Karen Alley, The Daily Post. As web editor, Karen blogs every day about news and events that are going on either in our area or on a national realm. Bringing together hot topics with local ties is what keeps her perspective on the news interesting.
Renee, Teen-dom Tales, provides a look into the life of a mom of a teen, a stage of life that brings with it a whole new realm of parenting challenges.
Stephanie, Mamma Said, writes witty and insightful posts chronicling the development of her two young boys, ages 5 and 3. As a Greensboro resident, they're out and about at locales around the Triad quite often, and she also brings in the working mom perspective at times, with her part time job.
Lisa, The Single Mom's Soliloquy, adds a different spin on parenting as she writes about the issues, challenges and joys of raising a teenage daughter as a single mom. Her look at life in the new world order of blended families and split families is refreshing and sometimes controversial.
Heather Maggs, of The Time Out Corner, presents a humorous blog on the roller coaster life of a stay-at-home mom of a toddler.
Myra Wright, familiar to you as our editor, also blogs inPiedmont Ponderings. It's a great outlet for her creative sense of humor, and she brings some great perspective to life in King as the mother of three kids.
It looks like we're in for some more snowy fun this weekend! For years we haven't had much snow in the winter, and now we're getting a double dose, and who knows what else the future might hold. Lanie Pope said we might be stuck in for a couple of days, thanks to the cold weather, so you might as well make the most of it. Check out our Snow Days page for instructions on how to build a snow fort, great snow day recipes and other activities. Wondering why everyone stocks up on milk and bread right before a snowstorm? On Triadmommies the theory is it's because you need a lot of milk to make snowcream!
It's interesting that yesterday, just one day before our second big snowfall of the winter, an article in the Washington Post warns that the harsh winter doesn't mean there's no global warming, it's just one more sign that we're experiencing climate change. The climate is certainly something up for debate. Is this a harsher winter than normal? Or just colder than the last few years? I've lived in the Piedmont since I was 12, and I remember quite a few big snows in the late 80s and early 90s. It's hard to know what's going on with the climate. It's such a large subject to deal with no matter who you are. But we all want the best for our children, and that includes safe weather and good air to beathe. So do what you can to reduce your carbon footprint, and keep voting for politicians who make the environment a priority. And in the meantime, enjoy playing in the snow with your kids this weekend! There's nothing better for taking your mind off all the worries of adulthood than making a few snow angels.
The waves of kids out of school due to flu and the news reports of outbreaks on college campuses have seemed to die down. But health officials say it's not the time to get complacent about the swine flu. The Secretary of Health and Human Services is urging people to take advantage of the vaccine. We often see a dip in cases of flu in January, only to hit a rise in February and March. It's hard to predict, and even experts are divided about whether we'll experience another big wave of the H1N1 virus. But no one can predict the future, and one thing that's certain is this flu strain is more deadly for young children than the seasonal flu virus. It's not too late to get your kids vaccinated, and now there is plenty of the vaccine available. Here are a few options for getting your vaccine:
Tonight President Obama will be giving his State of the Union address. But last night something almost as important for parents occurred in Guilford County, when Superintendent "Mo" Green presented his State of our Schools address. Overall it was a very positive speech, designed to keep parents and kids motivated to succed. In the past year the schools have met or made progress in 19 of 24 goals set out in the strategic plan. It was also a time to launch new initiatives, including the character development program that will teach 7 character traits to our kids in school, and the one that caught my attention, the One Million Books campaign. The superintendent is asking all the students to read more at home and at school, to collectively read one million books in the coming year. The goals of this program are to encourage reading as part of everyday life, and help parents and students see that learning is a process that doesn't stay contained to the school day. The community is even being asked to get involved, with volunteer opportunities at many schools.
The challenge for parents will be helping kids find fun books to read. Books that open up your mind, encourage your imagination and take you away from the everyday world into a wonderful, magical land of escape. Too many times reading can feel like a chore, especially when you're marking off how many accelerated reader books you've gotten done, or making sure you get your fifteen minutes of reading as homework in each night. The opportunity with this new campaign is that it makes reaching one million a fun challenge to meet, but it also encourages the idea of reading for fun, not measuring the minutes or choosing from a specific list.
I admit, even I've been disappointed in some childrens' books lately. They just seem slightly boring, maybe a little too preachy. But there are plenty of great books out there, if you just know where to look. For a start, check out the books on the list of winners (and honors) of the Caldecott and Newbery Awards, given each year by the American Library Association. You'll be surprised which books are on here, and so many from years ago have held up over time.
And as always, take advantage of your libraries. They are great resources, staffed with knowledgeable people who all love reading and want to share that. Here are the sites for the Greensboro and Forsyth County public libraries.
And remember, the best way to encourage reading is to read yourself!
Believe it or not, it's already time to start thinking about school for next year. Will your child be starting preschool? Are you looking into magnet programs, charter schools and private schools? And for a few of us, one of the biggest questions of our parenting lives is looming -- should I let my child go ahead and start kindergarten, or hold them back a year, or even get them tested to start early? It's been a big topic of discussion ever since "red-shirting" became trendy, holding kids with summer birthdays back so they start kindergarten at age 6. But when the North Carolina public schools changed the kindergarten deadline back to Aug. 31 last year it became even more of an issue, as parents whose kids were turning 5 in September and October talked about getting them into kindergarten anyway.
Whether or not to push your child ahead or keep them back is a very personal decision, and depends completely on your own child and their abilities and maturity. But thankfully, there is plenty of information out there to help you make that decision. Do you think holding them back so they're older is the best option? Sometimes, but keep your mind open. There are pros and cons to everything, and red shirting isn't the magic bullet we all used to think it was. Emily Brazelon writes about some of the drawbacks.
And if you're thinking about getting your almost-5-year-old into kindergarten, you'd better start doing your research now. The North Carolina public schools have pretty stringent guidelines, and even though this letter is from Orange County, the guidelines are the same across the state. If you decide to go ahead with the testing, you'll have to get both an achievement test and an IQ test. Check out our online exclusive, "Helping Your Child Reach Their Full Potential," for some more information on the testing. One local group that performs these tests is Sloan Academics in Winston-Salem.
And luckily, there are plenty of choices of great schools in our area to help you make sure you're getting the best you can for your kids. For help choosing the right school for your child, check our our recently updated Preschool and Private School directories.
January is National Soup Month. It makes sense. In this cold, dreary weather, a warm, comforting bowl of soup is sometimes just the thing you need to brighten your day. Or at least chase the chills away. And guess what, soup can also be a great tool for parents! Have kids that pooh-pooh vegetables? Soups are a great way to make eating vegetables fun. Make it into a party, and celebrate National Soup Month!
So why are soups so good for you? It's not just an old wive's tale that chicken soup is good for a cold. The vegetables and chicken are full of immune-boosting anti-oxidents, and chicken soup also has anti-inflammatory properties. And besides all that, the warm liquid feels good on a sore throat, and the steam helps open your nasal passages. Even if you're not sick, soup is good for you. The vitamins, minerals and nutrients are delivered to your system in a low-fat, low-calorie package. It's also economical and convenient! A can of soup at the store won't set you back too much, just make sure it's a low-sodium formulation for better nutrition. And homemade soups are often made from leftovers.
If you're ready to take on making a pot of soup today, here are a few recipes to try.
