Mommin' It Up!

July 2, 2013July 2, 2013

Words that should be eradicated from the English language.

I am getting grumpy in my old age, and one of the things that drives me insane is the stupid words/phrases that we hear all. the. time. on Facebook, Twitter, whatever.

I have decided to compile a list to make it convenient for all of you to NEVER USE THEM AGAIN.

Now, I’m not throwing stones – I’m guilty myself. I’m sure I’ve committed more than one of these atrocities in the past 24 hours. But, with dedication and perseverance, we can change.

Without further ado, I bring you…

WORDS THAT SHOULD BE ERADICATED FROM THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.

1. YOLO. I think that ridiculous acronym (which stands for you only live once, for those of you lucky enough to avoid that phrase until this point) is from a song, but I don’t really know. And before you tell me, I don’t WANT to know what song it is. Because it would probably get stuck in my head and then I’d have to end it all and it might be hard for my kids to understand why I killed myself over a song (but then they’d listen to it and be like, “oh, now I get it.”). ANYWAY. YOLO is a justification for doing stupid shit you know you shouldn’t be doing – and a poor justification at that. Also? I consider it to be prudent never to use words I’ve seen airbrushed onto men’s tank tops.

Now that’s a life policy I encourage you to adopt.

2. Mind.Blown. Really? Your mind is blown? That would explain why you chose to use a dumb phrase like that.

3. Periods.After.Every.Word. Now, I warned you that I was a perpetrator of some of this annoying shark, and what do you know, I used this one at the beginning of this post! But I annoyed myself when I did it.

4. That moment… I don’t know where that phrase came from or what started it – and, let’s be clear, I do not want to know – but that moment when I read “that moment…” on someone’s facebook status is when I want to punch my iPhone in the throat.

5. It is what it is. Really? WTF does that even mean? Actually, I’ll tell you what it means – nothing. It means nothing. It is not helpful advice, and it does not make me feel better – because even if it is what it is, “it” can still suck.

6. Foodie. One question – could you BE any more pretentious? I didn’t think so.

7. Selfie. This is actually the word that inspired this whole post. Selfie. An obnoxious word for an even more obnoxious activity. The only thing that would be better than getting rid of that word is to never have to see one ever again. What genius at Apple thought to him/herself, “Let’s see.. how can we make Americans even more self-absorbed than they already are? How could we make them MORE egocentric? Wait, I know – we’ll take something that’s supposed to focus outward – a freaking camera lens – and make it so they can point it at themselves! That way we can totally reinforce the idea that they ARE actually the center of the universe! Yay, narcissism!” Cue millions of dollars spent and thousands of hours wasted trying to Instagram the exact right angle of your face. (Sorry Jenny. xoxo. But seriously.)

Ugh, selfies. I am spent.

But I’m sure I’m missing some – what drives you crazy???

June 28, 2013

My Swimmers

We’re about halfway through summer swim team season, and I am going to be sad to see it end. This is the fifth summer Kate’s been on the team, and the first year Sam’s gotten to participate – officially, anyway.

I say “officially,” because with swim team, the entire family participates. Needless to say, I’m not doing laps of the butterfly, but we really are all involved. Whether it’s setting up our little campsite, volunteering as a timer or a cat-herder (otherwise known as clerk of course), or making sure no one misses an event, we’re all a part of the team. That’s what I love about swim team more than anything else – it’s a family activity.

Swim team takes a lot of time – there are practices every day, and the meets last for hours. It’s a whole bunch of hurry-up-and-wait – I remember calculating the time Kate actually spent in the pool vs. the time we spent AT the pool at last year’s championship meet, and the ratio was something like 2.5 minutes : 12 hours. But during all the time that we’re sitting around waiting, we’re spending time with each other and with dear friends. It’s a few hours of screen-free (ok, I have my phone with me at all times, I will admit) outdoor time for all of us, and I love it.

And I really, really love to watch my girl swim.

June 28, 2013

Tips for a Healthy Summer

We all know why our kids need healthy meals – it’s hugely important for their health and development – but many times our focus on that can slide during the summer. Crazy schedules with sports, camps and activities can get in the way of regular meals cooked at home, and, worse, millions of low-income kids who benefit from lunch programs during the school year just don’t have access to healthy meals during the summer. In fact, most kids don’t eat the recommended servings of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains – and they exceed the maximum daily intake of sodium.

Fortunately, the Walmart Foundation has made a commitment to providing 1.7 million children access to free meals and nutrition education this summer as part of their commitment to help fight hunger in America. They’re providing $14 million in grants to these five nonprofits:
o Alliance for a Healthier Generation: Increase access to healthy food and nutrition education for children and parents outside of school in eight U.S. cities.
o Food Research and Action Center: Increase access, participation and awareness of nutrition programs that provide meals to children across the country during the school year and summer months.
o National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education and Families: Expand after-school and summer nutrition initiatives and implement yearlong feeding programs for more than 25,000 low-income children across the country.
o Texas Hunger Initiative: Expand sponsorship and locations for summer and after-school meal programs throughout Texas, while increasing participation by 583,000 children.
o YMCA of the USA: Expand the YMCA’s Summer Food Program at more than 2,300 sites to provide children with access to meals outside of school year-round.

I will be the first to admit that we’ve gotten off the home-cooking bandwagon in the last few months, but it’s time we get back on. Here are some tips from Dr. Michele Borba, a children’s health and development expert, to make meal time fun and healthy for everyone.

• Preparation: Kids Can Meal Plan Too
o Pick recipes for the week and talk to your kids about ingredients needed
o Ask kids to help with the grocery list
o Bring kids to the grocery store
o Visit a farmers market or local farm

• Storage: Color-Coded Foods
o Color coding cuts down on “nagging”
o Green: Eat all the time
o Yellow: Eat sometimes
o Red: Eat once a week
o Make healthy snacks visible and easy to grab on the way out the door

• Meal Time: Enjoying a Fun, Relaxed Time Together
o Make meal time “unplugged time”
o Introduce new foods in quarter-sized portions for picky eaters
o Connect with other moms and cook healthy meals together
o Start a family kindness box to open at each meal

How are you working on keeping your family healthy this summer?

This post was sponsored by TheMotherhood.com.