Part 2: WATER FUN

"When you look at your life, the greatest happinesses are family happinesses."
 --Joyce Brothers

Did you miss yesterday's post? Part 1: DESERT

So, what else is there to do in a land of dry air, dust and heat? Swimming pools and water parks, of course! I'm so glad we grabbed a waterproof disposable camera - the photo quality isn't the best, but we captured some fun moments!

Vacation, Part 2: WATER FUN


Ahhh, mama needed this!


"Go, Daddy, Go! Yaaay!"


"It's like the ocean!" (wave pool)


Oh, happy day!


Amelia's very first waterslide! So glad they let her go down with us.


New friends: named "plate" and "mama duck" @ Ritz Carlton


How do I make a career out of this?


Last night, different resort. Still loving the pool!

Part 1: DESERT

"A vacation is having nothing to do and all day to do it in"
 --Robert Orben

Summer vacation 2011: Arizona

We awoke bright & early and flew into Phoenix. Our agenda? See some desert sites and spend a lot of time splashing in beautiful resort pools.

Mission accomplished.

Vacation, part 1: DESERT


"Wow, we're really high in the sky! It's windy up here."


(Mom, being "creative")


One of the coolest locations for a chapel - ever.


Cougar went everywhere with us - including a morning hike over rocky terrain. He was quite a trooper.


Our desert oasis for the first few nights


"Mommy, is this Snow White's castle? I think it is!" (Actually, Mission San Xavier near Tucson)


Amelia dubbed Arizona "very cactusy".


Tombstone - very dusty. And the site of the shootout at the OK Corral.

Check in tomorrow for Vacation, Part 2: WATER FUN!

Modern mama

Posted this a year ago... Pulling it from the archives!

Why I am grateful NOT to be a 1950s housewife:

Men's cotton boxer shorts and/or an oversize t-shirt are much more comfortable to sleep in than a modest, full-length, long-sleeved nightgown.

I can take my makeup off and pull my hair back in a headband before my husband arrives home from work - and any other time of the day I feel like it.

Cookies come in quick and easy "break & bake" packages, taking only a couple seconds beyond baking time for a warm & delicious treat.

(And speaking of food...) Dinner can be Chinese delivery, a previously frozen pizza, sandwiches, or sometimes even cereal if I've had a rough day and just don't feel like the extra effort for something better.

A stinky diaper on a weekend is as much my husband's responsibility as it is my own.

I can have a job outside of my house. Or inside my house, thanks to modern technologies and the Internet.

Yep, it is 2010 (now 2011!). Mommies can celebrate our evolution over the past 60 years. I may be fighting to balance all my personas these days, but I am definitely glad that I am able to have so many. For those of you who are the 100% housewife/mommy type, more power to you. And I am certainly impressed.

But I'll take my modern conveniences and allowances any day.

Now where are those pajama pants? And my glasses. I need to get more comfortable.

The P-Word

Have you ever wondered why I refer to one-third of my mommy persona in quotation marks?

"Perfect" Mommy?

It is simple, really. I do not believe that perfect exists. Perfect is what you are "supposed" to be if you religiously follow all the baby books and doctor advice. Perfect is something that know-it-all mamas would like you to believe is attainable (These mamas are simply not sharing all the times they themselves faltered. Don't be fooled!).

If I do something "perfect" for a total of 1 hour out of my day, even if it's four separate 15-minute events, then I call it a success.

When I met (virtually, thanks to Twitter) the mama behind
Holly's House (Not a perfect mom's blog), I knew she would make a "perfect" guest poster. Thank you, Holly! Non-perfect moms are always welcome here.

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A guest post by Holly

from Holly's House (Not a perfect mom's blog)

The Perfect Mother. Do you know her? Do you think you are her? Do you strive to be her?

Or are you like me? Have you pretty much given up on the notion of the Perfect Mother? Yup, that's right, I have given up my quest to be the Perfect Mother.

I tried to be perfect. I really did. I made my own baby food, but I didn't take the peas out the pods after I steamed them and the baby choked on the stringy puree. I bought the most expensive baby wipes that would ensure my little angel's bum smelled fresh as a daisy and he broke out in a rash from the fragrance. I tried to cut those little itty bitty fingernails with the special nail clippers the hospital sent me home with and I cut too low, causing my precious bundle of joy's finger to bleed.

I tried to be perfect.
I tried and I failed.
So now I am me.

I'm not a perfect mother. But that doesn't mean I'm not a good mother. Sure, I may accidentally have given Hope Fiber One cereal, causing her to have explosive diarrhea when she was desperate to be in big girl underwear. And then there was the time I lost her at Sea World. Um, and I also accidentally dropped Brooke in front of her physical therapist once. Oh, and I recently reduced my oldest son to tears when I was teasing him about a girl in his class he has a crush on...

But all of that doesn't make me a bad mother. Those points definitely don't highlight my stellar mothering, but we all make mistakes. I don't think that there really is that Perfect Mother anywhere. A mother that never makes mistakes, that always does the right thing.

Mothering is a process. We all learn as we go. I don't think we'll ever stop learning, especially since every child is different. Just when I think I have this whole mothering lark figured out, one of my kids changes the game on me. But I'm okay with that. I'm enjoying this journey of motherhood, the lows that make me want to try harder and be a better mother, and the highs that I'm rewarded with in hugs and kisses.

I'm most definitely not a Perfect Mother...but my own kids think I'm pretty fantastic.

And that's good enough for me.

More fun-in-the-heat hoopla

Welcome to part 2 of my Summer Fun series!

On Friday, I introduced a new book, 100+ Free and Cheap Things To Do In Atlanta With Kids (you can buy a copy HERE).

Today, I'm excited to present a guest post from Amanda, the writer behind Confessions of a Wannabe Supermom. She shares some exciting summer ideas for bigger kids. I look forward to trying these soon!

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Summer is just around the corner, and for a lot of moms, that means one thing – panic! If you’re wondering how to entertain your kids without breaking the bank, here are a few fun and inexpensive ideas:

1. Geocaching
This is a great hobby for the entire family, and one that is very addicting! Geocaching is a world-wide treasure hunt game played with nothing more than a GPS. Geocachers hide a “cache,” which is usually a small container with trinkets and a logbook inside, then register the cache on the official website. Using the GPS coordinates and the clues provided on the website, you find the cache and leave your name in the logbook. You can also take a prize from the cache, and leave one for someone else to take. Caches range from easy to very difficult and can hidden anywhere from a business to a hiking trail. To get started, just set up a free account at Geocaching (http://www.geocaching.com/), find a cache near you, and grab your GPS and your adventure-seeking family.

2. Summer movie specials
Many movie theaters have free or cheap summer movie matinees. Our local movie theater offers several weeks of movies each summer for $2.50 per person, or season tickets to all eight movies for $13. They are not new releases, but there are several my kids haven’t seen yet, including Megamind, How to Train Your Dragon, and Despicable Me.

3. Lapbooks
Lapbooking is familiar to many homeschoolers, but it can be a fun activity for all kids. A lapbook is an interactive book made with a file folder and several “mini-books.” Lapbooks can be made on many different topics, from art to a favorite book to dinosaurs. This summer, my boys and I are going to make one about detectives. A great place to start is Homeschool Share (http://www.homeschoolshare.com/Lapbooks_at_HSS.php) which has a huge list of free lapbook plans. Pick your favorite, print it off, and get started!

4. Nature journal
Most kids do not spend enough time outside – mine included. A nature journal is a great way to get them more interested in being outdoors. Find a notebook or a sketch pad, a pencil, and a camera and head outside. Take pictures and write notes about what you see. If your child is artistic, let them draw of what they see. Later, you can research the bugs, birds, flowers and other things you find in your backyard or local park.

5. Summer Reading Club
My kids love the Summer Reading Club at our local library! We’ve seen magic shows, animals from local conservation parks, and (gross but true) dissected owl poop to see what they had eaten. At the end of summer, the library hosts a pizza party and gives free books to all the kids.


---From the author:---
My name is Amanda. I'm a pastor’s wife, working mom to two boys, and a college student in the dental hygiene program. My life is crazy busy, but I love it! When I’m not busy playing Supermom, I love cooking, crime shows, coffee, blogging, working out, and a rainy day with a good book. I blog at Confessions of a Wannabe Supermom about my crazy life. Along the way, I love sharing recipes I love, great finds, and the everyday craziness of life. You can also find me on Twitter @amandablogs.

Thank you, Amanda!
Everyone, give her some comment love so she'll visit here again one day!

Banish Boredom!

I had a chance to peruse a brand new e-book this week, 100+ Free and Cheap Things to do in Atlanta with Kids. I have been a mom in Atlanta since my girl was born in early 2008, but had no idea some of these activities and attractions existed! I can't wait to try a few of them - especially the indoor activities when the temperatures soar this summer.

Never been to Atlanta? Come on over and say hi! We have a lot of fun (and often free!) activities to offer. This book will help you find them.

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Below is a guest post
By Sue Rodman from Field Trips With Sue

100+ Free and Cheap Things to do
in Atlanta with Kids

One of the best things you can do for your children is take them new places and let them experience the world around them. Summer vacation is the perfect time to explore, but heading out each day can get expensive. Here are some free and inexpensive things you can do with kids this summer. The ideas are taken from a new book called 100+ Free and Cheap Things to do in Atlanta with Kids which includes the who, what, where and when, with costs up front for easy viewing. Web links guide readers to specific information on the attraction; addresses make it easy to plug into the GPS on the go.

The book is available HERE in e-book format for the iPad, iPhone, Kindle and Nook for $4.99 and $9.99 for the printed version. You’ll pay for it with your first outing! So pack a picnic lunch and head out for a frugal afternoon of fun. Here’s a taste of what you’ll find:

Visit a Museum or Attraction – Several Atlanta area attractions including the Georgia Aquarium, Imagine It! The Children’s Museum of Atlanta and The Atlanta Braves offer opportunities to visit for free. For instance, all Georgia Public Libraries have a Family Pass to Zoo Atlanta that can be checked out with a library card.


See a Movie – Southern Outdoor Cinemas host free movies at parks, and shopping centers all summer long. For indoor movies, Regal Cinemas hosts the Regal Summer Movie Express. The theater shows G and PG rated films at 10 am on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and admission is only $1. Plus a portion of the proceeds benefits the Will Rogers Institute.

Get Back to Nature – For low cost and big fun, check out Georgia State Parks or any of the National Parks. There are also several nature preserves around Atlanta that offer free admission including Dauset Trail. Dauset Trail is a 1200 acre preserve with trails, creeks, wildlife and an extensive calendar of events throughout the year.

Play Sports – From watching professional sports teams to playing them on your own, the book gives you ideas on active fun including bowling. Several national bowling centers offer free bowling to students during the summer. Check out www.kidsbowlfree.com or sign up for Brunswick Zone’s Bonus Zone for emailed coupons. AMF also has a free bowling program.

Build a Craft – Learn what stores offer kids activities for a bit of indoor (and cooler) fun. For example, Home Depot and Lowe’s Home Improvement offer monthly kid’s workshops where children make and take a wooden craft. Both programs also include a kid sized apron.

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Want specifics? More ideas? Consider ordering the e-book or print version. What a fantastic reference to have on hand!

 Maybe I will see you out and about sometime soon.

[Not near Atlanta this year? Stay tuned for Sunday's guest post from Confessions of a Wannabe Supermom. She shares some really unique and fun summer ideas for family fun - and kids of all ages!]

Child Hunger Ends Here

On Wednesday, Amelia and I attended a great blogger's event, hosted by Jolly Mom on behalf of ConAgra.

She recapped the event so perfectly (with lovely photos!), so I'll just point you there.

Please check out her post,

Child Hunger Ends Here Event 

to learn more.

Bonus points if you can spot me & Amelia in one of her photos!


Also visit The Little Nook if you have kids in Atlanta! What an adorable play space.

Thanks, Piera! XOXO