Is This Appropriate Family Fun?

On Saturday evening I took my son to a splash park operated by a City of Dallas rec center that is near our house. While I understand this is "free family fun," I was appalled at what I saw. One woman had on a white t-shirt with no bra and was frolicking around in the water. While my two-year-old didn't notice a thing, but every other person could clearly see her large breasts through the shirt. Children were playing in the water with just a diaper or in all their clothes.

Seriously, can't we show some public respect and dress appropriately? Swimsuits (and swim diapers) required would be a nice start. While I also realize it would require manpower to patrol the splashparks, having some kind of code of conduct (that could be checked at any time by a staff member) seems warranted. Isn't this how diseases and illness get spread. I'm sure the nasty diapers are a cause.

Needless to say, I was disappointed with this experience and it did not make me proud to live in the City of Dallas. Next time we'll go to Plano or Frisco.

Meal Planning is Harder Than it Appears

For the first time in my life, I made a weekly meal plan. The main objective is to control my personal eating (stop eating so much sugar) and have three meals and two snacks a day. The other important piece is to appropriately plan meals for my son and me so I'm not tempted to swing through the drive through which is not healthy for either of us.

I did some quick online research to find a menu planning document that would work for me . After pulling a few, I decided to create my own (thanks to the project girl for the inspiration). I liked the concept of having the weekly menu at the top, then having the grocery list at the bottom organized by section of the grocery store. Hopefully the menu won't get messed up during my trip to the store. I might cut off the list section to avoid that.

It took over an hour last night to plot out all the meals and ensure I was getting the right amount of protein, veggies and fruit. That was absolutely the most difficult part as I'm not a gourmet chef so am limited in what I can confidently prepare. Once I had all the meals written into in my menu today, I received my son's school menu via email (somewhat perfect timing). So I had to re-arrange a couple of days so he didn't overdose on green beans one day and chicken the next. Overall, I'm happy with the end result even if it is going to require some serious homework every week.

Day One of the new menu starts Sunday. I'm nervous about this commitment.

To Blog or Not to Blog

I took a little bit of a break from blogging even though I haven't been blogging for long. Why? I have no idea. I'm not making excuses, but I have a lot to do with work and home. I think part of it was the uncertainty about what I really wanted to write about. But it seems a lot has happened in the last month.

The American Academy of Pediatrics approved swimming lessons for children under the age of 4. My son started swim lessons at 2, and I had no idea this wasn't "approved." The hot weather meant stories about children being left in the car and dying because of the heat started in the media. I constantly have a sick feeling thinking about leaving my son in the car in the Texas heat. Autism Awareness Month brought the topic of development disabilities into the national spotlight in a big way.

So, time to get back to writing about what's touching my life.

Spanking or Time Out?

The great debate about spanking rages on with research from Tulane University coming out this week showing spanking in children under 5 leads to aggressive behavior. The aggressive behavior includes tantrums, physical outbursts and defiance.

I've been somewhat torn on the spanking issue, but have started to see that using aggression (spanking) to curb aggression (hitting, kicking, biting, etc) doesn't work well. I was spanked as a child by my parents and I don't think that has made me an overly aggressive person nor do I think it was cruel punishment (well, I did at the time). But, for my son, I do think it sends the wrong message to tell him not to hit only to turn around and "hit" him on the rear end.

Taking my cue from Supernanny, I am using time out as discipline. Supernanny (Jo Frost) teaches the technique on her show and I have to admit that, when used appropriately step-by-step, it does the trick. My family teases me that I learn things from the show, but they can't laugh at the results!

Moms Who Blog

A post from Mom-101 has been circulated around my PR firm in the last few days along with the overwhelming dislike for the term "mommy blogger." Two weeks ago, following a NY Times article on bloggers, a brilliant colleague (as did Mom-101) shared her opinion on our agency's digital blog . All of this attention devoted to the work of blogging by women/moms has really made me think about why I started this blog.

I'm not writing to get free products or make tons of money. I have a successful career in public relations and have enough to worry about with raising my son and maintaining my professional life (and trying to have a personal life). This blog is supposed to be an outlet for me to write and share my thoughts on a wide variety of topics related to my life as a working mother. I'm also a single mother and while I don't think this defines me, it is important to my point of view on topics of parenting and full-time work. I also wanted to write this blog to appeal to women/parents in Dallas. I know there are moms like me all across the country, but I want to bring a local perspective to what I talk about even if I don't do it in every post.

Am I on the right track? I have no idea. Maybe I need the Bloggy Boot Camp mentioned in the articles/blogs. Maybe I just need to talk to the brilliant people in my agency!

Family Activities on a Budget

I know it's challenging to find activities that are fun, engaging and eductional for families not to mention inexpensive. Metroplex Baby & Kids posted a Guide to DFW on a Budget. I can't wait to check out some of these especially as it warms up!

The Great Outdoors

My son and I enjoyed a beautiful, warm, sunny day in Dallas yesterday, one of the first since we moved into our house last September. The wooden playhouse in the backyard has been used less than a handful times because of the cold, snow or rain. We enjoyed a snack outside, walked through the grass and splashed around with a water toy.

As I drove to work this morning, I was thinking about new things that we could do outside as it continues to warm up. I chuckled when I saw Amy Twomey's post on Dallas Moms blog about the book, Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder. I bought the book last year after hearing someone reference it at a luncheon. I haven't gotten all the way through the book, but intend to finish it soon. It prompted me to buy a book called I Love Dirt!: 52 Activities to Help You and Your Kids Discover the Wonders of Nature. I told my sister about it and she made fun of me for having to read a book to come up with things to do outside.

I don't think that's odd, especially since my son has barely played outside for 4 months (and we don't even live in a northern state). I don't live on acres of land where kids can find something to do just by going out and roaming around. Plus, with a 2-year-old, you have to be a little structured with planning activities. I know the video game years are soon to come so I'm committed to finding fun and interesting activities at our local parks, nature preserves and even in our backyard to get my son hooked on being outside.