Gym Class Hero

Hello readers, as boring as it may be, I’m going to start out by introducing myself to you all…

I’m Brittany and I’m the newest addition to the Hudson Valley Parent family. About 4 months ago, I was hired as the Editorial Assistant. I must say, I really love working here at HVParent.  Our entire staff is great and so much fun to be around.

Since I came on board, I’ve worked a lot with our social media sites. If you’re not already our friend on facebook, I hope you’ll take a moment to join us (shameless plug… I know).

Now for some boring background about me… I’m originally from North Carolina. I moved to New York 6 months ago to be with my boyfriend, Bill.  Bill and I met through my baseball-focused, radio show I used to host called “A Show of Their Own.”  The show is now archived online, but I’ll spare you the shameless plug.

Prior to HVP, I worked as a high school basketball, softball and volleyball coach… which transitioned me to sports-talk radio and now logically to working for a parenting publication! Working for HV Parent is a combination of everything I love: writing, editing, interviewing, videos, photography, social media, even some graphic design! Not to mention, I get to think up crazy ideas for new things to offer our readers!

Now, I’ll admit, I’ve been putting off blogging for a while. I have several blogs of my own, but couldn’t decided on an angle for this new HVParent blog of mine. BUT I finally figured it out.

Since, I made you read this long blog all about me, I guess it’s time for me to unveil my new blog and what exactly it will be about (drum roll please….)

Gym Class Hero will focus on living a healthy lifestyle. I’ll discuss everything from sports, weight loss, activities for the kids, nutrition… anything. I recently lost 120 pounds… yep 120! I’m still 30 pounds away from my goal weight and cannot wait to share my journey with all of you.  I’m a sports nut and have had some great experiences I want to share with (y’all) you all. My goal for this blog is to have something for everyone… mom, dad, kids, grandparents, etc.  I hope you’ll continue reading my musings and comment away!

Thanks for reading,

Brit

Work in Manhattan or Spend time with Family …….

I was sitting in Panera this morning with Emma and my mom, just like we do every Tuesday and Wednesday and realized just how lucky I am.  It was 8:30am on a Tuesday and I was enjoying a yummy cup of coffee with my mom and daughter.  I live about 10 minutes from my office and about 15 minutes from Panera so on the days that my mom watches Emma, we meet up in the morning, have some coffee and try to chat but most of the time is spent laughing at what Emma is doing and picking up the toys that she throws on the floor. 

Emma sitting like a big girl at Panera

There isn’t always a lot of talking going on but the time that I get to spend with my mom and the time that Emma gets to spend with her Grandma is priceless.  Well …… this luxury did come at a price for my family but it is completely worth it and I wouldn’t change it for all the money in the world.  I was working in Manhattan, making good money and really enjoying it but I was leaving the house around 6:15am and getting home around 7:30 every night.  The train was so unpredictable and I was starting to miss things during the day that my mom or mother-in-law would get to see since they were babysitting for Emma. 

My choice to switch jobs was a decision that my husband and I agreed upon 100%!!! Time with my daughter was more valuable than the paycheck I was getting in Manhattan so as soon as the job offer came in the work at Hudson Valley Parent, I jumped on it!!!! I made the best decision. I love getting to spend so much time with my family and I really love my job.  Time is truly flying by, I can’t believe Emma is 10 months old and I am starting to plan her first birthday.  YIKES!!! I was so fortunate to be able to see her grow up!!

Check out my recent column on my journey to loss my stubborn baby weight on hvparent.com

Healthy Holiday Survival Strategies- Stressless Entertaining and Eating

For me, the holiday season is a special time that includes good food, fun, family and friends.  Like many, however, I am challenged each year with finding the balance between joy and happiness and guilt and stress.  As the founder of Time Savor Gourmet I help people just like you to make good food, fast and easy no matter how busy you are or how well you can cook.  As a result, I came up with some holiday survival strategies to help you eat well, entertain with less stress and not pack on the pounds, all while having a great time!  My next few blog posts will cover strategies for Entertaining, Cooking, Stress-Less Party Noshing and some general behavioral tips to help you get through the holidays with ease.

Entertaining

Tried and true, classic recipes that are low in fat and full in flavor are a tradition in my household.  At the start of the holiday season, I make sure to have my pantry & fridge armed with the items I’m going to need to whip up some of my favorite snacks when unexpected (or expected!) company arrives.  (I’ve listed a few of my favorites in the Holiday Appetizer 911 section on my website.)  By having good ingredients on hand and stocking your pantry, fridge and freezer with some basics (and NOT fat laden frozen appetizers!!!) you’ll be prepared and never caught off guard.

All kids can play Guitar Hero

Last week I met with Flo Hannes, the chair of the OT Department at SUNY Orange. The college just formed a new Center for Assistive & Rehabilitative Technology at their Middletown campus. Their role is to help those with disabilities use the new assistive technologies to lead a productive life.

What if your child can’t use a computer keyboard because of difficulties with eye-hand coordination? Call Flo, and she and her staff will arrange a demonstration of the new computer technologies that you can use at home.  At their center you can not only see the equipment but you can try it out as well.

But how does this relate to Guitar Hero? See what Flo has to say:

For more information about how assistive technologies can help you in your life call:

SUNY ORANGE

Center for Assistive & Rehabilitative Technology

845-341-4390

Hudson Valley kid helps ease mom’s pain

Yesterday’s  Times Herald Record  introduced us to twelve-year-old Shawn Gill who is mature beyond his years. I’m always touched by locals who make a difference not only at home, but who also inspire others to do good. Shawn is the primary caregiver for his mom who has severe epilepsy. On top of his schoolwork and helping is mother, Shawn is also a Student Leader at C.J. Hooker Middle School in Goshen. Shawn was picked with another student to attend this year’s Junior National Young Leaders Conference a big honor since nominations are reviewed by members of Congress.

It’s nice to see a child so passionate about helping others and I’m sure he isn’t the only Hudson Valley kid out there making a difference.  We are curious to hear from our Parent readers. How do you encourage your child to help others?  Let us know what you do in the comments or tell us on Facebook. We also have a few articles on inspiring altruism in children if you need some ideas on how to start.

“How can we stop bullying in Hudson Valley Schools?”

12 articles from HV Parent offer help

While browsing our Facebook page, a status line from one of our parent friends caught my attention. It was a link to a blog called Single dad laughing and the post was about the blogger’s struggle with being bullied as a child.  I found myself tearing up a few times because his story is so raw.  The post made me wonder how many cases go undetected  in Hudson Valley schools. I also wonder what local efforts are being done to prevent cases like this dad blogger from happening again. Here are 12 articles about bullying from Hudson Valley Parent, including advice on how to deal with internet or cyber bullying from Paul Schwartz. You’ll find useful information here about this problem, which has been getting lots of attention lately.

Have you ever discriminated against your own child?

There is a great new show that I started watching on the Style Network called Too Fat for Fifteen. It’s a reality show following a group of overweight students at the Wellspring Academy in North Carolina and the struggles they face on their weight loss journeys. The show is filled with a lot of insight on what it is like to be overweight and a teenager. The family dynamics are especially interesting. The parents featured on the show seem to be nothing more than supportive of their children. However, I read an article today that said even parents of overweight children occasionally discriminate against them. For example, they may be less likely to help pay for their college education or a new car. What are your thoughts?

Crime and Punishment

Meet Kristin. She had her friends over at her house past her curfew, so as punishment, her dad took out an ad in the paper with her photo for 30 hours of free babysitting. Is this way too extreme? Or, do you feel this was a creative way for her parents to teach Kristin a lesson? I think as a teen, the public attention is really the bigger punishment, at least it would be for me. How did your parents punish you when you broke the rules? What methods of punishment do you use with your child or teen?

Too much screen time hinders children’s attention spa… “hey is that a squirrel?”

We have been reporting on children and their relationship with technology for the past few months. A new study has emerged stating  that “too much time spent watching television and playing video games can double the risk of attention problems in children and young adults, new research finds. The study is the latest of many to point out the ill effects of excessive screen time, whether at the computer or the television.”

How many hours to allocate for tv or computer time in your household? Our own child behavior expert, Dr. Paul Schwartz, has touched on this subject. You can read his columns here.

How much TV time is too much TV time?

There was recently an article on the Examiner that discussed a ”joint study conducted by the Universities of Montreal and Michigan  concluded that  for children under the age of 5 watching too much television is becoming a major health issue. The study which followed 1300 children concluded that negative effects on children after age 10 rose dramatically for every hour of TV watched when the child was a toddler.” You can find the rest of the article here.

The biggest concerns in the article revolved around the correlation between watching too much television and bad eating habits, as well as “evidence that the children who watched more than 2 hours a day of TV also showed:

• less ability or inclination to participate in classroom activities,
• a decrease in math skills, and
• were more likely to be bullied, teased and even assaulted by classmates.”

What do you think? Do the results of this study surprise you? Do you limit the amount of TV time in your home? Tell us in the comments!