11/20/2009

Robo nurse to the rescue?

Scientists and for profit companies are working at breakneck speed to create products to help the large Baby boomer population. Anyone interested in a Robo nurse? I’ll pass on this one.

11/19/2009

Single Parenting, Dating and the Bedroom

Is it safe to have sex again? Well maybe. Recently I moved from a one-bedroom to a more spacious two-bedroom apartment and for the first time in two years I have my own private space.

Excuse me while I do a little dance.

Does this mean I’m ready to date? How do single parents do it? Do they sneak in the “friend with benefits” after hours and lock the bedroom door? Or do they only date when the child is at the home of the other custodial parent? What happens if (gasp!) the child walks in and…. You fill in the rest.

Thoughts of celibacy are spinning in my head.

Which brings me back to the bedroom.

Yes I’m a parent, but I’m still a person too. I’ve spent a year with the “tap turned off” if you know what I mean, I’d like to go out on a date.

New bedroom and it’s time to turn the “tap” back on.

Other single parents please chime in, but here’s what I think:

Be discreet, not everyone needs to know you’re dating or turning on the “tap.”
Put a lock on the bedroom door. Train the kids that your room is your private space.
No need to introduce everyone you date, to your kids. Not everyone loves a parade.

- Aunt B

11/18/2009

My name is Mama and I have an addiction

When it comes to food, I am totally addicted. A bad mood, or even worst, a bad day can be completely erased with the right mixture of meat, veggies, potatoes, and a colorful drink.

Friendships have been made and lost over food. I still remember the time I thanked a ‘distant-relative’ by taking her out for lunch. She did the unthinkable and ordered soup, salad, a martini, a lobster dinner (market priced) and dessert. I was a mere college sophomore and could barely feed myself, let alone pay for a seafood feast. Needless to say, she doesn’t get much love around the holidays.

Today, one of my biggest obsessions is Carrot, Apple, Beet juice from the Whole Foods Juice Bar. I know, it sounds awful. Who in their right mind would want to drink carrot, apple, beet juice? Me. It is actually quite tasty. Oh, and the health benefits are amazing. It is an energy booster, colon cleanser, and immunity booster all rolled in one.

What is your addiction?

- Mama

11/17/2009

Fighting Lupus: My personal story

Every Tuesday Mama shares a personal story.
This week’s story was written by an Anonymous person
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I’m a 38 year old single mom with a 17 year old son. I was diagnosed with Lupus 15 years ago and have had it come and go in and out of remission.

About six years ago it came out with a vengeance. We have tried every known medication, treatment, chemo all to no avail. Now my only hope is that a stem cell transplant will work, or that God will come and heal me. I don’t feel that my work here is done and I have been unwilling to give up the fight. But it’s been hard.

I went from doing all kinds of volunteer work with kids every day and working two jobs for me and my son, to being pretty much sentenced to a chair. I have been unable to do much, especially in the past year. The fatigue and pain gets unbearable. I cry over stupid things and wish that this was one big nightmare. But it’s not, it’s real and it doesn’t want to let go.

It’s hard on my family, especially my mom, to see me this way and I fight for all of them. But, what I do now isn’t living, especially when I used to be so active.

I pray all the time and I don’t understand why my prayers haven’t been answered. At first I said, I’ll go through this if it means one person could be helped. I still mean this, but with each passing day it gets harder to say that.

No one in my family has Lupus and I thank God for that every day. I would gladly take the pain for any of them. I spent most of 07 and 08 in the hospital. I was Lifeflighted eight times that year and they nearly lost me twice.

There are no support groups, not that I could get out anyway’s, in my area. I happen to stumbled up on this web site. If I can say one thing is that you can’t give up. You have to find that one thing in life that means everything to you and fight for it. Someday, someway, they will find the right answers to Lupus, and I hope I’m around to see and receive them.

- Anonymous

11/16/2009

Mama’s Monday Favorite: Trees for the Future

Mama loves trees. When I’m having a bad day, I make a mad dash to the local park or the Los Angeles County Arboretum. When I found Trees for the Future, I knew it was a match made in heaven. Through them, I can plant trees, trees, and more trees.

Trees for the Future is based in Silver Springs, Maryland. Trees for the Future has worked to develop sustainable agroforestry programs in developing countries around the world since 1989. They work directly with communities and plant specific trees that meet the needs of the community. In 2007, over 9 million trees were planted by Trees for the Future and they hope to plan 250 million in 2009.

To find out more, plant your own trees, or get involved via volunteering, check them out online at Trees for the Future. Or, become a fan of MamasHealth on Facebook and we’ll plant a tree for you.

- Mama

11/15/2009

Mama Wants to Help: List of homeless shelters, food banks, and winter resources

Mama wants to help: A list of food banks, homeless shelters, WIC program, and winter resources.

11/14/2009

Why I Love Freecycle

I picked up a box of yarn today from a stranger who met me at a Waffle House.

“I always meant to take up knitting,” she said. “But you know how it goes!”

I do. Over the years, I’ve given away boxes of scrapbooking supplies, a pasta maker, three different sets of workout equipment and a cake decorating kit that never even made it out of its plastic wrapping. I’m usually pretty good about not buying things that I don’t need, but every once in a while I succumb to the lure of something that seems irresistible. Surely, if I just have a set of hand weights I’ll work out every day or not.

And that’s why I love Freecycle. It gives those dusty dumbbells and unopened pasta kits a chance at a home where they will be welcomed and used. Basically, Freecycle is a site where people can post their unwanted stuff for other people to check out. It’s divided into a bunch of local sites so you¹re regularly alerted to freebies in your neighborhood.

It’s also a great resource for shopping without spending a cent. In addition to this week’s haul of yarn, I’ve scored a ton of great things from Freecycle. I got my first set of canning jars (and a lot of friendly advice) from a Freecycle post. My daughter’s desk was a Freecycle find that we cleaned up and painted. But even better, I’ve given away a ton of stuff on
Freecycle that might otherwise have ended up in a landfill or as permanent clutter in our house.

Now I’m sorting through a box of yarn, delighted to find a hank of perfect pink for Annie’s new winter hat. At the bottom of the box is a pile of old quilting magazines, something I always thought would be fun to get into.

You know how it goes!

- Lucy

11/13/2009

Oops, I’m sorry

It is estimated that medical mixups happen all the time. Sometimes it is a blotched procedure, sometimes it is the wrong medical prescription.

How to avoid a medical mix-up: