Make your internet searches count! By using Goodsearch as your primary search engine and selecting Mommies Network (Charlotte, NC) as your charity, you will donate a penny to
us for each search you make!
TriadMommies is always looking for guest bloggers. CLICK HERE to check out our guidelines.
Welcome to TriadMommies!
As part of The Mommies Network, TriadMommies.com is a free community for
moms in Guilford and Forsyth Counties, North Carolina. We realize that all moms need
local support -- and who can't use another friend? TriadMommies.com offers a
simple way to connect with local moms for friendship, support and fun.
Members meet on our private discussion forums to share information on
everything from where to get the best haircut to tips on transitioning to a
"big kid" bed. Each month, we also offer many face-to-face events for our
members, their children and their families.
Register today to access our discussion
forums, events calendar and more! It's free and we'll keep your info secure and private. The Mommies Network Twitter
Feb 8th, 9:10 PM Email blogpost@themommiesnetwork.org if you're interested in being a guest blogger! See other posts at http://themommiesnetwork.blogspot.com Feb 5th, 12:54 PM ClevelandMommies.com launched today through The Mommies Network! It is a FREE group for moms in the Cleveland, OH area! Spread the word =) Feb 5th, 12:52 PM The Mommies Network launched SacramentoMommies.com today -a FREE support group for moms in the Sacramento, CA area. Help us spread the word! Feb 5th, 12:50 PM PhiladelphiaMommies.com opened today, serving the Philadelphia, PA area! It is a FREE support group for moms through The Mommies Network! Feb 5th, 12:49 PM The Mommies Network launched OrlandoAreaMommies.com today, a FREE community for moms in the Orlando area of Florida. Spread the word! TriadMommies Blog
A new year?.a new home? Is one of your 2010 resolutions to buy a new home? If so, you have several tempting incentives and advantages in your corner.
The most talked about benefit to purchasing a home right now is the available tax credits. After months of lobbying, the home buyer tax credit was extended and expanded in November. The $8000 tax credit is available to first timers who put a home under contract prior to April 30, 2010. In addition, a new credit now grants up to $6,500 to current home owners purchasing a home before April 30th.
Who doesn?t love a sale? That?s exactly what?s going on with our housing market right now. Economists speculate we may have seen the bottoming of the market ? and with it the lowest home prices. In addition to stabilizing home prices, there was a significant uptick in December sales. If you?ve been eyeing your dream home for awhile, now might be just the time to scoop it up.
Once the perfect home is found, the next important step is arranging the mortgage. The good news ? and somewhat contradictory to reports ? is that money IS being lent?everyday?to all sorts of buyers. When I started lending, ?full documentation? was the only way to get a loan. Then the pendulum swung to the other extreme ? where people could essentially ?sign and drive? to buy a home. (Have a 600 credit score and a down payment? Here?s a house!) This past year has made lending?s guideline pendulum swing all the way back to ?old school?. ?Old school? meaning: borrowers need a minimum 620 score, a stable job, money in the bank and the ability to repay the loan ? not too wild of a concept. Many loan types are available to fit long and short term goals.
If you?re thinking of buying a home in the near future, contact someone to evaluate your options and get preapproved. A preapproval is a review of your income, assets and credit history to evaluate your best options, help you narrow your home search and give you buying power when you?re ready to make an offer!
Rebecca Madej is a member of CharlotteMommies and a mortgage banker with over eight years? lending experience. Have questions? Give me a call to explore your options - it would be a pleasure to provide you with both a competitive mortgage and a pleasant experience. www.rebeccamadej.com
Your Kid?s Gifted? Mine, Too! I find my son?s teacher to be completely intimidating. She is quiet and kind and wonderful. Terrifying, right? Actually, it?s me. I don?t want to be THAT MOM.
You know, the mom who thinks her child is GIFTED. Or the mom who thinks her child is IGNORED. Or is TROUBLED. Or whatever family myth the child has been given. Or earned.
I?m not saying that some of these moms don?t have gifted, troubled, or ignored children. Maybe they do. I just wonder if ALL the kids in the class are gifted, the standards are probably a little low. Because that would be IMPOSSIBLE (unless the kids are in the gifted program -- point taken).
I mean how many geniuses, psychopaths, and weird kids are actually out there? And where are they amid all these NORMAL adults I keep running into? Did they all grow out of it? Are they in jail? Are they in a laboratory somewhere making little genius clones of themselves?
Regardless of this fear, I could not resist emailing my son?s teacher and telling her all the leaps and bounds he is making in language. I thought that she should KNOW. Then I thought that no one else should know about the email. (Darn you stupid blog.)
E has always been VERY verbal which it isn?t surprising since I talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and talk. And when he was born, we had only lived here for ten months, and I didn?t have many friends. So I talked and talked and talked and talked to HIM.
Also, I was a GREAT first-time mom, which translates into being TOTALLY TERRIFIED of him watching television. So more TALKING!
I would walk down the grocery aisle and tell him everything we were buying. He would spit-up at me in that loving way. And the other shoppers would wonder why I was talking to the cream cheese.
As I write this, I realize that I?m giving myself a LOT of credit here. If I had to guess, my son would?ve probably been pretty verbal without me. I?m not THAT POWERFUL, right?
Now, I?m not saying that he is the SMARTEST KID IN THE WORLD, but don?t want to be the mom who hides his achievements either.
So I wrote the teacher. And SURPRISE! Now I feel awkward.
Because I wonder... Does THAT MOM?s kids get treated differently? Better? Worse?
Honestly, I don?t want to know. So what if I sent one email. (Well, two, because I wanted to know how he is transitioning to his new classroom.) But that?s not TOO MANY, is it? Be careful how you answer that. I?m paranoid enough.
This post is written by Alex Iwashyna, a happily married mom of two young children, who went from a BA in Philosophy to a Medical Degree to a stay-at-home mom and poet before the age of thirty. Follow her on www.lateenough.com and twitter.com/failebg but be prepared for baby poop and liberal bias.
Every day is a new day... I tell myself this every day when I wake up. No matter what turbulence occured the day before, there is always a new day that allows you to start over. Yesterday was a very tough one for me. My 4-year-old had not slept or eaten well so needless to stay she was a handful. We had a total of 3 temper tantrums yesterday, the last one ending in the libary where she started screaming and eventually went boneless when I tried to pick her up.
Needless to say, I was exhausted yesterday. I prayed that everyone would sleep in to allow me to catch up on my lost sleep. Well, my 15-month-old was up at 5am and my 4-year-old was up at 6. I rolled my eyes thinking it was going to be another disaster of a day. Then I came to my senses. I said - this is another day. Although the kids woke up early, they were not acting tired. So I needed to be more positive. And believe it or not, it worked. We had a great morning - no temper tantrums. I brought my ipod speakers with us on our walk to school and we actually danced and sang the whole way there!
So remember, yesterday is behind you. Today is the day you need to focus on. If yesterday was a bad day with your kids, a day you ate horribly, said something you regret, or anything else, just remember to keep moving forward. Today is a new day to do something special.
Blog submitted by Stroller Strides Richmond. Stroller Strides classes allow moms to get an incredible workout while their baby strolls along. All instructors are nationally certified and have pre-/post-natal training so we help moms get into the best shape of their lives. Your first first class is FREE! Visit our blog.
Ever wonder why people circle parking lots? Particularly gym parking lots. Have you ever wondered ?why are you circling, looking for a close spot? Aren?t you here to work out? Don?t you think those 30 extra steps will actually help you ? maybe you could even consider them part of your warm up??
It always seemed so ridiculous to me. I remember watching that person circle the lot and I would purposely take a spot at the outer edges of the lot, smug, proving my point to myself, thinking people should not be so lazy?
And then I was at the gym just this last Sunday. I had a few extra minutes before yoga started; not enough time to get on the treadmill to burn a few extra calories before class, and too early to go lay on my mat for a pre-yoga meditation as the other class was not out of the room yet.
With horror and giddy amusement, I realized I was circling the parking lot. Just one more example of what being a mom has done to me! I was one of them! The amazing part was that I was not circling because I thought the extra steps would wipe me clean out and leave me with a negative energy store that would prevent me from doing yoga (as I had erroneously believed to be the motive for all other parking lots circlers). I was not circling to save myself from the mild NW winter weather. I was not circling out of laziness, not exactly.
I was breathing. Just breathing. Relishing the few minutes I had to myself. No one needed me for those precious few circling moments. No one was hungry, stinky or cranky. No one was complaining. There were no dirty dishes, no laundry, no vacuum cleaners or dirty toilets. There was nothing but me and precious white noise.
I realized it was the movement that was soothing me; like a baby who instantly wails when the stroller stops, wails at every red light and then quiets down as soon as you get moving again.
I was simply taking my turn, self soothing, and not wasting a moment of my private time.
I ended up taking a prime spot at the outer edge of the parking lot, slowly walking to class, relishing those few circling moments .
STORIES OF TRIALS, TRIBULATIONS, LAUGHTER AND HYSTERIA. POOR BIG DUB, YOU GOT ME FOR A MAMA?
I?m just an average mama who?s not afraid to say all the things you know you are thinking. Or just not smart enough to keep my mouth shut.
I Love You Just As Much Isn't it funny how differently you do things with your second child? With Gavin, I boiled cups, bottles, toys, etc. I vacuumed several times a day because I didn't want dog hair to get all over him. We steam cleaned the carpet every month or two. And I also felt like I held Gavin constantly. My poor Colin, on the other hand. If you only knew what was going on, you'd feel totally neglected. Boil? No, Sweetie...the dishwasher is just fine. And your toys? Unless there's gunk on them after they hit the floor, I just wipe them on my shirt and give them back. Your Mom-mom always said, "you have to eat a peck of dirt before you die." We have hardwood floors now, so I only vacuum the bedrooms about once a week. I swiffer the wood floors when the dog hair starts to accumulate in little piles. Even though you may have dog hair on your jammies, I promise, I pick them out of your mouth as soon as I see them. I'm sorry I don't hold you as much as I held Gavin. Unfortunately, a lot of times when I'm holding you, Gavin needs my help with something and I have to put you down. Or worse, Gavin wants to be held too. I'm 35 years old and my back just can't take 55 lbs. of kids at once. It can barely manage all 20 lbs. 7 oz. of you. I see you looking back at me from the Jumperoo right now. You're smiling and playing with its toys and you just started jumping and laughing out loud. :) You don't LOOK neglected. You are such a happy, loving, adorable, well-behaved, and sweet baby and Daddy, Gavin, and I are so glad you're here. I just wanted to make sure you knew that, even though your baby book is essentially blank (I still plan to get to that!), I love you just as much!
Becky is a SAHM, part-time critical care transport nurse, and the Assistant Site Administrator of WilmingtonMommies.com. She blogs about life with her boys at http://wrightmom.blogspot.com/ and "Life on a Budget: The journey of a Stay-at-Home Mom Raising Her Family on a Budget" at http://thriftyparenting.blogspot.com/.
