The First Lady has taken on the fight against childhood obesity in her most recent initiative called the Let’s Move Campaign. I got an email yesterday from a journalist at Bay News 9 asking for my thoughts. And as I was reading the link he provided, I saw that the First Lady was speaking live about this initiative on MSNBC. So I stopped, read, listened and sent him my thoughts.
This is basically what I emailed him.
There can be no argument against that fact that we have a severe childhood obesity issue in our country. McDonald’s chains are often more common than supermarkets in some areas. One third of our nation’s children are overweight or obese. Junk food is stuffed into beautiful, fun packaging. Sugar tastes so damn good and its deliciously addictive. We eat big portions in this country – most of which is just a lot of nothing, filling the hole, cheap and easy. It’s here, it’s there, it’s everywhere, nom, nom, nom.
Bottom line? Our bad eating habits are so effusive that they have become a culture issue. My friends and I ate junk growing up, and now my kids and their friends want it too. And unless we want to continue seeing more children facing health issues and obesity before they even get to high school, we need to change our culture’s ideals about fast food fast.
I have to point out that the First Lady made a great point about obesity before she launched into the points of her program. She made it clear that this is not about how someone looks. Its about how children feel. Both in reference to their own body image and how they feel medically.
There is a huge issue of fat-ism (for lack of a better word) and body image in this country – and this initiative can’t and should not be about that. I am hoping that healthier habits change attitudes on many levels but never single out anyone for not fitting some expectation of “model thin” beauty. We are what we are, but let’s be the best we can be. Just saying.
So back to the Let’s Move Campaign. We have to change the culture of our country. So that means we need support. Parents need support from schools, schools need to actively educate children and funding will be needed to really push a campaign of healthy eating habits forward. Sugar has too strong a pull on us not to come back at the causes of obesity with guns blazing.
So will kids actually be able to learn how to eat better? I don’t think it is ever too early to start educating and empowering children about food. My six year old has a peanut allergy and has been reading food labels for as long as he has been able to read. And more recently, we’ve been taking steps to read the entire label. He knows to look for sugar, sodium, trans fat, protein and vitamins. And now that he generally understands what reasonable amounts of each should be in his food, he knows we need to pick Cheerios over Fruit Loops. He may not be happy about it, but at least he now knows why.
Also, it is my hope that some of the funding will make healthier foods more accessible to families in need. Feeding a family off a dollar menu is a hell of a lot cheaper than cashing out at a grocery store. Healthy eating should be something everyone can afford to do.
Finally, there has been some crabbing about this campaign banning certain foods in school. While I think banning food is never a good idea, teaching kids about better choices certainly is. And then, we would hope, kids will learn to pick better food choices and drive the market to provide healthier alternatives in vending machines which kids feel OK about buying.
“No way, dude. I don’t want that lame Ho-Ho. I want that bag of sliced apples! AWESOME!”
Er. Here’s hoping at least.
And if my son’s PTO votes to remove all sodas and cupcakes and sugary crap from the schools vending machines, so be it and good riddance. But that’s the schools collective choice. I’m just hoping that with focused education and better access to healthier foods, it will be my children’s choice someday too.
Oh and be sure to check out my friend Apryl’s post about this too: First Lady Michelle Obama takes a Bite Out of Childhood Obesity. Apryl, who writes at About.com, was in on a conference call to the White House as the President signed the executive order to fight childhood obesity.
Just because this post is no longer “stickied” to the top of my page does not mean Haiti no longer needs our help.
Please consider donating today.
Thank you!
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I was making a beef stew in my crock pot this afternoon when my three year old tried to put some of his Gogurt in it. It landed on the floor and on his pants. He should have been napping in his bed but a nap wasn’t in the cards today. So, he decided to try and put Gogurt in my stew instead. And that made me crazy because he was a mess and did he need another bath and the kitchen was a mess and I just wanted to have my stew in the crock pot so it would be done for dinner before I left to go get my six year old from school. And as I type this, my Gogurt stained child is whining about being hungry AGAIN. What is he going to have, he’s asking me while staring down the pantry. Here are two crackers, now go play on the porch and stop hassling me.
Its the kind of every day stuff many of us deal with all the time.
And it is a blessing.
The stew in my crock pot, the warm beds, the clean clothes, the baths, the snacks, the gas in my car, the car that I drive, the solid roof over my son’s classroom, the still ground beneath us, and all of our lives.
I’m swearing about Gogurt and crackers but, I promise you, I know better.
Please donate to the Red Cross to assist the people in Haiti. $1, $5, whatever you can do.
Text “Haiti” to 90999 to donate $10.00. 100% of your donation passes through Red Cross for Haiti relief. Your cell carrier keeps nothing.
So raise your hand if you are up to your eyeballs in Christmas shopping. Yeah, me too.
But I was hoping maybe I could ask you to set aside $30.oo for an important cause.
My blogging friend Anissa is still struggling to recover from a life shattering brain bleed a few weeks back. While she’s been in the ICU trying simply to respond to those asking her questions, her husband has been doing all that he can to take care of their three children on his own. How is he doing this? You can check up on them here.
But he’s doing all of this, and also thinking about his children’s Christmas without their mother, while facing hospital bills and costs they never ever dreamed of. Well, maybe they have. Since Peyton, their youngest daughter, has spent plenty of time in hospitals already. But I’m betting they never dreamed they’d be facing these sorts of hospital bills with one parent being the one in need of care.
So, Melissa Wardy at Pigtail Pals, has created these T-shirts for Anissa. 100% of the proceeds go to support her family.
And what’s with the “Team Anissa” thing? If you know Anissa, you KNOW she loves Twilight. And Edward.
(On a quick sidebar, I keep thinking she NEEDS to see “New Moon“. I have these wild ideas about writing the movie production peeps and seeing if they could give her a private screening in her room somehow. I know she’d hear it. I know she’d love it. I KNOW she’d respond. And probably cat-call too.)
I had no idea. But I guess I shouldn’t blame myself for being so naive. It seems that many parents don’t have any idea either. We generally assume that the drugs we need to worry about our children abusing are such party favorites as alcohol, ecstasy, pot, cocaine or even heroin. I never thought a popular drug of choice these days was dextromethorphan – a key component in cough medicine.
A few weeks ago, I was contacted by a firm representing the CHPA (Consumer Healthcare Products Association) and asked to attend a two day event in Washington DC covering the Five Moms. (Three of the Five Moms are pictured to the right.)
This Monday, I arrived at the lovely, historic Hotel Lombardy curious about what the next two days would bring me. While I settled down in my room over-looking Pennsylvania Avenue, I reviewed the materials that were left for me.
The Problem
A study from the Partnership for a Drug Free America has shown that about one in ten teens (roughly 2.4 million kids) ages 12-17 have reported to have intentionally abused over the counter cough medicine. And about 28% of teens know someone who has abused it. But only 4% of parents believe their children would actually abuse cough medicine. The Partnership for Drug Free America also reports that “41 percent of teens mistakenly believe that abuse of medicines is less dangerous than abuse of illegal street drugs.” And when teens do abuse dextromethorphan, it has been found that they take 20 – 50 times the recommended dosage which equates to consuming multiple bottles of cough medicine at one time.
The Five Moms
On behalf of StopMedicineAbuse.org, five dynamic mothers have currently become the faces of cough medicine abuse. And this week they arrived in Washington DC with the CHPA to meet with Congress people on Capitol Hill to lobby for their support. They had three goals:
Urge the importance of parental education about cough medicine abuse by promoting the StopMedicineAbuse.org site. The Five Moms believe education about the abuse of this common place medication will do more to curb it’s use rather than simply restricting purchase since these medications are found in every home. As one of the Five Moms noted during our meetings on Capitol Hill, “You can’t protect your family from something you don’t know about.”
Gain support for the dextromethorphan Abuse Prevention Act of 2009 (s. 1383) which would amend the Controlled Substances Act and prevent the sale of cough medicine (or any products with dextromethorphan) to those under 18 years of age.
Gain support for the dextromethorphan Distribution Act of 2009 (H.R. 1259) which if enacted would limit who may purchase bulk amounts of raw dextromethorphan. There are no current limits at this time.
During our time in DC, I got to know four of these mothers (the fifth wasn’t able to come due to an illness in the family) and was truly touched by their stories. Misty Fetko shares a powerful and upsetting story about her son Carl who passed away due to a lethal mix and overdose of drugs including dextromethorphan. Blaise Brooks, a strong mother, speaker and mentor, educates her community about over the counter medication abuse. Hilda Morales-Roybal took on this cause after becoming informed about the abuse of over the counter medication in her own community. And finally Cristy Crandell currently has a son serving a 13 year prison sentence for crimes he committed while under the influence of dextromethorphan. Each amazing, each examples, each changing lives in their communities and now each delivering their message to Capitol Hill.
Dr. Drew
And so now you’re probably wondering how Dr. Drew fit in to all of this. Well, the night before we all went to Capitol Hill, we sat down to a lovely dinner with the Five Moms, the CHPA, the PR firm who organized all of our comings and goings, and we bloggers: Jenn, Janice and myself. While chatting with the mothers and considering our menus, an announcement was made that we would have another guest. Dr. Drew Pinsky was able to come to DC also to support this entire initiative and he would be joining us for dinner in a few minutes as well as coming to Capitol Hill with us the following day. After a few blogger (ahem) gasps (to put it subtly), Dr. Drew arrived soon there after and ate a delicious meal with us.
(And in case you’ve been living under a rock, here is where you might find Dr. Drew.)
Let me add a quick sidebar here to share something about Dr. Drew. He sat down at our table and graciously, patiently, wonderfully took question after question about addiction, abuse and even discussed our own personal stories. He didn’t have to do that. But he did. He truly cares about the work he is doing and obviously goes above and beyond to help others on a daily basis. I would like to extend a very heartfelt thank you to Dr. Drew for a fascinating dinner discussion.
CHPA
I have mentioned the CHPA before but should do so again now. Who are they? The Consumer Healthcare Products Association is a non for profit group representing the makers of over the counter medications. And yes, they brought me to this event because they wanted their message heard here. But during my brief time with the CHPA folks, I was impressed by and truly connected with this very committed group of people. And then we were lucky enough to have Alan, a CHPA representative and our valiant leader on the Hill, as part of our group too. With two children of his own and a clear dedication to this message, he fearlessly guided us through our day with humor and tact.
Moms Storm Capitol Hill
On Tuesday morning, the Five Moms, the bloggers, the CHPA folks, and PR peeps piled into cabs and found ourselves on Capitol Hill. Where was was Dr. Drew? He and Misty had already been up taping 39 segments for local television that morning to support this cause and we would meet up with them later. Check one of the segments out here:
However for the rest of us, our first stop that morning was the Rayburn building, home to Representative offices located directly across from the Capitol building. As we filed out of the cab, we stared up at this building’s grandeur considering what our day had in store for us. But we only took a moment and then continued up the steps. There was work to be done.
We met a lot of people that day. A lot. We criss-crossed Capitol Hill, tromped up and down the steps into and out of both the Rayburn Building and the Hart Building (where most Senator offices are located). While our fancy shoes silently tortured us with every step we hardly noticed because we were lucky enough to have appointments with:
Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS)
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA)
Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA)
Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D-TX)
Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO)
Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI)
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
We didn’t meet every congress person. In fact, my group usually met with Legislative Assistants. But Dr. Drew and Misty, along with the President and CEO of the Partnership for a Drug Free America, arrived in time for our face to face meetings with both Rep. Fred Upton and Sen. Chuck Grassley.
Every office was welcoming and wholeheartedly interested in the Five Mom’s message. They listened, they gave us time, and they promised further consideration. And as Hilda Morales-Roybal so correctly put forward to each member of her audience: “we are simply asking for you to support common sense”.
Common sense. Yep, that is exactly it. So it would seem these bills are obvious shoe-ins, something every member of congress could get behind – wouldn’t you think? Not so fast. I came to realize that while open to the Five Moms’ message, even the most straight forward, bi-partisan issues won’t be immediately resolved without some behind the scenes work. Call it horse-trading, call it prioritizing, call it plain old politics but these bills have run into a couple brick walls in the Senate. I know, I don’t get it either, but they have.
What Can You Do?
First of all, every parent should educate themselves. Go to StopMedicineAbuse.org to learn more about the risks, the facts, how dextromethorphan is abused and what signs to look for.
Secondly (and probably MOST importantly) you need to discuss this drug and its risks with your teens. Don’t find yourself assuming your sweet innocent child would never do this. Don’t find yourself dealing with a future overdose just like Misty Fetko did.
Thirdly, read medicine labels, look for the educational icon (see at right) and keep careful tabs on what you have in your medicine cabinets. If you see this icon on a medicine label, you should be aware that it has the potential to be abused and may contain dextromethorphan.
Finally, email or write your Representatives and Senators about this issue. Because you know what? They asked me to tell you that. In fact, Senator Grassley had statistics right at his fingertips about how many letters or emails his office receives and how many they respond to. And then after our meeting, his assistant came up to the bloggers and urged us to tell our readers the same. WRITE YOUR REPRESENTATIVES AND SENATORS. Because they are listening and they will support what you feel strongly about. No really, they will.
My Afterglow
And so, readers of mine, I will wrap up this lengthy post to say that I was officially blown away by my Capitol Hill experience. You see, I got to experience first hand the influence that moms have on their communities and country at large. And it has left me awed and inspired. Because I often flashback a few years to when my children were very young, when I thought I had no affect on very much any longer apart from raising my boys. I was simply a mom not doing too much of consequence apart from wiping bums, washing bottles and watching Ellen from time to time. No no. Actually, we have a voice. An important one. One that is heard on Capitol Hill – whether it be in face to face meetings or via letters and blog posts. We can make an important difference if we get busy, get talking, get writing and get organizing. Don’t forget what we have the potential to accomplish. Thanks to my time with the Five Moms, I know I never will.
Disclosure note: While my trip and hotel expenses were covered by the CHPA, the opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own. This is an extremely important initiative and I was proud to be there to offer my support.
I am writing this quick post from my hotel room over looking Pennsylvania Avenue. I’m here in Washington DC to cover the Five Moms and their efforts to promote awareness about over the counter (OTC) cough medicine abuse. We met these women last night, they are amazing, their stories are inspiring and they are moms just like you and me who never thought their child could abuse something so everyday as cough medicine.
Did you know 10% of young people between ages 12 and 17 report to have intentionally abused cough medicine?
And only 4% of parents believe their children may have abused cough medicine?
And do you know who else is here to support the Five Moms?
Dr. Drew.
We spent our evening last night talking to him about abuse, addiction and generally soaking up his brilliance. The man is amazing and him being here will truly impact the momentum of this initiative.
Anyway, in a minute, the bloggers, the Five Moms and Dr. Drew are heading to Capitol Hill to support the resolution to designate October as “National Medicine Abuse Awareness Month.”
I will write a much more informative post once I am home. Until then, read more about this initiative and how you can educate yourself on the topic at StopMedicineAbuse.org.
Last night, I had the fascinating opportunity to be part of a conference call with Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Mike Taylor of the US FDA, Safe Tables and a varietyoffabulousbloggers to discuss the new FDA food safety reform bill. As our country has experienced more and more disturbing food recalls, increased cases of E coli and a whole slew of food borne illnesses resulting in many unexpected deaths – its time we take control of our own food safety.
Safe Tables – or S.T.O.P. (Safe tables Our Priority) – provides consumers with excellent resources about current food safety initiatives. They are a “national, nonprofit, public health organization dedicated to preventing illness and death from food borne pathogens”. I would encourage everyone to sign up for their E-Alerts which will be sent to your email address of choice if there are any sudden food recalls or outbreaks that you should know about.
Also, in case you weren’t aware, the new Food Safety reform bill is hoping to accomplish the following:
Require all facilities to have in place preventive plans to address identified hazards and prevent adulteration, and give FDA access to these plans and relevant documentation;
Expand FDA access to records;
Allow FDA to recognize laboratory accreditation bodies to help ensure U.S. food testing labs meet high quality standards and require results from food testing performed by these labs to be reported to FDA;
Require importers to verify the safety of foreign suppliers and imported food, provide that FDA require certification for high-risk foods, and deny entry to a food that lacks certification or that is from a foreign facility that has refused U.S. inspectors;
Increase FDA inspections at all food facilities, providing for annual inspections of high-risk facilities and inspections of other facilities at least once every four years;
Enhance food-borne illness surveillance systems to improve the collection, analysis, reporting and usefulness of data on food-borne illnesses;
Require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a pilot project to test and evaluate new methods for rapidly and effectively tracking/tracing fruits and vegetables in the event of a food-borne illness outbreak;.
Give FDA the authority to mandate recall of a food product if a company fails to voluntarily recall product upon FDA’s request;
Empower FDA to suspend a food facility’s registration if there is a reasonable probability that food from the facility will cause serious adverse health consequences or death;
Direct FDA to help food companies protect their products from intentional contamination; and
Increase funding for FDA’s food safety activities through increased appropriations and targeted fees for domestic and foreign facilities.
So what did I learn on this phone call? First of all, it is going to take some time. All of these farms and food processing centers need to be brought up to speed. The Senator was clear to explain that small farms will not be targeted, however processors will be and the FDA would ideally have the authority to enforce new FDA regulations on the spot with further and increased inspections.
The Senator also explained that state and local government would need to work much more closely and have better integration in order to enforce these regulations.
And then there are imported foods. They would need to be equally processed and held up to the same standard as domestic foods. Did you know that we currently inspect less than 1% of imported foods? Yeah. Wow.
I have to admit. This is an ambitious plan. I’m not sure how long it will take or how the consistency will be enforced or how much it will cost. The Senator did mention that there is enough bi-partisan support for this bill to give it the momentum it needs. But, I dunno. We have a long way to go, baby. But at least the work has begun and food safety has become a priority (amongst many others).
Finally, it left me wondering what WE can do. You and me, consumers, wheeling our carts through the grocery store with wrestling kids in tow. How can we put pressure on the large farms and corporations to move more quickly with these new regulations? How can we hold the folks who make and handle our food accountable? Because you and I both know that corporations get a certain “giddy-up” if they feel any pressure from their consumers. So, while I brainstorm, consider your food and its safety and do what you can to support the new FDA food reform bill.
A quick side-bar…
BlogHer is hosting a conference call with Senator Jeff Merkley about the future of health care on Wednesday, Oct. 21. Interested in being a part of this call? You better get a move on. They are taking the first 20 bloggers who respond here. They hosted an amazing conference call with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi discussing health care reform earlier today.
Also, I am heading to Washington DC next week to be learn more about teen over the counter medicine abuse (StopMedicineAbuse.org) and the Five Moms who are working in conjunction with OTCsafety.org and CHPA. (Remember when I got interview their spokesperson Chandra Wilson awhile back?) These are great people and this is an important initiative. I’m very excited and will be posting more later. So stay tuned.
I was entirely overwhelmed by U2, their outstanding to the core talent, their mind-blowing state of the art stage, the energy of their fans and their incredible message. In fact, because I was so distracted by the music, this video is hardly a recap of the entire concert. No way. (And I’m not sure that’s legal anyway.) But it does give you a sense of it – and it does show you the entire earth to space conversation Bono and Guy Laliberte had that evening.
Too. Cool. Beyond. Words. I assure you.
But let me get back the message part of this entire experience. As you all know, I was there on behalf of the Poetic Social Mission from Space which was set up by the One Drop Organization. So while a U2 fan, I was extraordinarily excited to witness a concert experience performed by a band who clearly cares about its global community. And unless you live on the moon, you already know how much Bono has done to raise awareness about various causes such as the AIDS crisis in Africa, famine relief and now our global need for clean water.
And I wasn’t the only one busting at the seams over their commitment to so much more than just their music. The woman sitting next to me was a huge fan (keep an eye out for her and her husband in the video). While certainly a hard-core fan of their music (and Bono, swoooon), she has also been moved by all of the good that Bono and U2 have done worldwide. This is what seems to set U2 and their fans apart from the rest of the music industry – and it is perhaps a large part of what has ensured their longevity too.
I would also like to make it very clear just how honored I was to be there that evening. My husband and I happened to be celebrating our 9th wedding anniversary that week. So being able to see U2 and honor our day by being part of the Poetic Social Mission was more than we could have asked for. On behalf of the two of us, thank you to the One Drop Foundation, the Poetic Social Mission, Cirque Du Soleil and Flip Video.
Without further ado, here is my night with U2 and, most importantly, Bono’s earth to space meeting with Guy Laliberte – the first clown in space and founder of the One Drop Organization. Enjoy!
Oh and one quick P.S…
If you would like to watch the entire Poetic Social Mission Broadcast, click the One Drop website here.
And Tampa, if you want to learn how you can do more to conserve clean water here in Florida, please visit this website for some excellent tips, water use calculators and even an option to request free water conservation materials for you home.
Ok! Welcome to my first installment of my U2 concert coverage. As I posted before, the One Drop Organization asked me as a local Tampa blogger to cover the U2 concert this Friday. One Drop and U2 will be part of an exciting event that night where 14 cities will come together, along with Guy Laliberte (the founder of Cirque Du Soleil and current clown in space) to promote awareness about our most important resource: water.
So, do you wish you could be a part of this? You can be. You can watch all of it online here on Friday, October 9th. Check out this link and make a date with yourself. (What’s good on TV anyway on Friday nights?)
The entire event will also be shown on DirecTV’s The 101 Network. “The first event of it’s kind to be hosted from the International Space Station.”
Also, just to keep things really interesting, One Drop was also kind enough to send me a fabulous new Flip Video Camera to cover the event. So, without further ado, here is my cringe-worthy first try at the flip camera taken during my children’s bath time. I am at the end of my day, hardly freshened up, with kids in the tub. Don’t expect any miracles – or clean mirrors (ew!) – either.
I’ve been a little burnt out on politics recently. And why is that? Hate and anger have become a normal, tolerable part of political and partisan discourse. Slinging words such as “Nazi” are considered acceptable and perfectly justified. Folks crow about misusing the racist card, but I’ve never seen so many examples of racism and fear in my country before. Not to say my party is innocent of lobbing hateful verbiage at the other side. Keith Olbermann has been making me cringe recently, and I usually love me some Keith.
We are locked down in division, partisan hate and discourse are at an all time high and there seems very little hope of any forward momentum between parties.
And you know what? It exhausts me to even post about this. If you want to know more about my thoughts on our partisan woes, read them here. Because I’m not up to rehashing it any more than I already have right now. It plain old bums me out.
But it’s not as if I can just turn away from politics and standing up for what I believe in either.
Last weekend, Joanne Bamberger (aka Pundit Mom) lead a panel on politics and blogging at the Type A Mom Conference. Not surprisingly, the topic immediately turned to the negativity in current politics. People on both sides are angry and nothing is being achieved with the one upping, the name calling, the seething hate, the taunts that “you lie!”
Folks, nothing is getting done this way. Nothing. Not when there is so much disrespect for one another, not when you or I must prepare for personal assault if we dare offer up any slice of our political persuasions. Not if the space for discourse isn’t safe, isn’t open, isn’t respectful or isn’t mature enough to tolerate differences.
So while we all left our discussion with visions of “safe, bipartisan political spaces” dancing in our heads, the fabulous Down To Earth Mama let me know about Jane Devin’s effort coming up next week. What she proposes is this.
One day with no hate.
On October 6th, Jane suggests that we allow ourselves one day where we drop our pretenses, our built up prejudices, our grudges, our self-righteous “I’m better than you” crap. One day where we quiet down, breathe, look over to the other side and LISTEN. Maybe we can use it as an exercise to find common ground with those we feel so polarized from. Maybe we try the whole “if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all” thing. Maybe we can find some peace somewhere in the middle of this whole mess.
Because if we can’t accomplish ONE day of no hate, we’re in big trouble.
But if we can accomplish one day, maybe that means we can try out a few days without hate. Or a week. Or longer.
So let’s try one day. What do you say?
The twitter hashtag is #1Day0Hate . And go over to Down to Earth Mama for the code for the button I have pasted above and in my sidebar.
Sometimes I don’t feel like posting. Sometimes, I’m just having a bad day. In fact, if it gets quiet around here – that’s usually why. Dragging out and rehashing those feelings here every time I have them just gets old. So instead, I’d rather focus my energy on things I want to support! Positivity! For everyone! Including PMSing mothers on the verge of tears because her child is tantruming but not really since it’s really because her mom died a month and a half ago. Yeah them too. Yay!
So stick with me here. I have some shout outs I’d like to give. Pay attention. Because if I do say so myself, they are truly worth your attention.
Never Too Late For College
A good blogging friend and I both have background in college administration. She is from the guidance side of things and I spent many years working in college admissions. So one day we got to talking and she had a fabulous idea of starting a site where she could post content supporting students who have decided to return college. People like us with families and jobs and busy lives who might also be looking to pursue a degree. And like us, these very same people are probably stressed about how they will squeak one more thing into their lives, how will they afford it, how long will it take. Her site is brand new but I do think she is on to something there. I hope to guest post soon and support her any way that I can. If you are thinking about going back to school and are concerned about how you will balance it all – go check out Never Too late For College. Give Mary a shout out – she has some amazing content on there right now.
Savvy Source in Tampa- Join!
If you’ve done any background stalking on me (like checking out the buttons posted to the right), you’ll know I’ve been working for Savvy Source for the past year. I post about events, activities, and general fun things happening in Tampa for preschool aged kids. Recently, our site had a make-over and we are now introducing a very cool option for our readers. For those who join (which is FREE), members can personalize the site to their children’s interests. Also we (well not ME but the Savvy Source brains behind all of this) have added a new social networking feature. In fact we have a Tampa area group and I (clearing my throat, looking quite proud) am the moderator. What does that mean? Well, I’m in charge of the party and will be doing my damnedest to bounce any spammers or lame-os who disrespect any great conversations happening. If you’re a parent living in Tampa – JOIN! I need someone to talk to…
Cancer Sucks. Children with Cancer Sucks Even More.
Did you know that September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month? No? Well, its time you did. Click on over there and meet Peyton and her mom Anissa. Cancer happens all the time, and it happens all the time to babies and children who don’t get why they spend months in and out of hospitals, getting poked and feeling horrid. And then when they’re better, no one is ever sure it won’t come back. And have you ever thought of what kind of effects the drugs that put children into remission might have on a child’s development? And how does a mother cope wondering when the next shoe might drop. Remission. It sounds an awful lot like the word dormant. Quiet for now but who knows? Be aware, learn, share, donate.
My Mom
And while I’m having one of those “on the verge of tears days”, I may as well give a shout out to the Susan G. Komen Foundation where I’ve set up a memorial fund for my mom. She was in remission from cancer too – for 15 years. Sure, she didn’t die from breast cancer but she was extraordinarily changed by it. She knew it could come back at any moment. She knew we needed to stay proactive about cancer and do what we can to beat it. She participated in walks, she was a part of many research groups, she did her part. So, yeah, she didn’t die from cancer but she cared about it. So I care about it. And have set up this memorial in her name.
All right, my friends. Thanks for reading. I hope you’ve checked out these sites and learned a little something. Now back to what you were doing and I’ll get back to wallowing for as long as I can before someone who claims he’s potty trained decides – for today only – why bother?
There can be no argument against that fact that we have a severe childhood obesity issue in our country. McDonald’s chains are often more common than supermarkets in some areas. One third of our nation’s children are overweight or obese. Junk food is stuffed into beautiful, fun packaging. Sugar tastes so damn good and its deliciously addictive. We eat big portions in this country – most of which is just a lot of nothing, filling the hole, cheap and easy. It’s here, it’s there, it’s everywhere, nom, nom, nom.
I had no idea. But I guess I shouldn’t blame myself for being so naive. It seems that many parents don’t have any idea either. We generally assume that the drugs we need to worry about our children abusing are such party favorites as alcohol, ecstasy, pot, cocaine or even heroin. I never thought a popular drug of choice these days was dextromethorphan – a key component in cough medicine.
Moms Storm Capitol Hill
We didn’t meet every congress person. In fact, my group usually met with Legislative Assistants. But Dr. Drew and Misty, along with the President and CEO of the Partnership for a Drug Free America, arrived in time for our face to face meetings with both Rep. Fred Upton and Sen. Chuck Grassley.
Thirdly, read medicine labels, look for the educational icon (see at right) and keep careful tabs on what you have in your medicine cabinets. If you see this icon on a medicine label, you should be aware that it has the potential to be abused and may contain dextromethorphan.
Last night, I had the fascinating opportunity to be part of a conference call with 
So should I state the obvious?
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