New Single Mom Content Coming To A Popular Parenting Website

I spoke with Family.com staff members today and received good news about an already great site; they are actively searching for content geared to single moms. In speaking with the editor, it was clear that she understood that the single parent demographic has changed, and that single parent households are vastly different from those of even just last decade. Yes, we are busy, overworked, and don’t have a lot of time on our hands. We are also educated, empowered and always on the look-out for sound information to help us do our most important jobs – being parents. We do more than just focus on surviving these days, we are constantly looking for ways to truly thrive! With 14 million single parent families in the United States alone, this is a population that is large enough to be focused on – and for positive reasons for a change – by reputable parenting websites.

The information at Family.com is relevant to all moms. With separate pages focused on Food, Parenting, Entertainment, Household, Travel, Holidays and the newly added Self page (where moms can find information on nurturing themselves for a change), the website is a great find for today’s busy mom. With the behind-the-scenes information about upcoming content that will be particularly relevant to single moms however, the site will be even more inclusive, and that is great news for our community.

Dieting Can Be Hell

I've been doing the Nutrisystem diet for 6 days now, and today was a total cheat day. I ate TWO Nutrisystem meals for lunch. Uh huh. I did. I'm so used to eating NFL linebacker portions that my stomach was like, "If you think I'm gonna let you get away with half of what I'm used to for the SIXTH day in a row, you're freakin' crazy, Lady!!!"

I have to stick with this, come hell or high water. I must. I'm tired of not feeling good about how I look. Mama needs to bring sexy back.

Pray for me.

Can You Guess What The Leading Cause Of Death In Women Is?

Most people think it's Breast Cancer. It's not. It's Heart Disease.

There are many factors that lead to heart disease: genetics, environmental stressors, poor diet. So, one of the things that you can do to help keep Heart Disease from darkening your door is by losing excess weight (I'm talking to myself on this one here), and making better food choices. 61% of American women are overweight or obese. And I'm one of those women.

WomenHeart, The National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease, partnered with NutriSystem to help women lose excess weight, learn about portion size, and eat healthier food options by giving 10 women free memberships to NutriSystem to help them lose weight and get to a heart-healthy weight goal. 8 of the women had a big "Getting Red Dress Ready" reveal, where they strutted their "new" bodies in fabulous new red dresses. One woman was given a dress and looked at it like there was no way she would fit into it - and was blown away when she not only fit into it but looked va-va-vavoom hot!

Here's the best part for one of you: one lucky woman gets a FREE week of NutriSystem to help you jumpstart your weightloss and get you on the road to a healthier weight. What do you have to do? Just leave a comment here on why you would like to win the free week from NutriSystem. You can also get another entry by posting about this contest on your blog with a link to this post, as well as yet another entry by tweeting a link to this post with my Twitter handle @singlemamanyc. Good luck!

Please Vote For My Baby And Support An Organization For Single Moms!

I have entered Theo into the Calendar Cutie's Kid Photo Contest. Please vote for his entry today by clicking the link below. This contest is a fundraiser for an organization that supports Single Mothers and voting will cost $5. Please vote for Theo if you can! Thank you SO much!!! Click to vote: https://www.360photocontest.com/contest.asp?page=viewInd&secure=on&id=9739&contestId=39

Sesame Street Live!

The folks over at VEE Corporation, who are the producers of Sesame Street Live, were wonderful enough to give this Blogger Mama and my family tickets to see Sesame Street Live at Madison Square Garden. We went today and we had so much fun. We even got to meet Elmo and Cookie Monster before the show! Theo, who is usually scared out of his mind at events (remember his terror at The Big Apple Circus?), was more than a bit apprehensive when we first sat down, but perked right up when Big Bird came out on stage. And as soon as his beloved Cookie Monster and Elmo came out he was officially sold. He stared raptly at the stage and even shimmied his shoulders here and there to a song or two. Not only was he not terrified - he was having fun. I was so happy!

Keep in mind, Theo doesn't watch TV, and he's never even seen an episode of Sesame Street in his life, but with all the Sesame Street books and stuffed animals we have, he already loves the characters so much. Once I start letting him watch Sesame Street sporadica

lly when he turns three, I know he will be one of its biggest fans. And for those kids that are already watching Sesame Street, going to see them live is such a huge treat. Sesame Street Live will only be in town for the next few weeks, so you'll have to hurry if you're in NYC. If you aren't, check here for when they make it to your area.

I leave you with some pictures of today's festivities. Even if Theo's too little to remember this day, I don't think I will ever forget it. Nothing makes a Mama happier than seeing her cub enjoying himself. I'm truly grateful for today.

And last but not least, my sister Deniz and my niece Jayda (that's not an upset face, that's her saying "CHEEEESE!").

:-)

The Terrible Twos

As I sit here listening to my two year old scream at the top of his lungs because I won't give him ice cream as a mid-morning snack (it's really sorbet because he has a dairy allergy but shhhh), I've come to realize that it takes a special kind of inner discipline not to shake the crap out of a toddler when they're being stubborn or willful, and especially when they're being defiant. Yesterday I told Theo to stop playing in the bathroom sink and when I gently pulled him away from the sink he swatted at me. I used my "You're in BIG trouble now, Mister" voice and said, "You don't hit Mama!", and the violent meltdown that ensued made me literally push him out of the bathroom and lock the door. That was for HIS protection because while my goal is to never discipline him by hitting him, he was about to get knocked out, lol.

Once I calmed down I opened the door. He walked in, crying, and leaned his head against my chest. I held him, reassuring him with only my presence that Mama loves him no matter what but saying nothing because that would've just fanned cooling flames. He quickly stopped crying and went to whatever it was that caught his eye next. I'm so glad I didn't lose my cool to the extent that I hit him because that, for me, will never be a productive way to discipline a child. I know that's a hot topic in parenting - to spank or not to spank, but just like I do not invite anyone to judge my parenting methods I would never judge someone else's. It's hard sometimes, because growing up a Puerto Rican, there was no margin for self-expression as a child. Self-expression as a child? HA! Lol. You did what you were told and you kept you mouth shut or else you got smacked. My Dad very much believed in the old "children should be seen and not heard" way of parenting. Tantrums were met with spankings and that was it, period - end of story. For me though, that just won't do.

Can't say I don't want to sometimes though. Like, well, right now. Breathe, Issa. Breathe.