My parents were in town this week from Chicago. For their last night here, we had a sunset picnic dinner at the beach. There’s nothing like a California sunset.
Posted by Andrea on April 7th, 2010
It’s amazing what a group of people can accomplish in one day when they have a clear goal. I got to witness the magic of this first-hand this past Friday. Several other bloggers and I, as part of a group of 200+ volunteers, had the tremendous opportunity to go into an low-income area outside of Los Angeles and help build a brand-spankin’-new playground for the local kids…in ONE day. It was like Extreme Home Makeover, but for a playground. I had a blast.
The build was sponsored by KaBOOM, a national non-profit “dedicated to bringing play back into the lives of our children,” in partnership with KOOL-Aid. I had never heard of KaBOOM before this event, but I think it’s an amazing organization. They’ve recognized that there’s a ‘play deficit’ in our society today. Kids don’t just go out and enjoy free play anymore like we did when we were growing up. And, when you think about it, a lot of great lessons are learned on a playground. KaBOOM wants every kid to have a great place to play. What a beautiful idea.
We also had the opportunity to meet hip-hop pioneer and rap legend Joseph Simmons (aka, Rev Run or just “Run” of Run-DMC) and his entire family (well, 5 of the 6 kids, anyway), who are all there to help with the playground build. Not sure if you’ve ever seen “Run’s House” on MTV, but their family is awesome. Justine was just as great in person as she is on the show. Here’s a link to a recent episode called “Smother Mother” to which we can all relate.
Below is a Whrrl (like slide show, but different) of our day…and a picture of me with Rev Run…
Disclosure: I was invited by KaBOOM/Kool-Aid to attend this event. I was not paid to attend, but they did buy me In-n-Out for lunch, which, for me, constitutes payment of the best kind. Regardless of what they fed me, I would still have gone to this and written about it. I loved the organizations involved and their passion for building great places for kids to play.
When life gets insane and we start to lose our cool, my husband and I often look at each other and say, “Serenity Now. Serenity Now.” It’s a reference to one of our favorite Seinfeld episodes. Works really well when all of your kids are melting down. I ‘said’ those words over email to my sis today and was inspired to pull up video of that episode. Thought I would spread the laughter. “Hootchie Mama!”
I’ve always thought it’d be fun to have one post a week in which I posted links to cool stuff I saw and read online that week. But, I’ve learned to never promise anything on a regular basis on this blog because, let’s face it, I sometimes go a month without posting. I’m not the most reliable when it comes to this blogging thing. This list is truly RANDOM. The only common denominator is that I find this stuff interesting.
- Apple began taking orders for the iPad on Friday. It’s estimated that 120,000 Apple iPads were pre-ordered in one day. I think I’ll probably end up with one, but I’m waiting until the first ones are received…
- And in other Apple-related news, a recent survey indicates that 75% of people have a totally inappropriate relationship with their iPhones. I definitely fall within that 75%. I go to bed with the frickin’ thing, for Pete’s sake!
- A Korean man married a pillow that has an image of some anime character on it. He dressed it in a wedding dress and everything. He apparently takes it, or her, everywhere he goes. Yeah, because that’s totally sane.
- My most favorite internet find this week was a hilarious post of 45 Redneck Lifestyle photos. Brings out some serious LOLs.
- I love Seth Godin. He usually has something good to say everyday, but some days are better than others. I loved his post this week entitled “You Rock”. I highly recommend subscribing to his blog. His posts are always short, but meaningful.
- Mom-101 wrote a great post in response to a recent (snarky) article about “mommy bloggers” in the NYT Styles section. Don’t only read the post, but read the couple hundred comments. It’s really fired up a lot of women…in a good way if you ask me.
- Best ad I saw this week was sent to me by my husband. I swear that whoever worked on it is spying on him and me. If your husband plays golf, you can relate. Click here to see it and get a chuckle.
- My favorite song this past week was Giving Up the Gun by Vampire Weekend. I’ve embedded it below for your easy viewing pleasure.
- Also, per my last post, please head over to Kidlee.com and sign up using invite code HIPMOM. You’ll love it. It’s a great way to leverage technology to record all of the wonderful things your kids say and do. Think of it as a journal by you for them.
Got any cool links or things to add? Leave your nuggets of info in the comments section. Thanks and have a great week!
I’m really bad at writing down the adorable things my kids say and do. It’s tragic. None of my three children has a completed baby book. My third child doesn’t even have a baby book (I lie, she does have a baby book, but it is COMPLETELY EMPTY. I’m donating it to Goodwill before she notices).
My friend, Elaina (Fun Finds For Mom), and her husband were also feeling like there needed to be a better way to record the things kids say and do. So, they created Kidlee.com. I’ve used this a bunch of times already since signing up. You can jot down something your child says or does, you can even upload photos or video. AND, you can have it all sent in an email to other people who give a rip about your kids. I know my parents and my in-laws will be so excited to get an email summary about their grandkids every week. What a great way to journal what your kids are doing and easily send it to others.
The site is still in beta, but I’ve been given a limited amount of invite codes. Go to Kidlee.com and type in HIPMOM as the code and you’re good to go. Try it and then come back here to let us know what you think. Elaina and Gary are open to suggestions from users!
So, this here contraption can generate enough wind power to illuminate led lights or a small electrical device.
Imagine what you could do if you strap this to your over-active children? It could solve the childhood obesity problem AND lower our dependence on conventional electricity in one fell swoop, don’tcha think? Just load your kids into one of these and let ‘em rip around the yard for a few hours, or better yet have them ride their bike…down a big hill. You can tell them that they can’t watch TV until they’ve generated enough electricity to power an episode of Spongebob.
I find this dandelion design oddly delightful. I think little girls may dig it if it were more colorful. For boys, though, we’d we have to redesign it to look like rocket boosters or something.
You think this gizmo could qualify for some of the federal government’s green energy funding? I could TOTALLY see Obama and Biden rockin’ one of these.
If you’re curious and want to learn more about “dandelion” click here.
If you haven’t donated all of your money to Haiti, please feel free to come over and put a few pennies in the fund I’ve established…for myself.*
*All donations are tax-deductible.
Receipts will be issued on behalf of the “Save Andrea From the Ugly Stick” Foundation.
Savin’ up for Plastic Surgery Cash Stash. $4.99 at PerpetualKid.com
I’m joining in on Wordless Wednesday, where a I post a photo I’ve taken. I was inspired by Angry Julie Monday. Actually, inspired may not be the right word; Angry Julie could kick my ass.
I took this with my iPhone on January 3rd, the last day before we all forgot about Holiday vacation and headed back to the daily grind of life. I love seeing my little family in such a serene scene (probably because we are rarely serene).
This is supposed to be wordless so I will stop typing now.
There are some things that a vast majority of women do that really give us all a bad name. I’m gonna call us out on it right now. And, btw, I am guilty of all of these to some extent or another…
- Putting a little bowl candy your desk at the office. Ever see a guy do this? No. Why not? Because it’s stupid. You’re not there to feed your co-worker’s or give them a sugar buzz; you’re there to work.
- Decorating your cubicle like it’s a room in your house. I knew one women whose cube felt like a living room – ambient lighting, photo frames, artwork, a mirror. (And, if you have a poster of a kitty hanging from a tree with a “Hang in there” on it everyone will wonder how you passed the psychological screening administered by HR during the hiring process.) I get that it makes the cube more enjoyable, but this isn’t where you live, despite how many hours you spend here. Keep your cube sparse and put more effort into your work.
- Taking forever to pull out of a parking space. If I’m at the store searching for a parking and space and a man and a woman are getting into separate cars at the same time I will 100% of the time wait to pull into the guy’s space. Women jack around. They fumble for their keys, sometimes even hoisting their handbag onto the hood of the car to conduct a thorough search; they take forever to put things into their car (usually in the trunk or backseat); they check themselves out in the mirror. Guys have their keys in their pockets, toss their bag on the passenger seat and are outta there. They’re crude, yet efficient. (Same goes for checkout lines at stores. Guys move faster.)
- Talking incessantly about your children. A few anectdotes about the kids here and there is great, but constant droning about your kids is annoying. And when you’re around people who don’t have kids, unless they ask you specifically about your children, don’t bring ‘em up because people without kids could give a rip about yours. Harsh, but true. BTW, I am guilty of telling stories about my kids when no story was called for…and I always feel like a freak after I do it.
- Choosing clothes based upon what’s in style and not what looks good on your body type. Case in point: skinny jeans. Whoever brought the skinny jean back should be removed from society, but until that arrest takes place women need to know that this style is not for everyone. Just because it’s the “in” thing does not mean you look good in it. Skinny jeans only look good on people who are underweight, so unless you’re a size zero, you should really stick to another style of jean. Same goes for other fashions. Clothes that fit right and flatter never go out of style…almost.
- Similar to the point above, wearing age-inappropriate clothing. When trying something on ask yourself the following two questions: Would a 12-year-old wear this? Would my mother-in-law wear this? If the answer to either question is “yes”, place the item back on the rack and move along.
- Saying ‘yes’ all of the time. We hate letting people down. I get it. It’s part of our genetic make-up, but I’ve seen many a woman go batty because they over-commit, over-subscribe and then resent it. Being helpful is great but we need to learn to say ‘no’ sometimes (although not all of the time). People will keep asking you for things and soon you’ll feel like they’re taking advantage of you, which leads to resentment, which leads to bitterness, which can be construed as bitchiness. Say ‘no’ occasionally. It’s empowering, it’s your right, and you will be better at what you’ve already said ‘yes’ to. Say it with me, “NO!” I can’t hear you, “NO!!!” Good job.
- Bad driving skills. You can’t have a list like this without mentioning driving. Stop putting your make-up on while driving. By all means do not text while driving. Use your earpiece if you need to talk on the phone. Do not keep turning around and looking at your kids while driving. Nose picking is fine (oh, come on, don’t pretend like you don’t do it) as long as you keep your eyes on the road.
I know I’m missing a bunch. Feel free to add your observations in the comments section below.
My son is a Lego freak. He can play with them for hours and hours, without even taking a break to eat…or pee. I don’t mind, except when he leaves them everywhere and I walk over them with bare feet in the middle of the night. There are certainly worse ways he could spend his time. So, we’ve built up quite a massive Lego collection. I’m talkin’ thousands of Legos, seriously. I keep wondering, “What will we do once he’s ‘outgrown’ them?” We’ll remodel our kitchen, of course. And to save on labor, I will have my 7YO son be the builder. DCFS won’t be able to touch me on that one. I’ll just say he was “playing”. Check out the example below:
Images taken from woohome.com
What would you have your underage labor…I mean, kid, build for you?
