CDN Spotlight: Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) Unveils Blog

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Ben Franklin has been quoted as having said, “In the world, nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes.” While I don’t want to be the one to disagree with the great Mr. Franklin, I do have one more thing to add to his list of certainties.

That addition would be the certainty that you can trust the caring people at Ottawa’s, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, to take the best possible care of your children while they are there. I speak from personal experience, not only as a father but also as a former patient. The people at CHEO have never been anything but extraordinary each and every time I have had to take my little one’s in there.

Both my children screened for Biotinidase Defficiency at birth, so my wife and I have spent many hours in the Genetics department at CHEO, worrying about the effects it will have on our children. It takes a special kind of person to work in a children’s hospital and it’s evident from our time spent there that all the staff at CHEO have that special something to make parents and children feel at ease.

I’ve been starting to realize lately, that people are actually listening to the things I have say. With this realization came an opportunity to use that voice to do some good and that’s fully what I intend on doing. When I contacted CHEO a month ago to see if I could help out in any way, I was excited to hear that they were starting a blog. I mean, what better way to help that to do for them what I have already been doing for the past 7 months!

They even let me help out with the design of the site by running ideas by me and actually listening to my input, which was a surreal time for me. You’ll see the results of my efforts throughout the site and also on the main banner, as what started as CHEO Moms has now become something that all parents (Dads included) can be proud to be a part of. There are even 3 Dads on the Featured Bloggers list, which is amazing!

Without any further ado, I am proud to present to you, my first post as a member of the CHEO parenting blogger team! I wrote about my CHEO experience as a father and hope you’ll stop by to say hi.

I hope you’ll bookmark CHEO’s new blog as has some amazing writers working on it and promises to be an invaluable resource for parents. I’m so proud to be a part of the CHEO team and can’t wait to read more from everybody involved!

You can access the blog by visiting CheoMoms.com OR CheoDads.com ;D You can also connect with CHEO on Twitter @CheoHospital and on the Main CHEO site.

Cheers!

PTPA Media – Helping Parents Make Informed Decisions

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I’m very proud to announce that I will be working the excellent folks at Parent Tested, Parent Approved (PTPA) over the next couple months, to help bring awareness to all the great work they do.

For those of you who are not familiar with the PTPA, they are an Awards & Media company specializing in finding and promoting the best products and services on the market for parents and their families. The PTPA Seal of Approval is one of Canada’s fastest growing Media companies with the most highly recognized Seal of Approval in the industry.

Speaking of that Seal of Approval, I’m sure you’ve seen it and probably didn’t even realize it! Here’s one picture of the seal and then another of the Seal proudly on display at Indigo Kids.

 

When I first signed up to be a tester over a year ago, I had no idea what the PTPA was all about. Let’s be completely honest though, at the time, I was in it for the free toys… What I’ve found however, is that I am a now a part of something bigger than that. I am a part of the PTPA community as a Blogger, a Tester and now as an Ambassador and the experience has been incredible so far!

Sound like a great community to you? Why not sign up as a Parent Tester yourself? It’s as easy as visiting the PTPA Sign Up Page and filling out the form. PTPA sends out thousands of products, free of charge, to parent testers for them to use in exchange for their honest evaluation about the product. Then you’ll be on your way to helping other parents make informed decisions about the products they are purchasing for their family.

As a Parent Tester, you are helping to decide which products will earn the coveted PTPA Seal of Approval. Now that I’ve been a part of the community for a while, I always look for the Seal before making a purchase and it’s always the deciding factor if I’m torn between two products.

The PTPA Winner’s Circle is a perfect place to start when you are starting your search for a new products. From strollers and internet security to Hot Wheels and eReaders, the Winner’s Circle has something for everybody in your family!

So what are you waiting for?? There are a number of ways to become a part of the PTPA Community. You can follow, interact and win lots of prizes through their Facebook and Twitter pages. You can also follow along with the PTPA Blogaholics (That’s Me!) as we cover everything from product reviews and giveaways to parenting advice and fun conversation.

The most important thing you can do right now though, is to Sign Up as a Parent Tester! Don’t leave your purchasing decisions up to chance, sign up today and YOU will be the authority on what products are right for your family. After you’ve signed up, make sure to fill in your profile to at least the 80% mark and you qualify to start testing!

It’s really as simple as that! The Parent Tested, Parent Approved Seal is the one I trust most in my house and I hope you’ll consider joining our team, so you too can see what all the fuss is about!

Cheers!

NBC’s Guys With Kids: Swing And A Miss

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I tried to like it, I really did. I stayed up late. I made my wife miss our nightly Young & The Restless tradition. I even taped it so I could watch it again just in case the kids woke up in between.

Unfortunately for me, NBC’s new show, “Guys With Kids”, was completely and utterly disappointing. I have to admit that I had a preconceived notion about what this show was going to be. My worry was that the Dads in show were going to continue the tradition of portraying fathers as bumbling doofuses who can’t do anything right.

THE ASSESSMENT

As it turns out, I was only half accurate in my premature assessment. I really wanted to laugh at this show and had even convinced myself that I could overlook a little bit of the “dumb dad” stigma in exchange for the serious amount of funny I figured Executive Producer Jimmy Fallon was going to bring to the table.

The only problem with that: It wasn’t funny! Not even a little bit.

I waited and waited for the big time jokes but all I got were recycled clichés and mediocre moments of funny, which were immediately ruined by the over the top laugh track. Seriously, I don’t like laugh tracks in general but this one was completely ridiculous, chiming in at awkward moments with uproarious laughter.

The other problem I had is that my earlier worry about the Dad’s being portrayed as imbeciles turned out to be completely true. The show opens with the three Dads hanging out in a bar with their babies strapped to the chests…This is not what Dads do and in fact, I’d be surprised if this has ever happened outside of the taping of this show.

    THE CHARACTERS

Chris (Jesse Bradford) – Chris is the divorced Dad, who seems normal enough until you find out that he is completely whipped by his ex-wife and mother of their child. He states that he loses every argument about the child to his ex because she ends them all with the line, “He Grew Inside Me”, as she rubs her belly. Not only is this unfunny and clichés but it once again paints the Dad in a weak light.

Gary (Anthony Anderson) – I thought for sure the Stay at Home Dad offered the show a chance at some great Dad moments, but they were lost in the fact that all he does is complain about how awful and time consuming it is to have 4 boys. To be fair in this assessment, his wife, played by Tempestt Bledsoe, seems to have the same attitude towards the children.

Nick (Zach Cregger) – I really have no idea what this character is all about and that is part of the problem. All I could gather is that he’s kind of dumb and will most likely be the “crazy do whatever you want with no regard for wives or kids” guy. Third Strike in the “Guys” Department.

The Kids – Almost non-existent. That’s how I would describe the role of the children in this show. This show could have simply been called, Guys, and it would have been able to keep the same premise. If the show continues, I hope there is a little more interaction between the fathers and the children.

The Wives – As mentioned earlier, Tempestt Bledsoe (Vanessa Huxtable) plays a mother of 4 kids and has some funny moments. Jamie-Lynn Sigler plays Nick’s wife and didn’t really play a major factor in the episode but there is room for funny between her and clueless Nick. Finally we have Erinn Hayes, who plays Chris’ ex-wife. I don’t know if it’s the writing, the acting or the fact that she is humiliating Bradford’s character the whole episode, but she is my least favourite character by far.

Finally, I will second the motion put forward by one of my Dad Blogging buddies in The Rock Father, when he described the random appearance of NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, saying “his appearance would’ve been far more relevant if it was 1980 and AIRPLANE! had just come out”. I agree sir, and I’ll add that having him fake “Dunking The Baby” was equally as tired.

CLOSING ARGUMENTS

I just read this whole thing back before signing off and while it may seem unreasonably harsh, I really did have high hopes for Guys With Kids and was left completely baffled and disappointed with how unsatisfying it was. I also understand the people who say, “Calm down Dad and learn how to take a joke”, I really do, but that would imply the jokes actually making me laugh, which they did not. When you add that to the fact that the Dads are also portrayed in the same bumbling way we always are, it raises my Dad-O-Meter to a high level of alert.

I really like Jimmy Fallon and think he is a comedic genius, which is the main reason why I was so upset with the finished product. It just missed the mark on too many levels for me, so I think it’s time to go back to the drawing board with this one. On second thought, let’s just sweep it under the mat instead and pretend it never happened… Sorry Jimmy, still friends?

Cheers!

**Photo is from Blogo Wogo**

What’s Your Canadian Beef IQ? #LoveCDNBeef

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There’s few things that I am ashamed to admit about myself. For honesty’s sake, I am going to share one of those things with you all today. I am terrible with a BBQ. There, I said it!

There are hundreds of excuses I could use to justify my terrible secret but I know that the #1 reason why I can’t BBQ is because I give up way too easily. The first time I ruined a rack of ribs was the last time I attempted them. I constantly burn hamburgers & steak and I don’t even think about trying chicken on there for fear of under cooking it. I’ve even had to throw out good meat because I didn’t know how to properly store it. My apologies to the folks at Rolling Acres Farm in Shawville, Quebec for that last part. They have provided us with all our Canadian Beef for years and we love them!

I think the reasons above are the exact reason why I am a perfect fit as a Brand Ambassador for my friends at Canadian Beef. You know when you go to those fancy recipe websites and the pictures are perfect? That’s not me. In fact, I don’t even visit most of those sites anymore because they mostly only give you ingredients with no real info on HOW to cook the food. If you want a real picture from an average joe who’s trying to find his way around a BBQ, then you’ve come to the right place! Here’s my latest attempt at steak:

Off To A Good Start

Mediocre Finish. Still Delicious Though!

You might be asking yourself at this point, How did this guy get asked to work with Canadian Beef? My answer would be two fold. First off, I am charming and I’m pretty sure they couldn’t resist my beefy advances. Second, I saw this as an excellent opportunity to man up and step up my game to a new level. Guess what? Not 5 seconds into my Canadian Beef experience, I had already learned a pile of new things by hanging out in the Steaks 101 section of the Canadian Beef website. If all they were going to provide me was the following photo, that would have been enough.

Fact is, I haven’t stopped learning since I clicked on the link and I am gaining more confidence with every page I visit. It’s not just steaks either, that just happens to be my favourite type of Canadian Beef. The Canadian Beef website has tons of amazing sections such as Beef 101, Recipes, Nutrition & Health info and finally, my favourite part, a Cooking Lessons page!

It’s not your average cooking lessons either as it literally takes you step by step through the preparation and cooking of your favourites cuts of Canadian Beef. For an amateur cook, this was exactly the type of direction I needed and I’m already chomping at the bit to try my hand at some new things. The next time my BBQ sees me, it’s going to meet an entirely different person!

I’ve already planned out my next mission and surprisingly it’s something I’ve never tried before: Steak & Eggs! I always see it on restaurant menus and think, “You can’t have steak for breakfast!” As it turns out, you can have steak and eggs at any time of the day and I am going to make it happen! I picked up some eggs from Burnbrae Farms and will grab my, now properly stored, steaks from the freezer and I’ll share my results with all of you, good or bad, in a later post!

You know what, I’ll probably make some Egg-Creations too! They are so easy to throw together and are always delicious, especially with bacon and cheese!! You may think all eggs are created equal too, but I assure you that Burnbrae Farms is the place to be for all your Eggalicious needs!

I hope you’ll come back to follow my Beefy journey as I attempt to go from BBQ Dud to Stud! Any and all tips or tricks are appreciated and I hope you’ll leave them in the comments section for me!

If you want more info about Canadian Beef, you can follow along with them on Twitter or you can visit the Beef Info site to get great tips, tricks and recipes! Furthermore, you can hit up Burnbrae Farms on Twitter and Facebook too!

Cheers!

I am participating in the Canadian Beef Ambassador Program for September. All stories and opinions are my own. That should be obvious from the fact that I admitted my BBQ ineptitude.

Munchkin Canada Tackles Smell With Arm & Hammer {Review/Giveaway}

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Hello there, my name is Chris and you might remember me from such posts as last month’s Munchkin Canada Grows With Your Baby review and giveaway! Well it’s a new month and my friends at Munchkin Canada have sent me some new items to take a look at. They’ve also approved a giveaway that you’re not going to want to miss out on!

As a Father and also a Daycare Daddy, one of the biggest problems I have with my house full of little Munchkins is the smell! I get that it’s not their fault. Part of the catch to the kids eating their fruits and veggies is that they produce some less than ideal smells. As one of the PTPA’s ambassadors for Munchkin Canada, I was lucky enough to receive a wonderful package of Arm & Hammer products that were supposed to help eliminate odour. Did they work, you ask?

100%!! Those diaper filling Munchkins tried their best to destroy it but the Arm & Hammer Diaper Pail was up to the task and my house has never smelled better! Here’s a little more info on the Diaper Pail (which you’ll see again before the end of the post, wink!):

 

 

   Product Features:

* Powered by odour-eliminating baking soda
* Patented self-sealing system seals the bag as the lid closes
* Easy from start to finish – one handed use
* Just Snap, Seal and Toss bags to dispose
* Comes fully assembled and with 3 bag refills

 

 

 

Check out this Diaper Pail Demo for more information.

The best part about Munchkin Canada‘s line of Arm & Hammer products is that it’s not just about eliminating odour. They have designed a number of products to aim to make life easier for parents. After trying everything out, I wanted to share a couple of my favourites!

Arm & Hammer 3-in-1 Potty Seat:

 

Product Features:

* 3-in-1 Potty Seat grows with child – Potty Chair, Trainer Ring, Sturdy Stepstool
* Convenient toddler flushable wipes
* Replaceable freshener insert for odor control
* Removable trainer seat for use on adult potty
* Removable bowl for easy cleaning
* Includes one 36pk of 4”x7” Arm & Hammer™ Flushable Potty Wipes. Refills sold separately.

 

 

Arm & Hammer Nursery Wipes – 24pk:

Product Features:

* Safely cleans cribs, high chairs, changing stations, shopping carts, and other surfaces
* Natural cleaning with baking soda
* Kills germs on contact
* 8” x 6” wipes
* Perfect for on-the-go
* Also available in a 12ct Tray

 

There were so many other amazing products this month but I just wanted to highlight a few of our favourites. From Nursery Freshener Disks to Hand and Face Wipes, Munchkin Canada and Arm & Hammer have you covered! Now, about that giveaway I was talking about. I’m so excited to be able to give you the chance at not one, but 2 of Arm & Hammer’s best products!

Use the Rafflecopter form below and you can win BOTH the Arm & Hammer Diaper Pail and the 3 in 1 Potty Seat! I know, you can thank me with nice emails or cash!

For more information on Munchkin Canada and their great line of products, you can visit their Website Here! They’d also love to hear from you on their Facebook and Twitter Pages! Also, be sure to watch out for a $10 Mail In Rebate Coupon on Munchkin’s Facebook page soon!

Contest is open to residents of Canada.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I am participating as one of Munchkin Canada’s Ambassadors and I received a package of Munchkin products in exchange for my participation in this campaign. Opinions expressed belong to me and are NOT influenced in any way.

The Curious Case Of The Missing Kit Kat’s

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Some of you may not know this about me but I am a detective at heart. Back in the days when I thought reading was awesome and worth my time, I owned and read every single Hardy Boys book there was. That’s right, back then the Hardy Boys consisted of Frank, Joe and I, and we solved a LOT of mysteries together!

(Note: If there are teens or twenty something’s reading this, the Hardy Boys are not characters in the WWE, that is a blatant rip-off of a classic and they have never solved a crime, no matter what Vince McMahon says!)

Back to the mystery at hand, I was recently brought back to my young detective days by a string of incidents at our local Sobeys grocery store. It seems that someone, or even a Mob style faction, has begun an international miniature chocolate peddling ring and have been removing the Kit Kat’s from all of the Schneider’s Lunch Mate containers. I present to you, Exhibit A, above.

My first experience with this was a traumatic one as I had picked up a few for a last minute family picnic. Upon opening my son’s container, I noticed that the aforementioned Kit Kat wasn’t there! As his tears began to flow, I realized that the only solution was to give up mine, which of course stung my taste buds.

I chalked it up to a one time error and picked up a Kit Kat for myself on the way home. Little did I know that this problem was going to rear its ugly head again. Fast Forward to a month later and I grabbed a few more Lunch Mates on sale, because you can never have enough emergency lunches! Now you’d think I would have learned my lesson and checked before cashing out but I was tired from a long day’s work and it slipped my mind.

Sure enough, upon opening my lunch, there it was again! Sausage – Check, Cheese – Check, Crackers – Check, KitKat – ??? No Kit Kat!? What in the world was going on here? I certainly wasn’t about to go back to the grocery store to complain about it, mostly due to laziness. The other side was me picturing a slightly overweight Dad at the grocery store, arguing about a missing mini Kit Kat…Yeah, who to believe?

Once again I let it slide, but my curiosity was peaked as to what was really going on with the missing Kit Kat’s, so I decided to plan a stake out. My plan was to hide out in the meat display, disguised as a giant ham, and then I would be able to catch the culprit in the act! Unfortunately my plan was foiled by a little boy who knew waaay too much about what a ham should look like. I decided to drop the whole investigation and took up my place on the couch to watch my favourite television show, Infomercials. We’ll talk about my love for infomercials at a later date.

After a month or two went by without thinking about it, we had a rushed day and I decided to grab my favourite last minute go-to lunch. Being the genius detective that I am, I decided to check the lunchables before buying this time around and you’ll never guess what I discovered…..Another missing Kit Kat!!! As George W. Bush once said, “Fool Me Once, Shame On You. Fool Me….You can’t get fooled again”! I rushed to the cash register with my evidence and waited for the manager to officially put me on the case! Instead I got a, “Oh, that sucks. Go ahead and grab another one” response.

WHAT!?!? “That sucks”? That’s all you’ve got? There is a serial chocolate thief on our hands here and all you have to say is “That Sucks”?! Well I am not about to take this situation lightly and have decided to officially launch my own investigation. It has only been a week but I have narrowed down the list of potential suspects to the following:

1. The Overnight Cleaning Crew – Probably the easiest ones to pin it on, which is the exact reason I am not suspecting them.

2. The Mogwai – The problem with this theory is that based on the store’s hours, the Mogwai would have to be eating them between 10pm and midnight. A short window, as every knows that if the Mogwai ate the chocolate after midnight, it would turn into a Gremlin.

3. The Cereal Crew – As everyone knows from movies like Toy Story and Night At The Museum, after a store closes, the characters all come to life. So I’m left wondering if Lucky the Leprechaun, Tony the Tiger, Snap, Crackle, Pop and company are responsible for this. It would definitely explain things like Cocoa Krispies and Chocolate Lucky Charms!

4. Desperate Parents – This is my #1 suspect. Tell me you haven’t seen a parent or child dip there hand into the bulk candy bins or snacking on an obviously stolen banana from time to time. As a parent myself, I know the urge to do literally whatever it takes to keep those kids happy and chocolate would be just the medicine a screaming child would need. The only catch here is that the “Free Cookie” booth is right around the corner and usually features the much coveted chocolate chip cookie.

So there you have it, my complete list of suspects in the Case of the Missing Kit Kat’s. If you have any information relating to this case, please contact me immediately! And to those who are worried about the future of Mini Chocolates, I promise that I won’t stop until the culprit is apprehended!

Cheers!

***Edit: Due to the Tweet I received from @Sobeys, I would like to point out that while the missing Kit Kat’s portion of this story is true, the story itself is intended as a joke. I am not looking to complain to the corporate HQ of Sobeys, Schneider’s or Gremlins writer Chris Columbus.***

Dad Blogs Exposed! – Dadditudes

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After a one week vacation, Dad Blogs Exposed is back and better than ever! This week I’ll be featuring a new site for Dad’s that’s taking Canada by Storm.

That site is called Dadditudes and it is the brainchild of Neil Hedley, who I was e-introduced to through a mutual friend. I couldn’t figure out how to accurately describe Neil’s profession, so I’ll copy and paste from his bio and you’ll see why…

“Along the way, Neil’s been an actor, singer, stand-up comic, author of a book that hit #1 in its category on Amazon, World Record holder, and in 2011, was one of the first five speakers announced at Canada’s first-ever 140 Conference.”

How do you narrow that down to one? Oh yeah, he also contributes weekly to Sympatico.ca and also does a weekly feature on CTV here in Canada. On top of all that, he’s actually a really nice guy, not like those other hot head World Record holders! How he had time to come up with Dadditudes is beyond me but it’s quickly becoming one of my favourite hangout spots on the net.

Fittingly enough, Dadditudes was launched on Fathers’ Day 2012 as a magazine, community and resource for men who have better things to think about than the latest raunchy photos of actresses on the beach.

That tag line caught my eye right away and after checking out the site for a couple months, I can say that they totally live up to their word. It’s your one stop shop for everything from movie and music reviews to fatherly issues. Throw in some sports, cars and television talk and they’ve got all the makings of a successful site for men.

With a full staff of 21 writers and counting, you’ll never be lacking for material with Dadditudes. The more I read it, the more it starts to feel like one of my favourite sites, the Yummy Mummy Club, but for men. Much like the YMC however, there is more than enough content for both sexes to enjoy.

I hope you’ll take a few minutes (or hours (or days)) to check out Dadditudes and everything it has to offer. Neil has created the beginning of something very cool here and it’s definitely worth your time! You can also follow them on their Facebook page or head on over and say Hi to both Dadditudes and Neil Hedley on Twitter.

Cheers!!

In The Presence of a Man

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I lost my little boy today…

Last thing I remember was singing him to sleep and holding him tightly, promising to never let him go. This morning however, he crossed through the gates to the other side and never looked back.

I don’t even feel like I got to say a proper goodbye. One minute he was there and the next, gone. I just stood there in stunned disbelief, remembering all the good times and thinking about all the things I still hadn’t taught him.

I definitely wasn’t ready for this moment, that much I know for sure. He certainly can’t be ready for the next stage of his life. What if he gets hurt? Who’s going to be there to make it better? What if he can’t get his lunch bag opened? He’ll starve to death! As I went through all the terrible scenarios in my head, all I kept repeating was “This can’t be happening! This can’t be happening!”

The reality is, it WAS happening and there was nothing I could do about it but stare in awe of the fine young man my wife and I had created and raised. My little boy had crossed the gates into manhood and I’ve never EVER been so proud in all my life!

Our walk to the school this morning was a long one for sure. My son had no idea the emotions that were swirling around the minds of my wife and I, but hopefully someday he will. That pit in your stomach as you feel like you are walking the longest plank, to imminent doom.

I hope that someday he will get to experience this moment with his own children. Maybe then he will understand that all the crying and stress from his parents wasn’t about sadness or anger, but a totally different emotion that overpowers all others.

Pride. Because that’s all I feel for him on this day as he embarks on his new journey.

I’m proud of him for having the courage to take that next step. I’m proud of him for making sure to hug his sister before he left us today. I’m proud of how he coloured in the lines at the teacher interview yesterday and how he counted to 30 and sang the alphabet song as if he’d been doing it his whole life. I’m proud of every accomplishment he has ever achieved and everything he still has left to do in his life.

Everyone told me I would love being a father, but no one warned me about the pride. Seriously, why did no one tell about this part? How am I supposed to be “Big, Tough Daddy” when I start to well up when my son beams about passing his first swimming class? If that’s the kind of thing that sets me off, what’s going to happen when he scores his first goal in hockey? (Okay, we haven’t discussed sports yet but c’mon, we are Canadian!)

The important lesson I learned today is that while my kids still have a lot of learning and growing to do, so do their Mommy and Daddy! I have to learn how to deal with all these emotions while continuing to maintain control of myself. All I wanted to do after we dropped him off today was to curl up in bed until it was time to go get him. I didn’t do that, but it was definitely on my mind.

As it turns out, he did just fine at his first day of school. As he says “I didn’t even cry, not once!” and “I even opened my snack box and now there’s nothing left in it!” with that big ol’ grin of his. My son is more than ready for school and I couldn’t be more proud of him for it.

I lost my little boy today…but I gained a wonderful young man!

 

The Dads Are Invading Pleasantville!

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Okay, maybe not Dads with an “s” and also not really an invasion per se…but I am Guest Posting over at Life In Pleasantville today!

I normally don’t pimp my guest posts on my own blog but I was so excited when local blogging celebrity, Candace, agreed to let me do it, that I had to share it with all of you as well!

On top of her own blog in Pleasantville, Candace is also a featured blogger with the Yummy Mummy Club and a Staff Editor at Child Mode. You can also catch her on her Life In Pleasantville Facebook and Twitter Pages.

Without further ado, here is my guest post in Pleasantville about one of the differences I’ve noticed between Moms and Dads. PS, there’s also a great video of my daughter pushing herself to a new level of crazy!

Thanks again to Candace for allowing me to infiltrate visit in Pleasantville!

Cheers!

Something Made Me Very Angry Tonight!

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I’m not perfect. Not even close really.

I have done things I am not proud of. Recently even.

I guess I’m lucky that my parents taught me the gift of humility and how to admit when I am wrong. This is something I hope to pass on to my kids as they grow older.

Another thing I want to pass along to them, is that bullying is not acceptable. Not in any way, shape or form. I want them to know that it’s not okay to bully someone and it’s equally not okay to get bullied themselves.

While surfing Twitter tonight, my friend and local radio DJ Katherine Dines posted a link from a young girl named Sarah.

I was curious, so I clicked on it and it led me to the video clip you are going to watch right now. Please watch it.

http://yfrog.com/7go3gmlclcauebxjgqcyzjuvz

That brings me to the part where I got Angry. And Sad. And Emotional. Then Angry again.

What kind of human being bullies a beautiful person like this? My mind is aching at the thought of what life must be like for Sarah and all the other kids who have to deal with this on a daily basis. Most of whom suffer in silence.

I don’t want to do the “Blame the Parents” thing for the bullies because I don’t know their situations, but as parents, we have to do a better job of educating our children on the effects of bullying and why it’s important for them to not behave that way.

Admittedly, I’m not up to date on the Bullying Awareness campaigns that are going on around the world. Possibly because I have very young children, possibly because before I found blogging and social media, I was fairly sheltered. Either way, this one touched me tonight and made me think about my son, who starts school next week.

What if it happens to him? I want him to be able to come to me if it does so I can deal with it and not have him suffer alone. Alternatively, I need him to know that it’s not acceptable to do this to others.

We can’t end this problem without brave people like Sarah, who have chosen to put themselves out there for the world to see what is going on and I applaud her for sharing her video.

So here’s my plan. I thought it would be cool if we all gave Sarah a follow on Twitter and let her know that she doesn’t have to suffer by herself anymore. You can find her at @LuckyElizabeth2 and I’m sure she’d love to hear from you!

I realize that’s it’s only one person but isn’t lifting one up better than none at all? No one deserves to be treated this way, no matter what their situation is. Let’s start tonight, with this one brave girl and see where it takes us!

Cheers!