Month: August 2008

The DNC Invasion

I am going to be honest right up front. I am a staunch Obama supporter. Usually we don’t talk about such things here on Mile High Mamas, but given the fact that the Democratic National Convention has taken over our town this week and the big speech will go down this evening at Invesco, there was nothing else I could write about today, now was there? It is all certainly historic, if not energizing. (Depending on your point of view, of course.) But besides the politics, has the last week been surreal or what? It’s been overwhelming. Both in terms of the amazing energy *and* the wild ride anyone living or visiting downtown has witnessed. The amount of people, media, controversy and celebration has been like nothing we Denverites have ever seen. And while I don’t understand t...

You’re so vain. You probably think this post is about you.

Lori blogs from a Denver suburb about mindful living at Weebles Wobblog and about her twisty journey to become a mom at Drama 2B Mama, She also dishes about good buys at All Thumbs Reviews. Writing sometimes helps her to recall bits of herself that she once gave away. Her great dream would be for her son and daughter to keep their soul-bits to themselves and never have to do such a recall. Is that even possible? He was 19, two years older than I. Because I had been a band-weenie in high school (flute, thank you very much), it was quite a social promotion for me to wear his letter jacket at our small college. He — the artist, the poet, the football star, the Paul McCartney look-alike — he was interested in little ol’ freshman me. “Paul” and I were together less...

The Smallest Gift

At the end of February, I embarked on a journey to save my father’s life. At the time, I didn’t really know just how much I would have to endure. Perhaps it is best. I brought my then 9-month-old son along, creating a separation from my husband that was the longest we’ve ever tolerated. It was far more difficult than we all had prepared ourselves for. My father had ignored his health and become bed-ridden. He was in complete denial about the state of his body, and that is why I flew back to Texas. I was the only one who could badger and anger him enough to do something about it. His stubbornness was matched only by his need to keep secrets. A week and a half trip ended up being over a month long. Within two days of my stay, I had put my father into the hospital. He was diagnosed with sever...

Parents’ goals for their children: A study

There are certain things that we all want for our kids. Generally speaking, they are the same things we want for ourselves: health and happiness, right? Oh, and eventually enough money in the bank to pay for health and happiness. From there, the individual parent’s list of wants either grows a little or becomes something that rivals The Polar Circle Marathon in regard to length and degree of difficulty. Number one on my mother’s list of goals was to make sure her children were respectful to their elders. When we were given a directive by my father, we were taught to call him “sir��? when replying. “Yes, sir.��? “No, sir.��? “Ten-four copy that, sir.��? We acknowledged every adult that came into our home and then quietly left them to their business. When visiting other homes, we greeted eve...

Career vs. Stay at Home: How Did You Decide?

I was contacted a couple of months ago by a book publisher. I know. Me. The email appeared as I was being forced to get jiggy with my daughter and her favorite movie, The 12 Dancing Princess. As I strained to read the email’s contents, Hadley reprimanded me I was not “keeping form��? with my pirouettes. This, from the girl who performed an impromptu solo at her dance recital. The query came from a leading publisher in the outdoor industry. The company was looking for someone with a travel writing background to write a guidebook on hiking with children in Colorado. I went through my mental checklist: Hiking? Love it. Children? Have them. Colorado? Live there. It was the perfect fit! Or was it? After the initial euphoria wore off, I sat down to weigh the pros and cons of accepting an assignm...

Belle Baby Carrier Giveaway!

[photopress:bellecarrier.jpg,full,pp_image]If the Olympics are inspiring you to get up and go, Mile High Mamas has the perfect giveaway for you…even with baby in tow! I first stumbled upon Belle Baby Carriers at a baby expo a few months ago. This Boulder-owned company launched locally just two years ago and since then has grown to serve more than 200 domestic retail outlets and can be purchased in eight different countries. What makes it so popular? Unlike other baby carriers and baby slings, the Belle Baby Carrier distributes your baby’s weight to your hips instead of your back and shoulders, and it positions your baby in a proper, ergonomic position that supports your baby’s developing spine.

Mama Blogger of the Month–Heidi of Outdoor Baby!

[photopress:Heidi.jpg,full,pp_image]We are pleased to feature Heidi of Outdoor Baby as our Mama Blogger of the Month! She is a mom of one and has gone beyond just enjoying the outdoors to creating a blog and Web site to help others do it, too. Tell us about your “Outdoor Family!” My “Outdoor Family��? is comprised of my husband Erik (our fifth anniversary was on August 5th) and our daughter Cora (age two). Erik and I were both working for Outward Bound in Canada when we met and we’ve had lots of outdoor adventures since then. Now that we have Cora we try to find outdoor activities that we can all enjoy together. She loves to point out different flora she can identify (juniper, pine, flowers, sage, and cactus), and look at rocks and insects when we’re ‘amping’ (camping). What is...

The Cap is on the Summer of 2008

These are the best years of my life. My kids are old enough to take care of their own bathroom duties and young enough to still believe that I know it all. We’ve had so much fun this summer. We have biked, traveled, and swam. Often when I am soaking up the sun and watching my kids swim I find myself humming the Jim Croce song, “Time in a Bottle.��? If I could save time in a bottle The first thing that Id like to do Is to save every day Till eternity passes away Just to spend them with you I’m sure when Mr. Croce penned those lines he imagined a wine bottle with a tattered label and a wooden cork. It definitely conjures up a more romantic image than the receptacle I chose to capture the summer of 2008…a Mason jar.

PEE-PEE YIN AND YANG

Though I’ve lived in the Pacific and Mountain time zones for the last 12 years, my DNA is purely East Coast. I’m more than willing to be a Good Samaritan, but certainly not at the expense of my own convenience. As you can see from this photo, I’m sitting in LAX, staring at the gate from which my flight to Denver has recently departed. Departed…..sans moi….as you may have surmised. So what went wrong, Mitch? Overslept from a hangover? Nope. Too much LA traffic? Not at all, the cab ride from Santa Monica went like clockwork. Long security line? Ut ah, buzzed right through. So why aren’t you writing this at 40,000 feet, Mitch? Well…let me tell you.

So Like Dad

My husband Bryan has always been a conscientious objector. Not so much in the political way, but more in that he just likes to do things differently than everyone else. Everyone says yes? He says no. They turn right, he goes off the path entirely and finds a whole new route. At first, it was unsettling and almost made me walk away from the relationship. But I came to realize that someone who thinks a little differently than the crowd is a force to be reckoned with. And certainly *never* boring. Enter Declan. At nearly 6, he is absolutely a mix of both of us. Both physically and emotionally. But he never was more like his father on this day, a few weeks ago, when Bryan picked him up from summer camp. Declan: “We were all playing Animal Club again today.” [He and his friends had ...

This Mama’s Love Affair With the Olympics…and JumboTron

I absolutely love the Olympics! In my long, illustrious life, I have been privileged to live in two Olympic cities: Calgary and Salt Lake City. I was only 16 when the Olympics came to my hometown but old enough to attend many of the events. In the evenings, my friends and I would head down to the Olympic Plaza for the medals ceremony and hang with folks from all over the world. I still remember how cool we thought it was to get hit on by drunken Europeans (we obviously didn’t get out much back in those days.) In 2002, I was living in Salt Lake City when the Olympics arrived. For my birthday, my friend Dave suggested we try to buy some hockey tickets for the Canada vs. Finland quarterfinals. For those Americans out there who have blocked this out: Canada swept the hockey golds that ye...

Back-to-School Shirt and Kodak Pack Giveaway

Congratulations to Anne E., winner of our $100 gift certificate for Best Buy! [photopress:kindergarten_rocks.jpg,full,pp_image]In case you are in denial, school starts very soon. For some: this week. To celebrate your newfound freedom children’s education, we are helping them go back to school in style with a message that rocks! verimeri is a kid-designed clothing label that features positive messages to help kids start the school year with great attitude and style. verymeri’s freshly designed t-shirt collection includes messages such as “Pre-School Rocks,â€? “Kindergarten Rocks,â€? “Go Green,â€? and “Blast Off!â€? Shirts retail for $24. If you’re anything like me, you never seem to have your camera around for those key moments such as the first day of school. Kodak i...

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