~ William D. Tammeuson

 Why do we do this? And why do we not stop knowing that we are doing the unclear repetitive  motion?

It is just like my children saying “Hi Mom” each and every time I walk into a room. After the 3rd time I grunt and say “We did this pony show already today” and they laugh. I would like to think that I am teaching my children some type of life skills, like not being a people-pleaser all the time. I try to be empathetic toward my children. I do not want to steal their youthful joy, but I do not want to do silly things like say “Hi” 10 times a day.   I have learned being a parent is tough. But to me it is not because its a mean mean world out there, it is because I have to catch myself from getting upset that my children are doing childish things. I have to stop and think about how I would  feel if someone reacted to me out of annoyance when I do not understand a subject the same way I react to my children when they are doing thing without the correct knowledge. It is hard sometimes to not yell ” grow-up a little” when your seven year old is sobbing in the backseat of your car because she cannot find her tooth she lost at school that day. Even though she just had it in her hands. You tell her we will look for it when we get home. And her reply is “But moooom, what is it flies out the window?” Really teeth can not fly little person.

When I was younger I would fantasize about how I was going to be that hip mom. The mom that would seat down with her children everyday and create crafts and dance for hours.  The mom what would listen to every single word her child would say and answer every question with the truth. Then I had my kids and they suck my creativity out of me by the time they turned 2 years old. Then they hit preteens and became unrealistically hormonal  and count downs from 5  to 1 happen in my head in order calm myself.  I think to myself the outside is fine, its my house that is crazy.

THE ATLANTA BABY AND CHILD EXPO 2012 is set for May 12th, 11am-3pm, at the Fox Theatre.

The event offers all of the following:

• Sweet Swag Bags and early admission for VIP ticket holders, more swag bags awarded in raffles all day
• Door prizes worth thousands of dollars (including nursery furniture, strollers, and many of the products on display at the event!)
• Fashion Show featuring maternity and baby wear and
• Professional Photographers and baby announcement options
• Atlanta’s premier professionals in the baby industry (OBGYNs, Pediatricians, Doulas and more!)
• New design ideas for your baby’s nursery
• Runway featuring Baby Dream Gear
• Chances to win weekly giveaways by following @AtlantaBabyExpo on twitter and Atlanta Baby and Child Expo on Facebook.

This event is for new and seasoned parents. Come out and enjoy yourself.

We hope to see you there!

Autism is a developmental disability that causes repetitive behavior and difficulty with communication and social interaction. Because the severity of these symptoms varies from person to person, diagnosis has changed over time.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/03/29/1-in-88-us-kids-have-autism-cdc-reports/#ixzz1qcVPPULC

This is a really scary statics to me. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention just publish these finding yesterday. The study found the Autism is nearly five times more common among boys than girls, with approximately 1 in 54 boys diagnosed and 1 in 252 girls.

We have a couple of Atlanta Mommas with autistic children, so this article is close to home.

This yummy treat is tasty on just about everything.

Tried it this past weekend on ice cream.  I used it like hot fudge.

Kids enjoyed it. I am sure this will taste even better covering strawberries.

Do you have a recipe to share?

I am not the kind of person that goes out and joins groups. So when someone told me to search for local moms’ group after I had my first child, I was a little hesitant. Being the first of my friends to have a child was an eye opener. At first I thought it was great. My child would have extra Aunts and Uncles all to themselves. That thought was short lived after a few last minute change of plans because baby turned into a octopus and cling to me for dear life and became to fussy to leave, developed a fever, or sitter flaked on me.  My single, unattached friends started to become more and more distant. I thought to myself, there has to be more people like me out here. People that understand last minute canceled plans due to the fact Pukefest 2000 began at your house minutes before you had to leave the house. People with children that just want to hang out while the children play. So I search and joined a local moms’ group.

Looking back, here are all the reasons why moms (old and new) should join a moms’ group.

1. It gets you out of the house. PLAY DATES!! Get yourself showered, dressed, presentable, and out of the house at least once a week (not to mention they baby and all their gear). More days you have to get your act together.

2. You meet new people. I have to say, when I started the group, I had in the back of my mind, “if these women are freaks I can always quit”. We’ll they turned out to be a nice bunch of sleepy eyed moms just like me. And what do you know, we all had something in common—we were all moms with the same fears and anxieties. The seasoned moms offered advice to new moms, which was great.

3. You make life-long friends. There are 5 of us who really connected and have stuck together for almost 4 years now. OK, so it hasn’t been a lifetime, but we’ve been through a lot together. Not only do we get together weekly for playgroup with the kids, but we also go out for our “Girls’ Night Out” every month.

4. You can find moms with children around the same age as your own. I’ve learned that there’s something to be said for hanging out with people who are going through the exact same issues with your kids at the same time. For example, right now a group of us are potty training our toddlers. We constantly share tips, tricks, and treats. When we are at each others’ houses the kids get a kick out of using each others’ potties. The mom’s with older kids now have sleepovers and hang out on the weekends. Its nice to know and trust the person that has your child over night.

5.Your kids have automatic friends. My son has 4 best friends his own age. They play so often together, there is no “warming up” period. They take off and go.

6. You learn from each other. Since we are all going through the similar issues at the same time, we learn from each other’s mistakes and successes. We’ve also swap stylish maternity clothes and double strollers when needed.