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Largo Central Park reopens Saturday
The new Largo Central Park playground will be opening its gates to the public on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. This is big news in the Mommy Industrial Complex, because this is one of our favorite centrally located playgrounds with lots of shade and it has just gotten an overhaul.
The grand opening event will feature live music, an acorn hunt, prizes, activities for children ages 2-12 and a guest appearance by the Largo Recreation, Parks and Arts Department mascot, Captain Play. Be the first to try out the brand new playground at this free, family-friendly event.
Prizes include passes to Highland Family Aquatic Center, the Largo Cultural Center Children's Series, Largo Central Park shelter rentals and much more. The new playground features a total of 117 play events (34 more than before), including break-through, industry-released play structures, two 15-foot tall space nets, a musical component, two-story tower, merry-go-round, rockwalls and new shade structure. ... Read more
Free and cheap things to do with your kids
This is our weekend, moms, so consider this a list of things you can tell your husband to take your kids to while you relax with a magazine on the beach. Or maybe you are looking for a good reason to get out and about. Either way, we have some budget fun, from story time with free guacamole to a gorgeous pops concert in the park to a visit by Star Wars characters. Read on for more:
Did you realize moms get in free or cheap to the zoo, aquarium, history center and more this weekend? Look here for all the Mothers Day deals and events. ... Read more
Losing my mom changed Mother's Day for me
You’d think that after 10 years and four children, I’d take Mother’s Day off.
But I can’t.
I haven’t been able to take ownership of Mother’s Day since my own mother passed away. This year marks the 10th anniversary of her death, and this year, instead of just being sad, I am surprisingly confused.
I’m bewildered because so much has happened in 10 years and so little has actually changed. While both her daughters have moved, changed jobs, experienced life’s joys and tragedies and she now has six grandchildren; it’s as though emotionally I’ve never left that cold dark day when we lost her. I still can’t help but miss her terribly. It's a childlike kind of grief that doesn’t mature with reason or time. I would have thought that the 10-year mark would earn me a plaque or at least a better grasp of my sorrow.
Losing my Mom has changed my motherhood experience, so naturally it has changed my perception of Mother’s Day. I think for those of us who have lost their own mothers, Mother’s Day isn’t a day off -- it’s just a day on for our second job: mourning. ... Read more
Kid say something cute? Win money
Kids can say the darnedest things, and if they’re the darn funniest, you could win big.
The Chicken of the Sea Funniest Kids’ Quotes Contest is “an interactive contest asking parents to submit the funniest thing their child has ever said with the contest winners being chosen by popular public vote.” Parents enter via the Facebook page until June 6, 2011. You can then encourage friends and family to vote once a day until the voting period ends on June 28. Daily random winners will receive various prize packs and the Grand Prize winner will win a family trip to a Disney theme park and runners-up will receive cash awards of $1,000 and $500.
See all of the contest rules here and start submitting to what makes you laugh from your little one.
--Tracey Henry
Follow us on Twitter @WhoaMomma
Mother's Day gift ideas
"If mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy" -- Southern proverb
Should we start dropping hints now that we don't want bath salts or, even worse, some kind of cleaning product for Mother's Day?
The criteria for good gift-giving (and this includes for our own mothers) is to be thoughtful about what she wants. She wants more time with you? Theater tickets. More time for herself? A massage or a beach basket and the afternoon free. Not sure what she wants? Avoid anything that requires work like cooking pots or cleaning gadgets of any sort.
Here's some ideas suggested by Red Envelope, one of my favorite sites. I like this hand-in-hand family frame, at right. And it's only $9.95. But most moms truly would rather have a lazy day at home or at brunch with their family and friends. ... Read more
A children's book title that's R rated
Don't let the kids read it, should be the subtitle for this children's book.
New York's Akashic books and author Adam Mansbach offer grownups up a bold bedtime book, due out in October. Of toddler-dad Mansbach, Amazon.com says: "This is his first children's book. You probably should not read it to actual children, and if you do, he cannot be held legally responsible. "
Titled Go the (expletive) to Sleep, it is "the secret anthem of tired parents everywhere," says critic Bliss Boyard. ... Read more
Free and cheap things to do with the kids this week
We have some great cheap choices this week, from the fish-full MarineQuest to Dragon Boat Races to killer deals at two great children's museums. Read on for more wallet-friendly fun.
We are big fans of MarineQuest, the open house at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute. It may sound like heaven for sixth-grade science nerds, but it’s actually one of the best-kept secrets around. Kids can handle horseshoe crabs, sea stars, spiny lobsters and other water critters in the touch tank, plus create fish prints (gyotaku) and marine origami, put together a manatee skeleton and touch sharks and rays. And it’s all free from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at 100 Eighth Ave. SE, St. Petersburg. (727) 896-8626. ... Read more
A marathon for moms -- but in cyberspace
To get us moving together, a marathon is planned for moms, but it's online. You have to run 26.2 miles in the month of May, which is a mile a day, or 6.2 miles a week, and you can win prizes from the random drawing.
It's free. The idea is get the moms moving, and I think a flexible schedule like this is right up our alley. Get those jog strollers lubed up, mommas!
--Sharon Kennedy Wynne
Follow us on Twitter @WhoaMomma
Companies bet parents won't pinch pennies for baby
Are parents suckers for products regardless of price? The news came out yesterday that the makers of both Pampers and Huggies will raise the price of diapers, blaming increased commodities' costs. The Wall Street Journal notes that the companies are betting that parents are less likely to be stingy when it comes to junior's needs. Is it a good bet? Or will we turn to generic or roll up our sleeves and use cloth? ... Read more
Dinner at the concession stand? Try this instead
You don't have to make concessions at the concession stand. Getting my kids to eat right is daily goal of mine as a mother, but I find this particularly challenging on the weeknights that they have after school activities and sports.
We usually eat together as a family at the table, but there are some nights when that’s just not possible. I don’t want to stuff them with drive-through fare, and we don’t necessarily want a full meal at 4 in the afternoon before we’re on to the next game, so that limits our dinner options some evenings.
But with a little planning, I’ve found that we can still eat good food together before or after a weeknight event. Here are some of the ways we get good meals on the go.
The trusty ole crock-pot. There’s a whole library of recipes made for the slow cooker that don’t turn out like mush. ... Read more
About the bloggers
Raising children isn't easy. Whoa, Momma! is here to help you with parenting tips and discussion of all parenting issues. We think there's no such thing as TMI, so our blogging moms aren't shy about the hot topics and won't back away from a good debate. Bottle or breastfeed? Public, private or homeschool? And sex -- it's all open for comment. Don't sit on the sidelines -- pull up a bouncy seat and join the chat.
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