parenting

Ransack the mock bedroom of a sneaky teen, get Narcan training, and enjoy pizza, too

By Billie Owens
Nov 19, 2018, 2:12pm

Hillside Family of Agencies welcomes you to join them for "Hidden Mischief & Narcan Training" from 6 to 8 p.m. on Thursday Dec. 6.

The location is 50 Batavia City Centre.

Stop in for PIZZA and search our mock teen bedroom, link with resources in the community and gain valuable information.

Please register with Carrie St. Clair by calling 716-220-6850 or emailing her at: cstclair@hillside.com

"Hidden Mischief" is a program to create awareness of ways teens conceal drugs or use everyday items for drug use.

The interactive teen bedroom will give each participant an opportunity to search and find drug paraphernalia, drugs and drug references. There will be everyday items displayed that have been converted to hide or use drugs. Join us to see if you can find the hidden mischief.

This parenting workshop, which also features Narcan training, is presented by GCASA.

Representatives from these organizations will be there: Horizon Health Services; Tobacco Free Coalition; Genesee County Sheriff's Office; and Hillside Family of Agencies.

Free parenting classes focus on positive child rearing, healthy lifestyles

By Billie Owens
Oct 1, 2009, 9:57pm

NOTE: AS OF 2010, THIS CLASS IS NO LONGER OFFERED.

Free parenting classes are being offered by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Genesee County, focusing on positive child rearing and healthy lifestyles.

Parents who participate in these classes learn about key parenting communication skills including setting limits, responsibility, communication and positive discipline strategies. In addition, they gain knowledge about nutrition for healthy growth and development.

This six-part series is taught by Nutrition and Parenting Educator Mariellen Woodward-DeFelice. There is no cost for Genesee County residents but there is a nominal fee for residents of surrounding counties.

For more information or to register, contact Mariellen by calling 585-343-3040 ext. 105 or stop by the Extension Center at 420 E. Main St. in Batavia.

Classes are from 3:30 to 5 p.m. Tuesdays at the Cornell Cooperative Extension building on E. Main. Street of Genesee County, 420 East Main Street in Batavia.

Here's the line-up:

Oct. 13 - Anger in the Family: Learn to diffuse anger, encourage positive behavior at the table and about the basics of family nutrition.

Oct. 20 - Responsibility and Your Children: Learn to encourage responsibility, teach kids about kitchen safety and how to cook as a family.

Oct. 27 - Disciplining Your Children: Learn parenting styles and techniques and how to encourage good food choices.

Nov. 3 - Setting Limits and Expectations: Learn to set effective limits and age-appropriate expectations and to reduce cravings with healthy snacks.

Nov. 10 - Winning Ways to Talk with Kids: Learn to improve communication with active listening, to educate children about meal planning and how commercialization affects your budget.

Nov. 17 - Family Enrichment: Learn to problem solve, teach cooperation, evaluate routines and develop self-esteem.

NOTE: AS OF 2010, THIS CLASS IS NO LONGER OFFERED.

Down syndrome support group celebrates 20 years

By Billie Owens
Oct 1, 2009, 8:48pm

The Down Syndrome Parent Support Group of Genesee County, Inc., is now 20 years old.

It will celebrate the feat at its annual Autumn Leaves Auction at 6 p.m. on Oct. 10 at the Batavia First United Methodist Church on Lewiston Road. The cost is $8 pre-sale and $10 at the door and includes a bidder number, lite meal and a fabulous dessert bar.

Call group President Dawn Fisher 948-9222 for tickets.

All items are new and donated by members, friends, and area businesses. There is a Live Auction with about 100 items that Auctioneer Dennis Bezon auctions off for the group. And there will also be a Silent Auction.

The local DSPSG was started by Kay and Rod Cook, but others were instrumental in helping get things off the ground, including Dana and Bryan Phelps, Ron and Sharon Cummings and Stephen and Mary Northrup. All have a child with Down syndrome.

Kay Cook served as the president for 18 years and the others have served on the board of directors or in an officer position.

The group has given back so much to the community and the families who have children with Down syndrome. Every year the group gives two scholarships to high school seniors who will go to college and major in a field related to developmental disabilities.

In addition, it has given big screen TVs to different ARC homes when they opened. Its family reimbursement program has helped many families with the cost of dance lessons, horse riding lessons, challenger sports programs and attorney fees for families who are setting up a special needs trust for their child with Down syndrome.

The group has had several speakers who helped educate parents about issues pertaining to Down syndrome. It also gives out camping scholarships to members who have Down syndrome.

Members of the group have benefitted from funding to attend the National Down Syndrome conferences throughout the United States and Canada. These gatherings are full of information for parents and the young adults with Down syndrome who simultaneously attend their own conference.

Many children with Down syndrome are great self-advocates and take great pride in their accomplishments. They want people to know that they are a person first and foremost who happens to have Down syndrome. They want to become an intregal part of the community.

Come and be a part of that community Oct. 10. It promises to be a great night of tasty food, great company and great bargins. This year's proceeds will go to Genesee ARC for their capital campaign to remodel the old St. Mary's School now called "The Community Center."

Honesty is the Best Policy... Dang Policies by my friend, Debbie

By Bea McManis
Jun 5, 2009, 9:03pm

Honesty is the Best Policy... Dang Policies

From

The First Day of the Rest of My Blog in Blogs by LWDebbieD

I am a firm believer, that being absolutely honest with your kids is the best thing to do, at least for the really important questions (within age appropriate parameters of course).

I also believe that the "innocent magic" that is childhood, which already disappears too quickly, would be gone in a single breath if we didn't allow ourselves a few "dishonest" moments with our children, in which we don't have to outright "lie" to them, but withholding some key pieces of information can serve the greater good, and that brief and precious stage of childhood magic can live on for a few more hours...days...months...even years.

My son lost his 4th tooth today. He was preparing the tiny white sacrifice of his youth for the "Bringer of Small Change and/or Bills". Tonight (as he was writing a very detailed letter to the Tooth Fairy, complete with gifts (A "Knock Knock Joke" he made up (i.e. it makes sense only to him) and "Medallion Prize" (made with paper, crayons, and scissors of course)), he asked if she was teeny tiny or real person sized".

Given the fact the tooth has fallen out on a day when I have not a single dime of spare cash lingering in the bottom of my purse, I admit I had a momentary flash of brilliance that included thinking that I should tell him there was no such thing as the Tooth Fairy and give him an IOU on the loot. (I'll save for another blog post that he knows what an IOU is because he operates the loan bailout program in this house and I'm currently in debt $40 bucks to his Lightening McQueen wallet).

Fortunately I delegated the task of finding cash before morning to the loan shark's Dad, and decided to preserve the innocence for awhile longer.

"I'd like to think she's teeny tiny", I said (not technically a lie).

"Did you know Nicolas' Dad is also a Tooth Fairy?", came the reply. "And Madelynne's Mom?"

"Really?...I had no idea...Maybe I can get a job like that someday too.", was my reply. (also, not technically a lie).

And that was that. No more questions about it, or discussion. I was prepared to wiggle my way around the topic the way he'd wiggled that tooth around the now empty space in his mouth. He happily went on his way making gifts, writing materials for his monologue, and trying to predict how many days before he can extract the last remaining wiggly front tooth from it's not so secure location.

As the evening went on, he wanted to know if I had lost any teeth when I was little. How old I was when it happened? What did the Tooth Fairy bring me again (.41 cents FYI...one of each, quarter, dime, nickel, penny). I thought I'd be smart and show him some old photos, complete with missing teeth.

I dragged out an old album, which had a wide range of photos from my side of the family, and we went through dozens of photos, from all stages and ages of my own life and those of my parents/ grandparents/ aunts/ uncles/ siblings/ cousins/etc. lives. He soon lost interest in the teeth related photos, and asked many questions about different people, places, and scenes from the pictures.

Coming across one photo of me from the late 80's, he says, "Mommy, you look so nice". "How old were you?".

"About 22", I reply. (total honesty)

"Were you married?", he asks. I immediately reply with "yes", knowing full well in my head that while it wasn't a lie...I was married, but that it was my previous life...the one that I had before I became divorced, and married the wonderful man who was to become his father.

Without missing one beat he comes back with, "But you were in your thirties when you married Daddy."

It's at this point where the expression on my face becomes frozen in some painful configuration that I'm sure will leave "worry lines", and the explosion of things going on inside my head starts to resemble the early signs of a stroke or seizure. Who the heck ever wanted a smarty pants kid?!?! I can't remember what I had for breakfast today, but he can remember some random statement of fact that we might have told him during some past conversation. AND WHO THE HECK TAUGHT HIM TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HIS TWENTIES AND THIRTIES...HE'S FIVE!!!!!

Don't get me wrong. I don't have a problem at all with my son knowing that I was married before, or that sometimes marriages don't work out, or that sometimes young people make big life decisions too early and without fully thinking out the long term road map. I just didn't expect to be dealing with it when he's FIVE.

I decide on the spot that I'm not going to lie to him, nor stretch the truth, nor will I phrase the answer to give the illusion of another reality. I'll answer whatever he asks, just like I always said I'd do, and as I've always done (well, about the important stuff).

So I tell him that he's right. I was in my thirties when I married Daddy.

"You were married before"?, he asks.

"Yep" (I'm keeping it extra simple now on the replies...should have thought of THAT sooner).

"What was his name?", he wants to know.

"Dan".

He states the scenario as he understands it back to me, "You were married to someone named Dan when you were in your twenties".

"Yep", I confirm.

He hugs me while adding, "But you didn't have any kids because you were waiting for me to be here?" (WOW...this topic might just need it's own post too).

"That's right" I tell him as I hug him back.

He goes back to flipping through the photos, looks the picture of me one more time, closes the book, and inquires, "Did you tell Daddy?"

"Absolutely!", I exclaim. "Daddy knows".

"Did you tell him the day you got married or before?"

So honesty is the best policy. I haven't changed my mind on that. But it amazes me that this child...my BABY...the one who believes in Tooth Fairies, Easter Bunny, Santa, and Daddy Magic...the one who thinks his class almost caught a leprechaun on St. Patrick's Day... can at the same time believe in all the magical wonders of childhood, can have such clarity, such depth, and understanding about so many non childish things.

Trying to keep a straight face, I let him know that I told Daddy before the day we got married, which he seemed to approve of by a nodding of his head. And with the same look he gave me when I swore I was going to repay the $40 bucks, he asks...

"Are you sure Daddy knows?"

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