DC Metro Moms

Graco and DC Metro Moms Donate 3 Car Seats to Fallen Officer's Widow Expecting Triplets

It was my pleasure, on behalf of Graco and DC Metro Moms, to give the Montgomery County Police 3 brand new Graco car seats for Melissa Ayala, widow of Officer Hector Ayala, who died in the line of duty in April.

A Police Officer, who was also a dear friend of Hector Ayala, came to my home to pick them up and he also gave me some information to tell everyone in our community and beyond.

Melissa is doing as well as can be expected, and will most likely give birth this week.  She and the babies are healthy, although she is in pain and discomfort (but we all know as mothers, that being pregnant with triplets cannot be easy).

I also learned that the gender of the babies is unknown, it’s been too hard to tell… 

Yeah, I know.  I swallowed hard learning that.  Not only is this woman giving birth to triplets IMMINENTLY- without her husband- she doesn’t know any of their genders…

I Had Poop Under My Nails Too...

Being a mom to a baby, 

and even harder sometimes- a toddler, can be tough. 

Rewarding, but tough. 

You get the snuggles, 

the baby fat rolls, 

the mama-unconditional-I-need-you-stuff, 

that you don’t always get being the mom of a 6-year-old. 

But you also get the I-can’t-leave-the-room-for-a-minute, blow your nose, and diaper disaster stuff. 

You don’t always shower (shhh... it's okay) and sometimes you're in sweats...

And sometimes, just when you think you are getting-it-all-together,

you find out you've been walking around all day with Cheerios stuck to your butt... 

But it's okay, because at least you didn't find poop under your fingernails... like I did...

How To Get Exactly What You Want

Ahhh, a question for the ages...

How do you get what you want?

Well I'm here to tell you!  But, first of all-

this does not apply to 'world peace'... 'a cure for cancer'... 'to end homelessness'... 'I want a pony'... well, maybe the last one.

All those 'wants' are great.  I want world peace too.  I want a cancer-free world too.  I want everyone to have a home too...

But we all gotta start somewhere... 'Start Small- End Big', I always say.  So let's master how to get exactly what we want in terms of the 'small stuff', then we can go from there.  After all, if you have little things... and little ones, around you that make you happy- you're going to be a better mom and person and you'll be happier...

Happier?  A Better Person, you may say?  Yes.  And here's how to do it-

I am revealing an age-old philosophy... a formula... a system of beliefs, if you will.

Have you read The Secret?  Yes, so have I...

Mom! Can I Have A Urinal ?!

We recently went out to dinner... that's not uncommon.  I had to excuse myself to go to the restroom, and my son announced that he had to go too... that's not uncommon.

We each finished our business and were washing our hands and my son said,

"I really like those stand-up toilets.  You guys (irony, maybe?) don't have them in here."

I told him that stand-up toilets, or rather urinals, were just in men's bathrooms (and he didn't ask me why... yey).

So he decided right then and there, that 'he was going to have Dad take him to the bathroom from now on.'

Yey Again!  Cool!  My husband and I don't have to give each other the look when we are seated, ready to eat, and our son says he has to go to the bathroom!  It's all him now!  Our little guy has become a Big Guy and he wants to use stand-up toilets!  Hurray!

So none of this is all that uncommon... until we got home,

and my son asked in a very sweet voice, as I'm tucking him into bed,

"Mom, can I have a urinal?...  Can we get a urinal when we put an addition on our house?"

Officer Dead; His Widow is Expecting Triplets in June and has a 14-month-old son

   Last Friday I headed to Home Depot for track lighting. My son was happy, at camp. 

Traffic was stopped at the big intersection of Georgia and Connecticut Avenues.

'What could be happening?' I thought...

And then I saw a Huge Motorcade of Police Motorcycles, and then Police Cars...  I've never seen a Funeral Motorcade that long, and unfortunately, I've seen a lot of funeral motorcades.

'O God, it's a Cop.'  I thought.  

It was a police officer's funeral procession.  It was the funeral procession for Hector Ayala, who died in a car crash while responding to a fellow officer's call for assistance for a fight in progress...

...on Easter Morning.

I learned later that day that Sergeant Ayala's widow, Melissa, has a 14-month-old son,

and is expecting triplets... in June.

And then I thought about her, 

Continue reading "Officer Dead; His Widow is Expecting Triplets in June and has a 14-month-old son " »

To see your offspring, the product of your loins, grow and become independent is a wonderful thing...

in some ways.

There is a price to pay...

Are you reading this while your little one sits on the floor in his or her adorable matching outfit... complete with matching socks?

Are you?  Enjoy it.  Those days are gone for me...

My son never used to care about what he wore... so I could dress him!

But now, he does care... he just doesn't care if it matches or not.

He's picking out his own clothes and (Mom Victory... wait for it...) getting dressed completely by himself!

We used bribery for the latter... Hey!  Don't throw stones!

But what price did I pay?

His favorite, 'go-to-even-when-they-are-dirty' articles of clothing are: his orange pants and his blue blazer...

Well, we all made it through... the DC Snowpocalypse of 2010...

We even made it on Wikipedia!!!!!

Luckily, temperatures are warming, snow is melting, and only rain is on its way lovely, hmm.

I'm sure we've all learned something in the last couple of weeks...

As for me?  I've learned a lot.

How to end poverty?  No.  

A Cure For Cancer?  No.

I'm talkin' vital stuff here... like what to keep in your home AT ALL TIMES...

Do you get a lot of time alone? No, me neither. 

I love alone time… 

I VALUE my time alone now. I even guard it. 

I even schedule alone time… or at least I try to- between playing Connect 4, being a taxi service, grocery shopping and laundry. 

I didn’t use to be this way. 

When I was younger I never cared about ‘alone time’… I mean when I was younger and wasn’t a mother.

I guess when you are only

responsible for yourself, you get more alone time...

Now, I love alone time.

I even meditate now (yeah, I read The Secret… didn’t we all?)

It’s that time of year.  Relax.  It’s all over, the hustle and bustle, the cheers and jeers, the excitement, and the stress…

And a New Year has begun!

You can start putting away decorations, or if you’re like me, you already have.

Or just keep them up and have things strewn everywhere, it’s okay…

You have an excuse- it’s that time of year! 

In honor of nothin’ going on right now-

I give thanks!

Thanks for-

An ode is a ‘lyric poem’ in an ‘elevated style’…

Okay, so this isn’t an ode.  Maybe it’s a tribute… acknowledgment, applause, appreciation, citation, commendation, compliment, encomium (what is that? I’ve never even heard of that word before?!), honor, laudation, panegyric (I’ve never heard of that word either, wow, all of a sudden I feel very ignorant, vapid even…), recognition, recommendation, respect, accolade- (wow, I like that one)!

Yes, this is an accolade; basically, a salute to ‘December Babies and their Moms’

If you were born in December or have given birth in December- you are part of a very special club.  I gave birth to my son a week before Christmas, so I’m a full-fledged member of this club. 

*If you’re just reading this out of curiosity, club members get extra-cool-mom points for giving birth to babies during Hanukkah- if they’re Jewish, and on Christmas or the week before- if they’re Christian.

*Why the bonus points?  Because they learn to juggle everything and are bastions of organization !!!!!

So without further ado-

The Price of a 'Big Boy'

To see your offspring, the product of your loins, grow and become independent is a wonderful thing...

in some ways.

There is a price to pay...

Are you reading this while your little one sits on the floor in his or her adorable matching outfit... complete with matching socks?

Are you?  Enjoy it.  Those days are gone for me...

My son never used to care about what he wore... so I could dress him!

But now, he does care... he just doesn't care if it matches or not.

He's picking out his own clothes and (Mom Victory... wait for it...) getting dressed completely by himself!

We used bribery for the latter... Hey!  Don't throw stones!

But what price did I pay?

His favorite, 'go-to-even-when-they-are-dirty' articles of clothing are: his orange pants and his blue blazer...

What To Always Have In Your Home, a.k.a.- What I Learned from the Snowpocalypse

Well, we all made it through... the DC Snowpocalypse of 2010...

We even made it on Wikipedia!!!!!

Luckily, temperatures are warming, snow is melting, and only rain is on its way lovely, hmm.

I'm sure we've all learned something in the last couple of weeks...

As for me?  I've learned a lot.

How to end poverty?  No.  

A Cure For Cancer?  No.

I'm talkin' vital stuff here... like what to keep in your home AT ALL TIMES...

"I Vant To Be Alone"

Do you get a lot of time alone? No, me neither. 

I love alone time… 

I VALUE my time alone now. I even guard it. 

I even schedule alone time… or at least I try to- between playing Connect 4, being a taxi service, grocery shopping and laundry. 

I didn’t use to be this way. 

When I was younger I never cared about ‘alone time’… I mean when I was younger and wasn’t a mother.

I guess when you are only

responsible for yourself, you get more alone time...

Now, I love alone time.

I even meditate now (yeah, I read The Secret… didn’t we all?)

Thanks For Nothin'

It’s that time of year.  Relax.  It’s all over, the hustle and bustle, the cheers and jeers, the excitement, and the stress…

And a New Year has begun!

You can start putting away decorations, or if you’re like me, you already have.

Or just keep them up and have things strewn everywhere, it’s okay…

You have an excuse- it’s that time of year! 

In honor of nothin’ going on right now-

I give thanks!

Thanks for-

An Ode to December Birthdays

An ode is a ‘lyric poem’ in an ‘elevated style’…

Okay, so this isn’t an ode.  Maybe it’s a tribute… acknowledgment, applause, appreciation, citation, commendation, compliment, encomium (what is that? I’ve never even heard of that word before?!), honor, laudation, panegyric (I’ve never heard of that word either, wow, all of a sudden I feel very ignorant, vapid even…), recognition, recommendation, respect, accolade- (wow, I like that one)!

Yes, this is an accolade; basically, a salute to ‘December Babies and their Moms’

If you were born in December or have given birth in December- you are part of a very special club.  I gave birth to my son a week before Christmas, so I’m a full-fledged member of this club. 

*If you’re just reading this out of curiosity, club members get extra-cool-mom points for giving birth to babies during Hanukkah- if they’re Jewish, and on Christmas or the week before- if they’re Christian.

*Why the bonus points?  Because they learn to juggle everything and are bastions of organization !!!!!

So without further ado-