The stinkies!

Kids get older; they smell.

The odors cling to everything. My most recent discovery is how bad shin guards can stink.

As little kids playing soccer, the only thing that got grimy was the uniform after a fall, but generally because of playing after. Someone always seemed to get their hands into the dirt. Had it not been for this dirt, they could wear their uniforms over a few times.

Not anymore.

OMG!

I remember their shin guards still looking new after many wears. As teens, after a few wears I began to notice a smell. Then I noticed a yellowish tint on the what should be white back sides. Sweat? Yuck!

The stench can be described as putrid, vile, offending, etc.

So I started hand washing these odor collectors. I would use a bit of detergent and scrub. I'm thinking of using baking soda next time. I might have my son start carrying dryer sheets to mask the smell in his backpack, too.

Sharing this article I came across via ehow.com: How to Remove Odor from Shin-Guards

Cheers!

Video chats keeping long-distance friendships close

I remember moving away many times in my childhood. The first time that really mattered was after fourth grade. I would never see my friends again. How could I find such good friends elsewhere? I felt that way again a few years later after another move.

Letters and photographs would be the only way to really connect to these friends. A long-distance phone call was a fortune in the early 80s, so that was out of the question.

Eventually, friendships would fade — it was a lot of work keeping in touch. I maintained one friendship, though, until we both married. Then she moved to Japan, and we lost touch. Yes, I've searched for her on Facebook. I had no luck finding her. :(

My daughter just had a very good friend move away. Both were devastated, as I was so many years ago when I said goodbye to my BFF. But they see each other whenever they want thanks to options like Tinychat, FaceTime and Skype. I'm so jealous!

They connect via text, Facebook or a cell call. Calls are rare, though. Still, they get to "talk" regularly.

Now they do miss just hanging out. It's not like they can go swimming together. And I imagine that watching TV or shopping by phone is not the same.

How lucky, though, to be able to still experience daily life with a friend — to see their expression via video at a joke or story about school. It's immediate gratification, and it keeps the friendship vibrant. There's no waiting for the mail to arrive. If they long to hang out, they can be together with the ease of a click. And that's pretty cool.

Cheers!

Parental anxiety: Bus stop edition

Maybe I'm a helicopter parent. I don't like to think I am. I like my kids to figure things out on their own, and do things on their own. But I can't seem to give up on watching over them in a few areas.

For the longest time, I couldn't let them go to the park on their own. Strangers lurk there. Bad things make the news. I just couldn't let go. Today, they can go with their friends, no problem.

Walking to a friend's house also was out of the question, unless I could see the house. I'd walk them or, given the distance, drive them over. Now they ride over on their bikes, and I'm O.K.

The biggest difficulty I've had lately is letting my daughter go to the bus stop on her own. Work calls, so I can't wait for her to get on the bus. And I get anxious. I just don't want anyone seeing her leave the house and walk solo to the stop, especially the landscapers and construction workers that dot the neighborhood.

I'm trying to get over it. What's helped is arming her with a cell phone. O.K., I did that long before so that she could reach me in case of an emergency. But now, the phone is my virtual eyes. I make her text me when she gets to the stop and on the bus. She looks at me sometimes as though she thinks I'm crazy. Maybe I am??

I just want peace of mind. Too many crazy things happen in this world every day. I want to protect my kids from those awful things forever. And yet, they need to learn to do things on their own.

No text makes me go a little nuts. I called her school once to make sure she arrived. The next time she forgot to text, I was no less anxious, but I didn't call. The school would call if she were absent. That was my reassurance that she was O.K.

My daughter says she's not bothered by my overbearing ways (although sometimes she does look annoyed when I remind her to text). "You're just trying to be a good parent."

Yes I am.

Cheers!

Reconnecting at school: Where does time go?

When school started, I intended to do so many things for my kids. Among them: Get back to being involved in their schools.

And here we are, two weeks before the first quarter ends, and I've missed a school meet-the-teacher event, failed to reached out to any of the parent clubs, and have yet to even make a donation — unless you count that box of tissue.

Being a working parent, time isn't always my own. I love my work. I also love my family. I do my best to balance, but it isn't easy.

My kids have been understanding — maybe too understanding. Hmmm. Guess that's expected as they are now in high school and junior high. But I like staying involved. You get to hear a lot from other parents about students, teachers, and — yes — other parents.

I've been feeling guilty about my lack of involvement this year. The insider info, I think, becomes more valuable as they hit the teen years. At least I know where they stand on grades thanks to the web.

When I start sulking, several mom friends quickly prop me up, saying I'm being too hard on myself. They are right. But at the same time, it's not like I can repeat any of these lost years.

So moving into the next quarter, I've set a few goals for myself to feel more connected to their schools:

-If I can't physically be there, I need to at least touch base by email with teacher to find out if they need anything. I shall find out if there's something I can do from home on the weekend, or provide other classroom support.

-I need to meet more moms for coffee and school updates. So while I might not be able to physically help the school, at least I'll get the insider reports on weekends.

-Make sure to include all school events on my outlook calendar, and set email alerts from their schools. Sticking stuff on the refrigerator doesn't work. And expecting that my angels will tell me about event changes...well, that's taking a gamble that they won't forget.

Cheers!