Aloha Friday - Back to School

About Aloha Friday: Aloha Friday is a fun, simple meme from Kailani at An Island Life. Every Friday she asks a simple question on her blog, invites participants to answer her question in the comments section, then invites participants to ask a question of their own on their own blogs. Every day feels like a summer Friday over in Hawaii, so I'm making Aloha Friday one of my summer blogging goals -- to join the meme every Friday until school starts!

Wow, I can't believe I've done the Aloha Friday meme for 11 straight weeks! It's such a low-key, no-fuss meme that keeping up was no problem at all. I'll definitely be doing the meme going forward, maybe not every week but every now and then.


The kids head back to school next week, so I'm asking a school-related question today.


Today's Aloha Friday Question: Do you buy your kids a back-to-school outfit?


I went to a private school with a uniform all throughout my elementary and high school years, so I never had a back to school outfit. I've never bought a back-t0-school outfit for my kids, but The Pea asked me if we could go shopping for one this weekend. She's in 4th grade now and getting more fashion conscious, but she doesn't really need new clothes; in fact, her closet is overflowing with stuff.

Is The First Day of School such an occasion that a kid really needs a special outfit? Or am I making a big to-do out of nothing?

Aloha Friday - Go to Bed!

About Aloha Friday: Aloha Friday is a fun, simple meme from Kailani at An Island Life. Every Friday she asks a simple question on her blog, invites participants to answer her question in the comments section, then invites participants to ask a question of their own on their own blogs. Every day feels like a summer Friday over in Hawaii, so I'm making Aloha Friday one of my summer blogging goals -- to join the meme every Friday until school starts!

In the summer the days are longer, the weather is warmer and our schedules are looser. The kids go to bed a little later and sleep in a bit longer. With their return from the UK, jetlag is playing even more havoc with our schedules. I'm not looking forward to getting back to our normal schooltime routine, but the first day of school is just over a week away and it's got to be done. Just the thought of it is making me want to crawl back into bed for another half hour of sleep.

Today's Aloha Friday Question: How firm is your kids' bedtime?

In theory the kids are supposed to be in bed at 8PM. In practice, we're usually still in the middle of our bedtime story at 8PM -- and often we're just starting. Many nights, especially in the summer, 8PM finds us still rushing the kids in and out of the shower, or worse, still driving home from dinner out. I know some parents who have a firm 7:30PM deadline and I have no idea how they do it. I also know some parents whose kids are awake at 10PM and I have no idea why they do it. I guess every family is different.

What time are your kids supposed to be in bed? And what time do they really get into bed?

Aloha Friday -- BlogHer edition

About Aloha Friday: Aloha Friday is a fun, simple meme from Kailani at An Island Life. Every Friday she asks a simple question on her blog, invites participants to answer her question in the comments section, then invites participants to ask a question of their own on their own blogs. Every day feels like a summer Friday over in Hawaii, so I'm making Aloha Friday one of my summer blogging goals -- to join the meme every Friday until school starts!

I'm keeping this post ultra-short because I'm in the midst of the BlogHer 2010 conference. I don't want to miss a second of this event! My question today is inspired by how much fun I'm already having: my mind is racing forward and wondering about other blogging conferences out there.

Today's Aloha Friday Question: What amazing blogging conferences do you recommend?

This is my 3rd BlogHer conference and I'd recommend it without a doubt to any blogger I know, beginner or expert, male (yes!) or female, young and old. I've heard Mom 2.0 Summit and SXSW are great, as is Blogalicious, but are there any you really love? If you haven't been to a blogging conference, which one would you most like to attend?

Aloha Friday - Summer Slide

About Aloha Friday: Aloha Friday is a fun, simple meme from Kailani at An Island Life. Every Friday she asks a simple question on her blog, invites participants to answer her question in the comments section, then invites participants to ask a question of their own on their own blogs. Every day feels like a summer Friday over in Hawaii, so I'm making Aloha Friday one of my summer blogging goals -- to join the meme every Friday until school starts!

I can't believe we have less than a month to go before school starts up again! Every time I see a Back to School deal on the web or a Back to School product roundup on a blog I start to panic and think, I'm not ready yet. And I'm guessing, neither are the kids. School is the last thing they want to think of, so I'm wondering ......

Today's Aloha Friday Question: Should kids be keeping up with lessons over the summer?


I do agree that young brains get burned out if they're constantly being fed academic facts -- but on the other hand, 12 weeks is a long time, and just because they're not at school doesn't mean they should stop learning! Learning should be fun, whether you're learning during the summer or during the schoolyear! The challenge is to keep their minds sharp while keeping it light and fun. I've been making sure 3Po and Jammy keep practicing their reading (The Pea is a voracious reader anyway) and we've joined our library's summer reading program, and we have some summer workbooks that they're completing to get a prize from me, but that's about it.

Are you doing anything with your kids to prevent that Summer Slide?

Aloha Friday - Getting Wet

About Aloha Friday: Aloha Friday is a fun, simple meme from Kailani at An Island Life. Every Friday she asks a simple question on her blog, invites participants to answer her question in the comments section, then invites participants to ask a question of their own on their own blogs. Every day feels like a summer Friday over in Hawaii, so I'm making Aloha Friday one of my summer blogging goals -- to join the meme every Friday until school starts!

The Sony PSP Summer Family Fun program has ended, so I'm giving you all a break from my videogame-related questions and moving on to other kinds of summer fun. This week my thoughts are turning to water, lovely cool water.


Today's Aloha Friday Question: Beach or Pool?


Call me a city girl, but I've always preferred a chlorinated pool to a salty sea. I have never really enjoyed swimming in the ocean because my eyes hurt too much, and all that sand sticking to your bathing suit can be such a hassle. Of course, if you're comparing a deserted tropical beach with warm, bright turquoise shores to a crowded public pool with babies doing God-knows-what in the water then I'll take the beach any day, thank you very much!

How about you, are you a beach bunny or pool person?

Aloha Friday -- The Comics of my Childhood

About Aloha Friday: Aloha Friday is a fun, simple meme from Kailani at An Island Life. Every Friday she asks a simple question on her blog, invites participants to answer her question in the comments section, then invites participants to ask a question of their own on their own blogs. Every day feels like a summer Friday over in Hawaii, so I'm making Aloha Friday one of my summer blogging goals -- to join the meme every Friday until school starts!


Today's Aloha Friday Question: Who is (are) your favorite comic book character(s)?

Comic books were difficult (and expensive) to find in the Philippines during the 70's, so my siblings and I never really got into comic books, but we borrowed some from friends and got some as presents and checked some out at the library, so we got a pretty good dose of comic book fun. Here are my favorites:

1) Tintin -- without a doubt, Tintin was my favorite. This was the only series that my sister and I obsessively sought every episode out. Fortunately, there aren't that many and over half were available at the library of the country club that my grandmother was a member of. I found all the Tintin comics at my kids' school library recently and I checked them all out, on the pretense that I wanted to introduce Tintin to my kids. They weren't interested, but I had a great time reading them all!


2) Archie and friends -- actually, now that I come to think about it, Archie might be my favorite. We actually saved up our allowances so we could buy these comics, and we put them on our Christmas and birthday lists. Archie comics were easier to find, so we also had a lot of friends who owned Archie comics and were able to borrow from each other. Archie and his gang just seemed like the perfect All-American kids and everyone wanted to be like them.


3) Asterix -- my sister and I discovered Asterix when we were in high school or so; one of our cousins received quite a few as a present, so we were able to borrow them and laugh over the antics of Asterix, Obelix and the gang. I think you have to be a bit older to really appreciate all the puns and the humor, but even young kids love it!


4) Spiderman -- kind of a weird choice for one of my favorites, but we really got into Spidey after one of my brothers received a bound set of Spiderman comics as a present. We were able to read about Spidey's story from the beginning, so I guess we just kept going.


Which comics would you walk a mile in a storm for?

Aloha Friday - Must-See Summer Movies

About Aloha Friday: Aloha Friday is a fun, simple meme from Kailani at An Island Life. Every Friday she asks a simple question on her blog, invites participants to answer her question in the comments section, then invites participants to ask a question of their own on their own blogs. Every day feels like a summer Friday over in Hawaii, so I'm making Aloha Friday one of my summer blogging goals -- to join the meme every Friday until school starts!

Our trip to the UK is getting nearer and nearer, and I'm starting to think about loading up our new Sony PSP with movies to keep the kids occupied during the 10-hour flight. Most international flights have a decent selection of movies in the on-demand video system on the backs of people's seats, but only 1 or 2 of those are kid-friendly. So it would be nice to have a movie or two on the PSP as a backup for them to watch. And since it's an overnight flight, Alfie and I might even get a shot at the PSP once the kids fall asleep, so we ought to choose a couple of movies for ourselves as well. There are so many movies that we meant to catch at the movie theaters, but never got around to -- and by the time they got onto DVD, we had already forgotten them.


Today's Aloha Friday Question: What must-see movies have you missed on the big screen?

Here are three movies that we kept saying we'd catch on DVD or Pay-Per-View:

1) Avatar
2) Up in the Air
3) Precious

I sometimes wonder whether I ought to try watching one of the Twilight movies, but I'm not sure I want to get (pardon the pun) sucked into them. Besides, if Alfie sees Twilight or New Moon on the PSP, he might divorce me out of sheer scorn.

And for the kids:

1) Planet 51
2) Fantastic Mr. Fox
3) Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel


What do you think? Which movies should we load up onto our PSP? Any comment you leave here counts as an extra entry into my $50 PlayStation Network gift card giveaway!


Disclosure: I am participating in Sony's PSP Summer Family Fun blogger program; I received a "Summer Fun" kit which included a Sony Playstation Portable (PSP-3000) , an assortment of content (games and movies) for the PSP, as well as a journal and videocamera to capture our summer adventures. I have not been paid or required to review the product or give my opinions. The views and opinions expressed here are my own.

Aloha Friday - the Verdict on Videogames

About Aloha Friday: Aloha Friday is a fun, simple meme from Kailani at An Island Life. Every Friday she asks a simple question on her blog, invites participants to answer her question in the comments section, then invites participants to ask a question of their own on their own blogs. Every day feels like a summer Friday over in Hawaii, so I'm making Aloha Friday one of my summer blogging goals -- to join the meme every Friday until school starts!


This week I began a six-week series of posts as part of Sony's PSP Summer Family Fun blogger program. I'll be blogging about how video gaming (and the PSP in particular) is (or isn't) becoming a part of our summer lifestyle. Since I'm also making it a goal to post an Ahola Friday meme every week this summer, I thought it might be fun to combine some of my PSP posts with my Aloha Friday questions (or infuse some of my Aloha Friday questions with PSP / video gaming themes, however you want to look at it). I'd also love to know how video games are (or aren't) a part of your family's entertainment.


Today's Aloha Friday Question: How do you feel about kids and videogames?


I've blogged at length about my constant struggle with this question. I swore I'd never let my kids sit in front of a videogame console all day long.

Well, that's like me swearing I'd never let my kids eat at McDonalds. Or eat candy as a snack. Or watch tv with (gasp!) commercials. Or all those other things I swore I'd never let my kids do -- before I actually had kids.

Needless to say, I've lightened up. I've learned that not all videogames are bad and violent. Some are actually educational -- for example, you can get Scrabble, Uno, and chess for the PSP. And they're a GREAT way for kids to pass the time in the car or on an airplane. Yes, I do see that it's all too easy for kids to get stuck in front of a videogame screen. But I like to think I'm the parent and I can be in control. We don't do violent videogames, we set limits on videogame use, I try to ensure they engage in physical, literary and creative activities. And they always put their consoles down when I ask them to.

Besides, these devices are not just videogames anymore; the PSP lets you watch movies and listen to music in addition to playing games. Music doesn't count -- I remember listening to my Sony Walkman day and night (boy did I think I was cool) and I don't have any problem with having my daughter plug into her PSP to listen to her favorite tunes all day long (as long as she can still hear me when I yell for her).

What do you think? Are videogames the Devil Incarnate or a Godsend? Any comment you leave here counts as an extra entry into my $50 PlayStation Network gift card giveaway!


Disclosure: I am participating in Sony's PSP Summer Family Fun blogger program; I received a "Summer Fun" kit which included a Sony Playstation Portable (PSP-3000) , an assortment of content (games and movies) for the PSP, as well as a journal and videocamera to capture our summer adventures. I have not been paid or required to review the product or give my opinions. The views and opinions expressed here are my own.

Aloha Friday - Summer Edition

Yahoo, school's out! It's the first day of summer and I'm so ready to chill. I'm looking forward to long, lazy days when I can let the kids out to play while I plant myself in front of the computer and blog to my heart's content.... but I know that's not going to happen. I have a feeling that between visits to the pool and the library and day trips to the beach or the museum, not to mention summer travel and summer camps, my blog is going to be sadly neglected. So I'm taking charge and making sure I don't let it happen! And just like I join exercise classes to help keep my fitness goals on track, I'm going to make an effort to join some blog memes to keep my blogging goals on track.

And since it's summertime, what better meme to join than Aloha Friday? Aloha Friday is a fun, simple meme from Kailani at An Island Life. Every Friday she asks a simple question on her blog, invites participants to answer her question in the comments section, then invites participants to ask a question of their own on their own blogs. Every day feels like a summer Friday over in Hawaii, so I'm making Aloha Friday one of my summer blogging goals -- to join the meme every Friday until school starts!


My first Aloha Friday question: What are your big summer plans?


This summer is going to be crazy-busy. I've signed the kids up for just a couple of weeks of summer camp, but I bought a family membership to the Oakland Zoo and to Gilroy Gardens so we can visit both places as often as we want. And we have a trip to the UK in the works! While we're there, Alfie and I will sneak away for some couple time in Amsterdam, we're driving down to Paris with the kids, and we're all touring the Cadbury Chocolate Factory. And let's not forget the BlogHer conference in New York! Hmmm, I wonder if we have time to squeeze in a camping trip before school starts....

What about you? Any vacations on the horizon? Any road trips? Will your kids be in the pool or summer school? What are your plans?

Allergies: Nothing to sneeze at

Fridays Feast is having the day off today, so I thought I'd try a different meme today: Aloha Friday. All you have to do is post any question on your blog on a Friday, share your answer and sign Kailani's Mr. Linky. Then have fun answering the questions of fellow participants by visiting their blogs.

My question of the day is related to allergies. I used to be allergic to chocolate and shellfish. Thank God I outgrew the chocolate allergy; eating shellfish still causes me to break out with red, watery, itchy, swollen eyes (it's not pretty). But lately I've been having allergy attacks nearly every day. Actually, my whole family has been suffering (Alfie does get spring allergies but the kids don't have any allergies that we know of). Our theories regarding the cause range from our neighbor's jasmine tree to increased pollution to the spray that Bay Area counties are using to get rid of the apple moth infestation.

Come to think of it, nearly every family we know has some sort of allergy these days: peanuts, wheat, gluten, pollen, you name it. When I was growing up, we were the only family I knew that had any allergies at all. What's happening? Which bring me to my question:

Do you suffer from allergies? And have you noticed an increase in allergy suffering among the people you know in recent years? What do you suppose is the reason?