Education

Over the past few months there have been a number of instances where I have been in a public establishment with my children during which they are exposed to unwelcome profanity from a complete stranger. Let me be the first to say, I'm no saint and I have and still do use choice language on occasion. But as a mother, nothing makes me more frustrated than when my innocent children are exposed to inappropriate themes, language and content, especially in a family friendly environment. Total strangers throw around words that my children have never heard (and won't hear from me for many years) without a care in the world. And they surely don't think about how their language is...

My daughter is going to kindergarten this year. I remember vividly the excitement and anticipation of back to school as a kid, and school supply shopping was always one of my favorite parts. While having to pay for everything with my own money this time around isn't awesome, the experience has been just as much fun. Now before you go all "First time mom thinks she knows everything" on me, I was an avid couponer during the time I was a stay at home mom so this ain't my first bargain rodeo. My days as a semi-professional couponer may be over (you can read about them here), but the thrill of finding the best deal is still alive and...

Disclosure :: This post is sponsored by BASIS Charter Schools. BASIS Curriculum Schools Are Coming to Baton Rouge! Five of the top ten public high schools in the nation, as ranked by US News & World Report, are BASIS Charter Schools! The mission of BASIS Charter Schools is to empower students to achieve at globally-competitive levels with a transformative K–12 academic program. We are thrilled to bring this program to Baton Rouge in fall 2018, learn more at our information sessions next week. Our program provides a revolutionary, comprehensive liberal arts curriculum. Our courses are designed to challenge and inspire students become scientists, artists, writers, mathematicians, linguists, computer scientists, and engineers. Even in the early grades, the BASIS curriculum is designed to help students establish a deep...

Bedtime - that sacred part of the night where you can simultaneously squeeze the last bit of love into your children and taste the freedom that those next four hours bring. Sometimes attempting to lull my two squirmy, riled up toddlers (ages 3 and 1.5) into a drowsy state can be tricky. We have found that having a good rotating collection of bedtime books keeps them interested, along with the occasional use of silly voices (mostly done by Daddy) and song. Here is our go-to list of bedtime books we love:     A Night Night Prayer by Amy Parker and Marijan Ramljak - In one of our bedtime favorites, given to us by our best friends at the birth of our second child to ensure we wouldn't...

As a millennial, we lived in the golden age of family television. Friday nights consisted of popcorn and crowding around the television in our playroom to watch TGIF. Ahh...the nostalgia. The Family Matters and Boy Meets Worlds tended to stay pretty light in the early seasons as far as controversial, real life events were concerned. Aside from some "very special episodes" they didn't really dive into topics like race, sex, divorce, and adoption. Fast forward to today. My Friday nights with my own family don't differ as much; we still get popcorn and crowd around the television. But when we watch Modern Family, Blackish, and Fresh off the Boat, some interesting conversation results. I get these shows may have some...