After many years of just buying thousands of dollars worth of scrapbooking supplies, I have decided to sell it finally!  I am so excited.  Now I am able to share my passion with everyone else.  Not that I didn't before, now I just am able to help them with their passion! 

I joined Creative Memories in September and I have already held two big events.  One was the annual CroptoberFest that Creative Memories holds each fall, and the other was a Kids Card Making Class.  Both events were so much fun. 

The next big thing for me will be my first Crop!  I will be having it on Nov 22, and I am excited to see how many people will come. 

After that, I will have my first annual Open House.  I will be showing all the new items that are available for holiday gifts and a surprise bonus of a preview of the new Valentines Day products.  They are so beautiful!

My website is updated weekly with the new specials and the new products.  www.mycmsite.com/theresacorbe 

This is going to be a great new venture for me.  I can't wait for it all to start coming together for me!  Wish me luck!!

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It's amazing to me, as I look at all the safety paraphernalia that my two girls have accumulated, how much we "protect" our children from everything. Somehow I survived childhood without the use of helmets, car seats or even seat belts. Riding in the back of daddy's pickup truck was a given, even on the highway. We use anti-bacterial soap, even though recent studies suggest it has a negative impact on "good" bacteria and almost no impact on "bad" bacteria. The Department of Social Services would take away my Daddy License if I allowed my kids to drink from a garden hose.

All that is to preface the fact that within the span of a few days, both my daughters sustained life-altering wounds while playing. Elizabeth, 9 years old, was riding her bike at a campsite on High Rock Lake. She is not the steadiest thing on two wheels, but seemed to be OK as I rode just ahead of her. As we started down a little hill that she had already travelled many times before, she all of a sudden lost control, of her mind, and splayed out on the asphalt, bruised and bewildered. It was nothing too serious, so I got her back on the bike and we rode back to our campsite to lick our wounds. The very next day, at 8 AM on Sunday morning, I was preparing breakfast, when a sleepy-eyed fellow came walking up to our campsite with Elizabeth in one arm and a crashed up bike in another. Her little basket was smashed and she had cuts and bruises on her nose and cheek, just below the left eye. As the report came in, I discovered that she had been on the same hill, and this time was fortunate enough to find a parked golf cart to run into, in lieu of that nasty pavement. We forgot to bring her helmet that weekend. After a little ice and some parental lovin', she was alright and even got back on the bike again, although never venturing near Killer Hill. Her new nickname is Elizabeth "Crash"kins, which she really likes.

The very next week, we decided to take a family walk down the street. We stopped at the corner, where a friend of mine owns a vacant rental house. In the front yard sat a pear tree pregnant with beautiful, bigger than my fist, pears. The girls immediately scurried up the tree and were happily playing as we talked to a friend who happened to be driving by. All of a sudden I heard a "I'm really hurt. Come now!!" kind of scream. It was Katherine, my 7 year old. She had fallen out of the tree and was holding her left arm, sobbing and screaming bloody murder. We got her back to the house and made a splint out of her soccer shin guards and an Ace bandage. After calling our friend who is an x-ray tech, we determined that waiting until the morning was the best option. The emergency room would just add to the misery, and they wouldn't be able to do anything until the swelling went down. It was probably broken, but not badly, so after stabilizing it, we medicated and got her in bed. After a very long and sleepless night, we got to the doctor's office, where they confirmed she had a small buckle fracture to the radius and would need a cast. Evidently some doctors don't even prescribe a cast for these types of fractures in children. Katherine's new nickname is "Cast"erine.

I guess we really can't protect our kids after all. After being scolded for "loose living and hard drinking", W.C. Fields, the early 1900s film star and comedian, reputedly remarked, "There'll be a lot of healthy people who get really mad when they die of nothing." While I am no hurry to see my daughters die, or even get hurt for that matter, I do tend to allow them to explore their limits. We have taught them some very basic things. They know about strangers. They know about playing in traffic. If the stick wiggles, it's not a stick. And if they forget to use anti-bacterial soap every now and then, we just let it ride. I think they'll be alright, and if they aren't, well there's always therapy.

When Dan isn't nursing some wound his daughters have sustained, he sells real estate with Fore Properties. You can reach him at 910-528-7003 or email: Dan@DanAskins.com.

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8:52 am: Three suitcases, backpacks stuffed with toys, a few bikes, two joyous children, and one sleep-deprived mother hit the road for one last Summer adventure.

8:55 am: Contorting to retrieve a spilled juice box, I narrowly avoid catastrophe as I pinball my way out Seven Lakes gates and point the minivan towards the Atlantic.

9:03 am: Passing an idyllic rural homestead populated with goats and chickens, I reconsider my choice of residence.

9:04 am: Waving to the sun-kissed farmer spreading fresh manure, I decide that life in the ‘burbs ain't so bad.   

9:15 am: Demonstrating uncanny diplomatic grace, I deftly negotiate a truce and my children agree which DVD movie they'll watch.

9:35 am: Losing interest in the movie, the kids resume kicking each other for entertainment.

9:40 am: Hoping a sugar rush will alleviate my headache, I hand out bowls of dry breakfast cereal.

9:41 am: A sweetened honey puff is launched past my head.

9:41:0004 am: Threatening to return home, I suggest an alternative vacation plan of spending the week cleaning up bedrooms.

9:42 am: Peace prevails for ten sacred minutes.

9:52 am: One hour, mark.

9:54 am: "Are we there yet? How much longer?"

9:55 am: "Hours! Mommy, how many minutes are in hours?"

9:59 am: "I dropped all my cereal on the floor. Can I have some more?"

10:01 am: "Jack ate my cereal!"

10:02 am: "Waah! Mommy, Jack hit me when I grabbed his bowl."

10:03 am: "Can we watch a movie?"

10:05 am: After another intense period of negotiation we settle on listening to a CD of "kids music."

10:10 am: "Can you play that song again?"

10:12 am: "Can you play that song again?"

10:14 am: "Can you play that song again?"

10:15 am: I decide that investing in two iPods, or at least liberating a few old Walkmans from storage is probably a wise parenting decision.

10:26 am: Pretending the car stereo is broken, I suggest we try a different CD to see if it works better.

10:28 am: The kids sniff out my plan to inject my music into the player and demand Hannah Montana.

10:31 am: I fantasize about ways to torture Billy Ray for creating this corporate pop rock drivel. I'll Achy Breaky your...Wait, hey that song she's singing is kind of catchy.

10:32 am: "Who would have thought that a girl like me could double as a superstar, yea, yea, oh, oh, oooh."

10:52 am: Two hours, mark.

10:59 am: "I'm hungry! I want lunch. Me too! Yeah, Mom, when are we gonna eaaaat!"

11:00 am: Assuring my children that somewhere ahead there must be a town of some sort, I silently pray to the hamburger gods.

11:03 am: "I'm so hungry! Mom, I'm starving to death. Look at my tummy, see?"

11:04 am: "I see a gas station. Mommy, let's eat there."

11:05 am: "Kids, we are not eating at a place called Uncle Buck's Truck & Pluck. I'm sure we'll see something soon."

11:32 am: Redemption dead ahead! Ah, nothing like the nutritious goodness of grease and salt at the drive-in window.

11:42 am: "I dropped my soda, Mommy. Wow, neat! It's making really cool bubbles on the floor!"

11:52 am: Three hours, mark.

11:54 am: Arriving at the ocean, I contemplate throwing myself in. I settle for a cool drink and decide to throw the kids in instead.

Yes indeed: nothing like a trip to the beach to relax and unwind.  

Laura Douglass writes for the Seven Lakes Times where this column originally appeared.

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Dear Community, Dear Friends,  

As a parent of a child with a cognitive disability as well as a relative to another, I consider the word "retard" very offensive. As a child, my mother was quick to educate us on how offensive this is to our family and others.  

Today it is a word that is tossed around thoughtlessly, few people even understanding the true meaning of the word.  It is through education that we can stop this from happening.    

I'm forwarding information to you for you to share with everyone you know regarding a new movie called "Tropic Thunder" that belittles people with cognitive disabilities.   Please do your part to help put a stop to discrimination and abuse of people with disabilities. Boycotting this movie offers a great opportunity to share information about individuals that have developmental abilities and to put a stop to the "R" word

Christine Garton

FSN of the Sandhills

Program Coordinator

Mother of a child with a disability

910-246-8059 ext.25  

 --- On Thu, 8/14/08, Irene Zipper wrote:

From: Irene Zipper
Subject: Re: [fsn_programs] FW: The Arc of the United States calls for national boycott of film Tropic Thunder
To: "FSN Affiliated Programs Mailing List"
Date: Thursday, August 14, 2008, 8:49 AM

 

Parent to Parent USA is among the many groups that has been involved in discussions with Dreamworks, and FSN of NC staff have reviewed a draft of a letter that is to be published in the New York Times.  One major concern is that this film not only makes use of an offensive term, but denies the valuable contributions that individuals with disabilities make to our society.  One of the discussions has been about whether letters should be coming from advocacy organizations or from individuals with disabilities themselves.  I think they should come from both, and it is important to emphasize the valuable contributions that all individuals are able to make to the society.   This movie seems to undermine that message, unfortunately  

Irene Nathan Zipper, MSW, PhD
Director
Family Support Network of North Carolina
University of North Carolina
CB #7340
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7340
(919) 966-6395
http://www.fsnnc.org/

    -----Original Message-----
From: Sue Price [mailto:SuePrice@vnet.net]

Subject: The Arc of the United States calls for national boycott of film Tropic Thunder

Dear Friends,  

I am writing this in response to several phone calls and emails we received about the movie Tropic Thunder, which hits the theaters today. Here is some information we received from The Arc of the United States which describes the movie and it's impact on individuals with intellectual disabilities.

Background: Tropic Thunder is an action/adventure/comedy scheduled for nationwide release on August 13 and promises to be one of the blockbusters of the summer. DreamWorks is the film's producer and Paramount is its distributor. 

The film features popular actors Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr. and Jack Black as self-absorbed actors filming a big-budget war movie on location. Through a series of freak occurrences, they are forced to become the soldiers they are portraying.

Stiller plays Tugg Speedman, a fading action star who earlier failed in his bid for an Oscar as "Simple Jack," a man with an intellectual disability. "Simple Jack" is featured as a film-within-a-film, with Stiller sporting a classic institutional bowl haircut and bad teeth. The film within-a-film's slogan is "What he doesn't have in his head, he makes up for in his heart." A satirical plot synopsis quotes a critic as saying that Speedman's Jack was "one of the most retarded performances in cinema history."

Status: A small number of disability advocates was able to screen the film on Friday, August 8.  Their assessment of the film was that it was far worse than anything they could have anticipated.  According to David Tolleson, the Executive Director of the National Down Syndrome Congress who attended the screening, "it provides real ammunition for cruelty" especially for the film's target audience of adolescent males.  "Not only is the Simple Jack character highly central to the film's plot, it is portrayed in the most demeaning way," according to Tolleson.  In perhaps the single most offensive scene in the film, Matthew McConaughey, who plays a Hollywood agent, speaks to the film's main character who wants to adopt a child.  "Well, at least you still have a choice.  I'm stuck with mine," states McConaughey while pointing to a photograph of his teenage son who appears to have an intellectual disability. There has been mounting outrage from the disability community as the film's content is gradually becoming known.  For excellent coverage of the issue, see http://capwiz.com/thearc/utr/1/LLMRJBOBNK/JPDRJBQIYG/2272335441 and related posts. Hundreds of comments have been posted on the blog expressing outrage about the movie.

Representatives of a number of national disability organizations, including The Arc's Executive Director Peter V. Berns attended a screening of the movie and state that it is even worse than they imagined. As a result, Arcs across the country, in collaboration with other disability groups, are calling for a national boycott of the file.

What can you do? Join us in boycotting this offensive film. Forward this email to your colleagues, friends and family asking for their support. All of us have friends and relatives spread out across this country. Our voice will be more powerful if we join together. Consider sending a letter to Dream Works expressing your outrage at the hurtful language used in the movie. (I have attached a sample letter to use if you wish)  Please consider that this is also a great opportunity for us to educate our community about People First Language! As educators, families and professional in the field, we all how damaging and hurtful this derogatory language is. Now is our chance to speak about this important issues to our children, friends and neighbors. We have an opportunity to make a real difference here, and I hope we can count on you to do whatever you can to help. Thanks so much.  

Sue Price
Executive Director
The Arc of Cabarrus County, Inc.
P. O. Box 1367
Concord, NC 28026-1367
704-788-1616  

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." -Margaret Mead, Cultural Anthropologist and Author

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     Before I had kids, I didn’t even know there was a 4 in the morning. Oh, I KNEW there was a 4 in the afternoon, and I’d HEARD of a 6 in the morning, but getting up that early was for the birds. And the dumb birds at that. After having kids, I realized I’d either have to get up earlier in the day to get things done or I’d have to lobby Washington to add a few extra hours to the day. Both seemed like a lot of work, but the whole Washington thing sounded like major travel time was involved, and I already spend several hours in my trusty soccer-mom van acting as a personal driver. So 4 AM it was, just so I can get a good workout in each day.

 

     So the alarm is set for 4 AM, so I can get a few household tasks done, fix breakfast and pack lunches for the day and head down to The Body Shop, the gym I belong to. Thank goodness for The Body Shop. I hate sweating, hate working out my muscles, hate getting out of breath. But at least there I get to do all those things without focusing on them. I can take a class full of other moms who hated getting up as early as me (misery loves company) or strength train while listening to commercial-free music, or hop on a treadmill with its own personal TV set on it.

 

     The treadmill with the TV on it is my favorite. It’s about the only time I watch non-Discovery Channel TV. I can watch all the junk TV I want for 45 minutes and no one is the wiser! I could watch infomercials (I really want one of those Conair Steam Straighteners and I have a birthday coming up in August-hint, hint) or Snapped! (you know to get hints in case the hubby ever really steps out of line) or if I REALLY want to lose a few brain cells I could switch the channel to MTV and watch re-runs of America’s Next Top Model. Either way, next thing I know I’ve spent 45 minutes running uphill and didn’t even realize it. There’s nothing like being oblivious to pain.

 

     My kids are 12 and 15, so they don’t get to enjoy the free childcare at The Body Shop. But if it weren’t so creepy, I could tune in to channel 114 and watch the little ones in the day care while I work out on the treadmill. This is great for moms with little kids, but my kids just sit at the front desk sipping protein shakes and playing with their Gameboys. Laurie, the general manager, is okay with that as long as they don’t fight. She suggested that if they are going to fight, they may as well take the kickboxing class. Since the kickbxsing class requires real effort, that comment ended their personal warfare. Wow, Laurie should be a high school teacher!

 

     Let’s face it, as we get older we have to work out a little bit harder. I’m not trying to become a size 2, I’m fighting to STAY a size 10. Not because I want to keep my husband from running off with a 19 year old (that’s why I watch Snapped!). Not because I want to wear those cute miniskirts (my fifteen year-old would pass out and die!) but because I want to be around as long as I possibly can and actually enjoy life...

     When my alarm went off at 4 AM this morning I once again looked at it with one eye as if to say, really? It’s 4? In the AM? But I got up. After all, those infomercials aren’t gonna watch themselves!

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Just because you are still enamored with your extensive Barbie collection, don't assume that everyone else is as well. As a full-time Realtor for the past 10 years, I have seen some great houses that wouldn't sell, simply because the owners couldn't get their own personalities out of the way. Below is a list of things you can do to help sell your house, and most of them cost little or no money.

Decorations

I wasn't kidding about the Barbie collection. My buyer clients and I walked into a house that was decent enough and met their basic criteria. Then we walked into the master bedroom. It was a shrine to Barbie. Literally dozens of Barbie's, still in their boxes, took their place of prominence on every horizontal surface in the room. In a bachelor's house. It's sort of that feeling you get when you walk in on your parents. Even though the house met my clents' basic criteria, they took it off the list, because they couldn't see past the Barbie display. You might think my buyers were immature, but you must understand that they are in control of whether they buy your house, not you. Sometimes buyers make big decisions using little details to guide them. While you might love your Barbie collection, others probably don't, so get out your "It's Moving Day" Barbie and store those collectibles away. Leave room in your house for the buyer to mentally move in their own things. Quite often I see military families make this mistake as well. While I am quite proud and supportive of our troops, I don't recommend displaying pictures or plaques that remind people of some disturbing scenes. Home is a sanctuary. Keep it quiet for the buyers by removing anything that might disturb their peace.

Clutter

Recently, I came into a house as a potential listing agent to interview for the listing. Long ago, I made the commitment to speak my mind, politely but firmly, about what issues I find. I have no desire to list a house I can't sell. This particular home was beautifully redone, from top to bottom, and sat in a very good section of town. It had been on the market, however, for two years. Obviously something was wrong. Besides being overpriced, the house was absolutely packed with furniture. The couple had married and combined furniture, so literally there were two houses of furniture in one space. Even though they were all very nice pieces, it made the house look llike a furniture showroom, instead of a home. Buyers need to be able to place their own furniture into a room, without tripping over yours. It is far cheaper to rent a mini-storage and pack away a few of your things, than to let your house sit on the market for two years. After the sellers moved out some of their stuff, the house went under contract in 28 days, and we got a backup offer as well.

Age Spots

My house is full of carpet stains. We manage to hide most of them, and if you don't like the rest of them, don't come over or clean 'em yourself. That's a fine attitude for us, because we aren't planning to sell. If you have pets, if you smoke, if you have kids (or husbands) who like to run with peanut butter and jelly, this will be a hard area for you to fix. It is SO important though. Getting those spots cleaned up will keep your potential buyers from forming a negative opinion of your home. It shows a pride of ownership, which puts the buyer's mind at ease about the rest of the house and the parts she can't see.

Messy rooms

There is nothing worse than coming into a bedroom and seeing dirty underwear. Clean underwear isn't much better. If you are really serious about selling your house, pick up everything, everyday. Clean and put away the dishes. Put toys in the right place. Your dog's favorite bone needs to be tucked away. The litter box should be clean. The toilets should be spotless. Selling your house is a pain. You are under the microscope 24/7, and you never know when a Realtor will drive up unannounced with a car full of buyers and want to see your house with little or no notice. Although we try not to let that happen, sometimes circumstances don't work out that way. If a buyer can't get in right then, quite often they will take the home off the list. I know that's not fair, but buyers are not always fair. Buying a home can be just as stressful and overwhelming as selling one.

Bad paint

Just the other day, I walked into a house with some buyers, and I nearly threw up. Somebody got the "I'm an HGTV star" complex and starting painting and changing the carpet. I kid you not, when I say the room was a combination of mauve carpet and pink walls. It looked like a collision of Pepto and Grape Nehi, and we got the indigestion. While you live in the house, paint the whole thing purple, if you want to. But when you decide to sell it, you need to begin to move yourself out of the house. That includes your tacky paint colors. Spec builders use beige for a reason. It sells. That also brings to mind a real pet peeve I have with homeowners. Just because Lowe's says you can "Do-It-Yourself" doesn't make it so. If you don't know how to keep wall paint off the ceililng, if you don't know how to properly caulk nail holes, if you don't know how to cut a straight line, this is for you: "STEP AWAY FROM THE PAINT BRUSH!!!!" Your bad paint job will cost you thousands of dollars, much more than the cost of a professional painter. When people see what a bad job you have done, they will price in a new paint job, even if they like the colors you picked.

Smelly house

Sometimes we have 20-30 houses to look at over the course of only one or two days. Imagine trying to remember all those houses. The last thing you want the buyer to associate with your wonderful home is how smelly it was. Your cigarettes must be completely undetectable, and you won't be able to discern that. Only a non-smoker who is not acquainted with your house will be able to tell. The litter box must be clean. Cat pee is a sure-fire way to ruin a first impression. Scented candles in every room is almost worse than the cats. The scent is overpowering and makes people think you're trying to hide something. One house had so many candles burning, we had to leave the front door open for ventilation. That house got crossed off the list. It's a little unfair, but the buyer is the one who makes that decision. Don't give her a reason to walk away with her nose in the air, firmly pinched between two fingers.

Dogs and cats

Here's where I get in trouble. I know you love your pet. I know he's precious. I know he's just being affectionate. I also know that the buyers don't want to be bothered with Fido and Sparkles. Barking dogs will turn away a buyer, even if that buyer has pets of his own. If there's any way to get your pets out of the picture, it would be a bonus. If not in a kennel, then in the garage or outside. If you have a large or somewhat aggressive dog, this is especially important. Do you want the buyers to remember your house as the one with the mean guard dog or as the one with the beautiful hardwood floors?

Price

Maybe you've noticed by now that I haven't mentioned price. It's the elephant in the room. We all know price is important, but it's not the only factor. In fact, it's one of the few things on the list over which you have little control. The market dictates price, not your mortgage amount or your bills that are piling up or your upcoming world cruise. This is a harsh reality, but you must respect the market. Quite often people will stubbornly stick to an unreasonable price for their houses and miss real opportuniites to sell. For every month you overprice the market, you are making yet another interest payment. Add those up and pretty soon, you've spent a great deal more money than you would have spent, if you had lowered the price to a reasonable level in the first place. Get an objective opinion of value. Your 1970s Brady Bunch era ranch with orange shag carpet and harvest gold appliances might really trip your trigger, but don't expect anyone to pay top dollar for it. Just because you don't mind a tiny bathroom with a pink tub, don't expect everyone to feel the same way. And just because you took out a huge line of credit to pay for that new bass boat with cruise control and XM radio, don't expect anyone to be willing to pay for it through an inflated house price.

Selling a house is like a going on a blind date. You never know if this buyer is "the one", so make your house ready every time. An attractive, well-priced house will sell, regardles of the market conditions.

When Dan isn't out selling real estate with Fore Properties, he likes to hang out at Panera. You can find him there or via email: Dan@DanAskins.com.

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With all of the hustle and bustle of planning this event, I forgot to post it HERE!!!

 Do you have or know of a child with a disability?

Then tell them about this NEW program in the Sandhills Area.

 

 

S.A.N.D

See Ability Not Disability

Athletic Program for Individuals with Disabilities

 

What is S.A.N.D?

Those with cognitive or physical impairments face many barriers when it comes to participating in competitive sports. SAND is an athletic program created to give children and adults with disabilities the opportunity to experience a sport many may not have the opportunity to participate in.

Because SAND is brand NEW to this area, this will be an evolving program- learning as we go. Since there will be a wide range of disabilities as well as ages (4-adult), we will be able to develop this program more and more as time goes on. It is through PARENT Participation, that this program will become what we envision in the future.

SAND will concentrate on one sport, one season at a time. The chosen sport for this Spring/Summer season will be T-Ball/Baseball. Based on ability levels, SAND participants will learn the skills necessary to play the sport. Each season will end with a FUN filled game and family picnic.

To learn more, Register or Volunteer for this exciting NEW program Please click here: www.fsnsandhills.info

-Christine Garton

FSN Sandhills Program Coordinator

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It seems from the moment I got pregnant with our first child almost 8 years ago, I have officially given up a good night's sleep. From the constant shifting all night and 3 am heartburn that came with pregnancy to the 2 am feedings and diaper changes that came after birth, I dreamed of the day when I would finally be able to sleep again.

But for some reason, sleep has never returned. Since birth, our oldest daughter has woken up several times a week and is just now making it through the night (she's 7!). Then, like most parents, we decide to have baby number two (back in 2003) and although she has turned out to be a much better sleeper, we still have the occasional 4 am wake-up call because of a bad dream.

I thought that as my kids got older, things would be easier to manage and that I would finally get the well deserved rest I needed. But once again, I was wrong. It seems that as they get bigger so do all the things I have to do, from homework to laundry to extra-curricular activities. Now, I find that from the time my feet hit the floor at 6:30 am (Okay 6:45 because I hit the snooze), I'm running around like a mad woman until I crawl back in bed each night close to mid-night. So much for getting my recommended 8 hours of sleep! And unlike the good ole days of sleeping in on Saturdays, I'm waking up early to drag the four year old at of bed to make her 9 am Soccer Games!

And of course some of this I have brought on myself when I decided to venture into self-employment and co-manage SandhillsKids.com. Like most moms, the only time of day that isn't consumed with house, kids, sports, dogs, husband and chores, are the hours between 8:30 pm and midnight. Just like many of the users on SandhillsKid.com, that's when I jump on the superhighway and work. Anyone that has ever emailed the site has probably received a reply with a time stamp after 10 pm. 

What does this all mean? Should I quite working, stop letting the kids do sports or start taking naps in the morning instead of doing laundry (which I would love because I hate laundry). Nope, it just means that right now life is busy and sometimes, I need to stop, grab a good book and climb into bed by 8 pm! That's all.

And, hopefully, when both kids are in school all day starting in July, I will finally have time to work during the day and get back to sleep. But until then, Sleep is Overrated and Caffeine is the stimulus of choice! 

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This is my second installment about "People to Meet in Moore County." If you know somebody that the rest of us need to meet, let me know. I'd be glad to interview them.

Felton Capel

This morning, I had the privilege to introduce Felton Capel to a class of 8th graders at Southern Middle School that I have been teaching through Junior Achievement. For the past eight weeks, I have asked the students what they wanted to do when they grew up, and then I followed up with a more difficult question: "What are you going to do this week to achieve that goal?" Most of the students have dreams, but they really don't understand how to turn them into reality. They also allow small barriers to get in their way. That's where Felton comes in.

Felton Capel is a black man in his 60's. We can say that race doesn't matter, but for people of Felton's generation it did. After leaving the US Army as a Master Sergeant during World War II, Felton came back to the States to try to get an education and get ahead. His choices were limited to black colleges, but he did receive a degree in Chemistry from Hampton University. When he came back home, the best job he could get was as a waiter for the Pinehurst Hotel. Felton Capel is a black man.

One day in 1968, after a family funeral, a friend approached Felton about the possibility of selling cookware with a company out of Los Angeles. Reluctantly, he agreed to try it out, and within six months, he was in the top 5 in the nation in sales. To this point, nobody in the company leadership had met Felton and didn't realize he was black, or the opportunity to sell the cookware wouldn't have been there to begin with. Within two years, he was the top selling distributor in the world, and the company wanted to throw him a victory banquet. Felton had a challenge. Felton is black. Hotels don't serve blacks. All that changed for one hotel in Winston-Salem, when Felton told them he wanted to book rooms for 700-900 people and host a dinner. He went on to by the cookware company and sit on many corporate and community service organization boards. Felton Capel is a black man, but he doesn't seem to notice.

Not satisfied with success in the business world alone, Felton ran for and won a seat on the Southern Pines Town Council. Due in large part to his efforts, Moore County integrated without all the ugliness that other areas endured. Felton Capel is a black man, but we don't care.

Perhaps you can understand why I invited Felton to speak to these 8th graders. Their excuses pale in comparison to the real barriers Felton Capel, and many others like him, faced on a daily basis. He is famous for saying, "Your attitude, more than your aptitude, determines your altitude." Everytime I think about quitting, or turning away from a challenge, or making excuses for my own laziness, I think about Felton Capel. Felton Capel is a great man.

When Dan isn't sitting at the feet of great men like Mr. Capel, he sells real estate with Fore Properties. You can reach Dan at 910-528-7003 or by email at Dan@DanAskins.com.

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It seems that every "mom" website you go to or news about families is always focused on how we as women can be better mothers to our children and more efficient. I recently saw an article on MSN.com title "50 tips to for moms" dedicated to keeping us moms more organized and better at managing our families. Somehow, we as moms have bought into this idea that we aren't good enough as we are and we somehow need to improve ourselves in order to be quality parents.

For many years, I bought into the hype surrounding motherhood. I read books on how to be a "good" mom, join the "best" mom groups and watch parenting experts on TV all in an effort to be the "perfect" mom. Instead of being supermom, I was the just "good enough" mom who was slightly overweight, frazzled and usually sleep deprived. What I soon realized was that I was a "normal" mom and the "perfect" mom for my family with all of my quirks and flaws.

As a result of this new found realization, I gave up reading parenting books and comparing myself to other moms. I stopped trying to find ways to be the "best" and accepted "good enough". What I have learned is that even those "perfect" moms have their flaws they just may not be as obvious as some of mine.

But most of all, I gave up "MOM GUILT". I made a conscious decision to no longer feel bad about myself as a parent or for taking time to sometimes step away from being just mom and enjoy being "Rollie" for awhile. And this year, I took it a step further and decided to live a Year Without Guilt.

So what does that mean? Well, simply put, I will not allow Guilt to be my guide in 2008. This year, I will not feel bad about.......

• Locking the door when I go the bathroom for privacy.
• Putting a cartoon on the TV for the kids so I can fix dinner in peace and quiet.
• Going out with a few friends for an evening without little people.
• Taking time to take care of myself both physically and mentally.
• Driving through McDonald's for Happy Meals instead of cooking.
• Hiring a babysitter so I can go to the store without tantrums.
• Dropping my daughter off in the carpool lane instead of walking her to class.
• Spending time with my husband with a child in sight.

But most of all I won't feel guilty for the little mistakes I make along my journey in parenthood. Because believe it or not, I am more than a mom - I am also human.

So this year, throw the expert advice out the window, enjoy your life as a parent, accept who you are and live a Year Without Guilt!

 

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