Today is an extra day, one we won’t get next year. It’s very strange to me why this occurs so I did a quick search to teach you, my Internet mama’s, why we don’t have a February 29 every year. Here’s what I found:

From Wikipedia:

A leap year (or intercalary year) is a year containing one or more extra days (or, in case of lunisolar calendars, an extra month) in order to keep the calendar year synchronised with the astronomical or seasonal year. For example, February would have 29 days in a leap year instead of the usual 28. Seasons and astronomical events do not repeat at an exact number of full days, so a calendar which had the same number of days in each year would over time drift with respect to the event it was supposed to track. By occasionally inserting (or intercalating) an additional day or month into the year, the drift can be corrected. A year which is not a leap year is called a common

Voted best answer on Yahoo Answers from “Some Guy”

The rotation of the earth around the sun isn’t exactly 365 days. It’s more like 365.25 days therefore our days start to get out of whack if we don’t reset every so often. That’s why every 4 four years we add a day to the year…to make up for that extra 1/4 of day each year. February was just picked because it’s the shortest month.

From Time andDate.com

Leap years are needed to keep our calendar in alignment with the earth’s revolutions around the sun.

Each weekday morning in my house is always a rush to get out the door, which leaves little time for breakfast, let alone something healthy. Lately, I’ve been in a quest to get something at least somewhat healthy into my body Monday through Friday.

• Keep a stash of natural granola bars in my desk drawer for those days I end up closing the door without getting a morsel of food into my body.
• Bought low-fat yogurt and natural granola, nuts and dried fruit (Mona’s granola) for a quick take-with-me breakfast.
• Make muffins ahead of time and freeze them. You can have a fresh muffin in 10 seconds in the microwave.
• Make some yummy looking, mostly healthy breakfast bars. “Parents” magazine calls them energy bars, but they look delicious too.
• Whole wheat english muffins with sugar-free jelly and/or natural peanut butter.

Why I seem to forget that Wednesday is toy day at my son’s pre-school is beyond me. I mean, it’s every Wednesday. Has been every Wednesday for months, yet I still forgot his toy today. I’ve got enough on my mind without having to remember this detail every week, but it’s such a simple concept that it escapes me why I forget it so often.

Each Wednesday all the kids bring a toy from home. It’s a great learning experience because it promotes sharing — something to reduce the use of the word “MINE” in our house. I think part of my problem is that I try very hard to bring a different toy each week (when I remember) and a toy that doesn’t have too many parts to it, and, of course, one that if something happened to it I wouldn’t care. Maybe I put too much criteria on it which makes it a task, instead of just part of our Wednesday morning routine.

Next Wednesday I’ll just grab one of the million pieces of toys, Sharpie his name on it and be done with it.

“The Orlando Sentinel” published a great article in Sunday’s edition about things women can do to stay safe. Here are some of the ideas reporter Amy L. Edwards shares that I think are unique:

Shopping:

If your child is with you, load your groceries first so if someone wants your car, your child is not in it.

In the elevator:
When the doors open, see who is inside before you step in. If you see someone who makes your (sic) uncomfortable, wait for the next elevator.

In parking lots:
Rethink using auto-locking remote devices that unlock all four doors at once.In the car:Wen you arrive at your destination, look at th earea before you get out of the car — even if it’s your house.”

Read her full article here.

Related:

• Read why it’s important to report personal theft.
• Learn about a free car unlocking service. Find one in your city.
• Read all safety posts from Balancing Motherhood.

I’m sitting on my sofa, watching The 80th Academy Awards, waiting for the “moment.” You know what I’m talking about, they’ve been showing them all night long: Sally Fields’ “You like me” speech, Cuba Gooding Junior’s “I love you” speech. The Halle Berry’s tearful acceptance speech for the first win from an African-American woman.

Tonight’s show is a bit boring, until the winners of best song came along, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova These two lovely singers gave the best speeches of the night, encouraging us all to believe in our dreams. And, proof of that they are.

They made a little movie using hand-held cameras, three weeks, $100,000 and a dream. Here they are on Oscar night, each holding a golden statue, but more importantly, showing us that dreams do come true to those who believe. Two of my favorite pieces from each of their speeches are:”

• “Make art “
• “Dare to dream”
• “Don’t give up.”
• “Hope connects us all”

Here’s their live performance of the song they did for the movie, along with their inspiring acceptance speeches.