Ages & Stages

Mom, I'm So Sad All The Time: Ending The Stigma Begins At Home In early 2021, both of my beautiful, amazing sons told their father and me that they were struggling with mental health issues. This was during a year that brought with it a cancer diagnosis for our 10 year old, more Covid chaos, the death of their grandfather (whom they loved dearly and saw almost weekly since their births) the death of their great-grandmother (whom they were also very close to), unrelenting anxiety and hopelessness for our 16-year old, plus the day-to-day struggles that life, middle school and high school brought with it.    As divorced co-parents, their father and I have made it clear that we are always open...

Back To Football Season :: Food, Tips and Tricks Summer is gone, back to school is behind us; that can mean only one thing: it's back to football season! I’ve rounded up some of our favorite tips and tricks, found some great party recipes and some reminders of the fun that football in the fall can bring.  This season both LSU and Southern University have their season openers on Labor Day weekend; both are away games. They both have their home openers on Saturday, September 9. The Saints play their home season opener on Sunday, September 10 against the Titans. It’s going to be a party weekend in Louisiana! Food  Football season is a great time for gathering. Whether it is in your...

So You Volunteered To Be The "Room Mom" :: Tips For A Successful Year As A Room Mom Now what? Other than backing out of the commitment you already signed up for, what is there to do now that you're officially signed up to be "Room Mom" for your kid's class? Although being a stay-at-home mom was never on my "dream job" list of things to do, I always said if I were to take on the job, there's one thing I'd want to do if I could... become a "Room Mom." So when the new school year rolled around, and there was a call for volunteers for each class, I quickly signed up. And then the panic ensued... What in the world was...

From A Public School Mom :: Sending Our Babies To School Should Not Be This Hard School for me as a kid was majorly different. I grew up in Houma, Louisiana prior to Hurricane Katrina. The town was much smaller, Martin Luther King Boulevard had barely any traffic, we had a Ryan’s Steakhouse and a Blockbuster, and my bus driver was this same older woman who I used for almost every grade. I also went to private school almost my whole childhood, attending public school for only one year, 5th grade. If there was any stress with carpool or riding the bus, my parents, admins or teachers did not show it. My teachers showed up to school every day, smiling and...

The Struggle Is Real :: Overworked Educators And Stressed-Out Moms Amidst The School Bus Saga The recent school transportation issues have highlighted a major issue in education: underpaid school bus drivers. This ongoing battle is causing stress and disruption for school leaders, educators, and parents, as they try to cope with the lack of adequate transportation. This battle has exposed how school boards and the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education fail to provide adequate support to school systems, leaving students and their families without access to reliable transportation and consequently inadequate opportunities for academic success. The struggle of both educators and stressed-out moms is real, and it's time for real solutions to be put in place. The recent school transportation issues...