I watch television shows like “Survivorman” and “Man vs. Wild” with keen interest.  Not that I’d ever find myself in a situation where I’d have to urinate in the water to attract a shark so I can jump on top of it, wrestle it, and have some protein for dinner…

Still, I wonder what kind of boys these TV hosts must have been to grow into men knowing this.  What kind of heart attacks did their mothers have as the boys brought in bark to boil for tea or edible bugs for dinner.  Did the moms stress when the kids went camping with their scouting troop?  Did they hyperventilate if Dad took them hiking?

I have never had boys to raise but my friends who do say they are very different from raising girls.  Boys - they say - tend to be more boisterous and fearless.  They won’t blink an eye to climb up on a roof to jump onto the back of a truck.  They will scamper up a tree to throw down a parachuted plastic army guy.

The worst that happened to my kids is when my oldest climbed a bookcase that wasn’t attached to the wall.  It fell over, but was thankfully stopped by another piece of furniture before hitting my daughter.

What’s the most dangerous thing your child did while growing up?

Erin has a Facebook account.  Not very many people DON’T have Facebook accounts these days.  I watch her account fairly closely to make sure that she minds her manners and that her friends do the same.

However, my phone started ringing this afternoon at about 4:45 p.m. from parents calling about a photo that was posted.  It was pornography and my daughter was tagged in the picture.

It seems like Erin accepted a friend request from a “girl” who was also friends with 20 other of her friends.  She accepted it thinking, “Oh. She must go to my high school.”  About three days later the photo appeared.  I won’t say what it was and I know the definition of “obscene” is based on how a local community defines it.  But I assure you, no matter what community you live in - even by the loosest standards - that community would say, “Oh heck no.  That is obscene!”

Thankfully I had my daughter’s password so went in to the account, reported Hillary C. (email me if you want to know her full name) to the administrators at Facebook, untagged my daughter’s picture, and unfriended her.  I had to do all that in order to remove it from everyone’s pages… from her grandparents, our family friends, aunts, uncles, cousins… and all 546 friends she has.

I think it’s time she cleans up her friend list.  Or I’ll be doing it for her.  Keep an eye on your child’s accounts, parents.  Bad things happen to good people.

Photo by Lawton Chiles via flickr creative commons.

It’s finally come down to a question of protecting our property at my house.  About three months ago, some kids pranked my daughter and ordered about 10 pizzas to be delivered.  It made me feel really badly for the Domino’s delivery man.

About two months ago, someone egged our house and cars.  At that point, I called the parents of the suspects and we chatted.  Both denied their children were involved although the dogs “for some reason” barked like crazy about 30 minutes after our house was “attacked” (we think perhaps the kids was coming back home about that time and the dogs were barking at him).

Then last week our car windows were shaving creamed, door handles and gas tank covers were smeared with petroleum jelly, and our bushes were toilet papered.  We filed a police report.

Now I just hope they come back.

Come on you little hooligans! We’re ready for you with our new security camera!!

I sent my daughter back to school yesterday after almost two weeks of the virus from hell.  We were fortunate that her illness arrived along with the big snow Tennesseans received a couple of weeks ago so she actually only ended up missing four official school days.  She’s still not completely herself, but after one antibiotic, one steroid pack, one inhaler, one bottle of codeine cough syrup, and AT LEAST one bottle of children’s ibuprofen, she’s well enough to return to school.

I have been so fortunate to be at home with my children during their early years, and it has not been much of a struggle to keep her at home during illnesses. For the last three years, I have been searching out full-time employment, and my chief concern has been that of childcare (for both my two-year-old son, and my school aged daughter when she is sick or out for breaks).  Still, I remain very dedicated to obeying the rules laid out for keeping my children home if they are sick. I believe for everyone’s sake that ALL parents should do the same.

Although attendance policies vary slightly from one school system to another or one daycare to another, there are a few basic rules that usually remain the same.  A child should be kept at home if he/she is experiencing one or more of the following symptoms:

- Vomiting

- Diarrhea

- Contagious rash

- Fever – Most all systems require a child to be FEVER FREE for 24 hours before returning to school/daycare.

This is our first year at the school my daughter attends. I admit that I have not seen first-hand sick children at school. However at the school she previously attended, I listened to a father describe his son’s night spent on the bathroom floor by the toilet (the school had called him to pick up his son due to vomiting and high fever).   I witnessed the mom in the car in front of me in the drop off line administer fever reducer to her child as the child got out of the car.  And I came in contact with several parents who “masked” their children’s fevers and sent them to school, realizing that the timing of the fever meds would allow for a full day of instruction without the visible fever. That is NOT fever free!!!

So, here’s what’s happening…I’m keeping my child home for the average two to three day period. I send her back, where she’s exposed to the children who should have been kept home, but were not. Two weeks later, my child is home sick again.  Now my theory…

If we suck it up, and keep our children home when they need to be home (until they have been fever free for 24 hours), then send them back, eventually, shouldn’t we see children healthier as a whole??? And doesn’t that benefit all of us?

Article by Mandi A.

My teenager Erin has to wear a thong and it bugs the bejeezus out of me.  She wears it under her parade corps costume for baton twirling so no underwear line will show - and honestly they aren’t even supposed to wear them then.  But I still let her, because… gross.  You know?  Let the demerits commence.

Full disclosure here - I have never worn a thong nor have any desire to wear one.  I’d feel like I was in a constant state of wedgie and much to my daughters’ embarrassment, I have no qualms about digging them out.  I do try to be discreet or I try to laugh it off.  But out they come.

All this big introduction to say that I agree with Trisha over at MomDot.com and her feelings of “disturbia” and “vomit” about young girls in thongs.  She takes on a comment from one of her readers who is a single dad and sees nothing wrong with his girls in thongs,

Even so, I cant even imagine at 9 years old that its appropriate for your daughter to be walking around in a THONG around the house with just a cami on. That draws the line for me.

And as a father, especially a single father who has to work even harder on the growth of a child, I cant imagine how this would ever be acceptable.

Trisha, I’ve got to throw in my support for your opinion.  Just … ew.  And I agree with your dad to save all the IP addresses from the perverted commenters and turn them over to the police.  For serious.

Nope. No picture today.

A group of Moms paid a visit this week to Washington, DC and the majestic Capitol Hill.  They were on a mission to find someone to support common sense.  After all, what federal politician wouldn’t agree to the pleas, “We are simply asking for you to support common sense…”

There is a growing problem in this nation of ours where our children are abusing cough medicine.  Morningside Mom tells us about the problem,

The Partnership for Drug Free America also reports that “41 percent of teens mistakenly believe that abuse of medicines is less dangerous than abuse of illegal street drugs.” And when teens do abuse dextromethorphan, it has been found that they take 20 - 50 times the recommended dosage which equates to consuming multiple bottles of cough medicine at one time.

The group of women writers got to have dinner with Dr. Drew Pinsky - compassionate rehabilitation doctor who also happens to help celebrities with their addictions.  Yes, I watch those shows.  Yes, I do fall into the public heap of caring about celebrities even though they have no clue who I am.

Dr. Drew went on to the Hill with a group of concerned parents, FIVE MOMS, who united to put an end to the abuse of cough medicine for the ingredient dextromethorphan - a key component in cough medicine.  In DC, they met with both U.S. Representatives and Senators (and/or their legislative staff).  Will there be results?  Perhaps.  But there’s a lot of politicking to be done first, no doubt.

Meanwhile, what can YOU do as a Mom, Dad, Grandparent, Reader?  I’m hoping I don’t break copyright infringement rules, but I’m pasting a good chunk of this from Morningside Mom’s post so I don’t risk you not clicking through to read what you can do yourself to be aware and respond to this growing problem.

First of all, every parent should educate themselves. Go to StopMedicineAbuse.org to learn more about the risks, the facts, how dextromethorphan is abused and what signs to look for.

Secondly (and probably MOST importantly) you need to discuss this drug and its risks with your teens. Don’t find yourself assuming your sweet innocent child would never do this. Don’t find yourself dealing with a future overdose just like Misty Fetko did.

Thirdly, read medicine labels, look for the educational icon (see at right) and keep careful tabs on what you have in your medicine cabinets. If you see this icon on a medicine label, you should be aware that it has the potential to be abused and may contain dextromethorphan.

Finally, contact your elected officials to voice your support for them to DO SOMETHING that can help our youth.  And tell Five More Moms about this.