Search Results for: blog the great walk exchange

Why I’m Walking a Different Way

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I ran into one of my neighbors when I was walking Moose and Lally the other night. She’s one of the first people I met when I moved here last May, and we’ve been friendly ever since. She mentioned that she hadn’t seen me as much lately — I used to walk Moose and Lally past her apartment often. Her little dog would come charging out, tail wagging, to say hello. I responded that I was trying to avoid cats. Lally has become quite the kitty hunter, and there are several semi-feral cats that tend to congregate in the landscaping … Continue reading →

Walking Encounters

I was out walking with my dogs Moose and Lally the other day. Occasionally, we encounter our neighbors’ dogs — the guys upstairs have a young pitbull mix and my next door neighbors have a Jack Russell terrier mix. I know it’s safe to let my dogs interact with these dogs because they’ve met before. Everyone has been well behaved each time. On this particular occasion, we were across the street from a lady walking a Saint Bernard. At first, I thought they would pass quietly… no such luck! First Moose, then Lally started barking at the strange dog. Then … Continue reading →

The Trouble With Walking Two Dogs

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I love my dogs. They are my constant companions, and I’ve jumped through a lot of hoops to get us all relocated across the country. One thing we’ve all had to adjust to is the lack of a backyard. Back in New Jersey, I could just open the door and let Moose and Lally romp in the yard for as long as they wanted. Here, we don’t have that luxury. Instead, we have to take walks — usually four per day. Sometimes, I can trust Lally to be off the leash and stay close. When we’re walking a new route, … Continue reading →

Biking and Walking Tours Of Europe

I look back at my years at the University of Wisconsin-Madison with great fondness. However, I do have a couple of regrets–one being that I never took the opportunity as an undergraduate to participate in a European exchange program. I am now a mother to a young child and I fear it may be a while before I get the chance to fulfill my dream of visiting France, Switzerland, Austria, other European destinations I have longed to explore. Of course, that hasn’t stopped me from earmarking some tours I would be interested in signing up for. If you are looking … Continue reading →

Couples: We Got Along Great Before We Met

It all began in a chat room. We started babbling at each other and we just hit it right off. Every day when I logged in, I did a who to see if he was around and I’d send a message to say hi. It wasn’t long before we were matched on each other’s messenger lists and whoever was on first always got that first instant message sent right away. It rocked. I loved coming home from work to seeing him online where we could catch up. We liked to chat about the same movies, the same books and sometimes … Continue reading →

Six Critical Skills for Frugal and Eco-Friendly Kids

These are frugal times, and these are times when environmental consciousness is rising. How can you prepare your kids to live as adults when times are more frugal and much more ecologically conscious? This generation of parents has lost a lot of the skills that our grandparents had. I know I have, and I’m trying to regain them. Here are six ways that you can help your children become frugal adults. By modeling these skills and allowing your kids to help, you’ll give them great know-how for the future. Preparing Food Prepared food is something that is easy for kids … Continue reading →

The Magic of Mail

My daughter loves getting mail. Not email, snail mail. She’s seven years old and doesn’t own a Smartphone, computer or any other digital device which allows her to email her BFFs to LOL about her WAHM. She does it via longhand, instead. While I dread the short walk from the front door to the mailbox for fear of what other bill may be waiting for me there, my kid counts down to the mail carrier’s visit each day. We’re old school here at Casa Cheplic and the United States Postal Service loves us for it. Why? Two words: Pen Pal. … Continue reading →

Cash for Kids

How much would you pay your kid to sweep up spilled Cheerios from the kitchen floor? With summer just around the corner, many kids are looking for ways to make money to fund summer fun. In most cases, younger children look to their parents for spare change or cash in exchange for hard labor. Okay, maybe that’s just my house. Older children may look for outside work to pad their wallets; though securing a summer job is not always easy. It pays to start the search for summer employment early. Many businesses start posting seasonal positions as early as March. … Continue reading →

Are you making your kids weird?

Are you making your kids weird? I know I am. I love to travel. All year, I save so that I can go on wonderful trips. I’m not a big spender on things, but I love to spend on experiences. My daughter likes to travel too, and I enjoy taking her with me. We get to have adventures together, and they’re very educational of course. We’ve learned about the tropical rainforest by going there and walking through it. Most recently, we’ve explored great European works of art (and yes, ice cream and lots of carousels) by traveling through Italy and … Continue reading →

Can You (and Should You) Talk About Serious Social Issues With Your Child?

Yes. In a word, yes. You should talk about serious social issues with your child. My daughter was sick this week and we were watching The Sound of Music. Until a few months ago, I had never watched this movie. I’d played its music ad infinitum in band classes from grade 6 on, but I’d avoided watching it. However, my daughter loves musicals, so The Sound of Music it has been, over and over for the past few months. The Sound of Music is a relatively light movie until just over halfway through. It involves a lot of singing and … Continue reading →