Friday at Gunpowder Elementary School, 487 of the most spirited, well-behaved Ravens fans in Perry Hall gathered in the school's cafeteria. The school sponsored a Purple Friday Pep Rally to show their support of the Baltimore Ravens trip to the Super Bowl. The entire school is buzzing with Ravens pride - from the walkway entering the school, all the students and teachers dressed as a sea of purple, to the decorations in the classrooms. There is no shortage of Ravens Spirit at this school! The Pep Rally highlights included the student band playing Ravens themed songs, classes did poems, and …
There are no words to explain the heartbreaking events wreaking havoc on the small town of Newtown, Connecticut. I'm unable to wrap my head around what happened. Of course, I was lucky on Friday—I was able to hug my kids after school and count my blessings as I thought about their happy, innocent and unscarred childhood. As a parent of an elementary school student in Perry Hall, I keep asking myself, "What is wrong with people?" and "How does a person's life become so dysfunctional that he not only turns on his family, but kills innocent children, while traumatizing so many others?" How …
I often wonder if other parents worry about their kids as much as I worry about mine. Sometimes I think I'm paranoid about illnesses, child abduction, or just danger in general. Am I the only one? I'm afraid to let my nearly 6-year-old use a public restroom by himself. I won't drop off my kid to birthday parties without staying to chaperone. I still have nightmares about a school bus accident. My kids are not even allowed to cross the street by themselves to play with the neighborhood kids. And my heart sinks every time my caller-ID names my son's daycare. I don't know if I'm overprotective …
I have a neat, organized, punctual, Type A personality. Well, at least until I had my boys. Now I do whatever I can to keep up the image that I'm still a person who's got it together. Some things are easy, getting to school and work on time—piece of cake. Laundry —no problem. Grocery shopping—it gets done every week. Of course, what doesn't always get done are my floors, bathrooms, dusting and vacuuming. But then again, my house isn't crawling with grime. It's relatively clean. Sure, I'd love to have a cleaning service, or a spouse who loves scrubbing bathrooms, but I don't. So I manage the …
I often wonder if some parents have lost all common sense when it comes to young children and socially appropriate situations. Recently, we were at the movie theater. We arrived during the previews, so I missed the opportunity to scan the theater because it was already dark. So, I was surprised when an infant started screaming about 20 minutes into the film—and was still crying when the manager asked them to leave until the baby quieted. It was so distracting. I felt bad for the baby who was stuck sitting in a dark, loud room. And I couldn’t help but think—what parent brings a baby to a movie…
You don’t have to have a lot of experience with bullying to know how devastating it can be to children. Just watch the news, Google it, or talk to a child that is being picked on. Your heart immediately goes out to the victim, and you wonder how the situation can be resolved. But the reality is that many instances of bullying go too far, before a parent gets involved. Even though my boys are young, I think about bullying almost daily. Especially, as I put my oldest son on a school bus and he leaves my protective custody. He’s only in kindergarten, and hasn’t had much experience with being …
I survived the first week of school. I got my kindergartner on the bus while holding my emotions together (until the bus pulled away of course) and anxiously awaited his safe return each day. My son had a fantastic introduction to school—from the bus, to the lunchroom, meeting his classmates and teacher, to recess—he loved it all. But it was a big adjustment after our relatively laid-back summer schedule. In fact, he cracked me up when he got off of the school bus Friday, by stating, “I’m glad it’s Labor Day weekend, I really need a holiday.” But now that big, unofficial end of summer, …
As if starting kindergarten wasn’t a big enough milestone, my son also lost his very first tooth. For the past month, he has been wiggling and wiggling that thing, and it finally gave way and fell right into his hand. He was so excited, while I sat there shocked that it actually fell out. I jumped up to grab my camera to document this momentous occasion. And, of course, I posted a picture on Facebook! After the initial thrill wore off, my husband and I wondered, what’s the going rate for a child’s first tooth? Is a first tooth more valuable than just a regular old tooth? And how on earth does…
Long gone are the days of kids racing out the door calling "shotgun." Sheesh, my kids would be clueless as to what that means, just like they have no idea what a record player is. As parents, we all do some crazy things, and probably even some things we’re not proud of. But the other day shocked me. In the parking lot of Safeway, I saw a woman put an infant carrier seat in the front passenger seat of her car. She had three other young kids who piled into the back seat. I cringed, knowing that the front seat is the absolute worst place for an infant carrier to be placed. The force of the …
Enough with back to school preparations—it’s time to let the kids be kids before routines become reality and the phrase, "It’s a school night," is forever coming out of the mouths of Perry Hall Parents. Now is the time to make the most of the end of summer, and enjoy the last few days of warm weather and daily agendas free of homework. Last weekend, my son reminded me of a promise we had made back in April. His T-ball team was the Orioles, so we promised to take him to Camden Yards for his first O’s game. Recently, we were driving down Interstate 95, and I pointed out the stadiums, and he …
Believe it or not, it is time to start back to school shopping. Summer is flying by, which means parents and students are hitting local retailers to pick out school supplies and checking out the fall fashions. As my one friend said, "It’s a scary time of year at IKEA," because college-bound kids have filled the White Marsh store looking for finishing touches for their new dorm rooms. But it’s just as intimidating in the back to school sections Walmart and Target, as composition books, binders and glue sticks are in hot demand. Retail stores are filled with parents looking for deals, and kids …
It happens in a second, your child falls into the pool, unable to swim. It happened to my son recently. We were playing at our pool with friends – we belong to a private club with plenty of lifeguards on duty. Here’s what it happened. My oldest had been swimming in the shallow end with his friend. My youngest had been playing in the baby pool, but decided to head back to the big pool. I asked my 2-year-old to wait for me while I went and got his puddle jumper – which was about 15 feet away. This was my mistake; he should have walked with me. Instead he spotted his brother, playing with a boat…
Having just returned from vacation, I discovered that an airport has more iPads than an Apple store. Even our group of 10 people, we had six iPads and five iPhones. Is this ridiculous? Or is this the norm? Don’t get me wrong, I recognize that an airport isn’t exactly a scientific study, and that the whole point of air travel with children is to keep them occupied, content, and NOT SCREAMING. But I think that iPads and tablets are taking over our kids! As I scanned our flight, nearly every child—and grownup for that matter—had an iPad, Kindle, nook or other tablet device. Times have definitely…
I said I would keep my youngest in his crib until he was around age 3, but plans are always changing. The first blow was the recall of the crib tent. And while my little monkey stayed put for a few weeks, he started climbing out occasionally during naps. I put a gate up against his door, so he was at least contained to "resting" in his room. Then I recently found out I needed to have major surgery and would have lifting restrictions of no more than 15 pounds for three months. So, that meant I couldn’t pick up my chunky toddler and put him into his crib. So we made the decision to switch him …
This is a pretty sensitive topic in my household lately. My husband recently took a new job which requires a lot of travel. So naturally, the kids spend even more time with me! Sometimes I feel like the luckiest person on the planet to curl up on the couch with my kids at the end of the day. Other days, I feel the stress of what a single mom must feel like with no relief in sight. Days with a 5-year-old and 2-year-old aren’t complicated, but they are busy and stressful. And after a long day of asking and re-asking the kids to clean up the play room or put away their shoes. Then there are time…
The dog days of summer are here, and getting your kids to a pool is a great way to cool off and burn off some energy! One of the smartest things you can do as a parent is to teach your child to swim. But if they can't swim, it's important that you employ safe pool practices. Right here in Perry Hall, Mommy and Me lessons begin as early as age 3 months at Kids First Swim School. And while they may not be doing the butterfly stroke by the time they are 6 months, having confidence in the water goes a long way toward pool safety. Experts agree that early introduction can ease your children’s fear…
Hey moms and dads, here’s a fun and free activity to occupy your kids this summer: many local bowling alleys are offering free bowling programs for kids. When I found this had continued into this summer (we participated a few years ago), I immediately signed my boys up. This can be especially useful on a rainy day, or when it’s actually too hot to go to the pool. I find, there are few activities that the entire family can enjoy—not everyone likes the same movies or can agree on what museum or amusement park to attend. But at least in my household, bowling always seems to please my whole …
Recommendations about baby safety are always changing. My mother tells plenty of stories about my childhood that make me cringe. For instance, I didn’t sit in a car seat—my parents had a car bed when I was a newborn, and as a toddler, I was in a jump seat over the passenger-side head rest. My mom said I was a climber, so she would constantly be pulling me down while she was driving. It wasn’t until the mid 1980s that child restraint laws were in place in all 50 states. I guess we should be glad cell phones weren't around back then! She also told me that my crib—with slats far wider than …
Summer is here! So that means your kids are out of school. It also means that the little things you need to get done during the day become more challenging with kids in tow. But have no fear—relief could be right on your block! There are responsible young adults—probably right in your neighborhood—who are home for the summer and looking for some extra cash. So, now is the perfect time to scour your area for the responsible young adults that are home and unemployed for the summer. Let’s be honest, us mommies need a little break, whether it's for a night out, shopping, or just a doctor’s …
Transitioning your toddler out of diapers is no easy task. But knowing when to start the process is critical to success. If you start too early, you’re only going to frustrate your child, and drag out the process. Recently, my 2-year-old has started the very disgusting habit of taking off his messy diapers. This is all fine and good if I’m in the same room, but it’s horrible when I notice he’s naked 10 minutes later, and then have to clean up the mess. This behavior has clued me in that he is quite ready to start potty training. While many developmental milestones are clear cut, the ability …
