Cutie Booty Cakes

Nature's Splendor

2009-11-08T12:32:00.004-05:00

This morning I was focused so intently on my latest book that I almost missed the beauty that was right outside my window. One of the flight attendants stopped by my row to look out the window and the view was absolutely breathtaking. It is said that we should stop to "smell the roses" and I am delighted that I inhaled the fragrant aroma of roses expressed in the lovely mountain formations in Salt Lake City, Utah.

This is my first time in this part of the country and sadly I am just passing through. As I type this blog post I am waiting for the boarding announcement for the next leg of my journey. In the meantime,

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this is the view from my seat in the airport. Nature's beauty at it's finest.

Blogging on the go - gotta love free wifi in the airport, they've just called me to board. Later!

Quick and Dirty

2009-11-07T17:48:00.005-05:00

photo by Lindsay Maines

My friend Lindsay aka Rock and Roll Mama sent me this photo from our trip to Vegas for BlogWorld Expo and SITScation. Like Lindsay, I love this picture. Lindsay caught me in a tranquil moment, this photo captures the essence of the word peace. In the midst of the chaos that is called Las Vegas, my friends and I stopped to admire the waterfall and despite being lost in the expansive Venetian hotel, we were content and happy. I will be channeling this feeling tonight as I am caught in the throes of procrastination.

Procrastination should be my middle name because I am notorious for leaving things to the last minute. Tonight I have to pack my clothes for a trip cross-country and I am leaving at the butt crack of the morning. This means that everything should be packed already. In my usual fashion, 12 hours before my departure I am not packed. However, I did get a really good nap in this afternoon and that has to count for something! And before going to sleep I did do two loads of laundry and we went to the Original Pancake House to spend time together as a family.

And I have to add that although the clothes are not physically in the bag, with the exception of a shirt or two that is drying, all of my clothes are laid out. So at this junction, I guess you can say that I am ahead of the game. When I am in serious procrastination mode I pack the morning I am leaving - even if I am scheduled to depart early.

I suppose instead of blogging I need to fix dinner, pack and go to bed because tomorrow and the following days are going to be long. I'll be back tomorrow and will share some photos from my latest adventure.

Enjoy the rest of your day.

Tim Gunn

2009-11-06T18:19:00.002-05:00

Today I was trying to find the photos of Mekhi trick or treating last week in Asheville with his best buddy Cinque, however I am unable to locate the photo. That is not surprising considering I have so many photos floating around on numerous cards and I need to get organized. I believe I've mentioned my lack of organization skills in the past (if anyone out there is type A, seriously organized and wants to provide tips? Call me- okay, email me - HELP!!). Anyway, here is a photo of Tim Gunn and I at BlogHer. He complimented me on my camera case which is shaped like a bowler bag - me, complimented by Tim Gunn? I was over the moon.

Yes, this photo is from July and I'm just getting around to posting it today. Consider this an appeal for help because gosh, darn it I am disorganized and my memory is failing. In any event, I am still participating in NaBloPoMo and this is my Friday post. Sue me, I'll try harder to find the cute photo of my son next week!

A wish for More Birthdays

2009-11-05T09:38:00.001-05:00

Photo by Larry Brown

This woman is my Aunt Helen, isn't she beautiful? Growing up I spent many days in Aunt Helen's kitchen, similar to many families, her kitchen was a gathering place. This is where she prepared great meals and on most holidays our entire family gathered at her home. I was extremely close to my aunt and her death was one of the first I experienced in my young life, over 20 years ago. Aunt Helen died of cancer and my last memory of her alive is seeing her hooked up to machines in a hospital bed, shrunken and sleeping. I didn't want to disturb her so I quietly left and she died later that week. There are many days when I regret not getting in that one last hug, the comfort of her warm embrace but carrying the memory of those hugs has to suffice.

The loss of my Aunt was tremendous. Not only was she my aunt but she was my godmother too and she took her responsibilities seriously. Every year on birthdays and holidays all of the kids in the family would receive savings bonds. She taught us at an early age the value of being financially savvy. She loved the finer things in life and saved her money to buy them. I don't believe that she ever used a credit card and every few years she would buy a new car - paid in full - so that she would not be indebted to anyone.

All of these things were simply amazing to me because my aunt was a domestic worker. She spent the majority of her days cleaning house and caring for a white family that lived in Sands Point -not far from our home. The photos of her wards lined her shelves, with places of honor right next to her blood relatives. I must admit that I sometimes felt a tinge of jealousy when I was young because her "children" had the benefit of spending so much time with the aunt that I loved so much. That jealously always quicklydissipated because Aunt Helen had enough love to go around.

In her death, as in life she was a caregiver. My aunt's savings helped to finance my education and I remember the day as a young undergrad a switch went off in my brain. I hadn't been applying myself to my studies, I was doing the minimum in school because I found it easy and could pull out a B in a pinch. But earning B's when you are an A student doesn't suffice and I realized that the hard work of my aunt paved the way to opportunity for me. I applied myself to my school work with fervor and on my next break from school I visited her grave site for the first time since her death 7 years prior and thanked her for all that she provided for me.

I've struggled for weeks trying to write the words that capture the beauty and effervescence of my Aunt Helen. She was a beautiful woman both inside and out, a lover of celebrations, always the life of the party and frequently the hostess. She lived a fairly long life, she died at 72 but there are many times when I wish she had more birthdays. Losing her to cancer made it easy for me to respond positively when I was asked to participate on the American Cancer Society's (ACS) Blogger Council. I want to support the efforts of the ACS, "a nationwide, community-based, voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem by preventing cancer, saving lives, and diminishing suffering from cancer, through research, education, advocacy, and service."

This post is dedicated to my aunt to celebrate her life and my wish that she had more birthdays. I encourage you to write a post dedicated to someone you love that was affected by cancer - perhaps write a post on your birthday dedicated to them. We want to raise awareness about this disease and I look forward to the day when we will all be writing celebratory posts rather than dedication posts.

Aunt Helen, I love you and miss you. Frequently I wish you had one more birthday for us to celebrate together.

Sweetgrass Spa

2009-11-04T08:26:00.003-05:00

Have you ever discovered a diamond in the rough, cleaned it up and delighted in the glittering sparkle of your newest find? I feel this way about Sweetgrass Spa.

I have passed by this spa on more times than I can remember and never ventured in. This quaint spa is not the run of the mill place, it is more like visiting a neighbor whose home is so comfortable that you never want to leave.

Whenever you visit warm tea, aromas too delicious for description, and furniture that is broken in like your favorite armchair awaits you.

Imagine all of this, add spa services and then you will understand the beauty of Sweetgrass Spa.

My visit to Sweetgrass was rather serendipitous. I am traveling on Sunday and will be having professional photos taken. In an effort to have my skin looking my best I began a search for a facial that was both affordable and good quality. There were a few places that I knew of by reputation but didn't have any direct recommendations for so I decided to check with yelp.com to read reviews for some of the spas I was considering (if you are not familiar with yelp you must visit! People post reviews of local business/restaurants/etc. it is a wonderful resource).

I read the review for a facial with Kristin at Sweetgrass and realized that the facial is one of the "hawt yelp deals" this week! Several spas are providing services at 50% off in Atlanta and after reading the review I called immediately. I was able to take advantage of the deep discount and got an appointment the same day!

Kristin was amazing! My facial was custom designed for me. I have been having fairly regular breakouts and my skin needs hydration. Kristin discussed my skin with me, took a look herself and designed a facial to meet my skincare needs. The spa uses Aveda products and as a long time fan of Aveda I was tickled pink.

The facial began with aromatherapy, Kristin had me inhale three different scents and I chose geranium essential oil. The light and airy smell of geranium filled my senses as I enjoyed Kristin's light touch. She used a professional strength Tourmaline buffer for my skin, to exfoliate and brighten. The rest of the service included other potions, extractions, a mask, and hydrating moisturizer. Although I can't remember all of the steps my fondest memory of being relaxed and my glowing skin after the treatment.

I highly recommend Sweetgrass spa and if you are in the Atlanta area visit yelp.com to check out the specials for this week! You can also check Yelp in your area and you may find a diamond that you've overlooked in your neighborhood too!

For more Wordful Wednesday check out Angie's 7 Clown Circus.

*I was not compensated in any way for this post, I just wanted to share some great services with you!

Ritual

2009-11-03T09:59:00.001-05:00

I've found that incorporating rituals into my day helps me to stay on track. I've felt out of sorts for awhile. I think traveling and being away from home has taken a toll on me and I have not incorporated ritual into my life. This morning I woke up motivated to introduce order into my life. I am sure that the advent of daylight savings time combined with my desire to be productive and accomplish goals has pushed me into this direction. I feel energized and rejuvenated. I've decided that every morning I will shower before taking my son to daycare, this is a total change because usually I crawl out of bed throw on the sweats and drop him off. When I return home I tend to dilly dally and 8:30 becomes noon before I know it and I've accomplished very little. By being ready to tackle my day when I return from daycare I will be more efficient.

I also plan to incorporate a morning cup of herbal tea to my ritual. I love my chocolate mint truffle rooibois tea and can enjoy it fairly quickly in the morning. I took this photo of my kettle boiling because I think it is beautiful and despite the adage that "a watched pot never boils" using the quick boil feature on my frigidaire gallery range I am able to do just that. I can take five minutes to let my tea seep and enjoy the sweet delicate taste of my tea and it kills two birds with one stone, I am both relaxed and ready for the day and it satiates my desire for sweet things.

I am also adding exercise to my ritual. I enjoy exercising with my son so I will wait until the afternoons to exercise- at least for now. That may change but at the moment I am committing myself to exercise. And finally, although I've said this on numerous occasions, I am really going to start utilizing my jacuzzi tub. To be honest I've avoided using it because it is a serious job to clean it. It is the deepest tub I've ever seen, so deep in fact that when I was pregnant I had to get my husband to do the cleaning duty. Unfortunately, no such luck now, he would balk if I so much as whispered "can you clean the tub for me?"

I think the work is worth the reward because the massage jets are so soothing and will be a perfect nightcap for my days. And speaking of nightcaps, I think I am also going to commit to going to bed by 10 or 11 every night. It is my hope that incorporating rituals into my life will help me stay and track and since they are so simple I can even do them when I am away from home. I'll let you know how it goes and in the meantime, I'd love to hear about your rituals. What do you do to take care of yourself?

Picky Eater

2009-11-02T10:58:00.002-05:00

My son is a picky eater. Despite my hopes and dreams, he is that child that eats what he wants to eat and nothing else. Sometimes it is difficult to determine exactly what he will eat because what tastes good to him on one day is unacceptable on another. Right now the food we have in rotation includes: pancakes, waffles, french fries, sweet potato fries, bread, fruit and chicken. He LOVES chicken. Sometimes I can get him to eat a veggie burger or noodles with sauce but it really depends on his mood.

I've been worried and concerned because there are days when despite my efforts to provide him with variety in his diet he will leave food untouched on the table. I have gotten to the point where I don't get worked up about it because I know that he will eventually eat when he is hungry.

Recently my husband had a brilliant idea to deal with this problem that actually worked. He suggested making cornbread and infusing it with protein and veggies. That way Mekhi would get what he needs without having to "see" what he is eating. I put this theory to the test and baked cornbread muffins.

I utilized the quick pre-heat feature on my frigidaire gallery range that I have as a result of being a Test Drive mom and set to mixing and pouring my batter. I made my usual cornbread recipe with corn meal, flour, eggs, a little bit of sugar and added salmon that I sauteed in a pan. I also added a few brocolli florets to the mix.

I place the mixture in my muffin tin - my son loves muffins and placed them in the oven. I cooked them for about 10 minutes and was able to watch their progress.

The final result? Nice and tasty muffins. At least, I am guessing they were tasty. I gave a muffin to my son and he soon requested another. I placed all of the extra muffins in air tight bags and froze them. When I wanted to give them to Mekhi as a meal, I simply defrosted them in the microwave.

In the future I will probably add spinach to the mix but this time I was afraid the color might be off-putting to him. As they say there is more than one way to skin a cat - or in this case, to get your toddler to eat!

NaBloPoMo

2009-11-01T14:09:00.003-05:00

When I first started blogging I'd write a post on a daily basis. It was like an addiction for me, if I didn't post I'd feel all weird and queasy and force myself to write something. I keep up with that pace of writing for my first 5 and half months of blogging. When the December holidays rolled around I decided to take a break. It was both extremely liberating and difficult for me.

Since that time I've tried to post at least three times weekly but I have been lacking in consistentcy. I also think that as a result of this the quality of my writing has significantly sufferred.

In an effort to "get my groove back" I am joining the National Blog Posting Month movement. Every day during the month of Novermber I will be writing a blog post. I am taking this challenge with a host of other people and hopefully this will help me improve both the consistency and quality of my writing. Another perk is that I will qualify for a boatload of prizes.

You can join too, visit NaBloPoMo and sign up. I look forward to seeing what the next month brings......

Making Life Easier

2009-10-29T12:30:00.005-04:00

I am far from a domestic diva. As a matter of fact on any given day in my home you will see piles of clean clothes that need to be folded and put away, clean dishes in my dishwasher and a bit of general disarray. I have also always been somewhat of a pack rat and have a tendency to keep tons of paper lying around. In a perfect world, I'd have someone come in and help me get organized but unfortunately that is not going to happen. I also suspect that even if I were gifted with a home organizer that organization would be short-lived, you know what they say - old habits die hard!

As a result of my general disorganization, I tend to leave heavy cleaning duties until they are absolutely necessary. Case in point? My oven. My old oven was not self cleaning so I would have to pull out the foaming cleaners and subject myself to the noxious fumes and use elbow grease to get that job done. Fortunately for me, those days are over! Thankfully, I am a Frigidaire Testdrive mom and I have been given a standing range that is self-cleaning and will do the work for me. All I am required to do is remove the oven racks, press two buttons and let the cleaning begin! Here is a quick vlog that I did to show you just how simple cleaning my oven has become (Please excuse my crazy appearance, in my attempt to get some things accomplished today make-up was not a priority!)

My self-cleaning oven is saving me time, no longer do I have to get on my knees and spend hours cleaning. I can use that time to try and do other things like grocery shop and perhaps tackle those loads of laundry!

Boo at the Zoo!

2009-10-27T20:17:00.002-04:00

On Sunday Mekhi took his first carousel ride at Zoo Atlanta. We were attending the annual Boo at the Zoo! celebration and he had a wonderful time. During the event there are six "trick or treat" stations set up in the park. I really like this idea because it keeps the amount of candy collected to a minimum and because there are animals to distract my son I was able to get away with taking most of his candy without much protest from him.

We saw this beautiful tiger come down to take a drink and I had to catch a quick snapshot. It seemed like our timing was perfect for everything, most of the animals made an appearance shortly after we arrived at each exhibit. And as any zoo going person knows it is sometimes difficult to see the animals on your time schedule!

This is the baby panda and she is so adorable. I cannot remember her name and she is not that small but she recently celebrated her first birthday. It is amazing how quickly these animals grow.

One of my personal favorite animals is the gorilla and this silverback male hung around with a crew of three other bachelors. It looks like he posed for his close-up doesn't it?

Our day at the zoo was packed with animal sightings, candy stations, friends and lunch. The weather cooperated and it was almost warm enough to be considered Indian summer. Although Mekhi was unwilling to wear his dinosaur costume, he was on the lookout for dinosaurs in the zoo. I guess it will take awhile before he understands that they are now extinct! In the meantime we will be checking out the dinosaur show at the theater for puppetry arts to satiate his desire to see dinosaurs!

For more Wordful Wednesday check out Angie's 7 Clown Circus.

Baby Blues

2009-10-26T19:50:00.002-04:00

Originally uploaded by rj_ross.rm

It is hard to believe that the little baby in this picture is now almost 2.5 years old. He is talking up a storm, running amuck and leaving causing chaos and mayhem in his wake. All in all he is having a wonderful time and despite my occasional parenting headaches, I admit he is tons of fun.

But I look at this photo from when he was four days old and feel pangs in my uterus. I want to once again feel the flutters of butterfly wings and later the breathtaking kicks that come with pregnancy. I am not sure if the source of my desire stems from the multitude of my bloggy friends having babies, my age, or just not wanting to have an only child.

All I can say is that despite all of the pregnancy aches and pains, the sleepless nights and the sore nipples, I really am pining for a baby. I guess now I need to convince hubby.

Where is that tequila and margarita mix? That did the job last time!

And this year I gave birth....

2009-10-23T10:51:00.003-04:00

to a baby dinosaur. Mekhi loves, loves, loves dinosaurs. Every year my mother sends Mekhi a Halloween outfit but this year is the first time he truly understands the concept. So, when his costume arrived in the mail this morning he was thrilled and we put it on immediately. My baby dinosaur is born! Thanks Grandma!

Adventures in Potty Training Pt. 2

2009-10-22T16:42:00.003-04:00

This is the face of my big boy. My big boy who asked to go to the potty and actually did poopy in the potty. I cannot even express my joy at this event. As soon as I finish typing this post we are headed to the grocery store for ice pops to celebrate this momentous occasion. I never thought I'd feel this happy about poop, but seriously? Pull-ups and cleaning up explosive poops is becoming tired.

I am so proud of my big boy!!

What happens in Vegas........

2009-10-20T16:04:00.005-04:00

After a whirlwind of travel I am home for an extended period of time. I think. Okay, we'll see. Anyhow, at the very least I know I will be home this week and I have an opportunity to reflect. I am in the midst of recovering from living it up in Las Vegas. My version entailed speaking at two blog conferences - Blog World Expo and SITScation, meeting new and wonderful people, one night of dancing, meeting Guy Kawasaki, and seeing Cirque du Soleil. All this and not one dollar was lost gambling because being a tightwad has it's perks!

While traveling can be exhausting and time away from my family can be difficult, it reminds me of the most important aspect of blogging for me. Community. This weekend I met friends old and new and spent true quality time with individuals that I believe will be my lifelong friends. Two of these new friends are Rachel of Single Mom Seeking and Lindsey of Rock and Roll Mama. I've long admired Lindsey from afar and we met in July at BlogHer and spoke briefly at Type-A Mom but in Vegas we were able to break bread together and enjoy quality time together. Lindsey is an advocate for women advocating for themselves and I am truly glad to have her friendship and to knowing her is a constant reminder to value my worth as a woman and a mother. Rachel is a brand new friend. She is the author of the book Single Mom Seeking and I don't think that I have ever met a kinder or gentler spirit. The three of us dished and dined together after all speaking on the Niche Blogging Panel for the Mind of Moms track at Blog World Expo. These two women are intelligent, funny and witty. I look forward to spending more time with them in the future.

The third friend I met was Dale. She was an attendee at SITScation (The Secret is in The Sauce blog conference) and like Rachael has a wonderful spirit. As a matter of fact, Rachel introduced us and we walked Dale to her room after the SITS opening night party, I knew I wanted to spend more time with this lovely lady. Her blog, A Stroke of Living chronicles her life and story of overcoming a stroke at an early age. I admire her positive attitude in the midst of adversity and for anyone that says "I can't" you should be ashamed because Dale has proven we can accomplish anything we put our mind to. Dale and I attended Cirque Du Soleil's Mystere together and had a wonderful time.

Despite a long day at the conference, neither of us could contain our joy at the physical feats that seemed to defy possibility that we witnessed on stage. Although this is my third Cirque du Soleil show, as usual I was enthralled by the performance. Mystere is full of tumbling, high flying trapeze work and comedy. Things that I have come to love about their shows. One of the things that really impressed me was the original music and the ability to see the musicians sing and play instruments above the stage. This is something that is unique to Cirque shows and truly adds to the experience. I have to give a big thank you to Cirque to Soleil for providing the tickets to the show. I am a long time fan and Dale and I enjoyed it tremendously.

Vegas is a beautiful memory - although there were some sights there that had my eyeballs burning (especially some of the women "working" the casino) it was a great experience. I am still recovering and most of yesterday I spent napping and hanging out with my sweet boy. When he and Daddy picked me up at the airport, Mekhi said "I am so glad you are home Mommy!" My heart just about melted. All day yesterday we lounged around the house watching movies and enjoying each others company. It was priceless. I am looking forward to getting back in a groove here on the blog and look forward to giving you updates on all of the wonderful things that I have been up to!

Beat Cancer!!!!

2009-10-16T15:11:00.003-04:00

I am still in Las Vegas and you know how much I am into causes so I had to take a quick moment to alert you to this amazing social media campaign. Over the next 24 hours for every tweet, facebook update and blog post using #beatcancer 1 cent will be donated by ebay/Paypal, MillerCoors to cancer research. In addition, we are trying to beat the Guiness Book World Record for largest mass message through social media. Please join me, it is really easy and costs you nothing. It is the least we can do to help #beatcancer!!!

I'm helping to raise funds to

#beatcancer, by blogging, tweeting

and posting Facebook status

updates.

Click here to join me!

Vegas, Baby!

2009-10-14T20:32:00.002-04:00

So, we are all familiar with the saying, "what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas." Supposedly this will protect both the innocent and not so innocent during their jaunts and adventures in Las Vegas, Nevada. At the moment, I find myself sitting in my hotel room at 5:30 contemplating going to a tweet-up. However, there are a few things that are making me think that just staying put is the best choice to make this evening.

I know, I know, I am in Vegas and it is time to play, right? Well, the thing is, I have never been big on gambling and casinos. The first time I went to a casino I think I was 21 (although I may have only been 20, shh, don't tell anyone) and I put my $20.00 in the slots and that was the end of my gambling. Yup, I spent the 2o bucks that came with the purchase of my ticket to Atlantic City and that was it. I believe I broke even and didn't spend the $20.00 that I won back.

Just call me tightwad because I have never been into the whole "lose my money at machines designed to make you lose your money" thing. Perhaps if there was a casino in my hotel I would be go exploring but I am staying at a hotel off "the Strip" and if I want to go to the tweet-up I have to walk five minutes or take one of these crazy priced cabs there.

Hmm, my other option is to stay put, read another book and wait for America's Next Top Model and Glee. Yes, I am boring but I do have to be up early for my presentations tomorrow at Blog World Expo and we are 3 hours behind my usual time zone and....can you tell I am making excuses? LOL

In any event today has not been a complete bust. I had some great Korean food and I had my toes done (overpriced, did you know that Vegas is EXPENSIVE????). And if you have never been to Vegas you may be surprised that once you step off of the plane you are greeted with slot machines. Check out my Whrrl story for some shots.

In any event, I think tonight I will be staying in but who knows what tomorrow holds...stay tuned for more from "Sin City" or in my case, tales from the boring mommyhood.

If I had one wish granted....

2009-10-07T12:51:00.002-04:00

It would be to return to Durban, a city on the Indian Ocean on the Eastern Coast of South Africa. I can recall waking to the sound of the Ocean hitting the sandy beach and the smell of the salty air still lingers in my olfactory memory. On my last visit I only had one day in Durban and I spent it wandering alone enjoying the pleasant vista. It was one of those perfect days.....

At this point in my life I do not have the resources to vacation in South Africa, the place that I truly consider my second home. However, my memories keep me smiling. Since I am unable to have a transatlantic getaway, I have been vacationing in my home, a staycation if you will. Traveling by plane, train and automobile, losing loved ones, and a job have kept my mind running and I've needed to take a break.

For the past few days I've spent limited time plugged in to the internet have read six books in as many days. Reading has been my favorite pass time for as long as I can remember and I have loved being lost in the world of mystery, murder and vampires. If you are a fan of vampires, I highly recommend the Sookie Stakehouse series - the HBO series True Blood is based on these books by Charlaine Harris and I've read three of the books so far and am off to purchase a few more.

If you like shows like Bones, you might enjoy the Kay Scarpetta mysteries by Patricia Cornwell. I have been a fan for a very long time and just read the latest - Scarpetta. I've also read the latest book by Tananarive Due, The Living Blood. If you love science fiction you might enjoy her books too. This book is the last in a series about Immortals that have healing blood....

Finally, I was introduced to a new author, Diana Orgain. Her book Bundle of Trouble is a "maternal instincts mystery" and follows the antics of Kate Connolly, the mother of a newborn that decides to become a P.I. during her six weeks of maternity leave because she can fathom returning to work. I loved the book and cannot wait for the next one. This book was a gift in my speakers bag from Type A mom and it was the first book I read on my "staycation."

My staycation is coming to an end soon - this weekend I am speaking at Blogolicious and next week I head to Vegas for Blog World Expo and SITScation. I will post again soon, but for now I am enjoying being enthralled by the fantasy world of my books.

We all need to unplug sometime.....

Support Education! Donors Choose Challege

2009-10-01T10:39:00.003-04:00

It is that time of year again! The annual DonorsChoose.org Social Media Challenge is kicking off today and runs through October. This is a friendly competition where bloggers rally friends and family to donate money to classroom teachers proposals on DonorsChoose.org. Last year during the Challenge we collectively raised $275,000 and reached over 67,000 students in low-income neighborhoods across the country. I have to thank my readers again for contributing $300 last year!

This time around I am teaming up with BlogHer.com to lead the Atlanta area team. I'd love for you to support the "Ravenous Readers." Ms.B's is trying to build a classroom library for her 7th grade gifted learners. As an avid reader myself this is a wonderful project that I had to lend support to. Ms. B would like to provide her 110 students with 3 sets of fiction and non-fiction books. This project is in need of $600 to be fully funded. Any donation helps!

can click here to go directly to the donor page.

I know that times are difficult financially for many of us but even if you are unable to contribute with money you can use social media to help the cause. If you use twitter, please help out by tweeting the following:

Support the # DonorsChooseChallenge in the Atlanta area. Educational assistance for students that need it most! inhttp://bit.ly/3Ieyn9

I'd for us to come together to fully fund this project. It is double my goal last year but I know together we can make a tremendous difference in the lives of these students! Thank you in advance for your support!

M.I.A. and a worthy cause!

2009-09-29T14:55:00.008-04:00

Yes, I have been missing in action for almost a week now and with good reason. I have been a busy, busy beaver! Last Wednesday I left for Asheville, N.C. with a group of my gal pals to attend the Type-A Mom blogging conference. We hit the road in a car sponsored by Toyota - the Venza and had a comfortable ride all the way to Asheville. At the conference I was both a speaker and an attendee. I had a chance to catch up with my blogging friends and relax. Unfortunately, I had a camera fail so check out Mischi's flikr stream to see some great photos of the event.

I am writing this post while flying to Los Angeles for a blogging event. So, no photos - I am barely getting this post up!

More updates- yesterday I had the distinct pleasure of touring the Aflac Children's Cancer and Blood Disease Center at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. Earlier this month I was asked to be an advocate for this cause and with my background in health and my interest in making a difference in the lives of others I had to say yes. My tour yesterday was one of many events that I will attend to help raise awareness about this cause. I want to devote a full blog post to this issue so I will do that when I return to Atlanta. In the meantime, I want to bring something to your attention that costs nothing but will make a difference.

Aflac has a cause page on facebook and for every person that joins Aflac will donate a dollar to the Children's Cancer and Blood Disease Center. If you choose to also give a monetary donation, Aflac will match that too! At the very least please join the cause page - we have until October 2nd to reach $1 Million and we are almost there. Also, please spread the word!

A Visit From Mona

2009-09-23T00:00:00.001-04:00

The Cutie Booty Household had the distinct pleasure of hosting our friend Mona Moxie. She is the mascot of Moxie Media and is traveling around the blogosphere in five days. Mona stopped by Atlanta, Georgia and spent some quality time with us.

Upon arrival Mona was immediately commandeered by Mekhi and he placed her in his most special secret hiding place - the trunk of his Winnie The Pooh car. After finally locating her I had to take a picture of her first adventure!

Mona checked out the dinosaurs with us at The Fernbank Museum and ended up tussling with the mini dinosaurs in our home.

She overcame and was able to wrangle the dinosaur for a quick ride.

Mona's stop in Atlanta was pretty brief because Mekhi and I had an appointment to keep in her home state of California. When she arrived I don't think she expected to be taking a trip back so soon but we boarded a flight to San Francisco with Mona in tow.

She took a trip with Mekhi and I to the EA Sports Spore Hero development group and she seemed to enjoy the digs.

Mona also joined us for a trip to Pier 39 - Fisherman's Wharf.

Mekhi wasn't too keen about taking many scenic photos and wouldn't let Mona go. We were lucky to get this shot with Mona. But believe me when I tell you that she accompanied us through the streets of San Franciso like a trooper!

All in all I think Mona had a great time with us. Although her time with us was brief you can check out all of her travels She is really traveling fast, here is the list of blogs that she is visiting today:

Louisiana: Crazy Adventures in Parenting and Keep It Classy
Mississippi: Flip n’Crazy
Georgia: The Blog Rollers
Florida: Live.Love.Eat
Georgia: Cutie Booty Cakes and Lattes and Life
South Carolina: My Three {And Me} and Momspective
North Carolina: The World According to Me
Tennessee: Suburb Sanity

You can visit Angie's 7 Clown Circus to see the other stops she has made across the country.

The Atlanta Flood

2009-09-21T18:47:00.004-04:00

Yesterday my girlfriend jokingly said that we all needed to build Noah's Ark since it is raining so much in Georgia. The rain here is unprecedented, It has been raining heavily here for at least four or five days. Today things have reached an apex and the downtown connector highway is flooded. There have been a number of deaths due to the flooding, schools in my county are closed tomorrow and the creek in my backyard has become a raging river. I went outside in the rain to document this experience because there has not been flooding like this in Georgia in 30 years and I am simply amazed by nature.

I am so thankful that we are safe and sound in our home and pray for the families of the people that have lost their lives and for the people that have lost their homes due to the flooding. To all of my readers in the Atlanta area, please be safe!

Family Fun Night and Giveaway!

2009-09-20T19:38:00.006-04:00

Congratulations to Eeclaire, she is the winner of the Walmart Giftcard!

Last week I was given a $40.00 Walmart giftcard to have a Family Game Night. Although Mekhi is only two, I think it is a brilliant idea and a wonderful way to save money and spend ,quality time together as a family, especially if you have multiple children. I quickly found the Family Game Night aisle at Walmart which was stocked with games and movies that were priced at $10.00 and under, plus snacks that averaged about $3.00. I decided to come up with a theme for the Family Game Night and I like to call it Preschool mania. Mekhi goes crazy for dinosaurs, zoo animals and The Very Hungry Caterpillar so these were the staples of the night.

We watched the two movies I purchased - "Dinosaurs" and "The Wild" in one evening.

We snacked on popcorn, milk, juice and fruit. With all of my purchases we are going to have multiple nights (and days) of fun. As any mother of a toddler knows, watching a movie once is unheard of and we've already watched Dinosaurs four times and The Wild twice. Every night we've played a round of The Very Hungry Caterpillar game and although Mekhi is still too young to get the concept of moving around the board with the game pieces, we use the game to match pieces and feed the caterpillar.

My mother is in town and she is enjoying the movies and the game too.

Having family fun night is an affordable and practical way to spend time together and save money. For the three adults in my family to purchase tickets to a movie and have snacks we would have easily spent $40.00 or more. By staying in we are really stretching our dollars and in this economy I know everyone can appreciate that!

GIVEAWAY

Walmart has generously provided me with a $40.00 giftcard so that you can have your own Family Game Night. All you have to do is leave a comment and tell me the favorite game or movie in your household!

Contest is open until Wednesday, September 23rd 11:00 PM EST. Winner will be chosen randomly and will be notified by email. Winner has 24 hours to respond to email or another winner will be chosen. Good Luck!

Read For The Record

2009-09-17T11:47:00.002-04:00

I have fond recollections of being read to as a child and can still remember the glee I expressed when my kindergarten teacher finally agreed to teach me how to read. I'd been asking her on a daily basis to teach me to no avail but once my mother intervened my reading lessons began (this was long before the days of "Your baby Can Read" and other early reading methods). Although my teacher was recalcitrant about my reading readiness, I proved her wrong and read everything in sight! As a mother, I want to instill a love of reading in my child and know have been reading to my son since he was in utereo. As a mother it is important for me to ensure my child is prepared for school and it is my hope that as many children as possible have reading in their lives too. Early childhood literacy is a cause that is near and dear to me, in my last consulting position, early childhood literacy was my area of focus. As a mother it is important for me to ensure my child is prepared for school and it is my hope that as many children as possible have reading in their lives too.

I was recently introduced to Jumpstart and want to share information about this important non-profit organization with you. Jumpstart is an early childhood literacy program that seeks to provide early learners with the skills that they need for school readiness. Jumpstart brings together college students and community volunteers with preschool children for a year of individual tutoring and mentoring. Since 1993 they have touched the lives of over 70,000 preschool children with millions of volunteer hours. Their annual "Read for the Record" day is being held on October 8, 2009. On this date they are working to beat the Guinness World Record for the number of children read to on one day. Reading, fundraising and book drives are being held all over the country to support this effort and provide books for low-income children.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Earl Carle is the official book for this year's "Read for the Record." This is a favorite in the Cutie Booty Household and Mekhi knows the story by heart. I love the colorful illustrations in the book and the story reinforces the counting skills that he is currently learning. If you are interested in supporting Jumpstart's "Read for the Record" visit their website and make your pledge to read to a child or children on October 8th. Although I read to Mekhi on a daily basis, on the 8th I plan to visit his preschool and read to several classes. I hope that you decide to join in the effort too. There will also be a twitter party on September 24th from 9 - 11 pm EST using the hashtag #jumpstart to raise awareness about "Read for the Record." Also I want to get out the word that the book is available at a Walmart for a special price of $8.99 and all proceeds from the sale of the book will go to Jumpstart.

I worry about the flu

2009-09-14T09:47:00.002-04:00

This morning after preparing my son for school I looked at him. I mean really looked at him. Of course I see him everyday but something today just clicked for me. He is really growing up. He was wearing jeans, a jean jacket and some really funky sneakers. His hair is cut low to his head and in that moment I was able to see the little boy that he has become and the person that he will be in the future. I know I've been reminiscing lately about how quickly he is growing up but he truly isn't a baby anymore. Everyday he becomes more articulate and having conversations with him has become a highlight of my day.

But his growing up is bittersweet in many ways. I think about how I can and cannot protect him from the things in the world. For now we lead a pretty insulated life, he spends the majority of his time at home with me or at preschool but I can't help but worry. This morning I received an email discussing the prevalence of H1N1 (swine flu) in the southeast, specifically in Atlanta among children under five. Apparently we are being hardest hit and ERs are seeing 3 times the number of sick children than usual at this time of year. The fact that the SE is being hit hard is being attributed to the fact that we return to school early but whatever the reason, I still am worried.

The vaccine is not available here yet and honestly, I am not even sure that I am going to get it for my son when it is available. I simply am vigilant and watch my son to ensure that he isn't sick and in the event that he does get sick I will monitor him closely. The Children's Hospital of Atlanta has an online tool that can help parents assess the necessity of taking their child to the hospital; hopefully I won't have to use it but I am happy to know that this resource is available. It is my understanding that they are trying to keep people from going to the ER unnecessarily because if a child is not really sick enough to be at the hospital, there is potential for being exposed to disease while there.

Given this information and with the knowledge that 98% of the current flu cases are H1N1 I do worry. But I am not hysterical. I will continue to let my big boy go to school (he enjoys it so much). In the event that he does get ill I will keep him home, flu or not just to ensure that the other children do not get the bug too. I can only hope that the rest of the parents in the school keep their children home in the event of sickness too.

Bedtime

2009-09-10T15:11:00.003-04:00

My son is growing up so quickly. We have a bedtime ritual that consists of reading books, prayers, music, lights out, rocking together in our chair and then going into the crib (yes, he is still in the crib. I haven't changed it to a toddler bed yet but soon, very soon. I am enjoying his confinement and my extra 10 minutes of sleep in the morning). We usually rock about five minutes and the snuggling time is a throwback to the bonding we'd do while nursing. I enjoy our final moments together every evening. He nestles his head beneath my chin while sitting on my lap and all is right in our world.

That is until last night. Last night after a quick hug, kiss and an exchange of "I love you" he asked to go right into his bed. No five minutes of snuggling. No rocking. At most one minute of pleasantries and then "bed please". I remember all of the nights that I wished he would quickly retire and now that the time has come I am saddened. My little boy is quickly growing up and I suppose I have to adjust.