What time does your child eat lunch at school? The answer to that question created quite a stir among parents in cyberspace last week. Several media outlets, most notably NBC’s Today Show and Nightly News with Brian Williams decided to shine the national spotlight on the fact that some kids eat school lunch as early as 9:30 a.m. Thankfully, my daughter is not one of them. Rather, she dines in the school cafeteria at a more socially “acceptable” hour of 11 a.m. However, she attends a small Catholic elementary school which houses kids from preschool through fifth grade only. If … Continue reading →

Look at that million dollar grin. And by a million I mean nearly 50 bucks. The Tooth Fairy has been very, very generous to my daughter. Since this picture was taken, roughly three weeks ago, my 8-year-old has pocketed an additional $20 from the Fairy who pays for falling enamel. That’s way, way more than the average kid makes experiencing this normal rite of passage from childhood to adulthood, but that’s mainly because the Tooth Fairy’s generous grandparents also add in several dollars to sweeten the pot. Take the Fairy’s parents out of the mix, and most kids these days … Continue reading →

Ready or not, the new school year is here. Whether you choose to celebrate by doing a happy dance at the bus stop or by ordering a double caramel macchiato on the way home from drop-off, don’t forget that the first week of school can take some getting used to, especially for young kids. To help ease the transition from freewheeling summer to pencils, books and teachers’ strict looks, consider the following: Free Movie Friday: In honor of surviving the first week of the new academic year, treat your kids to a fun-filled movie night. Turn your basement or family … Continue reading →

If you’ve waited this long to go back-to-school shopping, may the force be with you. Be prepared to dig through Halloween candy and costumes to get to the pencils, notebooks and binders featured on your child’s school supply list. Retailers have no mercy on procrastinating parents. Most erected their school supply displays at 12:01 a.m. on July 5th. Heaven forbid you dared to actually savor the season outside with your family at that time instead of huddling around shelves covered with highlighters and glue sticks. Tardy shoppers are now being forced to employ a GPS to find pink erasers and … Continue reading →

My daughter is officially done with second grade. School is out for the summer and I couldn’t be happier. It was a rough year, but my daughter survived and even managed to score a perfect 4.0 on her report card. Straight “A”s, including in her least favorite subject-—math. When I congratulated her on the impressive accomplishment, my daughter noted that she was surprised that she had received an “A” in mathematics. “I hate math, Mommy!” she exclaimed. Translation: Math doesn’t come as easy to her as reading, spelling or Social Studies. It actually requires working a little harder to master … Continue reading →

This last Saturday, I spent the day at the pottery place about 45 minutes from my home. It was a date with my daughter. We spent three hours in there that afternoon, and it was the most relaxing, best time I have had in a long time. Spending time with my six year old always makes me feel happy inside. It makes me feel so lucky to have her in my life. As she was painting her plate and I was painting my mug, I thought of snapping a few pictures. But then, I decided not to because I just … Continue reading →

I’m the type of mom that didn’t leave my baby girl’s side ever since she was born. When she started preschool, many people thought I would suffer a great deal, or she would as well for never experiencing anything without me. Surprisingly enough, she did awesome, and I did too. When Kindergarten came, my little girl did not find it as exciting as preschool. She had major separation anxiety, and it took her a long time to get to a point where she wouldn’t cry and cling to me. I think it was easier for me because I was too … Continue reading →

My daughter is brilliant, charming, athletic, scrumptiously cute… but not perfect. Despite all of her wonderful qualities (which surely she inherited from her mother… ahem!), she has some issues. It’s not her choice in music that I am referring to; rather, it’s her penmanship. My second grader’s handwriting leaves a lot to be desired. I’d flat out say it stinks, but she’s seven, so time is on her side. What’s more, I don’t want to deal with her wrath if there ever comes a day that she actually reads this post. Anyway, back to her pathetic penmanship. I could blame … Continue reading →

My daughter has a friend that isn’t very nice to her. She is downright mean actually. She is the bully I wrote about a couple of weeks ago. The bullying has continued and my patience is wearing thin. Of course, as a mother, I want to step in and save my daughter from any emotional or physical harm, but a part of me wants to teach her what to do with this situation. I stayed up last night thinking about what to do. I could contact the teacher to inform her of my concern over the way this little bully … Continue reading →