Dec
31
2009
I have much to be thankful for this past year, most specifically the birth of my daughter who made me a mom all over again, who made her dad a father to a baby girl and made my son a big brother. We are so lucky to have this miracle in our lives.
I want to thank you, all the readers of this blog, for your time and your return visits. I have seen a steady increase in traffic during the past year which has given me inspiration for an even bigger 2010. I am in the process of making some goals for the blog that include a new look and more posts. I don’t have an implementation timeline just yet, but have begun the work of figuring out what I need to do next.
Here’s to hope, blessings and victories in the new year.
Happy New Year!
Photo courtesy stock.xchng
Dec
28
2009
Social media is all around us. It seems that everyone is tweeting, blogging and Facebooking their life these days. Earlier this year, my husband took a 30-day break from Facebook. What a great idea that turned out to be — for both of us. Made me realize how often I was checking Facebook for updates. I followed his lead and set limits on how much I could use Facebook in any given day. It changed the way I use the site now. I no longer feel compelled to “check in” on my friends. I can go when I have time, not all the time.
What about for kids?
How hard would it be for a teenager to quit Facebook for a month? It’s hard enough for adults to set limits, but add in peer pressure and it’s gotta double the challenge. “Good Morning America” ran a spot about how some teens are absolutely addicted to social media. One girl who was featured, used the site as many as six hours on a weekend. It was causing fights with her mother and her grades were slipping.
What’s a parent to do?
We must help our teenagers and young children know and understand the Internet. It’s not just social media.
According to the article:
Sherry Turkle, a professor of psychology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said people are now dropping in and out of Facebook, and learning how to integrate it into their lives in better ways.
“We’re not going to be taking away the Internet,” she said. “It’s more a question of living with these devices that so compel us, in a way that serves our human purposes.”
Teaching them and giving them a greater understanding of the how’s and why’s will prepare them for life with technology outside the home. It’s not going away, so we need to give them tools to use to use it properly.
Read the full story to learn about how to determine if your teen is addicted or just spending too much time online and to get tips on how to help him/her live a more balanced life.
Photo courtesy stock.xchng by lusi.
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Dec
22
2009
Each year for Christmas my husband received an ornament. When we were married this box (boxes) of ornaments came with him. These mementos from his childhood adorn our tree every year along with cherished ones we’ve collected together.
We’ve started this tradition with our children. Each year they receive an ornament to commemorate the year. If there is no year on it, I find an inconspicuous place to mark the child’s name and the year. One day, when they move out. They will have their own box of precious keepsakes from our Christmas’ together as a family.
The ornament pictured here is one of my favorites. It’s one I picked up from a unique Christmas shop in Alexandria, VA, while on a business trip. I fell in love with the shape and colors of this fragile, glass ornament and found a way to keep it as a carry on without it breaking on the trip back to Florida.
Dec
16
2009
I got our all of our children’s Christmas books a week or so ago and we’ve been reading them every night with my son. I particularly like “Memories of the Manger.” It’s a story you probably know. One that you may have already read to your children during the Christmas season. But, this book is sweet in that it tells the story of Jesus’ birth through the farm animals that live in Bethlehem.
A white dove narrates the story as he delights in telling the story of how Mary and Joseph arrived at the manger and what it was like when the baby was born. Some of the animals ask the dove questions that your children might be asking and the dove graciously answers.
Beautifully illustrated and told, this is a book worth having in your home to read and reread each year at Christmas.
Dec
11
2009
Big changes are coming to my morning wake up call: “Good Morning America” is completely changing it’s line up of television anchors. TV news veteran Diane Sawyer is moving to the evening news to be only the second-ever solo female anchor of the evening news. This is exciting for Diane and for women. It means women will outnumber men on the big three networks for evening news coverage. Among the other changes are that political reporter, George Stephanopoulus, has been named Sawyer’s replacement to co-anchor GMA news with the amazing Robin Roberts.
I’ve loved watching two women co-anchor a major news program. Diane and Robin broke the mold on morning news shows when Charlie Gibson left GMA. It was some serious girl power. That’s changing now. (Don’t get me started on the exit of Chris Cuomo.) But there is some good news among all this change.
Enter Juju Chang: working mom.
It’s about time. Time for a mother to be a part of the “Good Morning America” main line up. Juju Chang, mother to three, becomes the news anchor starting Monday — she’ll be balancing motherhood in a whole new way and we’ll be watching as she proves that moms can do anything we set our minds to.
A mother hasn’t been a part of the main four anchors in over a decade (since the Joan Lunden days). It’s not that ABC has neglected any stories about mothers and families, but let’s not forget how important it is to have mothers represented in this way. Thanks ABC for making this important decision. I’m excited to have JuJu on the team and welcome her insight into the news and any special reporting she will cover.
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