Moving to the dorm...is he ready? Am I ready?

The day is here...my baby...18 years old... is moving out of the house...to the dorm...20 miles away. Ok, ok quit laughing at me! LOL This is hard for me, we are a close family, but I know this will be good for him. Plus, he is really excited about the experience of living on campus this year. He's been attending the U the last 2 years, so he knows the campus well. At least that helps calm some of my fears ;-)

Smaller Cereal Boxes...General Mills & Kelloggs...get real! Thank you Malt-O-Meal!

Smaller cereal boxes...General Mills & Kelloggs...get real! Thank you Malt-O-Meal!

After months of seeing the cereal boxes shrink in size, and the price per ounce increase, I've had enough! As a Mom of 3 teenagers, I want answers. An 8.7 oz box of cereal will maybe be enough for 2 breakfasts...and no, I'm not talking all 3 teens eating 2 breakfasts. I'm talking 2 teens eating 1 breakfast!

Add to that the fact that in our neck of the woods these cereals are going on SALE at $1.97 - $2.50 each. Yes, that's the sale price for many cereals that are as small as 8.7 oz.*thud* At seven days a week x 3 teens, that's 21 a week. Rounding up to 22, that's 11 boxes of cereal a week...at sale price we're talking appx $22 - $28/week...just for cereal!

My kids have grown up on your cereals, and have been eating them for 17 years! The very first cereal they had as toddlers was General Mill's Cheerios. I think this is most kids' first cereal :-)As they got older we started allowing what we call the "sugared" cereals. Today one of their favorites is Kellogg's Fruit Loops. Of course they also like Kellogg's Raisin Bran, Mini Wheats, Frosted Corn Flakes; along with General Mill's Lucky Charms, Trix and Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

However, being the frugal person that I am, I have taken to buying the big bagged cereals from Malt-O-Meal. They offer a very nice variety of my kid's favorite cereals, at a price that is typically much lower per ounce. And after many taste tests, they are overall better tasting than the store labeled generic brands. I've heard they are supposedly made by the big name cereal companies, but we have noticed a lower quality in taste and consistency with some of them.

I'll continue to watch the ads, and I'll continue to clip and use coupons. But I can no longer promise to support the big brand cereal companies who feel the need to squeeze out the little life-long family of consumers.

Get your teen off the couch and on to volunteering

Get your teen off the couch and on to volunteering

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Goal! No, we're not talking hockey

Goal! No, we're not talking hockey

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Dream Analysis...Midgets...Really???

I'm not normally one to document or talk about my dreams with anyone other than my husband. Mainly because they're stupid, or I just don't remember them.

But...last night was one of the most bizarre dreams I've had. We went to a funeral for a dear friend, who happened to be a midget / little person. The son was also a midget / little person, and so was the wife.

After arriving and giving our condolences the wife looked at the high-healed boots my two daughters and I were wearing, and then asks us to remove them so we'll be shorter. We obliged. End of dream.

I'm very glad I don't try to analyze, because I wouldn't even know WHERE to begin with this one LOL

Calvin Klein Billboard - How Do We Stop It?

By now many of you have seen or heard about the provocative Calvin Klein billboard that is in New York. The one with 3 boys and 1 girl (all appear to be late teens, maybe early 20's)...engaging in...well...PDA. PDA=Public Display of Affection. No, I will not be posting the picture here.

In this case it is PDA gone way-over-board.

Yes, most of us over 40 remember the Brooke Shields commercial of yesteryear when she says "You want to know what comes between me and my Calvins? Nothing." It was cutting edge cute at the time. Today it would be quite tame.

There is particular outrage amongst Mothers...both those who see it in person, and those of us on the Internet. In this world of trying to protect our children, especially our daughters, we are disgusted by this "promotion" of sex...add to that the connotation of sex with multiple partners.

So what can we do about it?

First off...if your kids have seen the billboard in any way, talk to them about it. Hopefully they will find it as inappropriate as you do. Keep in mind the age of your child when getting into detail. The younger they are, the more general you should be.

Second...call Calvin Klein. That's right...tell them how you really feel. 1-866-513-0513

Third...stop buying Calvin Klein. I've now heard of Father's Day gifts being returned, because they were a Calvin Klein branded item. I've also heard others say they are no longer buying CK items at all.

Fourth...let's ask ourselves why our society is driven to think that this kind of advertising is OK, and why do advertisers think this is what we want to see to entice us to buy their brand?

And finally...let's hope our children grow up and change the face of this kind of advertising for future generations.

The Emotions Of Graduation

Friday was the big High School Graduation Ceremony. Leading up to it I was fully prepared to be a blubbering idiot during the commencement…I’m a sap. I also invested a lot of time and emotion into raising our children to be great students, and really good people.

To my surprise I didn’t shed a tear! I had this huge pile of Puffs in my purse, and only touched them to move them to an outside pocket of my purse, for easy access. I had worn the waterproof mascara also.

It probably helped that it was chaotic just to get into the gym. The seating was first-come, first-choice on seats. The doors were to open at 6:30...we arrived at exactly 6:30...you should have seen the huge lineup of people outside waiting! My hubby dropped my daughters and I off so we could get a spot in the line while he parked the car.

As we made our way to the gymnasium I kept thinking “Please let us get good seats to take photos from!”

Of course, all of the premier seats were taken by the mass of people in line ahead of us. We did manage to find seats pretty close to the front, but pretty high up.

So, back to the topic…why didn’t I cry?

Maybe it was the lady in front of us who was crying at everything…and I mean everything! The student speeches, the choir’s 1 song, the School Board member’s speech….everything.

More than likely it was seeing how truly happy our son was to be there. As he walked in and took his seat he was looking for us. He really wanted to find where we were. In the masses he finally saw us, and has the best smile on his face! And when he accepted his diploma he looked at us a waved a few times on his walk back to his seat.

The good news is that when we go thru this 2 years from now with our twin daughters we will be the ones “in the know”, and we will be at the head of the line. I wonder if that’s the time I be a blubbering idiot?