(I didn’t know Elmo had a dad…)

So I figured if I’m in labor, I had better get up and dry some clothes in the dryer that should be in my hospital bag already and take a shower. I figured it was early, so I took a long shower, using most of the hot water. I figured the hot water would replenish by the time my husband got up. I was wrong.

He got up and I told him that I thought I might be in labor. His response… “Uh huh. There better be hot water left.” Ah men… So what are the things a man should do when his significant other is in labor?

There’s a couple of things to note:

1. The woman has no idea when the baby is coming. Seriously, she doesn’t know, so don’t get frustrated when she thinks the baby might be arriving. It’s anxious anticipation on both sides, it’s just a waiting game.

2. As I’ve been told many times, all labors are different, just like the children that come out! For my first baby I was in an insane amount of pain for a long time, about 2 days or so. That doesn’t mean that I have to be in an insane amount of pain for this one to be officially in route.

3. Labor stops, starts and then stops. It’s not the woman’s fault at all. If we could control labor, then the act of having a baby would be a much different scenario.

4. Just be understanding and sympathetic. Most women want that all the time, but when there’s a baby coming, you need it even more!

So do I think I’m in labor? Probably not. But here’s to hoping.

I’ve been very lucky to have my husband home for a few weeks during Christmas. It’s been great. This morning he made breakfast for the kids, french toast. But while I was happy to have him make breakfast for the kids, he had the TV on for them during breakfast. I’m a strong opponent to that, as it just slows the entire process down, not only that but it breaks my morning routine that I have set with the kids. So as I sat and watched my 7 year old and my 20 month old stare open mouthed at the stupid TV during breakfast, I wondered how much they should really watch it.

It’s recommended that kids under 2 watch no TV at all. There should be enough things to entertain your child without using the electronic baby sitter. One thing I can say about that is that if I didn’t put our baby in front of Blues Clues every now and then, I couldn’t cook at some points during the day! Sometimes it’s a must!

For children 2-6, it’s recommended they receive only 1 to 2 hours a day. This still seems like an extreme, at least for a 6 year old. Our daughter gets 45 minutes when she gets home from school to just chill out from her day and that ends up being about it.

One thing for kids is that if you must plop them in front of the TV for a while, it’s best to have them watch shows that are age appropriate and that are interactive, like Dora or Blues Clues. These help kids at least take part in the show instead of just sitting there like zombies!

I’ve always tried to help my daughter become a strong girl. I want her to be herself, but not held back by thinking just because she’s a girl she can’t do certain things. I’ve tried to aim her toward positive role models, women who have made strides in society or just people in general who just work very hard and have good moral values. This isn’t always easy, especially when all my daughter wanted was Brats on year (I won’t have them in my home), or when Barbie came out with the same exact kind of doll as a Brat, but called it something else.

But I think I’ve found a set of dolls I can stand behind…

These dolls are great. They are just about as funky as I can stand (I’m a conservative when it comes to kids clothes), but they definitely are not in bad taste. My daughter loves the outfits and the cool hair that they come with. They are extremely well made.

I got online at www.groovygirls.com and was very pleased to see an endorsement from the Girl Scouts of America. I was a Girl Scout and my daughter is a Daisy, so I’m happy with what they teach girls. Not only that, but the Girl Scouts tend to steer girls to have a more positive self image as they get older than other girl groups. So the endorsement of the Girl Scouts was a big positive for me.

They have great music on their website too, which is good for my daughter who can’t seem to get enough of radio Disney. Just like with most dolls these days, you get a code with the dolls, which unlocks different sections of the website for your children. Very cool site, I must say. The girls can set up a character, a room, a closet, chat, some very cool things. They also have a site just for moms, so this was an unexpected extra.

Check out this description of how to raise a Whole Girl, which seems to mirror my view on raising my daughter. It’s hard to get around all of the seemingly “good” influences which end up being not so good once you delve deeper into them.

For Mommies Home.net readers, they are offering some deals:

Free Chetta Chic fashion item with any purchase of a RSVP doll.
Free shipping for orders over $75.

Enter promo code RSVPGroovy at cart to receive promotion.

Offer expires 12/31/08
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See Them Here

Seriously, check them out. My daughter is getting some of these for Christmas, I’m excited about it and she will be too! Look at them and tell me what you think!

Extracurricular activities are shown to benefit your child in numerous different ways. They can increase confidence, actually improve academic performance, improve their social relationships, teach them the value of teamwork and achievement, and the list can go on and on. But when is it to much? When are the effects of over-scheduling your child detrimental?



As my daughter entered first grade, the amount of activities that she could participate in skyrocketed. Since the beginning of the year, she’s had the opportunity to be in a school singing group, a running club, girl scouts, swimming, gymnastics, jump roping club, Spanish club, and karate. I’m sure I’m leaving out a few, but you get the picture.

We try to leave the decisions up to her, as I would hate to be forced to go to an activity that I didn’t want to participate in. So far she chose Girl Scouts, gymnastics and karate. Those 3 activities (if we actually did them all) would take up Monday, Tuesday, double duty on Thursday, Friday and Sunday. So is that too much for a little kid to handle?

Absolutely! Kids need down time, but here’s the things moms, so do the parents! Running children to and from activities is hard, not only on the kids, but on the parents as well. They get run down, there’s no fun in that.

We decided to skip Girl Scouts this year, as they had decided on a Friday night meeting time and that’s usually the night we like to relax or go out to dinner as a family. And we also decided to stop gymnastics, in lieu of karate. Our daughter is doing awesome in karate, has been asked to join the advanced classes and now gets private sessions with the instructor. So it reduces it to three times a week. I have noticed her being more tired lately, but we switched her bedtime to a little earlier to offset that.

So what is to much? What do you think?

DON’T FORGET TO SUBSCRIBE SO YOU DON’T MISS A THING!

The boys mom said she wanted to teach him the consequences of making bad choices. Guess what, I agree with her. While being rude to a teacher is one thing, being rude enough times to get suspended from school is quite another. If that is truly the case, I’m sure that this was a wake up call for the boy.

Now, that being said, making your child cry on the corner while being filmed by tons of camera crews, that’s a whole different matter. I think that’s harsh and he shouldn’t have been put on TV.

I’m sure there will be psychologists coming out of the woodwork saying this child will now be scared for life, guess only time will tell.