how many kids go in there and pee (like I did). And I worry about what the hell is swimming around with us under the water.

The truth is that it hasn't changed my memories of those wonderful lakes. I recently learned that they finally had to drain a few of them due to pollution and other issues. On my visits home, I strain my neck to see the lakes where we used to watch the floats go by. And they're gone.

It's not so much about letting my kids swim in them, but to be able to take them to the water that I experienced almost every summer of my childhood is something I do wish for. A time when our minds were free of worry and the only thing we could think about was where we'd find the money for another water ice.

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Share your summer vacation memories this weekend (through Monday) and you'll be entered to win some amazing prizes from Huggies Little Swimmers. Click over to Parent Bloggers Network to learn how to participate.

The pool in our n

Grandkids Gift Guide: If Only My In-Laws Would Read It

My in-laws might possibly be the worst gift givers. They buy just to buy just to buy and that equates really cheap crappy loud terrible things that I feel bad about giving to Goodwill.

Yes, it's that bad.

Try bouncing plastic easter egg that screams "Wooly Bully," two rubber ducks that quack 6 songs in a row with no volume control, and two kid sized Dora and Diego stuffed dolls (ew).

That was just EASTER.

It was really my fault because I didn't specify Easter gifts. Apparently I have to do it for every single holiday.

Christmas wasn't too bad -- we begged them to send us money (which we said they didn't have to do at all really). And they did. Stuffed in a box with a ton of toys.

Ugh.

So, we've both almost given up. The only thing that we've found that works is that we tell them specifically what the kids like. And say the kids like it. Not us. "Oh she realllllly wants a cash register" or "He reallllllly wants a truck."

And then they'll buy it. And a bunch of other things. But at least they'll buy one thing that they'll use.

I really loathe this situation, and I wish it could be better. It ends up being a super duper big ass waste of stuff. I understand they're the grandparents and they want to spoil the kids, but the money could be used in so many better ways.

How do you deal with grandparent gifts? (Share them on your own blog and you can win prizes!)

Bringing the Magic Back

I should have known the day my husband "proposed" to me with my ring hidden under a ceramic cereal bowl on our bed. I suppose it could have been worse.

It could have been a plastic tupperware bowl.

Thankfully, I had chosen the ring. If I could find a picture of the ring setting he had picked out on his own (oh wait, let me just take a pic of my mother-in-law's setting), you would understand why I did the choosing. Think yellow gold lightening bolt with diamond slapped in the middle.

Wait. Don't think that. You might vurp a little.

Clearly, when it comes to gift giving, my husband is the pits. He certainly means well, with his hard bra cupped two sizes too big Target lingerie. And a leather jacket that I swear my own mother would not even wear.

But he just doesn't have the knack.

So his solution is that he just doesn't get me anything at all. Word to the dads: THAT IS NEVER A GOOD OPTION. EVER.

Now you would think that since I run a shopping sites with items that I would truly love, it would be easy. But he gets overwhelmed and doesn't know what to do and then just decides to not get anything. But a card. That he signs.

Another word to dads: NEVER JUST SIGN THE CARD.

So, when Cole and Kate from GetInHerHead.com approached Parent Bloggers to help them promote their new site, I was intrigued. Their free service entails you signing up, entering your sizes (praise the lord), your preferences, even your EXACT CHOICES WITH URL, and then including your special dates -- birthdays and anniversaries in particular.

Then they send out reminders with your choices listed. You can even put in the babysitter info so if your spouse decides he wants to schedule an impromptu date night, he can do it all on his own.

But I wonder if some folks will think that this takes away from the magic of gift giving. I mean, clearly the element of surprise is still there, you just narrow down the choices for your helpless spouse. And, if you have a kick ass gift giving spouse, then you wouldn't sign up for the service.

So what do you think? Share your thoughts (or better PICS) anytime this weekend in a post on your own blog (sorry, not just in comments!) and be entered to win a $250 gc to the spa of your choice. Check the PBN link for more details on how to participate.

Anything He Can Do, I Can Do Better, Except When it Comes to Anything Transportation Related

I have to admit I've never thought about any profession or task based on gender. I'm not sure why since my dad was a raging sexist and my mom was the typical stay-at-home-mom don't work because it will damage your children submit to your husband type. I suppose it makes a bit of sense; I was trying to prove to my dad that all his "MEN ROCK" shit was just bull.

I love men, don't get me wrong. But I've never really believed that women are limited because of their gender. And honestly, I don't think men are really. They make great nurses. And porn stars.

And women can be firepeople and porn stars too.

But unless you're talking Strongest Man competition (because ew I'm not sure any woman would want to get greased up and roll gigantic tires down a road), I'm pretty sure women can do anything a man can do.

The question is, do they really want to do it?

I've long admired women who feel comfortable jumping into a man's field. I see my husband, a pilot and a military officer, talk about how few women he sees. And I imgaine that has a lot to do with history. Women just weren't "meant" to do those things ages ago. Our mothers and their mothers were extremely limited too.

But you can always flip the coin and look at dads who were made fun of for staying home with their kids. Or jumping head first into a totally female profession.

Both sexes have experienced some prejudice for choosing to go to "the other side." So, I don't necessarily think of it as what women can do that men can do, I think about it as having the option and the support to do what we want, regardless of our gender.

Is that too much to ask?

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The Buddy System

Alright, so when it comes to saving money and saving the earth, I have no huge magnanimous plan. Certainly, consigning my items, and even putting them on ebay is a great way to make some money. And I used to do that with a few of my better items.

But, it's extremely time consuming and the shipping was a PITA.

So, I've come to use the Buddy System. I find a friend that has a kid near the same birthday as mine and we trade clothes. It's extremely simple and it works well! Of course, they are my close friends, so if something gets lost or damaged, then it's not a big deal to me. And we split shipping if it comes down to that.

Now I know that's not really a money saver, but it actually is when I get clothes from them. And I'm all for used clothes since my kids are only going to trash them anyway.

If you don't have a buddy and want to donate, of course you can always do Goodwill, but I like to find a place that actually needs the toys and clothes. Find a local women's shelter who actually wants the clothes items (instead of selling them). Plus, you get the write-off on tax day!

I also know people who use Freecycle (which I think can end up being more of a hassle), and I just joined Zwaggle -- I'm really curious to try that service out. I tend to use Freecycle for stuff I'd otherwise toss, but with Zwaggle, I'm thinking if I can do pick-up, it might actually work out really well.

Now, I'm all for big consignment sales and shops, but my philosophy is to buy toys, gear, and nice clothes there. I don't really do the play clothes thing because you can find those really cheap and they get used the most. So, spend a little money on those -- you can catch great sales and a lot of the stores and sometimes it's worth spending more to have them last an entire season!

But fancy dresses, fancy shoes, toys, and anything else gear wise, I'm more than happy to buy it used.

The final note is that it all has to make sense and not take up too much time. I know people who do this practically for a living (garage sales too). But when it's taking up all your time and energy to find stuff, maybe it's not as worth it.

*A note: Make sure when you buy toys and gear you check the recall lists! Those toys are not being watched as closely*

So, how do you do it? I want to know. Well, we all want to know! Check out the prizes:

What can you win?

We’ve got two $50 gift cards to giggle and two $50 gift cards to Patagonia, so we’ll choose four winners at random.

And remember, everyone who signs up for Zwaggle via this link - http://www.zwaggle.com/request-invitation.php?code=ZPBN - will earn bonus zoints!

So don't leave a comment, go write your own post!!

Weird Science

I've never been a science buff. It was always the thing my dad did with my brother. I was the dancer and the musician. He was the scientist.

It wasn't so much that I felt as though science wasn't for girls, but more that it just wasn't for me. And so, when I got to college and had to take Anatomy, Biology and some other science (god help me), I was scared to death.

But wouldn't you know, they were the most interesting classes I had ever taken.

Now that I have a young daughter, my hope is that she will be exposed to science as soon as possible. Unfortunately, I'm not the most scientifically minded person. I'd sooner sing a boat load of songs then try to figure out how to explain the concept of gravity to my three-year-old.

Thankfully, my husband loves science and is willing and able to expose her to what she needs. But it seems as though most of the resources (not all) out there are more geared to the arts and reading, and less towards specific interests.

I'd like to think we're trying to push science because it's interesting, not because we're slacking behind other countries in the same area. For me, it's never about my daughter getting ahead. It's about her loving to learn and being exposed to as much as possible so that she can find what makes her tick.

And if that's a violin or a microscope, I'm all for it.

(We're giving away three $100 gift cards -- tell us about how you're exposing your kids to science early -- check out the details here).