By Cheryl Bac
E-mail Cheryl Bac
About this blog: I'm a wife, stay-at-home mom, home cook, marathon runner, and PhD. I recently moved to the Silicon Valley after completing my PhD in Social Psychology and becoming a mother one month apart. Before that, I ran seven marathons incl...
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About this blog: I'm a wife, stay-at-home mom, home cook, marathon runner, and PhD. I recently moved to the Silicon Valley after completing my PhD in Social Psychology and becoming a mother one month apart. Before that, I ran seven marathons including Chicago and Boston. Exercise is an integral part of my life. I hope to one day go back to long distance running and tackle the New York City Marathon. Right now I run after my one year old son. Although I am a stay-at-home mom, we are rarely "at home." My mom also stayed at home with my brother and me. She warned me that, although rewarding, it can be isolating. So, with her help, I learned the importance of getting out into the community and meeting other mothers. On the rare occasion when I am at home and have a hand or two free, I squeeze in time to scrapbook. As a new mom, many challenges are thrown my way. I hope my opinions, triumphs, and struggles help experienced parents reminisce, new parents cope, and parents-to-be get an honest glimpse of what the first years of motherhood can entail.
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This morning my son and his friends had fun running around at the park.
None of us parents had expected the temperature to be in the 80s, so many of us came to the park unprepared. Not only did we meet up at a park with very little shade, but many of the kids were dressed in long pants and long shirts. Not exactly summer attire.
When we accidentally go to a play date unprepared, we almost always can keep our kids happy if we pool our resources together. Someone forget sunscreen? toys? a diaper? snacks? water? No worries, most of the time one parent has remembered something that another has forgotten.
It can be hard to figure out exactly what to pack in your diaper bag when you leave the house with little ones. You don't want to lug a huge bag of unnecessary stuff that you will never use, but you also don't want to have to leave an enjoyable outing early just because you left something important at home.
It's nice to sometimes lean on the shoulders of friends when you come unprepared to a play date. And it's especially nice when you can immediately return the favor when they are also in need of an extra hand.