Fit Parent Protein Shake

I'm not one to post recipes but every once in a while I have something to share. As part of my fit parent routine I have incorporated this protein shake into my weekly menu. It's fast, easy and tastes great. Even better, it involves Autocrat Coffee Milk Syrup. Yum! Ingredients (Place everything in the blender.) 1 cup skim milk 1 banana 1 handful of spinach leaves, torn into pieces 1/2 tbsp flax-seed 1 scoop vanilla protein powder (any type) Drizzle of Autocrat Blend until smooth. Drink up! *Sometimes I eliminate the Autocrat and add a dash of cinnamon instead. … [Read more...]

Get Your Family Ready for Flu Season

There are five people in my house. I know, no matter how many times I say it, I'm still surprised too. When one of us gets sick we all get sick. MinuteClinic asked me and my family to show how easy it is to get the whole family their flu shots all at once, no appointment necessary.  … [Read more...]

The Gift of Giving- Operation Christmas Child

For as long as I can remember I have been participating in Operation Christmas Child through my church. It is a great cause and way to give something to others in a different way that goes beyond donating money and time. Operation Christmas Child is all about giving your time, showing compassion and creating something special for a child in another country, like Peru or the Dominican Republic, so that they can have just some of the small things they need. Whether it's a box loaded with tiny toys or remote plane toys like Delta Ray RTF or toiletries and socks you are giving the gift of your time spent choosing the items, packing the box with love and care while providing a smile and taking care of a need all at the same time. Operation Christmas Child does my heart and soul good. This … [Read more...]

When Something Isn’t Right

It's hard to know where to begin or if there was something I could have done differently.  I keep going back over the last few months, the last year, the last two years really and beyond that and wonder if there was something I did that brought us to where we are today. We knew this summer that things were different with The Fifth Element.  We chalked it up to the "terrible twos", the new summer schedule, all sorts of things until somewhere in the middle I began to think it was something else.  The tantrums, the hesitancy to play with kids she saw daily, the whispering of "no, no, no" until it became screams and frantic pleas to be held so close it felt like she wanted to meld into me completely. The sheer anxiety and desire to be held almost always was more than I could bear.  I … [Read more...]

Beware the Third Baby

The other day I was showering after my workout and The Fifth Element was in the bathroom with me.  She loves to be in the vanity part of the room while I'm in the shower.  It's where she can do the most damage to the carpet, closet and let loose the faucets on the tub (YEAH! Let's soak the clean laundry Mommy just chucked in there and didn't have time to hang!) and I can't catch her as quickly.  She goes back and forth between the shower and the sinks, babbling her two year-old slang and hurling elastics, brushes, self-tanners and make-up brushes around the room with wild abandon.  In the shower said 'hello' to her as she walked into my part of the bathroom.  I thought it was cute when she climbed on the scale too.  The scale she then moved under the light switch which boosted her up to … [Read more...]

I am a Fake Parent

As parents we learn to lie to ourselves. A lot.  First when we are expecting it is about how we won't raise our kids to be "like that kid!" or that other people just aren't doing it right. Your kid will totally sleep through the night, not teethe and always happily eat every wonderful morsel you plop onto its plate.  We lie after they are born about how hard it is, how sleep deprived we are and that we are so totally not afraid our kid might be dumber than we project to others. … [Read more...]

Memories of my Grandfather

Re-posted from May 2009, I wrote this post about my grandfather.  It touched my Uncle David's heart and so I'm re-posting it today.  I'm hoping and praying that today is a good day.  I love you.    Sometimes when the whole house is still asleep, I will creep downstairs and read in the orange glow of my small kitchen light. I will pour myself a cup of coffee, settle into the quiet of my house, and just lose myself in whatever book I am reading. Later when I unfurl myself from my hunchback sitting position as I simultaneously realize that the sun has come up I remember this- … [Read more...]

The Fifth Element Turns Two

H keeps saying it and I can't quite believe it either but after what has been a roller coaster of emotional highs and lows we have gone through the first two years in The Fifth's Elements life. The Fifth Element. The one who made our family complete. … [Read more...]

The Back to School Chevy Challenge

Yes, I'm talking about going back to school.  I am so excited about it too!  Here's why- I've teamed up with Chevy and their Back to School Challenge to give one lucky, local reader a chance to win a $100 gift card for back to school supplies for their kids! Trust me, when I say I know how much this can do for a family.  When TD was just out of school in June (only last month!) I shelled out $52 for just one kid and her first grade school supplies.  In the next few years I will easily be spending $100 and more when all three girls are in school.  Those supplies did not count back packs or lunch boxes either. … [Read more...]

The Importance of UV-Protection for You and Your Kids

I wear my sunglasses all the time.  ALL THE TIME.  If it is winter, if it is dusk, if it is pre-dawn and I've been out rockin' till the early morn'. OK, who am I kidding. I am not out rockin' except for maybe once a year. Maybe.  I bet I have my sunglasses on though.  I wear them shoveling snow and even in the rain I can be seen sportin' my shades.  It is something I started doing in high school right around the time I stopped wearing glasses and started wearing contacts.  I cannot drive without sunglasses. I even wear them in the pool. My kids are a whole other story.  One that is fairly sad given that my genes and my spouses already have passed on some weak eyesight in at least one of our kids.  According to the Vision Council short-term exposure, like a day at the pool, can leave … [Read more...]