6 Things To Do Go In Atlanta for the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game






Heading to Atlanta to watch the West Virginia Mountaineers play the Alabama Crimson Tide game this upcoming week-end.  Kick off is Saturday, August 30, at 3:30 PM at the Georgia Dome.  While you’re there, here’s a list of Things To Do.  If you can’t fit all of them into your schedule, check out a few:




6 Things to Do in Atlanta for the Chick-fil-A Kickoff
Game

1)     
Fan Days at the World of Coca-Cola are August 26 through September
2. Buy your tickets here
and receive $3 off general admission to get a glimpse inside the world’s #1
brand and see what the fizz is all about.
2)      As a
football fan, how could you not visit the new College Football Hall of
Fame? The attraction is going all out for its Grand Opening on August 23.
Celebrate the rich history of the game and make memories of your own with
historic and contemporary artifacts, interactive multimedia displays, children’s
activities and more.
3)      For
some free fun, grab your fellow fans and hit up Tailgate Town on the West
Plaza. How can you resist food sampling, games, giveaways and a BBQ cook-off?
4)      If
you want to take your tailgating up a notch, purchase tickets for the
Mountaineer Madness Team Tailgate at the Georgia World Congress Center.
Yes, that’s an air-conditioned tailgate featuring pregame entertainment and a
delicious buffet.
5)     
Refresh yourself with an ice-cold drink and cheer on your favorite team
at its Pep Rally when you visit the FanZone presented by Coca-Cola Zero.
Don’t miss out on the dozens of interactive games and sponsor
attractions.
6)     
While walking down the Atlanta streets, it’s likely that you’ll find
yourself in the middle of a science-fiction scene. That’s because Dragon
Con
is returning to Atlanta this Labor Day weekend. For
some fantastical fun – and lots of Storm Troopers – check out the annual
parade.



This list was provided by The World of Coca-Cola.  To celebrate the Chick-fil-A Kickoff, Mother 2 Mother will be giving away 4 tickets to The World of Coca-Cola on Saturday.  Be sure to return and enter this awesome give away.    




Guest Post – 5 Reasons Family Is Important

                

                             

We may not like some of our family members and they may not like us at times, but we can’t change who we are or the fact that we’re connected by a bloodline for a lifetime.  Some of our experiences with family have been different. Some of us come from single parent homes, alcoholic homes, or two parent homes that were loving or not so loving.  We can ignore, stay away from or disown our family, but we can’t get away from who we are.  That is a fact.  


Read More of my guest post at A Peek Into My Paradise.  


5 Benefits of Godparents

All of my children have been dedicated back to Our Lord and Savior.  Having children Baptized is an important event in my family. When you’re blessed, you return your blessing back to God.  It is expected by the time the children reach the age of 1 or shortly thereafter, no exceptions.  


This is Xavier being blessed 7 years ago.  He was a perfect angel during the ceremony.  










                                My daughter, Xavier and his Godmother




                              My Son-In-Law and Zarriah on Christening Day






                               
In the picture above, my daughter and Zarriah’s Godmother and Godfather, my nephew. My nephew is also Xavier’s Godfather.  Zarriah was also a perfect little Angel.  



My daughter was dedicated 35 years ago, so she understands the importance of the dedication. My best friend is her Godmother and is still a big part of her life.  I am proud to say that my daughter and both of my grandchildren were dedicated in the same church, what a blessing.  


Some people may wonder about the role of the Godparents.  Some families may have different goals, but in my family the most important roles are:


  • Spiritual Guidance
  • Friendship
  • Mentoring
  • Role Model   
  • Providing Security

I think it’s important that parents have assistance in their children’s upbringing, and the children know that they have someone that they can always turn to.  Godparents are expected to attend birthday parties, graduations and other significant events in the children’s life.  Most importantly, they accept the responsibility of raising the child if the parents are unable to fulfill that role.  


Have your children/grandchildren been dedicated?  What were you expectations of the God parents?





My Little Diva – Beach Fail

My Myrtle Beach vacation is over.  I could use another one, this time without the kids. They require energy, lots of energy. The weather was beautiful for the majority of the week, we had a great time.  


Things didn’t go as we had hoped with my little diva. She’s modeling her new bikini in the photos above, but that is as much use as she got out of it.  In a previous post, I talked about how Zarriah wasn’t fond of the beach. Well, she’s still not fond of the beach.  We attempted to take her to the beach twice during our vacation.  The first day, she lasted about 30 minutes. She decided that she wasn’t interested in building sand castles, she rather munch on chips.  After a few handfuls, she wanted to return to the condo.  Thank goodness her grandfather was there, he’s not fond of the beach either so it worked out.  He was happy to babysit while we enjoyed the beach.  






The second day out we took her out in her new bikini.  It didn’t end well, she said a fly got on her sandcastle and on her belly.  She wasn’t having any part of it.  She insisted that she be returned to cleanliness and she wanted the bikini off immediately.  What’s a diva to do?  This one decided to eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and watch cartoon network.  She was perfectly content, and later decided to take a nap.  After all a girl needs her beauty sleep.  


Needless to say the beach is not working out with this diva.  We’re looking at the Disney cruise for next year’s vacation.  Do you have a diva?  How do you handle yours?



Cooking With Kids

Cooking with your children is a great way to spend quality time together.  It gets them involved in meal preparation and forms memories of making sweet treats with grandma.  My little Zarriah loves Groundies, otherwise known as brownies.  She hasn’t quite mastered her B’s yet, so Groundies it is.  We decided to make a batch on our vacation and as you can see she is having a great time helping Mawmaw whip up a batch.  The best part of making Groundies is her licking the spoon while waiting for the brownies to bake.  

I started cooking with her brother 6 years ago, and I wanted to carry on the tradition with her. This was our first brownie making session together, so I cherished the moment and memories.  We had as much fun eating them as we did baking them.  I have found that getting children involved in meal preparation or working together to fix treats helps to combat the Picky Eater Syndrome. I must say she’s not as picky as her brother, which makes life in the kitchen a little easier. I’m looking forward to many brownie and other cooking sessions with my granddaughter.  Do you cook with your children?  What’s dishes do you make together?   

Parenting 101 Please

Image-Parenting-101

 

If I read one more story about a child being abandoned, left in a hot car, neighborhood parks while mom is working or carjacked while mom is paying for gas I’m going to scream. I read these stories, and I’m in disbelieve.  It’s one after the other. People need a licence to have a dog, but anyone can be a parent. There’s no background checks, credit checks, education requirement, income requirement, we can just procreate. Many can’t afford to buy a box of pampers or can of milk for their child, but they have them and with no thought on how they’re going to take care of them. Providing a safe and productive life is an afterthought.   
[Read more…]

If You Want To Be Mentored You Must Show Up

People can be transparent if you’re willing to look hard enough.  Several months ago I was contacted by a young lady to be her mentor.  As a single mother who survived raising my daughter, I reach out and try to help other single mothers on how they can be successful too.  I can relate to being a teen mom, getting married, divorced, and left to raise my daughter and fend for myself.  I don’t post about my mentoring sessions on Mother 2 Mother, because of privacy reasons.  It’s personal for me and personal for the person being mentored, but I do post on my experiences because moving forward is hard work and not for the faint at heart. If I can pull someone else up or help move them forward, it does my heart good.   

Being raised in a dysfunctional/alcoholic home, teen mom and divorced category was enough for me. I knew I had to break the cycle, and so I did. Breaking out of these categories requires a willingness to listen, accept where we come from, and hard work to get out of it.     

Before I accept a position as a mentor for young ladies and not so young I have a test that I give. It lets me know if the person who is requesting to be mentored is serious about growing and moving forward, if they’re willing to do the necessary work to survive as a single mother, and allows me to see where their head is.  I ask 4 questions and I require a written response.  I like for it to be in writing so they can reference it during the course of their journey and it serves as a reminder of where they started when they arrive finally at their destination. Here’s the questions:  

  1. Tell me about your life and how you ended up where you.
  2. Tell me about your children and your relationship with your ex.   
  3. Where do you want to be in 5 years?
  4. Are you willing to work to educate and better yourself?  If so, list 5 goals.    
I never heard from the young lady again.  She must have thought I had a magic wand and all that was required was me waving it in front of her.  If only life was that easy. I saw right through her when I didn’t receive a response.  She wanted an easy way out, unfortunately there is no easy way out.  Ladies, this is why we need to make wise decisions in our life.  People who look for a easy way out don’t realize they are transparent.  I see you!  She really didn’t want a mentor, she just wanted me to give her a solution.  Excuses and why you can’t do this or that will not take you down the road of success.  Excuses are a way for you to stay where you are.  My response, more power to you. If you don’t think that you can do better why should I. If  you can’t answer basic questions, you’re not willing to do the work and you’re not going anywhere anyway.  

Reminds me of this single mom who choose to stay at home with her child, but was asking others for thousands of dollars to help pay her bills.  If you can’t pay your bills, maybe you’re not in a position to be a stay at home mom, hello. Thousands of single mothers go to work everyday, so they can pay bills and their children turn out just fine. Just as important, if you want someone to mentor you, show up and be prepared to do the work. What I’m saying doesn’t have anything to do with me thinking I’m better or not having empathy for another’s position or situation, but sometimes we just need to get real, take a good look at ourselves in the mirror, and realize that we’re where we are because of decisions that we make. If it’s not improving your life and moving your forward, why stay in the situation and continue doing the same things over and over. You must be willing to open your eyes, and take a good look at why you’re where you are. True, there are many who have fallen on hard times or have ended up in a bad situation, but you don’t have to stay there. It’s a choice.  

Over the course of the years I realized that I don’t have to see things your way and you don’t have to see things my way.  That’s the beauty of living in this great country, but this is my blog so I’m writing from the way I see things.  I know that we don’t all have the same situations nor are our experiences the same, but some things are universal.  When you get real, stop making excuses for yourself and what you don’t want to do, you’ll put yourself in a position to do what you need to do.  

Image courtesy of clipart101.net. 

Take Your Children With You

                                        Photo Courtesy of Hong Nguyen 





What does this picture say to you?  A thousand words come to
my mind, but what it really speaks to me is Take Your Children With You.  All it takes
is a split second for someone to snatch your child.  Is this picture real enough
for you?  
I’m so thankful this precious baby was found safe after being
left under a bush along a Houston road by a carjacker.  I can only image the horror this poor mother felt, when she saw her car being driven away with her 8 month old baby in the back seat. 



Now that I know the baby is safe, I have to ask what the
mother was thinking leaving the baby alone in the car at a gas station.  She stepped inside to pay for gas, and when she looked out the window she saw her car being driven away.  Now I’m
not excusing the carjacker’s crime, a criminal is a criminal.  Let’s just put
him behind bars where he belongs when he is caught.  Better yet, let’s chain him to the bush where he
left the baby and just leave him there for a while.  Let’s see how he likes it.  Can you imagine the things that could have happened to this child just being left under a bush along a road?  Luckily, a jogger heard her crying, when to look for her and than called the police.  An Amber Alert had been issued.  

How many times have we watched television and shed tears
for a mother who left her child in the car for a moment and they vanished.  How
many times have we seen mothers crying because they only turned their back for a
second and their child just disappeared?  How many times has it been said, don’t
leave your child/children alone in the car?  When when we learn?  

Why do we think child snatching only happens to other
people?  We’re always the exceptions aren’t we?  People are proven wrong day
after day.  To a point where I had to stop watching Nancy Grace who is an
advocate for children.  Nancy comes locked and loaded, but I just couldn’t
stomach all the stories about children disappearing or being abused night after
night.  I admire her tenacity and the fact that she is an advocate for children,
but her show just became too much.  Now that I’m thinking about it, maybe watching her show for about a month should be a requirement for all parents.  I
guarantee you will walk away believing that it is unsafe to leave your child
alone in a car in a public area for even a second. 

We must be aware of our surroundings at all times and we must
never make the mistake of leaving our children alone in the open for a second. 
The world has changed people, and if you don’t take heed you will find yourself
a victim of the heartless, senseless, criminals that prey on the naive and
unsuspecting.  They stand behind you in
the grocery store line, they hold doors open for you, and they wait until you
let your guard and they spring on you.  There’s no profile for them, but there
is one for us.  We see the world through rose colored glasses and we will
eventually leave the door open for a crime to be committed because we’re naive and unsuspecting. 

Yep, we want to believe that the United States of America is
still standing on a foundation of honesty, goodwill, peace and love. 
We still believe that a hand shake and our word will bond us or simply a smile. It’s a different world in which we we live people and we need to wake up.  We ask who would harm an innocent child?  There are many, who would harm your child in a blink of an eye.  



I’m sure the carjacking and her missing baby will haunt this mother forever, but I pray that she can find peace now.   

Creating Family Traditions





Do you  have family traditions? You know things you do regularly with family.  I have several traditions that I have started with my grandchildren. I think traditions are important.   Children look back at their childhood and remember the times family spent together.  It’s an opportunity to bond and establish happy times together.  It gives them something to look forward to. Hopefully they will pass on a few or at least create traditions of their own. 

I remember going to Hershey Park every summer as a child.  We would go on a bus hired by the church.  For years my mother would go.  As we got older she allowed us to go alone, but had one of the chaperons look out for us.  I must say that I had great memories of mom when she went. She packed picnic baskets full of sandwiches, potato salad and all the trimmings.  I remember those ham sandwiches as the best I ever had.  I still think about them.  My father always worked, so he didn’t go with us.  We always brought back these huge Hershey bars for him.  He had a sweet tooth, but never gained an ounce.  Oh how I wish I had those genes.  He would freeze the candy bars and enjoy them through the year.   


Another tradition was going to grandma and granddaddy’s every Sunday for dinner.  There would be fried chicken, homemade biscuits, gravy and all the trimmings.  My mother’s sisters and brothers would be there with their families, we always had a great time.  We played ball, taught each how to flip and cartwheel and discussed boys.  We bring up those Sundays when we get together.  


King’s Dominion and Ocean City were the traditions that I started with my daughter.  My mother had a tradition with her grandchildren too.  Every Friday we would meet there with our children and she would make pizza bread.  The children still talk about grandma’s pizza bread to this day. They bonded on those Friday nights, and for the most part they are still close.    


We’ve made a week at Myrtle Beach a new tradition in the family.  My sister and her family will be joining us this year.  These pictures were taken there last year.  That’s my daughter, her children and her dad who also joins us at the top.  Even though we’re divorced, I include him as much as possible.  I want the grandchildren and my daughter to have memories of all of us being together and no strife.  He loves them as much as I do, we just fall out of love with each other.  So we decided to co-grandparent.  It’s working.    




This is a picture of the kids at the aquarium.  Do you see the snake in the background.  Oh my. We spend time at the beach, eating at our favorite restaurants, or playing games inside.  I’m sure the kids will have wonderful memories. In the fall, we head to the pumpkin patch for hay and pony rides.  At Christmas, we bake cookies.  The children can look forward to these traditions for quite a long time.

Do you have traditions established with your children?  Leave a comment and let us know what they are.  

Is Your Child A Cyber Bully



Why aren’t more parents monitoring what their children are doing on-line?  The answer most parents give is because they are intimidated by the computer.  They lack computer skills, don’t have a smart phone and they really aren’t interested in learning how to use one.  As parents, we must be involved in what’s happening in our child’s life, especially in the age of modern technology.  From one mother to another, I think it’s imperative that we get involved in our children’s activities and stop thinking they’re doing the right thing and don’t need to be monitored.  

As parents we all want to think that we’ve raising angels and our children know right from wrong.  We’re shocked when we get a call to come into the school for inappropriate behavior from our child, when we receive a call from jail to bail them out or the cop knocks on the door to deliver bad news.  We all think that these things couldn’t possibly happen to us, these situations happen in other people’s homes.  So why should we concern ourselves.  How many times have you heard, my child would never do that!

I can give you a few reasons.  Did you hear about the Florida teens, 15 and 16, that were arrested for setting up a phony Facebook page that was X-rated several years ago.  They were charged with pasting the face of a school mate, whom they didn’t like, on a nude body and filled the page with foul language.  They thought it was a joke. They were charged with felony stalking.    


How about the young lady that committed suicide last year because she was bullied.  We must overcome our fears.  A blogger recently experienced cyber bullying with her daughter.  As a matter of fact her blog was down for most of a day because it was hacked. Bullying is real, and it wrecks havoc on families.  A teen in my neighborhood committed suicide a few years ago.  If we as a parents won’t face our fears, how do we encourage our children to face theirs?  


Here are a few suggestions on how to overcome the fear of the computer and how you can get involved to help stop cyber bullying:

  • If you don’t consider yourself to be technically savvy, take a class or better yet get your child to teach you.  They love showing off their computer skills.  
  • Ask questions about your child’s friends and what’s happening in their life.  Follow them on sites popular with teens and make sure you have access to their accounts.  
  • Ask other parents, aunts, uncles, sisters and brothers to stay involved with your children on-line.  We can’t monitor our children 24/7, but you can recruit family and friends to assist.  It takes a village to raise a child.    
  • Computer etiquette starts at home.  Have conversations with your child or children on what’s appropriate or inappropriate to put on-line.  If they’re minors, you’re in control and you need to let them know you’re ruling the roost.  They must follow rules that you have set for on-line activities.   
  • Discuss the consequences of cyber stalking and the legalities of posting inappropriate posts. It’s illegal and the consequences are certainly worth a conversation with your child. 

Do you see the importance of keeping up with your child?  Better yet stay in front of them so you can lead.  If you can’t stay in front of them stay beside them.  Taking a class is cheaper than paying a lawyer to get your child out of a felony for on-line harassment or other effects from bullying.  Would love to know your thoughts on this post and how you monitor your child’s on-line activities.    


You may also like:     15 Tips to Detect If Your Child Is Being Bullied

Photo compliments of www.stockvault.net