Summer "Staycation" Ideas from Opinionated MAMA!

WHAT MOMS ARE TALKING ABOUT RIGHT NOW

Summer 2010 “STAYCATION” Ideas From the O-MAMA Mamas – Founders & Followers

With summer upon us, all moms are talking about what to do this year with their vacation and many are realizing that this isn’t the year to spend the money on a big trip. Recently, Walmart asked O-Mama.com to share their ideas on “Staycations,” and here’s what they had to say…

FIRST, the Ground Rules: no phone zone; buy themed paper products and get into a staycation state of mind

SECOND, Pick your theme:

Breakfast in Bed

• sleep in; stay in your jammies; watch cartoons; have the kids make you breakfast in bed, relax…

Backyard Campout

• pitch a tent, roast marshmallows, make s’mores

• send the kids on a bug hunt, make nature bracelets out of inside out masking tape…have them stick all their treasure on it

• create a scavenger hunt or have a family yard project ready to go

• get out the sleeping bags and make it a no electronics zone for the night…watch the stars, make shadow puppets with flashlights, play flashlight tag, giggle and tell stories in the dark

Hawaiian Hideaway

• get out your beach chairs and water weenies, blow up water balloons, set up the slip ‘n slide, baby pool or just turn on the sprinklers

• play Beach Boys music and blow up beach balls to kick around

• play some family volleyball or good old fashioned “keep away”

• make pineapple juice drinks and cut up tropical fruit for fresh fruit kabobs

• roll out some beach mats/towels and eat on the ground luau style…the kids will love it

• wear your favorite wrap or Hawaiian shirt and feel the island attitude take you away


Beach Blanket Bingo

• pack your beach bag and take a short drive to the nearest body of water…river, lake or ocean…skip some stones or take a walk

• fly a kite, splash around or just toss a football

• roast some hotdogs and marshmallows

• watch the sunset


Old Fashioned Backyard Barbeque

• squeeze some lemonade and put some beer on ice; use mason jars

• bbq anything you want…from burgers to bananas…crack open a watermelon for dessert

• set the stage with a red checked table cloth

• play horse shoes and/or croquet

• spin stories, strum a guitar and enjoy the talk around the table


Mexican Fiesta

• make margaritas and say fiesta!

• make some homemade guacamole with the kids…have them roll up whatever they want in a tortilla

• stuff a piñata with goodie and have the kids go at it

• paint some pottery or have your own hat dance (turn on the music and have the kids do a silly samba…turn off the music and have them “freeze”)


Nights on Broadway

• get a sitter for the kids

• pack your fancy duds and go into the nearest big city for the night

• see a show (not a movie, but a show in a real theater…Broadway show, off Broadway, local theater, whatever) and go out to a nice dinner


Movie night

• set up a big screen in the back yard and have the kids grab their sleeping bags and pillows (a plain white sheet on a wall or fence will do the trick, too…if you want to get fancy, you can rent an inflatable screen)

• order pizzas, make some popcorn and open the soda…fun!


Game night

• pick a night, pick a game…and have some family fun


Sports Center

• oh yes, your husband and your son will be SO EXCITED…sports all day

• start with sports themed paper products at breakfast, make baseball/football shaped pancakes

• have some family competition…pick your favorite sports and have a tournament…set up brackets and the whole deal

• make jerseys and GO TEAM GO!

THIRD, GO HAVE FUN!!!


O-MAMA also posted this question to its 10,000+ fans on Facebook and here’s what they had to say…

Elizabeth D. - We take the tram to the airport, watch the planes take off and talk about where people are going. Then we take a shuttle to an airport hotel with a pool and free Continental breakfast. $100 for a family vacation, and kids think they are in heaven! After, all the hotel pool IS the vacation!

Racheal M. we live next to a 200 acre chunk of land (untouched!)... and we never have to travel far for some good ol' fashioned camping and hiking! But if your kids are really young, you can do the same thing right in the back yard and they'll love it just as much!

Grace M. One of my fav's is to go camping in the yard. We, me included- or especially me- get prizes for each day we stay out of the house entirely- except of course for the potty. Another is to list all the activities that are near by- pick one each day and do that- It's surprising the number of things that are local that we just don't get to because ...

Windy S. we rented a hotel room....five minutes from home lol, but hey it could have been anywhere. my son had a blast and we tried a new restaurant.

Peggy T. We become members of the local kids science museum every year. Then you can get into kids science museum free pretty much anywhere in the country so we drive to the ones in our area. We are also lucky to live near the beach and DC so we take day trips there.

Noelle N. Like Peggy, we live in the DC/Baltimore area so stay-cations are super easy. We also live close to the Eastern Shore so we are right in the middle of some of the best things! But Windy, that is a rockin' idea! Never thought of that. Thinkin' a nice Annapolis hotel and some fun historical touring may be on the agenda!

Kathy W. We're lucky we live in a city with so many urban lakeside beaches! And check your local library schedule for special events like a petting zoo or kids' pizza party. Ask yourself, what do tourists do, when they come to my town. Do you ever do any of them? Like your city or county history museum or art museum?

Donna J. We take "virtual" field trips. One is starting in a little while for Bryce Canyon (sponsored by the national parks). Here is the virtual field trip link: http://nationalparks.org/npf-at-work/our-programs/electronic-field-trip/


You’ve heard from celebrities, politicians and pundits. Now get a mom’s perspective and some common sense insight on the nation’s hottest topics

www.O-MAMA.com

Opinionated MAMA Hosts Tribute to Mommy Bloggers


The clicking of keyboards across Orange County was slightly diminished for a brief time last Wednesday as several of OC’s most prominent Mommy Bloggers were treated to a morning of pampering, taste-testing and good old-fashioned girl talk at the home of Opinionated MAMA founder Michelle Tingler.

Michelle Tingler and Debbie Devine hosted the first O-MAMA Tribute to Mommy Bloggers to bring together many of the women who share their lives, loves, passions and exploits online in celebration of their efforts as well as the recent addition of Opinionated MAMA to the OC Family magazine network of bloggers. Attendees included Sugar Jones of SugarJones.tv, Michelle Whitaker of OC Play Parks, Vintage Mama’s Lydia Poblano, Sondra LaBrie of Happy Healthy Hip Parenting and Priscilla Willis of Top Mom Blog among others.

“O-MAMA supports all moms in the hard work of raising happy, healthy, well-adjusted future citizens,” says founder Michelle Tingler. “And in our opinion, every hard-working mom deserves a little break once in a while!”

Those in attendance were treated to manicures and pedicures by Spa-Go, pilates instruction by Stephanie Hiltzman of Body Design in Newport Beach and delicious mock-tails and kid-friendly cuisine tips from celebrity chef Wade Williams of Picnic LA. All the while, many of the ladies were accompanied by their children who spent their morning doing arts and crafts, bouncing away in the bounce house and getting their faces painted by Faces by Derrick.


Click here to see and download additional event photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomediaco/sets/72157624067384031/



Also, see what some of the ladies who attended had to say about it!

http://www.wellsphere.com/parenting-article/are-you-an-opinionated-mama/1130572

EXTRA, EXTRA!! O-MAMA Hits in the Chicago Tribune and Oprah Radio's Dr. Laura Berman Show


Opinionated MAMA founders Michelle Tingler and Debbie Devine recently travelled to Chicago where they did two GREAT interviews to spread the O-MAMA's message of empowering America's moms and giving them a voice in our country's most important conversations. 

First, they were interviewed by Heidi Stevens of the Chicago Tribune - an O-MAMA for sure!! - who wrote this fantastic story!!  http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/family/sc-fam-0520-omama-web-site-20100520,0,4755394,full.story
We loved her idea of "swapping" headlines!!

Then Michelle and Debbie went in studio at Oprah Radio with sex and relationship expert Dr. Laura Berman to share their Opinionated MAMA opinions on everything from successful blended families to talking sex with your kids and much much, more!  Take a listen to an excerpt of their interview by clicking here: http://www.oprah.com/oprahradio/Empowering-the-Moms-of-America-Audio

Now that's a great road trip!!  Great job O-MAMA's!!!

O-Mama Hosts Inaugural House Party - Three Easy Tips To Setting The Stage

This last Saturday night we went to the Inaugural House Party for O-Mama.  The party was such a success and so much fun that we decided to tell you about it in a few posts so you could get the full picture and get some ideas of your own so you can host your own O-Mama House Party.

Must-Have O-MAMA House Party Decor and Food:

#1 - Fun Cocktails - Red Martinis for Republicans and Blue Martinis for Democrats (make note of the cute colored sugar for the rim of the glasses!)

#2 Make A Statement With Your Dessert Bar - This dessert bar by Meringue Bake Shop was to die for!  I love the mini cupcakes with the O-Mama Logo. An added bonus to the table of treats -- it made the party not only taste like heaven but it also smelled like it!
#3 - Have Conversation Starters - I loved the idea of hanging conversation starters from balloons.  So clever.
Another easy way to start a conversation is put a bunch of topics in a bowl like this:

Stay tuned for party pictures and other fun ideas!

WHAT A WEEK....

One of things we love most about this business is that you NEVER know what the next day is going to bring... We had a great week here at TO Media Co., with exciting requests and inquiries for all of our clients from the likes of Family Circle, Parenting, two national radio shows and Lifetime television.  So exciting!!

And tomorrow night we will top off this incredible week with the Inaugural House Party for O-MAMA.com at the home of founder Michelle Tingler with some of OC's outstanding Opinionated MAMAs and a whole lot of great conversation and fun. Can't wait to celebrate!! To learn more about O-MAMA and how you can host your own O-MAMA House Party with the opinionated moms in your life, log on to www.o-mama.com.


On top of all the excitement, we helped out our favorite Nashville-based PR company Triple7 PR (http://www.triple7pr.com/ - we love you Carrie and Ashley) with a little shoot for The Doctors with celebrity chef and author Rocco DeSpirito.  Such a pleasure to work with him again as well as the fantastic team from The Doctors! You HAVE to check out Rocco's latest cookbook, titled Now Eat This... it is packed full of healthy eating tips and fantastic healthy "makeovers" for some of America's all-time favorite recipes (Fried Chicken, Macaronit and Cheese and even Mayonaise get the full nutritional treatment!) and is climbing the bookselling charts like a rocket!!  I can't wait to try a few myself.  Check back for tune-in info on the episode.

Happy Friday Everyone!  Hope this great momentum rolls right through the weekend...




SOCIAL-IZING HEALTHCARE

MOMS ON O-MAMA.COM CAPITALIZE ON SOCIAL MEDIA TO SHARE HEALTH TIPS WITH OTHER WOMEN

San Clemente, CA – While Americans are still debating the solution to mounting healthcare costs and rising numbers of uninsured, moms on O-MAMA.com, short for Opinionated Mama, are socializing healthcare through social media.

“As women and mothers, our first priority is the health and well-being of our families and we are thrilled to witness mothers coming together to share their questions, fears, discoveries and generations of knowledge about women’s health on our website,” says O-MAMA.com founder Michelle Tingler

Inside the O-MAMA chat rooms moms have been discussing and sharing insight and info on everything from flu shots and the HPV Virus to breast cancer. One user states, “…over the last few years, my husband and I have been getting our information from sites and books and sadly, you will never hear or see this information on regular mainstream media…”

TIPS/QUOTES FROM CHAT ROOMS: When it comes to your health, O-MAMAs say:

Tip #1 from moms – SHARE AND SHARE ALIKE – When it comes to information that is! It’s tough to keep up with the myriad of information being thrown at us about everything from vaccines to cancer, but when you do discover an important truth, share it with others. Whether this knowledge is gained from personal experience (my son/daughter had that last month) or the advice of an expert (my doctor told me…), we all benefit from communicating this information with other women and mothers in our community. You never know if you might help someone down the road.

“So here's the latest update on pap smears (just what you wanted on a Monday morning!): Latest guidelines are NO pap until 21 years old. None. Nothing. Nada.” (Tmama)

Tip #2 – TALK TO THE DOC – While some of our members are in fact physicians, the overwhelming consensus is that regardless of what reports you read or what your friends (or fellow O-MAMA’s) say, ultimately you have to take what you’ve learned and talk to your doctor. And if you aren’t satisfied with the answer… get a second opinion.

“I am printing out this discussion thread and taking it to the pediatrician...I am going to take O-MAMAs advice and "talk to my doc" about it...I think we all should go in armed with info and ask questions. Thanks for all the info. You go girls!” (Tiredmama)


Tip #3 – AN APPLE A DAY – Another age old adage that holds true today. Moms know that a healthy diet is the key to overall health, but as many O-MAMAs and doctors have stated, a healthy diet can also be the key to preventing and curing cancer, diabetes, heart disease and many of the other diseases that are virtual epidemics in our society today.

“Whole foods are our best friend and nature gave us many cures that many people just don't know about. And ladies, you may want to change your deodorant and switch to one that is aluminum-free. I have more to say, but, I think I'll share as I go :) Take care!! (Tuskismom)

O-MAMA invites you to share your opinions:
http://www.o-mama.com/chat_rooms/discuss/health

O-MAMA Hits the FRONT PAGE of the OC Register!!

READ ALL ABOUT IT! ON TODAY'S FRONT PAGE OF THE OC REGISTER, O-MAMA's Michelle Tingler and Debbie Devine share the history and vision of Opinionated Mama with the Register's Theresa Walker... Click below to read the whole story!

MOM'S OFFER ADVICE FOR D.C., POLITELY

O-Mama.com Featured in REDBOOK MAGAZINE!

If you are looking for a friendly debate when it comes to politics, look no further.






In case you haven't gotten your March issue of Redbook yet - go get it now!  On page 112, Michelle Tingler and Debbie Devine, the founders of O-Mama.com (Opinionated Mama) are featured in a great article called "Launching A Friendly Debate".

An online resource for news and events from a mom’s perspective, O-MAMA.com seeks to bring common sense back to our country’s most important conversations by identifying and correcting the disconnect between the messages in the news and events of the day to the lessons we teach our kids at home.

Thanks Marisa Cohen and REDBOOK for writing such a great article!





 

OC Register calls O-MAMA.com a Site to Be Bold



Michelle and Debbie spoke yesterday with OC Register's Mom Blogger and Editor Theresa Walker about the vision for O-MAMA.com as well as their belief that with a little humor and a lot of common sense America's moms can be a constructive voice in the nation's most important conversations. Click here for the whole story http://themomblog.freedomblogging.com/2010/01/27/o-mama-is-a-site-to-be-bold/45033/

With the State of the Union address tonight, Orange County's Opinionated MAMAs Michelle Tingler and Debbie Devine, founders of the new online resource for news and events from a Mom's perspective, O-MAMA.com, are settling in for some spirited and constructive coversation with the rest of the O-MAMA.com community!

The OC Register will also be following up with Michelle and Debbie following tonight's address to get their O-MAMA opinions about what Mr. Obama has to say.  Follow this link to get to their comments - http://themomblog.freedomblogging.com/

As Theresa said... the folks in Washington could probably learn a lot from America's O-MAMAs.  Go MAMA!


O-MAMA.com says, "A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed"...

TODAY AT O-MAMA.com --

A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed - Many Hands Help Haiti


http://www.o-mama.com/articles/view/a-friend-in-need-is-a-friend-indeed-many-hands-help-haiti

Our country and the world have been called to action out of a moral sense of responsibility in response to the Haitian earthquake. 50% of the Haitian population is under the age of 18. They are children. One of the least developed nations in the western hemisphere, with 80% of the country living in abject poverty, and one fraught with years of political discord and violence and already lacking in basic infrastructure; Haiti certainly was in no position to weather a natural disaster of this magnitude on its own.

The death toll is expected to be in the hundreds of thousands and an estimated 1.5 million are homeless. Port-au-Prince and outlying areas are devastated and international aid has been arriving, but has been slow to be distributed due to lack of infrastructure on the ground. Corpses lay rotting in the sun, and looters with machetes have taken to the streets. Haitians living illegally in the US were granted 18 month amnesty to avoid deportation. The United States immediately pledged aid and assistance to Haiti through the Red Cross and other means to ease their suffering. Former President’s Clinton and Bush have established www.clintonbushhaitifund.com to receive donations to aid Haiti.

All off this is what we, the most generous nation in the world, do best. The United States proudly springs to action, ready to take on the responsibility necessary to help a struggling neighbor in dire need and set the example for its citizens, and the world.

Here’s how to begin a conversation with your children about being a good friend:

1) Remind them that “a friend in need is a friend in deed.” Part of our responsibility to your friends is to help them when they are in need, because it shows them that we are dependable and there for them in good times and bad.

2) Explain that "the best way to have a friend is to be one." The way we treat our friends is the way we want to be treated. Be helpful, dependable and kind to your friends and be mindful of their needs. In return, your friends will share in your joys and help you when you need it. Kids with strong and stable friendships grow up happier and healthier!

Also, check out www.goodcharacter.com for some resources on teaching kids about friendship.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION ON HAITI AND OTHER HOT TOPICS AT
http://www.o-mama.com/

You've Heard from Celebrities, Politicians, Pundits. Now Hear From O-Mama (Opinionated Mama)

You’ve heard from celebrities, politicians and pundits. Now get a mom’s perspective and some common sense insight on the nation’s hottest topics. From politics, healthcare and immigration to teen sex, manners and education, O-MAMA’s have an opinion about all this and more and want to share it.


Meet Michelle Tingler, a Democrat and former advertising executive, and Debbie Devine, a Republican and former journalist, good friends and busy moms who were inspired by their real-life “kitchen table talk” to create an online resource for news and events from a mom's perspective. http://www.o-mama.com/ (Opinionated MAMA) is a new website that engages moms in the bigger issues by making them relevant to their daily lives and empowers moms to be a constructive voice in our nation’s most important conversations. Founded on the ideal that with little humor and a lot of common sense, America’s moms get to the heart of the issues that matter most to our kids, our families, our communities and our country.

To see Michelle and Debbie in action, click here to view their latest video: 


About O-MAMA’s Democratic Voice: Michelle Tingler

Michelle grew up in Rochester Hills, MI, raised by a single father. A graduate of the University of Michigan and former VP, Management Supervisor at Dailey & Associates Advertising in Los Angeles, CA. She left her advertising career when her first child was born in 1999. However, her professional skills overlapped into her role as a mother - every birthday party was approached like an integrated marketing campaign; every holiday assigned an innovative theme with broad family appeal.

Happily married for 13 years, Michelle has been a busy, engaged, stay-at-home mom of three kids, a dog and a tortoise for nine of them. Michelle became engaged in political issues during the 2008 Presidential campaign and, again, merged her learned skills in both advertising and motherhood with her new passion – politics. The idea for O-MAMA was born.


About O-MAMA’s Republican Voice: Debbie Devine

Nothing is ordinary about this Southern California Republican. She grew up in Corona del Mar, CA, graduated from the University of Southern California and was raised by parents who are still married after 45 years. Typical. Debbie studied abroad, became fluent in Spanish and spent her career years working for Telemundo, CNN en Español and CNN International where she helped launch television programs and networks in Spain, Mexico and Turkey. Surprise!

Finally, motherhood took precedence and Deb traded in her international globe-trotting career for a second one teaching Spanish. She owns and operates a student travel business that takes middle school and high school students to Latin America to help them become global citizens. Her goal is to get kids “out of the bubble” of the United States, use their language skills and do community service projects.

Debbie is a divorced mother of 2 great kids and a dog. Her enthusiasm for motherhood, teaching, travel and news is infectious. O-MAMA integrates of all of her experiences and interests.

ABOUT O-MAMA
O-MAMA (Opinionated MAMA) seeks to engage and empower moms to become a constructive voice in our country’s most important conversations because CHANGE BEGINS AT HOME. A new outlet for America’s Moms, O-MAMA.com, is an online resource for current news and events from a mom’s perspective. Focusing on the social and political issues of our time, the website features news and events, chat rooms, to-do lists and more to help moms raise the next generation of happy, healthy, future citizens of our country. O-MAMA supports all moms in the hard work of raising kids.

Registration is free and every O-MAMA’s opinion counts.


MEDIA CONTACT:
Lauren Townsend/Allison Olmstead
TO Media Co.
949.722.8488