… but he spells everything correctly and even uses a hyphen appropriately? And it makes you laugh every time you see it?

I’m still not clear on the details, but apparently JavaBoy (almost 6) was a bit overly tired and wanted popcorn while JavaDad was also overly tired and getting ready to make dinner. JavaBoy asked for popcorn, JavaDad said no because he was about to make dinner, and I guess in a fit of frustration, JavaBoy whipped up this sign that says, “Go and get pop-corn! Got popcorn?” (Hyphenated pop-corn because he ran out of room –I’m quite impressed!) He then found masking tape in his secret stash of masking tape and put this on our bedroom door.

While the sign is inappropriately sassy, I am quite proud of his spelling and use of punctuation. Would it be wrong to send it in to school as a writing sample for his teacher?

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Tags: Kids, parenting

I am staring 40 right in the face. In fact, it is exactly one month away. The big 4-0. That number and what it means to me has tumbled around and around in my mind for quite a while. Call it fate, call it serendipity, but there in my inbox was an invitation to go to a women’s conference for More Magazine — the Reinvention Convention.

More Magazine “celebrates women over 40″ and this convention is about reinventing yourself, redefining who you are. And they are talking about inside and out, head to toe — from career to hair to sex life to technological skills. Wow! Just as I am on the cusp of moving from SAHM to re-entering the workforce in a few years, doesn’t this sound like something I need? (I do, I do!)

This recharging “all about you” event is DC Monday, March 8 and as much as I would love to go, I can’t make all the calendar rearrangements necessary to do so. However — I’m hoping one of YOU can! I have one ticket to giveaway! This is a kid-free, pet-free event and the details are here.

Turnaround on this is fast as I need to submit a name to will call by Friday morning. These are the rules: Please comment by midnight March 4 (Eastern time zone) on why you think you want to reinvent yourself and make sure you leave me an email address where I can contact you to get your name and contact info. I must be able to email you and get a response back from you between midnight tonight (March 4) and 9 am Eastern (March 5) if you are the winner. I will take a list of the people who commented AND gave me valid email addresses as of midnight March 4 Eastern and submit it to random.org to select a winner. PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU ALREADY KNOW YOU CAN ATTEND THE EVENT ON MARCH 8 before submitting — I want to be sure the winner can go!

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Disclosure: This is a giveaway to my readers, I have no connections to this magazine or convention.

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Some people look forward to “spring cleaning” — I look forward to “spring decluttering.” Just as I am in the final throes of winter’s cabin fever, relief comes my way in the form of children’s consignment sales.

All year-long I keep a bin for clothes that are “too small” and whenever one of the JavaKids outgrows something, I toss an outfit into there. At the end of a season, I pack away anything that still fits and mark it “check again next ____ (whatever the season is).” Every fall and spring I participate in consignment sales and clear out whatever is too small, and I bargain shop for barely worn clothes in their new sizes. It’s funny how many people will raise an eyebrow at the idea and yet also gladly accept hand-me-downs. No one has ever been able to tell the difference between the Gymboree clothes that are hand me downs from my sister versus the ones I have bought at a consignment sale. How could they? Often I buy things still new, with tags on them, at consignment sales as well. Meanwhile, I take clothes that are still in great condition but too small for my kids, and sell them to someone else who is thrilled with a lower-than-in-the-stores price, but I get to repocket some money. It’s a win-win situation.

Even more so than the clothes, I love it when I can declutter toys and kid gear. I’m almost out of all the baby gear (still hanging on to a stroller — but less for JavaGirl than that I use it to haul stuff up to Junior League meetings!!), but it is wonderful to get rid of useful yet no-longer-relevant toys and gear. It was a happy day when I got rid of the exersaucers. I have finally convinced JavaGirl we can get rid of a particular bouncy zebra (mind you, this is only because we upgraded to a bigger, heavier duty bouncy horse). Baby and toddler toys are going away, although I will invariably replace some of them with more “mature” toys I find at bargain prices at the next consignment sale.

Consignment sales have become a family activity — with the kids identifying things that can be “for the babies” (meaning they’ve outgrown something) and I’ve explained that we don’t bring an equal amount of stuff back in. JavaBoy knows, for example, that I like to take some of the money from the consignment sales in spring and apply that towards special summer activities for them, so he finds it easier to let go of toys that are no longer age-appropriate and doesn’t expect me to walk through the door with an armload of replacements. JavaGirl is still learning, but she’s getting into the spirit. What I am most proud of is that my kids are learning the value of saving money where you can and spending wisely — that not everything has to be brand new. A used board game with all of its pieces is just as playable as a brand new one — and the money saved can be used for a ticket to the water park instead!

I’ve already written about one of the sales, two more of my favorite sales are coming up:

My Child’s Closet
http://www.mychildscloset.com/
When: Newly expanded to TWO days:
Saturday March 20 9-3
Sunday March 21 half price sale 10-1
Where: NEW location:
Leesburg Commerce Center
161 Fort Evans Rd., Leesburg, VA
Directly across Rt. 15 from the Outlet Mall and in the same building as Abbey Carpet
Forms of payment accepted: Cash or check with ID, bring more than one check as there are separate check out rooms for different types of items

Consignors receive: 60% if they consign only, 65% if they also volunteer.
I like this sale because: It is well organized, and tends to have a lot of high quality items. I find a lot of name brand, beautiful clothing at this sale. The owners of this sale are a joy to work with! I enjoy this sale as a seller, a volunteer and a shopper.

CFC MOPS Christian Fellowship Church Mothers of Preschoolers Sale
http://www.cfellowshipc.org/pages/page.asp?page_id=9192
When: Saturday April 10
8-11 regular sale
11:30 -1 half price sale
3 – 3:45 Dollar Dash
A limited number of early shopping passes are available for sale — see site for details.

Where: Sanders Corner Elementary
43100 Ashburn FarmParkway
Ashburn, VA 20147

Forms of payment accepted: Cash or check with ID, bring more than one check as there are separate check out rooms for different types of items

Consignors receive: 50% if they consign only, 70% if they also volunteer.
I like this sale because: This is a large sale and you can find a variety of items. Volume is the name of the game here — there are racks and racks of clothes, piles of books, toys you never knew existed… I have shopped this sale a few times and consigned for the first time last fall and did quite well as a consignor.

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Disclosure: I am a volunteer, consignor and seller at both of these sales.

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What’s that you say? The Cat In The Hat hasn’t visited you today? How sad, how terribly, terribly sad for you! Come to our house, and join in the wackiness too!

Okay, Dr. Seuss I am not — but JavaMom’s silly mom, I am! I am. Here and there, and everywhere. (Oops, sorry, read Green Eggs and Ham a few too many times today!)

In case you have been under a rock — or don’t have very small children — Dr. Seuss’s birthday is March 2, and for the past few years my son’s preschool and now his kindergarten has used this as a time to celebrate all things Seuss. His preschool (now JavaGirl’s preschool) used to also have Wacky Wednesday the first Wednesday of Seuss week — the kids would show up dressed crazy (two different shoes, mismatched clothes) and were quite delighted to find that the for some reason their classroom was topsy turvy as well.

Somehow this morphed into wacky things happening in our house as well on these Wednesdays and when a very young JavaBoy asked who was responsible for such shenanigans, we shrugged our shoulders and asked him, and he said, “I think the Cat In The Hat did it!” And thus, a new tradition was born! Sometime late Tuesday night, while we are all asleep, the Cat sneaks into our house and makes things wacky!

The Cat In The Hat seems to like to do a lot of things with shoes — he’s put them up on walls, on ceiling fans, and on the legs of chairs and tables. But he’s done other things like put dolls and stuffed animals in all the chairs and seats in the house, turned things upside down, and made some subtle changes to see if JavaBoy will catch on. (JavaGirl is just now old enough to start enjoying Wacky Wednesday.)

Since JavaGirl’s preschool is not have a Seuss week this year, I had almost forgotten about our annual visit from The Cat until I heard JavaBoy mention it to his kindergarten teacher. Apparently this visit holds a lot of meaning to him as he not only mentioned it yesterday, but many times today. Fortunately I was able to confirm with The Cat that he does have us on his schedule for this evening.

I wonder what he’ll do tonight…

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Tags: family, parenting

My daughter’s preschool had a “Winter Olympics” last week that was tons of fun and fraught with all kinds of events that sound very dangerous when explaining them over the phone to grandparents (“Well you see, they were standing on a chair… and then jumping off, onto this padded wedge, to pretend they were doing ski jumps… then they were running down a hallway with this sled….”) and yet there were no injuries.

Meanwhile, I merely walked down to our basement, and somehow managed to slip and left leg went forward, right leg went backwards, but with the knee bent behind me, shoulder somehow wrenched behind me, left elbow scraping against the wall and jamming a finger somewhere along the way. Yes, this would be why my nickname in college was “Grace” as in “full of…”

My shoulder only hurts when I breathe, raise my arm, or lean on it. But my pride is wounded even more deeply. After two weeks of watching amazing feats of agility (c’mon — Apolo Ohno leaping over crashing skaters!), I still can’t manage a set of stairs without the occasional wipeout. Perhaps I should at least be grateful that my secret crush, Bob Costas, isn’t around for a blow-by-blow commentary with instant video replay or slo-mo playback complete with circles and arrows to show where everything went oh, so critically wrong. (“Now you see here, this is where your foot slid just a little too far, and there you go — you can see the panic cross your face right HERE!”)

This is when I decided that what I need is a Klutz Olympics. Yes, this would be a sporting event at which I could surely excel. I have fallen down more flights of stairs in more exciting ways than anyone I’ve known. Seriously. I once fell down a flight of stairs while holding a can of Coke and didn’t spill a drop AND landed with my legs crossed in a very ladylike fashion. There were witnesses, I swear. I went rock climbing in college, repelled down a small cliff, unscathed, then managed to injure myself just walking on the path back to the car. Skydiving? Not a problem. Stepping off a curb, I broke my ankle.

JavaDad would make a worthy opponet in the Klutz Olympics. He seems to find it almost impossible to go through our kitchen without banging his head on something. Or stubbing his toe. But I’ve never seen him trip UP the stairs. So I think I can go for the gold.

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Before the first daffodil peaks its yellow head out, I know it is Spring when I get notices about consignment sales! Whether you are a frugalista, recessionista or a fashionista, there is much to love about children’s consignment sales — as a seller, a buyer or both!

I consider it the ultimate form of recycling — passing on those toys and clothing your kids no longer need and making use of those toys and clothing that still have a lot of life in them that someone else’s kids no longer want or need but your kids will. And you can put the money you save into their college savings account!

The first one of the season that I regularly participate in is the Catholic Consignments sale –Saturday, March 6. If you volunteer AND consign, you get a larger percentage as a consignor and I believe they still have some volunteer shifts open, but hurry up and go to their web site now! They have a new location this year and in addition to their public sale and the ever-popular half-price sale, they are offering a new Dollar Dash option. Here is a link to the flyer with sale details, but to register as a consignor or as a volunteer, go to their web site.

When: Saturday, March 6, 2010 (see times below)
Where: St. Theresa Catholic School 21370 St. Theresa Lane Ashburn, VA 20147
Sale Hours:
Ask about Early shopping passes — you can buy a pass to let you shop earlier than the rest of the public!
Consignor Drop-off: 5-8 pm Friday
Volunteer Pre-Sale: 7 am
Public Sale: 8 – 11 am
Half-Price Sale: 11:30 am – 1:00 pm
Consignor pick-up of unsold items: 2 – 2:30 pm
NEW THIS SALE: Dollar Dash!! 3:30 – 4:30 pm
Forms of Payment: Cash or checks — bring more than one check as you will need to pay for “large items” (i.e. strollers) in the “large item bay” separate from other items

Clothes abound at this sale — racks and racks and racks. But also books, videos, games, strollers, large items such as playhouses and climbing structures (you never know what you’ll find), bikes, the fun is in going and discovering that something you never knew you needed is there and at a ridiculously low price. It was at this sale that I bought my daughter an American Girl doll for less than half the price of a new one, and at her tender young age, she never knew the difference, so we’re both happy. Consign, volunteer, shop, or do all three!

Disclosure: I am a volunteer and a consignor for this sale. However, I am also a SHOPPER at this sale!!

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Tags: consignment sales

These are the kind of photos my husband bring home that make my heart stop.

“Look at the AIR he got under him!”

Oh. My. Goodness.

He’s supposed to be sliding down a smooth school hill, no one said anything about AIR! Apparently some teenagers decided to add some moguls or whatever they are called (I’m from Miami, remember?) to the “gentle” sledding slope.

“Look, see that shadow, see, he’s lifting off from the snow there.”

Great, honey.

“And then he got very, very far away…”

Uh-huh….

“And he said the cutest thing… He said, ‘Daddy, can you see me?’ And I said, ‘Yes!’ And he said, ‘Am I really, really small?’ And I said ‘Yes!’ And then he said, ‘Is my voice small like an ant’s?’

So what did you say?

“I said ‘Yes!’ because I didn’t want him to go any further away.”

At last, sanity prevails.

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Tags: family, Kids, parenting, snow

You may have noticed I haven’t posted much! Although I’ve been indoors a lot, A LOT, with the snow and the JavaKids, it’s a bit hard to write much when they ARE NOT IN SCHOOL!

My friends and I have kept in touch via Facebook and it’s been interesting to see how the different county school systems have handled the snow days. WTOP has an interesting roundup on how our area will handle the make ups: http://www.wtopnews.com/?nid=25&sid=1889077 It intrigued me that one county in Maryland is asking to be excused from the 180-day rule — what are your thoughts on that?

And the Standards of Learning tests are right around the corner — yet kids have missed a significant amount of learning time. Do you think this will impact the scores?

I’m curious how summer programs will be impacted by the counties handling the snow impact in different ways — my son will get out of school much later than his friend in Loudoun.

I’ll add this to the long list of things I never thought about before I became a parent!

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I have rejoined and dropped out of Weight Watchers so many times, I feel like I should wear dark glasses and a big floppy hat when I go back to rejoin. My inability to see it through has nothing to do with their program and everything to do with the lack of balance in my life. But like an old friend, Weight Watchers is always there for me.

I joined Weight Watchers the first time my senior year in college, while I was already on tv as reporter and anchor and had to watch every pound carefully. I remember quite vividly buying a toaster oven so I could cook frozen grilled fish fillets in the sorority annex. This, by the way, did not go over well with my sisters. Fish smells are even worse than burned popcorn smells.

I’ve been a member in four states and across a span of weights I won’t even confess to you. I have become thin on the plan, but have never managed to stick around long enough for the honor of making “lifetime” (I’ve moved, gotten too caught up in work, or whatever). But bless the organization and the people, not once have I ever felt like they roll their eyes and say, “Oh it’s HER again…”

It’s been a week. I’ve muddled through it. It hasn’t been nearly as painful as usual. And I’ve lost 2.9 pounds. That’s with the big floppy hat and sunglasses on.

I just may win the pool at Loser Moms after all. More importantly, maybe this year, I’ll finally make “lifetime.”

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Tags: health

I learned about Babble.com’s Top 50 Mommy Bloggers list when fellow Silicon Valley Moms Blog network member Jessica Gottlieb was named to it (she’s part of the LA Moms Blog, I’m part of the DC Metro Moms Blog). In fact, the original Silicon Valley Moms Blog made the cut as well (congratulations, Jill!) There are a lot of other familiar names on the list, blogs I have been reading and some of them are women I’ve met at BlogHer or traded tweets with on Twitter. But there are also some I didn’t know — and that’s what I love about the blogosphere — when you accidentally bump into another kindred spirit out in cyberspace.

Babble recognizes that although the Top 50 are certainly noteworthy, that there are a lot of terrific bloggers out there, and they are letting readers nominate them, and then give a “thumbs up” if someone has already nominated a favorite. I think that’s pretty darned cool! So often you see the same names rise to the top (with good reason), and this is a nice effort to broaden the horizons.

A lot of the names on that list are already some of my favorite blogs, and some are going to become new favorites. Amongst some of my current favorites are Sarah and the Goon Squad, Toddler Planet, Jodifur, and Wife And Mommy all of whom I have the pleasure of having met in person as well as reading their blogs and they are terrific women as well as terrific writers. As I scroll through the list, I see more that look intriguing and I’m going to find some time to check them out and you should, too! (Not that I want you to stop reading here, of course!)

And yes, I’m thrilled that not only did someone include Caffeine And a Prayer, but people other than my husband and mother-in-law gave it a thumbs up! Thank you! It means a lot! If you feel strongly enough about Caffeine and a Prayer to add a thumbs up, it may encourage others to check it out.

In the meantime, I recommend checking out both the Top 50 list and the reader-nominated list — there are a lot of fantastic writers out there worth reading! One of these days I’ll get around to updating my blogroll…

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Tags: blogging, BlogHer, blogs, DC Metro Moms, DC Metro Moms Blog, Silicon Valley Moms Blog, social media, writing