Mommy Crushes

Grown women go gaga over 16-year-old pop star Justin Bieber… there’s just something inherently wrong with that scenario. And I’m not the only one who thinks so. Did you see the episode of “Saturday Night Live” where Tina Fey played a high school teacher smitten with a student played by Bieber? “I don’t know whether I want to marry him or put him in a stroller and push him around the mall,’’ Fey’s character ponders in a dreamy baby girl voice-over. So much for motherhood being connected with adulthood… and completely disconnected to youth culture. These days moms are getting … Continue reading

Before or After?

It’s unofficially baby shower week here on the pregnancy blog. If you haven’t done so already, read about whether or not you should get a second baby shower and whether you have to play shower games, Monday and Tuesday’s topics, respectively. Earlier this week I was speaking with a friend about planning – you guessed it – a baby shower. Apparently someone suggested that our pregnant friend should have the shower after the baby was born, and others insisted she have it before. So which is better: before or after? I’m going to go on the record and say that … Continue reading

Why am I so Sore?

Typically, I hit my marathon wall around mile 18. That’s when my legs feel like heavy wet logs en route to a paper mill’s pulp masher. For years I blamed my pain and stiffness on lactic acid. Lactic acid. If you run, lift weights or simply know someone who does, then you are probably familiar with the term. Heck, even my cousin, who complains about strolling to the end of the driveway to fetch the newspaper, knows about lactic acid thanks to a marathon volunteer, who insisted he bring me over to the massage tent post race so I could … Continue reading

Overweight in Alabama

Every so often, I see a news story that just brings me up short. This one caught my eye today. Apparently, the state of Alabama is trying to crack down on obesity by hitting its employees where they live – their pocketbooks. That’s right – if you work for the state of Alabama and you’re overweight, you’ll soon be paying $25.00 more per month for your health insurance as opposed to the employees who are not overweight. This adds up to $300.00 more per year. The state is calling this a financial incentive to lose weight. I haven’t decided yet … Continue reading

The Curious Case of Sister-Wives

The other night I stayed up late watching TV because I couldn’t sleep. I ended up tuning into a show called “The Secret Lives of Women.” Apparently the show’s a series and features insight into different aspects of women’s lives. The night I watched the topic was polygamy. I have to admit, other than what I’ve seen from the media, I don’t know much about polygamy. I knew the concept of multiple wives sprung from religious beliefs, but I’ve never understood why any woman would sign up for that type of marriage. (Unless if she was forced into it, like … Continue reading

Frugal Living Month in Review: June 2008

What a happy month is June, filled with the renewal of spring and the promise of summer. In the last month, we have shared so many ideas for frugal living and saving money. This past month has seen some pretty big increases in food, gas and other items (look for an upcoming post about strawberries increasing more than 100 percent). Now more than ever, it is important to save money where we can. This is why I decided to do a month in review. June 2nd Frugal Living Review: May 26th Through June 1st Garage sale shopping has got to … Continue reading

Marie Osmond—Her Lips are Flapping But is Anything Coming Out?

Here we go again… Apparently, there are very few stars in Hollywood who understand that there are benefits to remaining mum on certain topics. No, discretion is not a celebrity strong point and Marie Osmond is a perfect example. The former “Dancing with the Stars” contestant has decided the world would be a better place if we all knew how she felt about the Miley Cyrus Vanity Fair picture brouhaha. Yesterday, Osmond went public blaming Miley’s dad, Billy Ray Cyrus for leaving his 15-year-old daughter alone during the photo shoot (F.Y.I. Miley’s grandmother and teacher remained with the teen when … Continue reading

New Religious Offerings in Hotel Rooms

I first heard about this latest travel tidbit from the ladies on ABC’s chatfest “The View” a few weeks ago. But as usual their squawking made it nearly impossible to decipher what the real issue behind hotels offering more than just the Gideon Bible for guests to choose from was all about so I decided to do some research on my own. For those of you just getting up to speed on this “Hot Topic,” the Provenance Hotel chain (they run boutique properties in Oregon, Washington, and Tennessee) recently started offering a “spiritual menu” to its guests that goes beyond … Continue reading

The Truth About Television

Upon hearing the theme song to “Little Einstein’s” my 20 month old twins begin patting and dancing until the exciting climax: ‘blast off’! Surely this is a great show right? It introduces my little ones to classical music and teaches all about music theory. And what about Elmo’s world? That’s educational too! In fact, if I listen to commercials, marketing and advertisements, there are a whole slew of media products designed to boost my twins’ brain power seven fold. (Hey, a foreign language DVD anyone?) I admit that my toddlers watch the occasional T.V. Apparently, we are a rare household. … Continue reading

True or False–Airplanes Have “Safe Seats?”

Growing up, my dad insisted that whenever we flew we absolutely, positively, had to sit over the airplane’s wing. He subscribed to the popular theory that the wing area provided the safest seats because (as some argue) that section of the plane is the most structurally sound. I never questioned him (why would I—he was my dad). So for years, no matter what type of aircraft or how short my flight was I always requested a window seat over the wing. (Never mind, that I missed out on some spectacular aerial views because they were obstructed by this massive piece … Continue reading