Organic Living

Everyone is trying to find a more healthy lifestyle to raise their children, but it can be hard to navigate through all the information out there. Is it really better? It may be, but it’s also expensive. You don’t need to kill your budget or restock your pantry to live organic. Little changes can make a big difference. Leave out the organic snacks and cereals and focus on things like produce and meats. Using strawberries without pesticides or chicken without hormones can make a big difference. You don’t need to be extreme. A non-organic potato chip now and then won’t hurt your family.

The Lemonade Stand

My middle child is the entrepreneur of the family. Always looking for a way to earn a buck. Her creativity and natural business sense amaze me. She started her Memorial Day stand four years ago when she was six years old. Our town parade passes by our house and we usually have a few friends over to sit on the front lawn and watch. Sabrina woke up that morning and decided she wanted to sell lemonade on the sidewalk. She pulled out the powdered mix and some Dixey cups. Her first batch was a little watery, but not bad. She made a little sign “Lemonade for Sale .25 cents” and taped it to a table. She made about $10.00 that day, mostly from a baseball coach who bought a round for his team. That summer she picked up an old snow cone machine at our local swap shed. She was already thinking of next year. This past weekend Sabrina stood on the front lawn with a giant board painted, “Sabrina’s Slushies and Lemonade”. She had three friends working with her and made $60.00! She has become a yearly part of the celebration with kids coming just to get a treat from her stand. She doesn’t think about that though, she’s already got her sites on how she can make it bigger next year. Maybe cotton candy?

Hope for the Holidays

My middle child has always been reluctant to believe in Santa. She's been looking for ways to disprove his existence since she was old enough to say, "I think Santa is a fake." I've spent the last few years trying to re instill her belief in the bearded man and his reindeer. First I went to great lengths wrapping presents in different paper and writing left handed on the name tags to disguise my penmanship. My husband ate the cookies and drank the milk. He even made noise on the roof. She never even woke up. One year we even got her an ipod shuffle monogramed "To a great little girl, From Santa." Every Christmas morning she would open her presents so happy and excited. Then she would come over to me sometime later in the day and say, "I know it was you". Finally I gave up. A couple of years went by and I took the road of honesty. Letting her know that Santa wasn't real and she was good enough to keep up the charade for her younger sister. Then this Christmas happened. She came home one day telling me stories of friend who has an elf that comes every year to play jokes and make sure that she behaves so that Santa can bring her everything on her wish list. You're supposed to leave crackers and water (the opposite of cookies and milk) so that an elf can come and visit you for the holidays. My daughter said she didn't believe it for a second, "How silly", she said. That night, I came down to turn off the lights and saw on the mantle a plate with the crackers and water. She still wanted to believe. At 11:30PM my husband went out into the night searching for an elf. He found one. The next morning I woke up to her standing by my bed holding the elf beaming, "Now what do I do. I bet Katie five dollars that it wouldn't be there ." She was happy, and I was happy. Letting our kids believe in magic is what teaches them to have hope. To believe that the impossible can happen. A tool that we will need many times as we get older to get through the darkest of our days. I wish for all of you have a hopeful and happy holiday.

Election Fever

This is the first election that my kids have really been interested in. My two older ones are the perfect ages to learn about the government of our country, and this exceptional presidential campaign has been an amazing experience for all of us. The schools held an election ranging from 4Th through 8Th grades. Each homeroom acted as a state so that they could understand the process of electoral votes. The kids were allowed to voice their opinions on the candidates, rally , hold campaign signs and vote. What amazed me was the fairness and dignity they seemed to exhibit throughout the day. They respected each others opinions and seemed to respect the entire process better than most adults I know. Some of them voiced the opinions of their parents, while others were proud to be making their own choices. My own children came home excited and eager to see the outcome of the "real" election. They became engaged in what I'm sure will be an important part of our history. Even our youngest looked up at dinner to announced her choice for president, "McBama"!

Testing the Waters

My youngest daughter has always been the most easygoing of my three kids. I've never been quite sure if it was her nature or if she just knew she had to be that way to keep up with her older siblings. She never really had much of a schedule. She napped on the way to soccer, nursed in the car outside hockey rinks and constantly had her little world interrupted by her brother and sister's friends coming in and out of the house. Yet she never complained, made demands or even seemed the slightest bit bothered by the chaos around her. I was beginning to believe that I had the perfect child. Slowly, as she approached five, it all began to change. I noticed little things at first, like she began asking for everything that she saw on TV or in a store, "I want that toy!", "buy me that doll!" Then she stopped wanting to take showers or brush her teeth. Soon she began blackmailing me, " If you get me more cake I won't scream!" or "I'll put my toys away after I have a play date!" In five years she had never had a time out and now she was spending more time in trouble than not. As maddening and frustrating as it had become, I was thrilled! My peaceful and beautiful well behaved little angel had been stressing me out. How can a child go through life perfect? How can they never be disappointed as a child and survive as an adult? Kids need to test themselves and others, face consequences and meet with adversity. It's hard to see your kids unhappy, picked on or not get what they want. But without having some degree of unhappiness in childhood, our kids won't develop their most important quality as an adult, character. Do your best to keep your kids safe and keep them healthy, but let them feel a little unhappiness once in a while. Let them want things that they can't have. Let them know that they are not perfect. It may seem like they hate you for it now, but they will truly appreciate it later.