Dinosaurs, Dinosaurs Everywhere!

Not sure if you can tell from our recent trips to the Fernbank Museum but Mekhi loves dinosaurs. Last Thursday he took his two stuffed dinos to school for Show and Tell but he refused to let anyone touch his precious dinosaurs. *ahem* We still need to work on sharing but I don't think we will start with the objects of his affection!

Based on his love for all things dino I knew that we were in for a day of adventure on Saturday. Our first stop was the Dinos and Donuts event hosted by PBS where we had a chance to preview the new show Dinosaur Train. There were a ton of events for the kids and I had the opportunity to see some of my bloggy and mommy group friends.


Mekhi loved the Dinosaur Train preview, meeting Buddy the T-Rex





and riding the train.




As a matter of fact, he loved the train so much that we rode it twice. And, there was a public moment of embarrassment when I had to drag my child kicking and screaming from the train! He cried and cried but when I mentioned seeing his friend Cinque and let him know our next stop was the Dinosaur Birthday bash his tears quickly dried as he anticipated the rest of the day.







Our day was filled with multiple opportunities to see dinosaurs; we met up with friends and Mekhi missed nap time. Needless to say he was happy as a clam. Now he "can't wait" ( his words) to watch Dinosaur week on PBS starting on September 13th.

In addition to his multiple dinosaur playmates his dad just purchased a book for him. Everything that you ever wanted to know about dinosaurs in an oversized book. So now Mekhi sleeps with his mini dinosaur, his two stuffed dinosaurs and two dinosaur books. I am pretty sure I know what the theme of his next birthday party will be!

For more Wordful Wednesday check out Angie's 7 Clown Circus and for WW visit 5 Minutes for Mom.

Work Life Balance- Does such a thing really exist?

This morning I received an email from my friend T. today thanking me for giving her a referral to a blogging program. At the end of her note she requested that I write a blog post about organization. I had to chuckle. Organization? Me? I need to ask for tips and pointers in this area myself. I am far from being organized. There are days when everything seems to fall into place for me and I go to bed with a sigh of relief. Then there are the days when I run around like a chicken with its head cut off and wonder what happened to the time and did I really get so little accomplished.

I know that what I need is balance. A life that is filled with a balance of work and play. Finding that balance as a mother and an entrepreneur is difficult. Working from home has benefits but there are seriously challenges to overcome too. I liken it to having adult ADD. Although I do not in actuality have this diagnosis, working on my computer all day (and sometimes night) it is very easy to get distracted. Ooooh what is that over there - it is pretty and sparkly and wait, what was I doing again? Confusion abounds and chaos and disorder are frequently the order of my day. Somehow I manage to get "things" done but honestly my to-do list continues to grow and rarely can I say that it is completely finished. I admit that many times I am totally overwhelmed and just don't see a way out from under all of my responsibilities. And sometimes, I fail. I fail to be the neatest housekeeper, I fail to get all of my work done, my son sometimes watches more television that I like to admit.

I recognize that my struggle is not mine alone. I think most mothers are trying to find a work life balance - even if their work is being a domestic engineer. I recently was given a lifeline when I met Victoria. She is one of the moms that I interviewed while working with The Motherhood as a correspondent for Kelloggs and Mom's Homeroom. I was awed by Victoria and all of her accomplishments. Victoria is an elementary school teacher and was awarded "teacher of the year" in 2007. She is also a single mother to 4 children. As I struggle to manage it all with one child and a husband I HAD to ask her how she does it all. Her response was simple "I don't."

Can we breath a collective sigh here? This accomplished woman simply decides to give herself a break and makes no apology for it. She told me that many mothers look at balance as a see saw that teeters from one side to another but in reality it is more like a Frisbee floating on the surface of a pool. The Frisbee dips and bends as gentle waves pass in the water. In essence, some days are better than others, accept it, do what you can and move on.

I have to say that her words echo in my psyche often. I am working on trying to dispel the myth of the Super Woman/Mom that all (or at least) many of us hold ourselves up to. It is not realistic or sustainable and in many instances it ends up being detrimental to our health. I think that we can all learn from Victoria's insights. When you have an opportunity stop by and listen to some of her words of wisdom, this woman never ceases to amaze me.

Monistat - It Works!

I crack myself up. I am sure you were afraid of what this post was going to be about but trust me, this is a great tip. Monistat makes more than *ahem* feminine products, as a matter of fact the chaffing gel is one of the products in their line. The gel is supposed to be used to prevent chaffing - if you have thigh chaffing it can be very helpful. However, that is not the focus of this post.

This post is all about make-up. That's right, make-up. If you wear make-up and desire a long lasting application and reduction in shine, applying a primer is a must. I have worn make-up for years and never believed the hype about primer until a couple of weeks ago when I visited the Lancome counter.

I complained that although I like their long lasting foundation, I found that it came off on things - especially my iPhone. The make-up artist informed me that applying primer would help with that problem. I have to say that she was correct but the thought of dropping another 40 bucks or so on primer left me shaking. There had to be a less expensive alternative.

Researcher that I am I searched high and low on the internet for affordable primers. Lo and behold I found a discussion on a message board about Monistat chaffing gel. Make-up divas were proclaiming their love for the stuff and saying it worked as well or better than more expensive primers.

I had to try it out.

I figured even if it didn't work I could afford to test it at $4 and if it did work, bonus!

The test. I applied the gel to my face and it felt exactly like the expensive primer. It was cool, silky and seemed to give a nice base for my foundation. I let it dry for a couple of minutes and then applied my foundation. During the day I found that my make-up stayed intact with minimal reapplication and very little shine. I was impressed!

So, I had to share this information with you. Monistat Chaffing Gel is a great alternative to expensive primers and worked extremely well when put to the test. I sincerely doubt that I will ever pay for an expensive name brand primer. Unorthodox, yes but try it and let me know what you think.

For more Wordful Wednesday visit Angie's 7 Clown Circus.

A Helicopter Parent in the Making?????

So no one ever told me that there would be homework in preschool. The assignment was simple enough, put together an "All About Me" poster with my child. Mekhi and I do craft projects fairly often so it seemed like it should be a breeze. We have a ton of crayons, pencils, pastels, markers and glitter. The only thing I needed to do was pick up some poster board. In my usual fashion I added another level of difficulty to the situation. I decided we needed pictures and that meant wading through the gazillion photos that I have to determine which ones were poster worthy. I felt like Elaine on Seinfield, remember when she had to determine if a beau was sponge worthy? Why? Well, I only have a limited amount of picture paper. Four sheets to be exact. It was a mission.

This is preschool, I am really not sure why I agonized over it so much. I should have picked a couple of photos and been done with the process. But no, I decided I needed to do some editing and downloading of more pictures from my camera. It ended up taking a few hours - HOURS! Mekhi and his dad did the actual decorating of the board and it is beautiful. I just added the pictures after the glitter dried. Here is the final product

Age appropriate, yes? According to his teacher, Mekhi did a great job talking about his poster. But now I am concerned about my future. If I am spending this much time on pre-school projects what do the next 16 years have in store for me?

Misadventures in Potty Training

You know the saying "shit happens"? Well, today it certainly did. Our day started out fairly uneventful, Mekhi and I lounged around the house in the morning and he took a nap at his usual time. When he woke up we went to hang out with our friends "Auntie Calinda" and Cinque at the Fernbank Museum to see the dinosaur exhibit (Mekhi never tires of dinosaurs).

The kids had fun and we wanted to end the day with an early dinner. And that is when the trouble began.

We promised the kids noodles but wanted to try a new place so we decided to visit a family friendly Italian restaurant. We pulled up but things looked scarce so Calinda left Cinque in my care while she checked it out. As luck would have it, the restaurant was closed for "holiday" this weekend. We decided to go to our usual noodle house that both boys love. We quickly placed our order and as usual the kid's food and our appetizers came within five minutes. Good stuff. That is until we ended up waiting 20 minutes or more for our entrees. Calinda and I sat plateless as people that arrived long after we did received their food. We became antsy and finally asked about the server about the delay.

Meanwhile, Mekhi and Cinque ate quietly and after a bit of a fuss, our our food finally arrived. Shortly thereafter, Mekhi started complaining of a stomachache. I explained to my girlfriend that he has a tendency to hold his poop and getting him to use the potty for number 2 is nearly impossible. I already knew he had to go because he did his usual and placed his hand on his butt at the museum, a sure sign that poop was imminent. At the restaurant I assumed he was suffering from holding and couldn't do it any longer. He complained no less that 3 or 4 times so I finally took him out of his seat and he walked around to take care of his business.

Five minutes later as a familiar smell wafted through the air I asked him if he was finished and he replied no. He continued to walk around and play with Cinque and after I finished eating I took him to the bathroom. WELL, this is where the virtual shit storm begins. I took his pants down and all hell broke loose. Shit was running down his leg, was on his shorts and in his shoe. That's right, in his shoe!



And just the other day I was reading a blog post about shitty diapers and thinking how lucky I've been not to deal with such a thing out in public. Until today.

Today was all about ensuring that I left the single bathroom in reasonable condition upon leaving and trying to clean up my child enough to be seen in public. After sitting him on the toilet, dumping as much as possible into said toilet and then wiping everything down with hand soap, wipes and paper towels it seemed my job was done. The operable word here is "seemed". The air was still heavily laden with the scent of recent fecal matter but I chalked it up to the nearly clean but dirty diaper in the trash and the sheer enormity of the load my 2 year old dropped.

We practically ran to the table to pay our bill, Mekhi sans pants (luckily he is still young enough to get away with it - for five minutes anyway) and I told Calinda about the epic poop. She quickly pointed out that there was evidence smeared all over my shirt(which explained the stench).





She retrieved a bag from her car for Mekhi's soiled pants (there was no way in hell I was placing shit laden pants in my new Hayden Harnett bag. It is less than 2 weeks old, no way, no how! ) and we proceeded to the parking lot. While there we exchanged stories of poop - babies and otherwise but we soon parted ways.

I mooned my girlfriend with my thong -NICE and my son started jumping around like a wild man, it was time to go. On the way home I tried to keep my nostrils closed because the smell from my shirt was damn near unbearable. Mekhi fell asleep (thank God for small miracles)

and despite my nasal discomfort I stopped for a sundae because for me, even on the shittiest day in history, ice cream makes everything better.

I Reminisce

The early days of my son's life are still vivid. Long sleepless nights, concern about doing things the "right" way and learning how to take care of a newborn. I was also extremely committed to nursing my baby. Raw, cracked nipples did not hinder me. On numerous times I called for backup, LaLeche League was great and Lansinol cream was my very best friend. I was extremely lucky that I did not get a yeast infection but I think walking around breasts out most days helped the situation tremendously. I was so comfortable in fact, when my aunt and mother were visiting they had to remind me to cover up which was hilarious. I was so entrenched in my responsibilities as a mother that I walked around oblivious to everything else.

My determination to continue nursing despite the pain of that first month hinged on my desire to provide the best for my son. The adage "breast is best" resounded loudly in the recesses of my mind and heart, not once did my desire to nurse waver. I know that there are many women that do not breastfeed, some have no desire and others try without success. Like everything else regarding parenting I believe this is an individuals choice and I do not judge others because of the decisions they make regarding this issue.

I do know that formula can be pricey. Obviously nursing is free but the few times it was necessary for me to supplement with formula I was amazed at the prices! Although I did not know it at the time, Consumer Reports actually recommends purchasing store brands because they are nutritionally comparable to brand name formula. Taking this action makes formula feeding more cost effective. Parent's Choice has a online baby formula savings calculator and I did a comparison - if I'd used Parent's Choice I would have saved over 11.00 per can of formula!

Even though I only purchased 2 or 3 cans of formula in total, can you imagine the savings if you formula feed exclusively? I never gave store brands a chance but now that I know the FDA requirements for formula are stringent, I will keep this info tucked away just in case there is a baby in my future!

I Flip for Burgers!

Today I had lunch with a few of my friends at Flip Burger Boutique in Atlanta. The food was amazing and you may be familiar with the owner and chef, Richard Blais (@RichardBlais). He was a contestant on Top Chef and developed all sorts of wonderful concoctions utlizing liquid nitrogen. Cool, right? Well, at his restaurant he has remained true to his specialty and a number of his dishes utilize this unique ingredient. I had a root beer float martini and the nitrogen burning off was a sight to behold. The menu is simply divine, although I am not a meat eater there were so many varieties of seafood burgers on the menu that I will certainly be back to try them all.

Today I had a crab burger made with lump crab meat and no filling which was simply to die for. Mishelle aka @secretagentmama (photographer extraordinaire)had the lobster roll burger which was completely drool worthy. Jen aka @littlebrownjen had a steak tartare burger which she said was totally amazing. Cordiva stayed true to burger roots and had a bacon cheeseburger which she said was absolutely delicious. For desert a few of us indulged in milkshakes which are just as unique as the meals. I split a Krispie Kreme shake with my college buddy Talibah aka @vcsmama and we both concluded that it tasted exactly like a Krispie Kreme donut. Brooke aka @jewelryrockstar had a pistachio truffle milkshake and I think that will be the shake I try the next to I go to the restaurant.

We spent a couple of hours sharing laughs, having deep conversation and of course talking a bit about social media. Our afternoon ended with a visit from Chef Richard Blais, a complete surprise because he just happened to stop by. He is actually judging the Whrrl.com cheeseburger contest and thanks to Whrrl we were able to have lunch at the Flip Burger Boutique. If you make a good burger and like to do photo stories be sure to enter to win a Kodak Video camera.

All in all the day was great. It was so nice having a laid back Friday lunch with friends - even dealing with late afternoon Atlanta traffic could not spoil such a lovely experience. Many thanks to Whrrl for sponsoring the lunch! Oh, and I know my description of the food and drinks were pretty good but I am sure the photos tell a better story. Check out our Whrrl Flip Burger Boutique story, after seeing the photos I know you will visit the restaurant!

More stories at Flip Burger Boutique

Powered by Whrrl

Oh The Places We Will Go

Yesterday was Mekhi's first day of school. Not literally of course, he is still a toddler but it is his first day back to daycare after a three week hiatus. During this time he has hung out with Grandma while mommy and daddy were away. Last week he met his grandpa for the first time and we also had adventures. Now Mekhi is back to school and I have mixed feelings about it. It has been great spending time with him. The joy on his face as he sees things for the first time (or tenth depending on what we are looking at) is priceless. Sometimes I just want to bottle up his enthusiasm for life and carry it with me! I have been considering keeping him at home with me full time but I realize that might be selfish. I observed him at school today and he was having a glorious time. He uses the potty regularly and actually runs so that he can be the first one in the restroom when the potty break is announced. Clearly he is gaining quite a bit from interaction with his peers and I don't want to take that away from him. While I contemplate the next steps for school I will reminisce on our recent adventures.

Last week, in addition to visiting the Martin Luther King,Jr. National Historic site, we took a trip the Georgia Aquarium. Membership has it's privileges, Mekhi never tires of seeing the fish.

We also took a trip to the Fernbank Museum where there is a dinosa

ur exhibit. Mekhi loved every minute of it and we are returning on August 22nd for the Dinosaur Birthday Bash. If you are in the Atlanta area and have a child that loves dinosaurs this is not to be missed. There will be loads of activities for the kids in celebration of the last day of the exhibit.

On Friday Mekhi and I had a sweet treat at Cami Cakes for a 

Sweet (Tweet) Up hosted by James (@keyinfluencer) and Sherelle Andrews (@funkidivagirl). The cupcakes were delicious and the company was wonderful!

Danica

Sherelle(@funkidivagirl) and Latoicha (@Luxetips)

Saturday I hosted a bloggers day at the America I Am exhibit. It was exceptional of course and having many of the parents bring their children was one the highlights of the day. This is truly an exhibit that is not to be missed, if you plan on visiting are are local get to the Atlanta Civic Center before it leaves the first week of September!




Sunday we took a trip to visit one of my good friends Talibah, she has a 7 year old ,Vesey and we all played in the park, checked out the ducks and barely kept ourselves from melting in the hot Georgia sun!

A Life of Service

One thing that has always been important to me is service to community. For the majority of my professional career I have worked for non-profit organizations and in my most recent full-time position I worked in the government. The commitment to serve was instilled in me early by my mother. Despite working full time from the time I was 9 years old and being a single parent, she served on the Board of Directors for the community center in my neighborhood. Not only was my mother interested in providing the best for me( private violin and voice lessons, sleep-away camp, I traveled and attended a camp for performing arts). but she also was compelled to make a difference in the lives of others. Her impact on me has been incredible, at an early age I participated in all types of fundraisers for causes including jump rope for heart,cerebral palsy campaigns, muscular dystrophy, if there was a cause and a fundraiser you were sure to find me there. It is my hope that when my son is old enough he will appreciate the importance of service to others and I am always impressed when I interact with women that have an interest in service.

When I was on the set of Mom's Homeroom I had the opportunity to interview Alba, a stay at home mom of two. Alba homeschools her son Tyler and daughter Amber. During our interview she discussed the importance of "Leading By Example." She stressed her commitment to community involvement and wants her children to follow in her footsteps. Alba is involved in numerous activities including: being the homeschool leader in her community for the past 7 years, organizing a Men's Soccer league and most recently starting a children's soccer league. She is also active in her church and highly values her Latin culture. She incorporates learning about their culture into her children's studies and organizes annual cultural event. She hopes to take a family visit to Latin America next year to entrench her children in the culture.

Equally impressive is her commitment to nurturing her children's self-esteem. Referencing the book "The Five Love Languages" she described how everyone feels valued in different ways and the importance of determining how your child(ren) feel valued. Physical affection is common in her home and she believes that affirming a child will help them to succeed. I have to say that I totally agree with Alba and will be picking up that book too, not just for raising my child but for having a loving relationship with all of my family members. Alba was a joy to interview and implementing her recommendations can only have a positive effect.

I am working with The Motherhood as a correspondent for Kellogg’s and Mom’s Homeroom to bring you this great information.

A Simple Meal

I enjoy cooking but on a daily basis I like to keep things simple. One of the favorites in my home is a simple pasta with meatballs and marinara sauce. Since I am not a meat eater I make some substitutions which my son enjoys. I use Trader Joe's meatless meatballs, I believe they win hands down in the flavor department but if I am in a pinch I pick up another brand at my local grocery store. For the sauce I love the Barilla line, this time I used Mushroom and garlic sauce and spiced it up with McCormick's Italian Herb Seasoning (in the grinder). I placed both in a casserole dish and baked in the oven for about 10 minutes. At the same time I cooked the pasta (don't forget to add EVOO!) and I lightly salted the water with Diamond Crystal Salt Sense (33% less sodium than other salt).

And in ten minutes I had a great meal! Here is a photo of my sauce and meatballs in my new Frigidaire range. You may remember I am a Frigidaire Test Drive Mom and my range has been wonderful. This was the first time I actually used the oven and I have to tell you that I am pleased. I can place my hand on the outside of the oven door and it is cool to the touch. My main problem with my old oven was the heat it generated, I don't have this problem now. Another thing you might notice is the rack slides out automatically! I don't have to reach in to pull out the rack.

If you are looking for a quick and easy meal that your family will love try my easy marinara sauce and meatless meatballs, your family will thank you for it!

For more Wordful Wednesday visit Angie's 7 Clown Circus.

Bringing Sexy Back - Dress Sexy!

It has been a minute since I've done one of these posts. So, here it goes. Earlier this week I talked about feeling melancholy and despite all of my traipsing around town I still feel down. However, that does not mean that I can't still bring the sexy. As a matter of fact I have a tendency to dress and look better when I feel depressed then I do under normal circumstances (aside from the weight gain of course). In any event, no matter what size you are you can still look and feel good in your own skin.

I've recently indulged myself with a few nice accessories, make-up and some clothes. Ostensibly for BlogHer but really just because I wanted to do something nice for myself. And then, out of the blue, I was contacted by Shabby Apple, an online clothing retailer to review their clothes. I immediately responded yes. I've been familiar with their clothing for awhile, a couple of blogs including Mocha Momma's have highlighted their clothing. I didn't look into the line closely because I just assumed like most boutiques their clothes were not for plus sized ladies. Well, I have to tell you that I was pleasantly surprised. Not only do they have plus-sized clothing but they also describe the fit of the clothes to help you determine the proper sizing. I love that! Too many times I've ordered things in my size that need to be returned because the fit isn't correct. Shabby Apple takes care of that for you.

As for the sexy? Well, a nice new dress can do wonders. The dress that I received is the 90 WPM(words per minute) dress and it is an old school style that is today sexy. How do I know? Well, I was watching Season 2 of Mad Men (I hope you watch too, it is amazing) last night and one of the secretaries had on a dress that looked Exactly. Like. My. Dress. This series is set in the 60s. And the dress? Sexy. At least my husband thinks so("the booty looks bodacious"), he took this photo of me looking coquettish, apparently the dress made me feel sexy too (and yes my boobs are ginormous).

My tip for bringing sexy back? Indulge yourself with something that makes you feel and look good. I know times are rough economically so you can shop sales (I always do) and if you are interested in Shabby Apple use the code "cutiebootycakes10off" for 10% off of your purchase. This code is good until August 31st.

A Couple of Quick Back - To -School notes

I know it is time for back to school, funny how quickly the summer goes by. I wanted to alert you to a few things that are going on that might be of interest to you related to preparing for Back -To-School.



Today at 1:00PM EST Jennifer and I will be chatting up it on The Motherhood. You may remember that I've been hired by The Motherhood on behalf of Kellogg's to be a correspondent for Mom's Homeroom. Today we are going to be discussing all things Back -To-School and of course we will talk about our experience on the set of Mom's Homeroom. Hope you can join us! Just click HERE to join the conversation.

Remember when I mentioned that I am a Mom Blogger for SnackPicks.com? Well they are currently offering a $80 rebate on a purchase of a Dell computer. If you are thinking about purchasing a Dell for your child(or yourself for that matter) click HERE for a Dell computer rebate.

Finally, one of my favorite stores The Children's Place is in the middle of a Monster Sale! Sale items are an additional 50% off and shipping is $5.00. Now that is a deal! Most of the items are spring/summer attire but if you live in a warm climate they can work for school. Also, you can always stock up for next year! But be quick, because much of the inventory is low.

Next week I will be doing more Back-To-School posts but didn't want you to miss these opportunities this week!

Melancholy or no, visiting we will go

I have been feeling melancholy lately. Abuse of my "vices" has been rampant. I've eaten too much, had a glass of wine every night and generally haven't felt that motivated. I know something is really wrong because despite my love for writing/tweeting/engaging this has been difficult for me lately too. I am thankful that an unexpected visit forced me to get out of the house and explore this wonderful city I live in.

This week my father-in-law and his wife came to town and our entire family visited the Martin Luther King National Historic site. This was wonderful and much needed family time even if I wasn't the best company. On Monday it was one of the hottest days I can remember this summer but we trekked to the National Park and embraced the history that lives there. The National Park is home to Dr. King and his wife's final resting place and is located a mere two blocks away from the home that he grew up in. Tours of the King homestead are available but unfortunately all of the tours were filled. This did not hinder our enjoyment of the park.

The walkway leading to exhibition hall is the Civil Rights Walk of Fame. It is clearly a work in progress but beautiful plaques are inlaid in the sidewalk leading to the exhibition hall. Prominent notables and supporters of civil rights have footprints here.





We explored the museum chronicling the work of Dr. King during the civil rights movement.

We walked through the rose garden dedicated to various civil rights leaders and surrounded by the words of insightful children, the leaders of the future.

We saw the Behold sculpture which is dedicated to the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King.
I am sure it was influenced by a scene from Roots and it also reminds me of Mekhi's first moment on planet Earth.

Mekhi frolicked on the grounds of the sculpture.




And we viewed the reflecting pool and the final resting place of the Kings.




The Eternal light burns on.