HERE WE GO AGAIN

Parenting kicks in full speed again this month. School is starting back, which means a return to meal planning, tight schedules and bedtime routines.

I’m always happy to see summer come because there is less to do, but after a couple of months of beach, theme parks and bored pre-teens… I am SO ready to get them back on a routine.

Being a parent is exhausting most of the time. Some women say that parenting is easy and from what I have seen in their children’s actions, it’s because they aren’t parenting. Teaching children how to care for themselves, to do their part in maintaining house rules, to keep their grades up and to help out with siblings is a full-time job! And, for those who work outside the home on top of the parenting job… you better be very organized, or you surely will sink in your day-to-day operations.

Faith has been key in my success. (I call it success because every day that we all survive one another in our home is a successful day.) I read quotes each day to help me stay focused on what my purpose is in life. My daily reading keeps me hopeful that everything will be fine even on hard days when I feel like crying all day and feel like I’ve failed everyone.

In my experience, keeping my kids involved in extracurricular activites has helped develop my children into well-balanced kids. And a couple of them are adults now that stay as involved in helping out with organizations and sports as they did when in grade school. I was fortunate enough growing up to participate in many things: Piano and dance lessons, swimming, basketball, cheerleading, chess team, chorus, french club, and many more. And still two decades later, I find myself on the board of different organizations, involved in exercise classes, advocating for different clubs. It shaped me as a child and now it’s part of who I am as an adult.

I believe not only do extra activities help your child to know what interests them but it helps them to learn team building skills and healthy competition and ambition along with keeping them busy so they stay out of trouble. Boredom can be a dangerous thing!

Enjoy this issue where we meet a few local students who know the importance ( and fun) of finding activities that make them happy and keep them busy. n) of g activitie

KENDRA AKERS publisher/editor-in-chief kendra@akersmediagroup.com

DOUG AKERS vice president doug@akersmediagroup.com

JAMIE EZRA MARK chief creative officer jamie@akersmediagroup.com

SABRINA CICERI associate publisher sabrina@akersmediagroup.com

EDITORIAL // DESIGN // PHOTOGRAPHY

JAMES COMBS staff writer james@akersmediagroup.com

JOHN SOTOMAYOR staff writer john@akersmediagroup.com

LEIGH NEELY staff writer/copy editor leigh@akersmediagroup.com

FRED LOPEZ chief photographer fred@akersmediagroup.com

JOE DELEON creative director joe@akersmediagroup.com

STEVEN J. CODRARO senior art director steve@akersmediagroup.com

JOSH CLARK senior designer josh@akersmediagroup.com

MICHAEL GAULIN production director michael@akersmediagroup.com

JAMIE ROBINSON digital editor jamie.robinson@akersmediagroup.com

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS//PHOTOGRAPHERS

KIM BADEN-KRISTENSEN TERESA CUTTER

MARY ANN DESANTIS GREG FRESCOLN FRED HILTON DEB MACINTYRE

KATIE LEWIS SCOTT PERKINS

DAVE RAMSEY PASTOR ALLEN SPEEGLE DR. THOMAS VALENTE RON VANDEVANDER

SALES // MARKETING

TIM MCRAE vice president of sales and marketing tim@akersmediagroup.com

MIKE STEGALL senior account representative mike@akersmediagroup.com

MELANIE MELVIN director of client services melanie@akerscreative.com

DEB MATLOCK account coordinator deb@akerscreative.com

HEIDI RESSLER account representative heidi@akersmediagroup.com

DAVID COTÉ account representative david@akersmediagroup.com

LYNN KELLEY account representative lynn@akersmediagroup.com

ADMINISTRATION

AUBREY AKERS office assistant aubrey@akersmediagroup.com

SAMANTHA KURK receptionist samantha@akersmediagroup.com

DISTRIBUTION

SCOTT HEGG distribution manager scott.hegg@akersmediagroup.com

Sabrina Ciceri Associate Publisher

Sabrina@akersmediagroup.com

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