Dear Kid,

Today is 513Day!

Really.

It’s May 13^th, 513 is our area code, and the Amazing Debba has created 513Day.

Really, really.

The Mayor is even declaring it (which is pretty nifty).

So, it’s official! May 13th is hereby declared (officially!) ‘513 Day’ in Cincinnati!

You don’t have to be anywhere at a particular time. You don’t have to pay anything. You don’t have to dress up or dress down. You don’t have to train for it. You don’t have to worry about the weather, or carry an umbrella, or wear sunscreen for it.

(You should wear sunscreen. Lots of sunscreen. But it’s not because of 513Day.)

513Day is a day and movement to celebrate the good things happening in the 513 area code area (the whole region, even you Northern 859 Kentucky! – sorry there’s no 59th of August :).

513Day was started by Debba Haupert, founder of Girlfriendology.com – online community for women based on female friendship. The goal is to celebrate the good things about Cincinnati on May 13th and every day between May 13ths.

How (you ask) does one celebrate 513Day?

It’s easy.

Celebrate Cincinnati. Enjoy our town. Flood social media with the hashtag #513Day. LIKE DearKidLoveMom (that’s not 513Day related, but it can’t hurt).

Isn’t it cool to be part of the first ever 513Day?

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

It’s No Socks Day!

This is fantastic for at least two reasons.

One reason is that it’s fun to not wear socks. Not wearing socks is a tangible sign that warm weather has arrived. I love having my toes free to wiggle and breathe. Yes, my toes breathe.

The other reason is that No Socks Day is just a fun idea. And it seems to me (and many of other people) that we often don’t have enough fun in the world.

The headlines (and sub headlines) are full of bad news. And there is no question that there is a LOT of bad news out there. The world can be a not-so-nice place sometimes.

So taking some time now and then to have some fun seems like a great idea.

Have a breakfast pastry, help yourself to ice cream at lunch, and don’t wear socks. Because it’s fun.

Happy No Socks Day!

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

Yesterday was a great day.

I got a great balloon…

…complete with a zero calorie cupcake.

I got a fruit basket (awesome!), I was taken to lunch, and I went shopping with Pi. For her.

After Dad took Booker for his bedtime walk, he yelled to me “Don’t move, don’t move, I’ve got one more present for you. Wait right there, I’ve got one more present!”

Here is my “one more present.” After the photo, my “one more present” was returned to not-in-the-house!

Thanks for calling yesterday.

Love you baby,

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

Today is a day full of sunshine and holidays. Hopefully, you have sunshine outside, but you should definitely turn on your inner sunshine.

Today is International Moment of Laughter Day. Funny, huh? So take a moment and giggle. Here, I’ll help.

What happens to a frog’s car when it breaks down?

It gets toad away. Hee hee.

It’s also Look Up At The Sky Day. I don’t know why. I’m pretty sure the sky is going to stay there. Odin, Zeus, and all the other characters need a place to keep their homes. But maybe you’ll see a bird, or a plane, or even Superman if you get lucky.

But wait, there’s more! It’s Reach As High As You Can Day. Since you’re looking at the sky, you might as well reach for it. It’s not clear to me if Reach As High As You Can Day is a stretching celebration (“Reach up to sky, reach down to the ground. Shake your body all around.” Do you remember that song from when you were little?) or if it’s aspirational in nature. Not sure it matters, because both are good.

And finally, it may or may not be Pecan Day. There is a Pecan Day in March (not today) and a Pecan Day in April (today). I leave it to you to decide which to celebrate. Or be a little nutty and celebrate both.

Love, Mom

And a little more humor…

Reaching the end of a job interview, the Human Resources Officer asks a young engineer fresh out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, “And what starting salary are you looking for?” The engineer replies, “In the region of $125,000 a year, depending on the benefits package.” The interviewer inquires, “Well, what would you say to a package of five weeks vacation, 14 paid holidays, full medical and dental, company matching retirement fund to 50% of salary, and a company car leased every two years, say, a red Corvette?” The engineer sits up straight and says, “Wow! Are you kidding?” The interviewer replies, “Yeah, but you started it.”

Dear Kid,

The following conversation took place yesterday via text with my friend Sue.

Sue: Do ½ price jelly beans have ½ the calories? What if I only eat half the bag at a time?

Me: You misunderstand. Jelly beans are a holiday food. Therefore they are holy. So the calories fall through the holes. No calories.

Sue: At least if I throw up at this point it will be pretty.

Me: Gorging much?

Sue: I couldn’t resist. They were ½ price.

Me: Makes perfect sense to me.

Sue: Inconveniently forgot about dentist appointment this afternoon. Multi-colored tongue is probably a dead giveaway.

Me: Think of it as job security for the dentists.

Sue: Like that’s my biggest concern.

Me: Think of it as oral art.

Sue: Making one dentist’s life more beautiful.

Me: Did you offer him a jelly bean?

Sue: Getting my teeth cleaned and a crown. I hope the gems in the crown are made of jelly beans.

Me: Did you watch The Royals?

Sue: Did I what?

Me: Never mind. Let it go. Let it go!

Sue: It would also be convenient if I could be deaf at the dentist for 3 reasons. 1- I wouldn’t hear those dreadful gadgets. 2- I wouldn’t hear him ask questions about summer vacation which I can’t answer because his hands are halfway down my esophagus. 3- I wouldn’t have to hear him ask (again) if I floss every day.

Me: Do you think dentists get tired of people lying about how often they floss?

Sue: Maybe it’s the dentists who are deaf when patients arrive.

Me: Or maybe they use jelly beans as earplugs.

Sue: This is the burial place for the rest of the damn jelly beans.

The final burial place for the rest of the jelly beans…

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

Have you ever noticed that traveling looks wonderful and invigorating in television commercials and magazine ads?

I can only assume that this is because the actors have a) all traveled first class to get to their destination and b) have had several days to rest from said travels.

Or because the ad was filmed on a sound stage which required a commute time of 27 minutes.

Or because there is something magical about the hats the actors wear (you know, the huge brimmed hats that make the women look like movie stars). Of course, the magic called “retouching” and “photoshop” help too.

Real life travel is not advertisement-quality travel. Unless by advertisement-quality you mean it’s flat and tasteless.

Real life travel is tiring. It may mean delayed (or canceled) flights. It may mean driving through rain and hail in places like East Nowhere, PA. It generally involves meals that sit awkwardly in your stomach like a misplaced bowling ball (looking at you, Cracker Barrel). It inevitably means (for me) too much caffeine and too little sleep.

Also it does bad things to my hair. You don’t have this problem, I know. But I do. I don’t know how some women manage to travel with their own cadre of hairdressers, but they look fabulous while I look like mice found lodging near my scalp.

The good news is there is often good stuff at the other end of travel. Like family. And borrowed puppies. And sometimes warm weather.

And travel, no matter how wonderful, always makes us appreciate home just a little bit more.

Love, Mom