Drive It Home Show

Thank you to the Allstate Foundation and National Safety Council for sponsoring this post. Check out Drive it Home, a website by and for parents, dedicated to keeping our teen drivers safe.

Did you know that New York has the highest teen driving fatality rate in the country? This is just the first statistic that caught my attention at the  Drive It Home Show. Allstate and The National Safety Council stresses the most important thing before putting a teen behind the wheel is practice.  Car crashes are the number one killer of Americans from 3 to 25 years old, with teens three times more likely than any other age group.  A third of parents' biggest regret is not giving their children enough opportunities to practice driving in various situations. Drive It Home offers lifesaving recommendations such as:

• driving at least 30 minutes a week with a newly licensed teen
•  teaching them to scan the road ahead to recognize and control hazards
• guiding them with judging the gap between exiting parking lots and making left- hand turns
• practicing following at a safe distance, controlling speed, stopping, and turning

Teens today are faced with more distractions than ever.  It is important to be an authoritative parent and to spend time talking with your child about safe driving, especially with all of the negative influences impacting their focus and concenetration.  Allstate and The National Safety Council encourages parents to make sure their teen have over 50 hours of practice before independently getting behind the wheel.  Parents should also be aware whether or not their friends have had enough practice before allowing their children in the car with them.  Allstate advises parents to talk with their children's friends about their driving experience and practice, as well as, their parents.  Don't just assume every parent is doing the same thing you've done. 

Finally, recognize the fact that every time you get behind the wheel you are modeling to your children what type of driver you'd like them to be.  Be a good role model and remember that the only person who is in control is the driver.  

Drive safely and don't forget to check out:

Drive It Home 

Allstate Foundation 

National Safety Council 

Check out this video to get more statistics and teen crash risks to discuss with your children.

 

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective, and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Drive it Home Show

Thank you to the Allstate Foundation and National Safety Council for sponsoring this post. Check out Drive it Home, a website by and for parents, dedicated to keeping our teen drivers safe.

I already have anxiety just thinking about the day my daughters learn to drive. I realize that having a teen ot tween driver can be very scary and that is why I would love for you to join me at the Drive it Home Show presented by the National Safety Council and Allstate Foundation, Tuesday, May 14.  If you have a tween, teen, or are concerned about teen driving safety, it will be an informative (and entertaining) event.  Please feel free to share this post with anyone who would like to attend.  Details are as follows:

What: Drive it Home Show presented by the National Safety Council and Allstate Foundation

When: Tuesday, May 14 from 7pm - 8:15pm

Where: BayWay Arts Center (265 E Main St # 160, East Islip, NY 11730)

Price: FREE!- no tickets required

Parking: Parking lot is available

BONUS: You can enter in the sweepstakes at the event for a chance to win gas cards and a brand new car!

If you'd like to attend, click here to register and when checking in, let them know that Clever Girls Collective sent you.

Hope to see you there!

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective, and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Bed Head Hairsprays Review

I love Bed Head products by TIGI! One of my favorites is Bed Head Control Freak, which is a serum that controls frizz.  Let's just say if you saw me on a humid day without it you would certainly know why it is one of my fave products.  The last time I got my hair cut, I decided I'd like a new side bang.  BIG mistake! In the past when I have had a side bang I LOVED the look.  However, this time around the hairdresser cut them too short and too thin.  I immediately knew that I would be paying for that mistake the next few weeks until they grew out.  For days I was simply clipping them back with a bobby pin, as they continuously flopped in front of my eyes or awkwardly split in the middle.  Then I received a package in the mail.

Bed Head products to the rescue!

Masterpiece Massive Shine Hairspray, Maxxed Out Hairspray, and Hard Head Hairspray are three hairsprays I have been trying out the last few weeks.  Although, all of the hairsprays have done the trick (kept my fly away crazy bangs in line) I do prefer the Massive Shine for my bangs.  It holds them in place perfectly while giving them a glowing, healthy appearance.

Bed Head hairsprays provide long lasting hold with serious shine. Bed Head products are available in many local salons, online, and in your local drug stores and supermarkets.  Try one of their fabulous products today.  I guarantee you'll be addicted.

Check out Bed Head and other TIGI products:

Bedhead.com 

TIGIprofessional.com

Like them on Facebook: BedheadByTIGI

Disclaimer: I was not compensated for this post.  I did receive Bed Head products for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Strider Balance Bike Review and #Giveaway

Strider Balance Bikes are a fun and easy way to increase your child’s balance skills and prepare them for riding a bike without training wheels.

To read the full review or to win your very own Strider Balance Bike, click here. 

Photo Courtesy of Everything's Abuzz

Babyganics' Fine and Handy Baby Wipes Review

Babyganics offers a variety of eco-friendly, safe, green and natural products.  That's why I jumped at the opportunity to review another wonderful product from Babyganics.  Babyganics' Fine and Handy Wipes are great for at home, school, work, and on the go.  They are safe enough to wipe my infant's hands and mouth, as well as, strong enough to clean the germs off a table or surface area my toddler is using to eat or play.

The best part is that Babyganic's Fine and Handy wipes are pediatrician and dermatologist tested.  They are fragrance-free and clean my baby’s sensitive skin while moisturizing and hydrating with special skin conditioners.  Fine & Handy wipes are specially formulated with natural plant-based ingredients and are non-toxic, as well as gluten free. Unlike other leading brands in the industry, BabyGanics ensures that none of their wipes are made with chlorine, bleach, parabens, sulfates, or phthalates. Fine and Handy Wipes are great for on-the-go needs and can be tossed into your purse, diaper bag, stroller, or car.  BabyGanics’ Fine & Handy Hand and Face Wipes retail for $4.99 and can be purchased at Babies R Us, Buy Buy Baby, Amazon.com, Diapers.com and Vine.com.

Disclaimer: I was not compensated for this post.  I did receive complimentary Babyganics Fine and Handy wipes for review purposes.  All opinions expressed are my own.

A Little Less Anger

Yesterday, I wrote a post about the "Letter to the iPhone mother".  Today, a good friend texted me to see if I was alright.  She said my post seemed angry.  In stepping back for a moment, she was right.  My post was angry.  It was written hastily and turned into a rant.  Yet, it was something that still needed to be said.

I work with fifth graders, I have daughters of my own, and plenty of friends with children.  Is this the message we are sending to our kids?  We live in a world where cyberbullying is out of control.  In schools teachers are filling out DASA referrals left and right, and teenagers are hurting themselves over what others are saying about them.  There are laws being put into place to make schools more responsible, yet parents are destroying others on Facebook all of the time.  I admit, I judge plenty.  We are all guilty of it, but we need to draw the line somewhere.  There is a huge problem in our society when people are putting images of other people on the Internet to say that they are a better or more attentive mother.  To me that's worse.  Society can blame schools as much as they would like, but the messages we send to our children comes directly from the home.

The person who wrote that letter thought she was sending a message to be there more for your children and all their special moments because they pass too quickly. I understand the message she thought she was sending.  I agree that we need to send a message to not let technology take over our lives and more importantly to make sure we don't let it interfere with our children's needs, but people perceive things differently.  The message she sent to me was that she was too quick to judge someone else.  She could have sent the same message minus the photo of someone else.  By her using a photo she snapped out of context shows she judged that mother too quickly. 

Whether the "iPhone mother" was looking at her phone and ignoring her children or not, it is alright to take a moment to ourselves.  A picture without words has many different perceptions.  The woman who wrote the letter may have seen it as neglect and I did not.  My first thought was that she could be sending a photo of her children at the park to someone that may not see them all that much.  A friend thought she could have received a text from her husband saying, "I am on my way home from work, get the kids home, I miss them!"

Now because of one person's judgement that mother's image is all over the Internet for the world to believe she isn't a good enough mom.  Our social media world is spinning out of control and it is all very scary to me.  Today with a little less anger I am asking to please think about the implications and long term effects when posting something on the Internet.

Technology is here to stay.  We need to teach our children social media etiquette and it has to start with us. 

The World We Live In

This picture was all over Facebook yesterday and the "iPhone mother" was being torn apart.  There was an entire story about how she should be paying attention to her kids and she is missing all of their important moments and special memories.  The thing that gets me, is that I often look like this picture and not because I am missing moments.  It's because I am recording memories.  Someone could have easily taken this very same picture of me.  I use my iPhone to take all of my children's photos and videos, especially during moments like these when my husband is at work.  It makes his day!  He loves seeing pictures coming in of his little ones having fun with Mommy.  It puts a smile on his face and makes his day go a little faster. 

Why are we so quick to judge? It's not like she was sitting on a park bench, not watching them, and carrying a conversation.  The thing is that even if she was, who cares enough to take a picture to put on Facebook?  Is it to brag about the fact that you are a better and more attentive mother?  Get over yourself!  There are more important things in the world and you just took your time to write an entire book on your Facebook page passing judgements about someone else.  Were your children being neglected while you sat at your computer criticizing other mothers on Facebook?  Is the message you want to send to your own children to judge and criticze others?  Yes, that's right...you are definitely the better mother.