Girl Scout Cookie Craze

In the Fall of 2009 my 6-year-old daughter became a Girl Scout Daisy and, in less than one year, I have been amazed at how phenomenal the experience has been for her. My daughter, having two younger brothers but no sisters, cherishes the "sisterhood" of Girl Scouts and the many activities she's able to participate in with other girls her age. As a mom, I value the many lessons that are taught to the girls including building character and skills for the real world such as leadership skills, social skills, and self-esteem.

Recently, the popular Girl Scout cookie sales began and MY, MY... how people LOVE Girl Scout cookies! I am constantly amazed at people's reaction when they see me with the cookies. Last week I was on the metro headed home from work and had a bag of cookies in my hand. Out-of-the-blue a complete stranger approached me and asked, "Ooooh, are you selling Girl Scout cookies?  My mom loves them and I must buy a few boxes for her." After my initial shock that the woman approached me and after chuckling a bit to myself, I gladly sold her three boxes of cookies. During the same week, my husband got home from being out during the day only to find that our neighbors saw the empty Girl Scout cookie cartons in our yard and were waiting for us to get home so they could buy cookies. Again, we simply chuckled to ourselves and sold them the cookies they wanted. I have sold cookies to people on my job, former co-workers who I haven't seen for months, friends, neighbors, and complete strangers. There is truly a Girl Scout Cookie Craze that exists for so many people. So, I encourage you to continue supporting the Girl Scouts cookie fundraisers, give our girls a friendly smile when you see them at cookie booths at your local grocery stores and other venues, and buy a box of cookies or make a donation to support our girls if you are able!

And I would be remised if I did not give a special mention of my fantastic Girl Scouts Troop -- Kentland Troop #925 located in Prince George's County Maryland as well as our wonderful, hard-working Troop Leaders, Ms. Stephanie Burroughs and Ms. Lisa Watts. We appreciate all you do for our girls!

Visit the Girl Scouts website for more information on the variety of cookies available:
http://www.girlscoutcookies.org/

Cheryl

Proud Mommy Blogger

When I first heard the word "blogging" I had no idea what it really meant or why people spent their valuable time doing it.  As I began delving more into social networking as a way to create a buzz for my business I came to learn more-and-more about the purpose of blogging and found some fantastic bloggers with valuable information for their readers.  I was also introduced to numerous blog networking sites especially for mommy bloggers.  I began increasing my interactions with mommy bloggers on Twitter and my eyes became wide open to the Blogosphere!  I began to understand that some moms use blogging as a way to express their daily feelings and share their "mommy world" with others, some use blogging as a great way to network, some use blogging as a means to offer fantastic giveaways to their readers, and still others use blogging as a way to generate income for their households.  In any event, I caught the blog bug real quick.  Initially, I didn't know what I would blog about (and sometimes the direction of my blog is still a bit fuzzy to me since I only started in September 2009) but before I knew it my little fingers started typing away... and people actually responded positively to my blogs.  I absolutely love the feedback I receive from readers.  Needless to say, now I am hooked and plan to blog for a long time to come.

In celebration of my excitement to be a mommy blogger I am introducing a new "Mommy Blogger" tee from Moms R The Best (http://momsrthebest.com/).  This tee will be posted and offered for purchase within the next week.

Cheryl

Smiling Does The Body Good

Researchers say it takes 43 muscles to frown and only 17 muscles to smile, so why don't people smile more often?  This is a question I ponder quite often as I go about my daily activities in life -- taking the metro to work, dropping the kids off at school, interacting with coworkers, running errands on the weekend, and so forth.  More and more I observe that people just don't seem to have a friendly, happy feeling about their existence.  They tend to frown much more often than they smile.  Is it the economy?  Or did this sense of unhappiness begin long before the economic downfall?  Is it simply that we live in different times and people are so focused on what is happening in their own lives that they are oblivious to others around them?  Or perhaps the fact that as a society we are always staring down (at a Blackberry or laptop) or have our heads pressed against a cell phone preventing us from making eye contact and engaging in a polite smile with others.  In any event, it sure would be nice to be greeted with a pleasant smile from someone, ANYONE, tomorrow morning on my way to work... or the next time I'm at the mall or the grocery store with my kids screaming and hollering.  Smiling does the body good, is much easier than frowning, and is contagious.  So, the next time you think about smiling at someone...  instead of resisting the urge, JUST DO IT!  You will be surprised at how good it makes you (and the other person) feel.

Cheryl

Living For The Weekend!!

As a mommy of three who works full-time, I always look forward to Friday evenings after work when I get to stay up late with the kids just acting silly, watching movies & eating popcorn, and playing the Wii.  Something about the weekend just takes a load of stress off my shoulders as I know I don't have to get up at 5am to commute to work or rush home at 5pm to pick-up the kids.  On the weekends, aside from my kids active social life, I can take my time and actually enjoy my children which is such a pleasure.

Tonight is a special night as my darling daughter will be performing in her school's Black Heritage Program.  The kids will be dressed as famous African American's and the audience will have to guess who they are.  My daughter is all geared up to portray Serena Williams.  I stopped at Dicks Sporting Goods last night to purchase her a tennis outfit, tennis racket, ankle socks and sneakers.  I can't wait to see how she does.  Her school usually hosts these types of events as fundraisers which makes it even more worthwhile to support.  There will be food, goodies, and snacks to purchase -- lots of fun!

I truly LOVE being a mommy!  This is what life is all about.

Cheryl

Lessons About "Choices"

I try very hard to teach my children that life is all about choices.  These lessons are often taught using simple scenarios that the kids can really relate to.  The boys are still very young (2-years-old and 3-years-old) but they still understand the general idea of choices.  I took the kids to Target yesterday and for the entire hour we were there my 3-year-old son played with a huge bouncing ball that he seemed to get complete enjoyment from.  He enjoyed it so much that I had already prepped myself to purchase the ball.  Low-and-behold as we get closer to the register he spots a shelf full of adorable stuffed animals that move, dance, and sing.  My 3-year-old picks up the doggie which moves from side-to-side and sings "Who Let The Dogs Out" and immediately falls in love (and so did I).  I made it absolutely clear to him that it was either the doggie or the ball.  It took him all of 30 seconds to ditch the ball and clutch onto the doggie for dear life.  Naturally, I had to purchase two doggie's because my 2-year-old son immitates EVERYTHING, and I do mean EVERYTHING, that his older brother does.  So, the boys got their doggies and were thrilled.  Of course, I wasn't quite as thrilled considering the doggie's were MUCH more expensive than the ball and I had to listen to "Who Let The Dogs Out" the entire ride home.

Teaching lessons about "choices" to my 6-year-old daughter is quite different.  She has no concept that money does NOT grow on trees and thinks because she sees it and wants it that mommy is supposed to purchase it.  Hmmmm, I'll have to work a little more diligently on clarifying that misunderstanding.  Her lesson in choices this weekend also came when we went to Target and she wanted to spend the gift cards she had received as birthday gifts.  My daughter loves gift cards as it makes her feel like a grown-up spending her own money.  In fact, when we stopped at the Target eatery she insisted on treating me to popcorn (LOL... I love it!!).  After getting popcorn, she wallked the aisles looking, touching, and listening trying to decide exactly what to purchase and I had to remind her of "choices."  Her gift cards would only allow her to purchase a certain number of items AND if she used all the cards at once she would not be able to return to the store at a later time and shop for more items.  She picked up one item and really seemed to want it until I explained that it would take both her gift cards.  She emphatically looked at me and responded, "Both of my cards?  So I won't have anymore?"  I responded, "That's right, so you have to make a choice on how much you really want that item."  In the end, she decided on a toy that only used one of her gift cards and would allow her to come again later to purchase another item.

As parents, we sometimes underestimate just how much our children comprehend at a very young age.  However, it is out responsibility to mold them, guide them, and shape their understanding of the world.  And lessons about "choices" is a great start!

Her Words Made It All Better!

My morning didn't quite work out the way I had planned today.  In fact, my entire day was thrown off track due to the fact that Maryland schools are operating on a 2-hour delay for the remainder of the week.  Instead of being able to drop-off my daughter at 7am for Before Care at her school, I have to drop her off at 9am which, of course, pushes everything else back including my arrival for work on time.  So, I fell into line with the new plan and dropped my daughter off at the appropriate time... only to get to the metro parking station and realize there was not a single parking space available, not even the "Reserved Parking" spaces that open up at 10am and are usually abundant and wide open.  I was in complete shock when I pulled into the station.  But I was even more shocked when I went to leave the station to search for other parking and was charged the $4.25 daily fee for two minutes of driving around the full lot.  I sighed momentarily and proceeded up the Beltway to search for parking at a few other stations only to see signs posted at each station that there was no available parking.  I am still clueless as to what was going on this morning.  This has NEVER happened to me before.  Finally, I gave up on my mission of trying to get to work today.  Instead, I decided to enjoy some "me" time.  Well, that thought lasted for all of five minutes until I realized that instead of wasting the whole day I had better get some things accomplished.

I started with a trip to the cable company to stand in line and wait to return some equipment, then a trip to the Post Office to stand in line to overnight some important documents for hubby, back to pick-up the boys and take them to the pediatrician to sit and wait so they could get their annual checkups, and then to my daughter's school in time to pick her up at the close of the school day at 3:30pm.  Once again, I used a day that could have been a "mental health day" for mommy as a "let me hustle and get things accomplished" day.  But at the end of the day the thing that made it all better was my 6-year-old daughter's comment when I picked her up from school early (early meaning she didn't have to stay at school in After Care until 6pm as she usually does) -- she had a huge smile on her face and matter of factly said, "Mommy, I love when you pick me up from school early."  That simply melted my heart because she had no idea that I get just as much joy and satisfaction from picking her up early as she does.

Today was nothing short of motivation for me to continue working diligently to grow my business in order to make drastic life changes and gain a much more flexible schedule to spend more quality time with my three precious kids.

Cheryl

Much Needed Entertainment

After seven days of being confined inside the house due to the Winter Blizzard, my family and I were able to return to a bit of normalcy this weekend. Although many of the neighborhoods appear as though the Winter Blizzard has not yet ended -- with mounds and mounds of snow on every corner, cars that have not been dug out or shoveled off, and schools still closed all last week -- the sun did shine brightly on Friday and most people in the DC/MD/VA area returned to work. And today served as more reassurance that things were pretty much back to normal -- the store shelves were well stocked again, the Beltways and Thoroughfares were busy, and people roamed about conducting business as usual.

My family was ecstatic to go out and enjoy some much needed entertainment today after our extended, rather boring, days in the house last week. We had tickets for Disney On Ice at the Verizon Center in Washington, DC with my daughter's Girl Scout Troop. So we gladly slept in until 11am, woke up and had breakfast, and started getting ready for our 2:30pm show. Traffic wasn't quite as bad as I would expect in DC, our seats in the stadium were good, and the show was very entertaining. I always enjoy seeing my kid's expressions when they see the various characters come out from behind the curtains. Especially now that my boys are getting older -- 2yo and 3yo -- they can relate to the show much more than they could just one year ago. My 2yo son was especially intrigued by the characters, Mickey Mouse being his favorite. Of course, dad and I spent a fortune on trinkets, toys, popcorn and cotton candy for three little ones but it was well worth it. Most times we're pretty thrifty with our finances so we usually splurge a little for these types of events. The show was amazing and the kids had a blast which was evident by the loud snoring we heard from all three only five minutes after we got back in the car to travel home. Great fun!

Cheryl 

Winter Blizzard Checklist

I have been stuck in the house for the past five days with over 24" of snow already on the ground and 11-15" more coming tonight and tomorrow.  Schools are closed for the rest of the week, the kids are losing their minds (and so am I), and I am getting waaay off track with my "healthy" eating habits!

Below is my checklist from the past five days:

• Keep a close eye on the news for school closings - check
• Sleep in late as many days as possible - check
• Go stir crazy from being stuck in the house for five days - check
• Unsuccessfully attempt to make it to work this morning - check
• Play UNO with the kids - check
• Play the Wii with the kids - check
• Do laundry - check
• Clean the house - check
• Do more laundry - check
• Watch waaay too much Phineas and Ferb with the kids - check
• Watch waaay too many Disney movies with the kids - check
• Eat waaay too many cookies, chips, and marshmallows from sheer boredom - check
• Look out the window and wish I could go to the mall, to work, or anywhere - check
• Get online and check my Facebook account 100 times - check
• Get online and hope someone Tweets me - check
• Hope my 2yo and 3yo sons will stop stalking me for just five minutes while I take a shower - check
• Realize that my sons will never stop stalking me while we're home together - check
• Visit the fridge at least 10 times each day - check
• Drink waaay too many sodas - check
• Check my phone to be sure it's still working and hope somebody calls me to chit chat - check
• Express shock and disbelief that the kids will be home for six more days with no school - check
• Express shock and disbelief that it is snowing yet AGAIN - check

Cheryl

Making the Most of the 2010 Winter Blizzard in Maryland

For most of the week the weather forecasters have been warning that there would be extremely heavy snowfall in the DC/MD/VA area and residents should prepare to be snowed-in for at least 2-3 days. The prediction called for 19-30" of snow. People began clearing the shelves at all the local grocery stores... not even a loaf of bread was available. All the local hardware stores sold out of every shovel, snow pick, and bag of ICE to melt the impending snow. Even my employer, WHO NEVER EVER EVER closes, CLOSED for the day on Friday in preparation for this massive Winter Blizzard! Being the person I am, I doubted this "unrealistic and unlikely" weather prediction. But low-and-behold the forecast was absolutely correct. My family and I have been watching this non-stop gorgeous, soft white snow fall since Friday afternoon and it has not stopped. In fact, it is not expected to stop until some time around 10pm tonight. I don't believe I have seen this much snow since I was a little girl. Although a bit inconvenient the snow is actually a breath of fresh air as it gives me the perfect excuse to stay in my pjs ALL DAY LONG, send the kids out for a while to play in the snow, sip on hot chocolcate, make frequent trips to the refrigerator to reload on food, enjoy time with hubby and the kids playing board games, watching movies and playing the Wii, and not feeling guilty about any of it.  So instead of complaining I am just going to enjoy!

Cheryl

Honored To Be "Outstanding Business Woman of the Year"

The votes are in and I am honored to be named the Winner's Summit first "Outstanding Business Woman of the Year" (http://thewinnerssummit.com/cheryl-wood).  This prestigious award will be presented to me at the Winner's Summit Conference and Expo on March 19th, featuring an array of successful, dynamic women entrepreneurs.  The event also boasts a special performance by R&B artist, Tony Terry.  What a treat this will be!  If you are interested in attending please visit http://thewinnerssummit.com/ and enter the code "moms" for a phenomenal discount to this unprecedented event.

CEO and Owner

Wife and Mother of 3

Full-Time Career Woman

Blogger

Social Networker

College Student


Cheryl

Mocha, Mocha -- How I Love (And Need) Thee

At least four-out-of-five weekday mornings I anxiously anticipating getting to work -- on the other side of town after my morning hustle & bustle of dropping off the kids, rushing to get parking, and taking two crowded metro trains -- in order to settle-in and head downstairs for my morning ritual, a Grande Skim Mocha with Whip from Starbucks.  Fortunately, my love of Starbucks mocha's is well-known to those around me and I received a generous amount of Starbucks gift cards during the holidays.  So my morning RUSH has technically been FREE ever since December.  But today was the last of the freebies.  I sadly swiped my last gift card and even had to come out of pocket with $2 this morning.  But it was sooooo worth it.  After a grueling kickboxing class last night and not getting to bed until after midnight I needed that extra pick-me-up to make it through the morning.  THANK YOU Starbucks for such a tasty drink that makes me feel all warm and fuzzy in the mornings!

(The pics were taken with my not-so-good phone camera).

Cheryl

REVIEW: So Smart! DVDs

Last weekend I received two educational childrens dvd's for review from So Smart! Productions. So Smart! is a leading creator and producer of top-rated educational entertainment products for young children. I received the Baby’s First-Word Stories "Get Dressed" dvd and King Otis and The Kingdom of Goode "Phoose's Tale of Patience" dvd. My kids have been watching both dvds NON-STOP we received them. The funniest thing is that both my sons claim the dvd's as their own. My youngest son, who turned 2yrs old in October, claims the "Get Dressed" dvd as "HIS" dvd and my oldest son, who turned 3yrs old in December, claims the "Tale of Patience" dvd. Everyday when we get home both of them emphatically say, "mommy I want to watch MY dvd." In fact, my oldest son oftentimes doesn't even get out of his coat and hat without sitting in front of the television to watch this educational dvd. I have simply been amazed at how much they enjoy the dvds and want to watch them repeatedly. Believe it or not, even my 6yr old daughter enjoys the dvds.

The "Get Dressed" dvd is a series of short stories teaching younger children to appropriately dress themselves based on the weather or the activity they are engaging in. This So Smart! dvd introduces basic words about getting dressed and builds sentences and stories based around friends Edward, Iggy, Larry and Dee Dee. At the end of each short story the dvd asks the child to repeat words learned from the story. This dvd offers a very gentle pace, engaging imagery, and soothing music making it perfect for young children 1 to 3 years old, who are just beginning to explore the rich world of language.

Every parent will appreciate the "Tale of Patience" dvd as it teaches children the importance of having patience, sharing with others, and having respect for others. The dvd uses captivating stories, catchy songs, and lovable characters as Phoose and his fish-like friends --growing up in the Nowaki desert-- are tired of waiting for water. But after a series of misadventures, it is patience that finally makes their dreams of swimming come true! This dvd even offers a bonus of behind-the-scenes storyboards, two music videos, “Draw the Characters” on-screen tutorial, printable coloring sheets and trailers. (PC and Mac Compatible)

Trusted by parents for over a decade, So Smart! remains among the leaders in the baby-toddler video category because it uses:

• Gently animated, bright colors and simple images that are specially developed for babies and toddlers
• Minimal, smooth scene transitions, choreographed like a ballet of images woven together, while avoiding the use of sudden changes in viewpoint or camera angles, which can confuse and over-stimulate babies and toddlers
• Slow, easy-to-follow pace that encourages interaction and participation—usually in the form of laughing, clapping, "talking," and dancing; a unique technique that builds each new subject matter using different shapes, creating a puzzle-like effect and the excitement of "What happens next?"
• Narration, varied contexts and repetition to introduce first words, allowing babies to grasp the sounds of words and eventually, their meanings. Read our Our Ten Tips on Language for Little Ones
• Original artwork and adorable characters that are engaging for this age group; specially-selected classical music, or original music scores, that are enjoyable for both little ones and their parents
• Fun additional activities that are included in each DVD, for parents and children to do together. 

As a mother of three who is always conscious about what my children view, I highly recommend So Smart! products. In addition to dvds, So Smart! also offers music cds for children, multipacks and gift sets. Products offered by So Smart! are very reasonably priced and offer a bang for your buck.

 

Visit So Smart! website to purchase products:

http://www.sosmart.com/

Follow So Smart! on FACEBOOK:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/So-Smart-Productions/123496430761?v=wall

There's No Controlling Mother Nature

My daughter and I were extremely excited about her 6th birthday party with all her friends on Saturday.  Unfortunately, Mother Nature had a different plan.  Although I was aware that the forecast called for some snow, it was only expected to be a few light snow showers so I continued with my plans, got up early on Saturday to get my daughter's hair done for the party, packed everything in my car to take to the party site, and even sent out reminder emails telling everyone the party would go on!  Around 10am the snowfall began and it only got worse as the hours passed.  Being the person I am I was defiant against Mother Nature and was convinced that I would still make this party happen.  What happened?  I lost (LOL).  The roads were bad, my vendors started calling me to cancel, and parents started emailing me to tell me the roads were just too bad for them to still come.  So, much to my dismay, I had to pack everything back in my car and start notifying everyone that the party had to be postponed.  Fortunate for me several of my daughter's friends' parents did brave the bad weather and show-up for the party which made the "sting" of having to postpone the party much less dramatic for my baby girl.  She was so excited to see her friends that I think she completely forgot the party had been postponed.  She laughed and played with them for a while until it was time for us to trek back home and enjoy watching the snowfall from our windows.  We got home, got in our pjs, and my daughter enjoyed playing with the bday gifts she received from her friends who showed up for the party.

The plan was to reschedule the party for next Saturday but can you believe they're calling for even more snow next weekend too.  I guess my baby will get her party AT SOME POINT in the near future.