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Dear Readers,
Being a mother and a wife can be a complicated job.
Sometimes we have to search for the right resources
for our needs. Given the size of this region, that
can be quite a daunting task. Our annual “Best for
Families” survey helps to make life easier by
highlighting establishments, vendors, and service
providers that our readers prefer. As well, we
feature ideas and tips for families.
Each year, when we compile the votes from our
readers for the Best for Families Readers’ Survey, I
am always amazed at some of the nominees. Some are
humorous and others are quite informative. Thank you
so much for your input. We know parents all over
this region appreciate the information.
This year we had more entries than we have had in
the last few years. Looking at our annual survey, so
many interesting things come to light. As trends are
always fascinating to me, there were several things
I noted when we tallied the survey results. I’d like
to share some of them with you.
- Are our tastes changing? This year pizza
beat out macaroni and cheese and chicken nuggets
combined. This is significant. Chicken nuggets
have ruled the “My Child’s Favorite Food”
category for years.
- Once again, parents wrote us with questions
about the ”Romantic Getaway” for moms and dads.
Some told us there really is no such thing. I
disagree. I think you should make time and
resources available for maintaining and growing
your marriage. Sometimes just an evening after
the kids are in bed in the backyard under the
stars (or on the screened in porch) can be very
romantic and quite refreshing. Check the survey
results for other ideas for you and your honey.
- Everyone must be thinking summer. This year
we had more Best Ice Cream Store nominees than
ever before. Finding out why they were all
nominated is going to make for some cool summer
fun.
- A tasty new nominee in our Best Festival
category was the Fairfax Chocolate Festival. I’m
certainly looking forward to checking that one
out personally. Yum!
- This year we were really surprised by the
number of FAMILY Magazine features that were
nominated. Thank you for all of the nice things
all you said about FAMILY Magazine.
- The Best Advice for New Parents category
offered some wonderful suggestions. Here is a
peak at a few of the entries
Be patient, enforce limits.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
Don’t stop working on your marriage.
Don’t sweat the small stuff!
Enjoy the beauty of childhood – the magic, the
innocence, the emerging
independence.
Get a puppy.
Get sleep!
Just because they sell it, you don’t have to buy
it!
Play with your children more and do other things
less. They grow up fast.
Take a parenting class.
And, my favorite advice for new parents … Listen
to your mother.
“Till August, Happy Parenting!
Brenda
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