In Sarah Jessica Parker's new movie " I Don't Know How She Does It," Parker plays a working mom who is juggling two kids, a busy job as an investment banker, and being a wife. While her career takes off, her home life starts to take a back seat. Her role as mother starts to be taken by her out-of-work husband, played by Greg Kinnear. In today's society, woman are told they can do it all. A high profile job from 9 to 5, supermom from 5 p.m. to bedtime, and super wife squeezed in somewhere. With the loss of the "traditional" role where wife stays home and husband works also comes more work for …

The kids are settled into school and the weather is getting cooler. As routines fall into place another event is about to unfold: Television shows will begin to premier the new fall season. With new shows scheduled to start, parents also have to be aware of what their children are going to watch. Rating systems and websites like Televisionwatch.org are a great way for parents to learn about all the new shows. It offers synopses about shows so that you know the subject matter, the ratings and general overview. Setting parental controls on television is another great way to limit what your kids…

As many others will be doing this Sunday, my family and I will take a moment to think about the men, women and children who lost their lives 10 years ago. I can remember the day clearly. Myself and my newborn baby, just a day shy of being a month old, were at home alone. My husband was at work. As my baby slept on my chest, the news alert came on and live footage of the burning towers covered the screen. Although I knew my husband was safe at work, I also knew that many of his family members lived in New York. As calls began and reassurances were given, I remember counting my blessings that …

Everyone has seen them. The parents who have their young children at an R-rated movie late at night. The family whose children are running in circles around the restaurant while Mom and Dad largely ignore them. Now, some places have seen enough. In Monroeville, PA, which is located just outside of Pittsburgh, McDain's restaurant does not allow children under the age of 6 to dine. The rule went into effect in mid-July. The problem is not neccessarily the children, but the parents who don't help to control their kids and act offended if a staff member asks them to. There have also been numerous…

With high school football in Johns Creek under way, parents and students look forward to enjoying a game on Friday or Saturday night. For many, it is the social time of the week. For the athletes, it can mean a lot more. On a high school level, sports can mean more than just a game. Often it is a scholarship, hopes of a college career, and even hopes to play professionally. Athletes give 100 percent, spending much of their time and energy on their sport. Unfortunately, without a little guidance, their schoolwork may be what suffers. My daughter is on a competitive gymnastics team. Her coaches…

Every parent has asked their child at one point or another, "How was school today?" and gotten one of several answers. Best case scenario, your child did something that excited them and wants to share all the highlights with you. For many parents the only response is a grunt or a simple "it was good" or "OK." It only takes one news broadcast to know of the multiple issues that our children are facing in schools today. Bullying, drugs and peer pressure are just some of the problems that children are dealing with on an everyday basis. Many times the kids keep quiet so that they won't cause …

School is back in session. Kids have on their new clothes, backpacks, and shoes and are starting a new school year. With the start of school comes the start of school lunches and, in many cases, school breakfast. If you were home during the summer, you saw what your children ate each day. The choices they had were a direct result of what you made available to them. Not so much in school. Even if you send them with a lunch, just a few dollars in their pockets allows them to make alternate choices like ice cream and chips. President Obama has made school nutrition a top priority and, as a …

Your children may be wearing her clothes right now. They may be watching her on TV or listening to her music. When she wears something, it becomes the next trend. When she does something, it instantly gets the cool factor. Who is this person with so much power over your children? Miley Cyrus has a great influence on many children today because of her music, her movies, and, of course, her hit television show, Hannah Montana. Kids of all ages look up to her and want to be like her. Do they know that she has been caught smoking, posing half-nude, and being mean to fellow co stars? Of course, …

The school year is rapidly approaching in Johns Creek, and for my family that means attempting to cram every fun thing we promised we would do into the last few weeks we have free. A trip to the beach, the local waterpark and to visit family are all on the summer agenda. Often, this means that our budget stops us from getting anything else done. Having four kids has quickly made it a neccessity to learn how to budget our summer fun. Scouting out for great prices on hotels, staying on weeks that are not as popular, going with a group to get additional discounts, and buying season passes to our…

As August draws near, many families are preparing for the start of school. Fulton County starts school Aug. 15 while Gwinnett County starts the school year a week earlier on Aug. 8. For some families, the start of the school year does not mean the start at the same school as last year. Familys can choose from several options, including private school, homeschool and charter schools. In our household, the school year means that the oldest child starts school on Aug. 8 at an online public school. She will be home with access to a teacher online when needed. We chose this option for her not for …

A recent study by SunAmerican Financial Group and Age Wave found that half of Americans age 55 and older expect that they will need to financially assist family members. More than 70 percent of this same group thinks that they will need to help their adult children financially. Many are already helping their adult children; 59 percent of working parents continue to financially support or have supported their adult children who are not in school, according to a study by the National Endowment for Financial Education. Parents are having to retire later, retirement savings are taking longer to …

Grief is an emotionally draining and physically taxing thing. The loss of a loved one brings out the best and the worst in those that surround him. Memories of loving times and anger at the loss can sometimes come out within minutes of each other.  My family is grieving the loss of a loved one. I am known in the family to be the "strong one," so I was prepared to have to hold my mother and aunts together, remind my dad of his medications, and take care of any decisions that I was asked to make. There was one thing I was not prepared for. The grief of my 9-year-old daughter was not something I…

A recent study in the Journal of Family Psychology followed 169 couples in the first four years of marriage. The study found that when both husband and wife worked and enjoyed their jobs, they were more satisfied overall. If the couple had no children, the more hours the husband worked, the more positive the effect. With couples with children, longer hours for hubby took a negative toll. When mom spent more time working, the marriage was more satisfying for both parents. The theory is that when mom works more, dad is forced to help out on the homefront, thereby creating a better work-life …

Janet Chiauzzi, a 44-year-old mother in New York, was arrested on stalking charges on June 18 after sending threatening letters to the New York Little League after her son did not make the summer travel league. Allegations are that Chiauzzi sent threatening letters to a league official and his son and made false claims that an official abused her children. She is not the first parent to get worked up about her child. Stories of fathers punching referees are more common than one would think. Remember Wanda Hollaway, the Texas Cheerleader Murdering Mom who allegedly hired a hit man to kill a …

Puberty is a natural part of every child's life. The average age of puberty is 14 for boys and 12 for girls, a full two years earlier than it was in the 19th century. Some studies suggest this is because our nutrition has improved. Children are growing faster and bigger, triggering puberty earlier. Other studies point to the increase in obesity as a major cause. There are even studies that suggest that social conditions may be a factor in early puberty. Children that live in homes without fathers tend to start puberty earlier. The theory is that the stress alters chemical and growth hormones …

With the heat of the summer, kids are increasingly inside complaining that it is too hot to be out. While pools are one great way to cool down, many children are left to entertain themselves in the home. TVs , computers and handheld entertainment often become the choice of many kids home on vacation. The American Academy of Pediatrics states that kids should spend no more than two hours on screen time. With the increase in staying indoors and not being active comes the increase in children's weight. One out of every three kids in America is overweight. Instead of being outdoors and burning …

We all make mistakes. We are, after all, human. Many times our mistakes go far beyond ourself. Mistakes can hurt the ones we love the most, our children. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife, Maria Shriver, recently announced that they will be splitting. The reason? Schwarzenegger's long affair with the family's housekeeper, Mildred Baena, which resulted in a child that is now 14-years-old. While Shriver has asked for privacy, her son has changed his last name on his Twitter from Schwarzenegger to Shriver. The children are hurting, Shriver is hurting, and Baena and her son are in hiding as of …

As the school year ends in Johns Creek, the backpacks my children bring home include letters from room moms requesting money for end-of-year gifts and end-of-year parties. Of course, there is also the note that it is all optional and if you choose to do something else for your teacher then that is fine, as well. Herein lies my dilemma. With four children, I will soon not be able to afford extravagant gifts for their teachers. Not that I don't think they deserve it – they certainly do – but my wallet is simply heading toward empty. Eventually, gifts will all be handmade. My children's teachers…

After Spring Break, the school year goes by in a blur. Testing, then preparations for graduations and then summer will be here before you know it. For most kids, the only thing that reminds them of school will be the summer reading book that has to be completed. And even that may not happen until the week before school starts. Studies show that during the summer many skills are lost, especially in math. Test scores actually decline from spring to fall.  This is regardless of economic status or  background. Those that advocate for year-round schooling cite studies that show that teachers spend…

One of my favorite days of the year is coming up. Mother's Day is Sunday, May 8. For our family, Mother's Day is an all-day event. In fact, some years it has been an weekend-long event. On Mother's Day, the entire family of aunts, uncles and cousins visits the grave of my grandmother. She passed just a few years ago and is buried in Buford. We meet there to honor her. After church, each mom goes to eat with her own husband and children. I then get to pick what I would like to do for the day. In past years it has ranged from the Botanical Gardens to the zoo to just laying around the house all …