And he got his second Respect award!

Vacation's All He Ever Wanted

I took Tyler to get his haircut for picture day. They stylist took him back to the shampoo bowl to get all grass and leaves out of his hair (do people with girls have to deal with that?). She asked him about his summer and what types of things he did.

The little stinker said we didn't do anything fun over the summer! WTH? We went to the beach EVERY day for week when the relatives were in town. We went to Sea World. We spent a ton of time at our neighborhood pool and had Deb and her family over twice. I'm sure there's more, I've just blocked it out already. I was a bit miffed.

Then, she asked if we'd gone on vacation and all the anger fell away and I reached for my Worst Mommy Ever hat. This is something Phil and I feel really badly about. We've never been on a family vacation. Phil has gone to visit friends. I took Tyler to visit my grandparents. I've gone on trips.

But, we've never gone anywhere as a family. We have the best intentions every year. We think about where we can go and come up with a budget. We were supposed to drive to Utah and go camping with friends but we would have been driving back three days before BlogHer and I just couldn't do it. Tyler's face when we told him we weren't going after all made me feel like shit.

I know it's not about WHERE you go, but what you do together. I get all that feel good stuff, and it's true. But. I can't help feeling like we're not making any memories. And to be perfectly candid, I want him to have an answer to this question. I want him to be able to tell his friends about the places we've gone. I want him to see other cities and states.

I shouldn't care about Keeping up with Jones' but I'm big enough to admit that I do, at least a little (who the hell are the Jones' and exactly how did they become a standard to look up to?).

Living in southern California is like being on vacation and I do feel lucky and appreciative when I get glimpses of the ocean as I run errands. But there's nothing like the anticipation of going somewhere new, eating different foods and sleeping in a hotel. Hopefully we'll be able to give that feeling to Tyler someday.

(National Lampoon poster from Google Images)

Happy New School Year: Nestle Family Prize Package {Giveaway}

***Contest closed. Thank you all for entering!***

We're so happy with the way Tyler has adjusted to being back at school. He was worried he wouldn't like his teacher and that the work would be too hard. But, he loves his teacher and so far he's doing fine. I told myself that this year I will be more involved with with his class. I volunteered when he was in kindergarten but didn't end up helping much last year.

There was an issue with one of the moms who helped test the kids on their spelling words and I wasn't aware of it until mid way through the school year. I don't want something like that to happen again so I want to make my presence known. Plus, it can't hurt to make friends with his teacher (squeaky wheel and all that).


I've told Tyler many times that when it comes to school and his education, he'll get out of it what he puts into it. I think that's true for us parents too, at least while our kids are "new" students. I can see a difference in the kids who seem to have support and involvement at home and those who don't.

This year seems to have a lot riding on it. The kids have to learn twice as much as they did last year. Phil and I are Tyler's best advocates. It's up to us to create an environment where he can not only thrive, but excel and hopefully develop a lifelong love of learning. And for that, we need to be right there with him, every step of the way.

Win It!

What about you? Have you resolved to do anything new or different this school year? Have your kids? Leave the answer in the comments.

One winner will receive a Nestle Happy New School Year prize package with coupons and recipes for Nestle products*. Nestle Family is supporting parents and Kids' resolutions to make this school year great with a sweepstakes that could win you $5,000 and your school a $2,000 literacy grant.



To enter (please read all the rules):

1. Leave a comment on this post answering the question above. This is required.

2. I MUST have a way to get in touch with you! I will have to delete comments with no contact info.

3. This contest will be open until Friday, September 25th. Comments will close on at 11:59pm CA time.

4. I will use random.org to draw the winner and post the results/notify winner via email. (US only, I'm sorry!)

5. For two extra entries: (not required) Tweet, and/or blog about this contest and leave each of your links in a separate comment (three contest entry opportunities total). You will need a free Twitter account.

6. You do not have to follow me on Twitter, follow this blog or subscribe to this blog as a method of entry. Tweet as often as you like, but only one Tweet will count as an extra entry. Leave one comment for each entry method. Here is the URL to this post: http://bit.ly/NestleFam

7. *Nestle is sponsoring this giveaway. The prize package is awarded in the form of free product coupons that the PR company will mail to the winner. To enter the $5,000 Ready, Set, School giveaway, go to the Nestle Family site. My contest is not affiliated with their sweepstakes.

Wordless Wednesday: Go Padres!

(Tyler was so cute, he kept saying it was the best. day. ever!)

PSA: Lose A Palooza End Hunger Campaign

Weight Watchers, Share Our Strength and Action Against Hunger have partnered together today in a huge social media campaign. Through Twitter, MySpace and Facebook spread the word about Lose A Palooza and Lose for Good and Weight Watchers will make a donation up to $25,000.

Send a Tweet, become a fan or write a post. Every qualified mention counts! Go to LoseAPalooza.com to find out how you can help spread the word! Follow the #LoseForGood thread on Twitter.

General Mills: Company Environment

(Quite the ego boost!)

The trip to General Mills was great. One of the reasons I was excited to go is because our cabinets are full of items from their product lines. I'm pretty nerdy when it comes to 'behind the scenes' type of events and going to the corporate office and Betty Crocker test kitchen is right up my alley. I was really impressed with the company, on several levels.

(Boogie of Mommy Daddy Blog)

*They took excellent care of the moms who had their babies with them. There were portable cribs and swings available and diapers and wipes. They hired another van and equipped it with car seats. To me, that was thoughtful and I'm sure it was appreciated.

*The hallways were full of art by local artists and displays with the history of many of the General Mills brands. The office building is surrounded by green hills and a small lake. There are tons of outdoor spaces with tables and chairs for the employees to enjoy. Many of the walkways have floor to ceiling windows. They've created a great space for people to work in. No sterile halls and fluorescent lighting there!

(Cheerios rock garden, I love it!)

*The corporate culture is amazing. They have on-site childcare, a credit union, hair salon, mini mart and gift store, full service cafe and a place where employees can order full meals to go. And those are just the things I noticed.

Last week, I was reading the latest issue of Business Week magazine, and they named General Mills one of the 50 best places to start a career. They're ranked #12 (up from #24). Last year, 68% of their entry level new hires were female. That's impressive. I'd be curious to see a further breakdown and know how many of those 68% were women of color, and then to know how many women of color the company has at the executive level. They've created an environment that is perfect for working families, which unfortunately seems like a rarity these days. General Mills is the type of company I'd happily dust off my briefcase for.

*Diversity isn't just a phrase in the recruitment brochures. Walking through the building and seeing so many different types of people was so refreshing! We were introduced to Kim Nelson, Senior Vice President of the Snacks Unlimited division.

She's been with General Mills for 21 years (which means she started working when she 9, obviously). Kim has an impressive bio and is involved with several organizations for women in business. I also met another Kim, Kim BowSundy. She works in the marketing and diversity departments and pointed me toward Feeding Dreams, a charitable project that recognizes everyday citizens and their impact within their communities. I didn't get to meet Shirley Dollard, the director of the Betty Crocker kitchens, but I wish I had. To have more time to spend talking to these women would have been amazing!

Even though we're already a General Mills household, knowing that this is a company that really does walk the walk makes me feel even better about putting their products in my shopping cart.

More about the test kitchens and photo studio coming soon
(Some photos are from the official event photos on Flickr and some are mine)