Annie, for her helpful comment responding to today's Monday Consult about bike helmets. Congratulations, Annie, and thanks to all who brought us to this milestone of 1,000 comments. I've really enjoyed watching our community grow.

Meanwhile, Annie, I'll be in touch by e-mail to arrange for marketing guru Anne Burger to get your prize to you. Here's hoping you don't spend it all on school supplies...

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 11:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: How to Use and Comment on This Blog
        

Exciting news, dear readers....we are approaching comment 1,000 on Charm City Moms. This milestone coincides nicely with the six-month anniversary of the blog, which is coming up in a couple of weeks.

To mark the occasion, Anne Burger, our crack marketing professional, is offering a $50 Target gift card to the lucky 1,000th commenter.

If you want to play, a few rules to remember:

--Include your e-mail address where the posting form asks for it so I can get in touch with you later to get the gift card to you. Otherwise, your comment won't be eligible for the prize. E-mail addresses won't be published.

--Only comments pertinent to one of the posts will be considered for the prize. So post a great bake sale recipe, talk about the Jonas Brothers, or offer your best back-to-school deals. But if you're spamming or just writing "here's my comment," that won't do it.

--Normal commenting rules apply. No obscenities or personal attacks.

Good luck!

(Photo by Mel Evans/Associated Press)

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 2:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: How to Use and Comment on This Blog
        

Here are Michele's choices for her prize as Charm City Moms commenter 700. This grab bag has a CD and a video on offer along with books. Feel free to give her advice on which item to choose:

-- Disney Music "Block Party," which has music from Ralph's World, They Might Be Giants, Johnny and the Sprites, and more.

--Bob the Builder "The Three Musketrucks" DVD.

--The New Parents' Fun Book: Laugh Yourself Silly Through Baby's First Year, by Kelly and David Sopp.

--There When He Needs You: How to Be An Available, Involved, and Emotionally Connected Father to Your Son, by Neil Bernstein

--Dinner Parties from Williams-Sonoma.

Michele, you can either choose your prize in public, by posting a comment, or send me a private e-mail.

(Photo by me)

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 10:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: How to Use and Comment on This Blog
        

We're nearing comment #700, so it's that time again, folks. If you're the lucky 700th commenter, you'll be able to choose a book from several parenting books and cookbooks on my desk.

Remember, if you'd like to be a winner, please include your e-mail in the field that asks for it when you post your comment. The address won't be published, but it will help me get in touch with you to arrange for delivery of your fabulous prize.

So let's get started. You can vote in the Guilty-Mom poll and comment on sending Edamommy's daughter to preschool; talk about Madonna's adoption; review your favorite mom's group; or suggest a question for an expert to answer on Mondays.

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 2:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: How to Use and Comment on This Blog
        

Ok, folks, we're getting pretty close to 500 comments, so you know what this means....a chance for a fabulous prize (OK, you get to choose from some books, including cookbooks) and bragging rights if yours is the 500th comment.

We'd better get the party started now, because it's almost Thursday and I have scant fodder for our tip sheet on what we want for Mother's Day. If you don't answer the call, I'll have to make up a list of everything I want. And then think of the pressure on my poor husband. (Hee hee.)

By the way, if you're vying for the 500th comment title, please include your e-mail address in the commenting box that asks for it. (If you're not sure where that is, review this guide to comments.) You can still use your handle or just your first name, of course, which is all that will show up here on the blog. But the e-mail address (which I promise not to share with anyone) will let me get in contact with you to make arrangements for you to receive your fabulous prize.

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 10:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: How to Use and Comment on This Blog
        

Hey, people. When I talked about Turnoff Week, I didn't mean you should turn off me. Yet here I am, feeling the silence even after posting a Tip Sheet Thursday with advice for new parents. And here we are, so tantalizingly close to 400 comments. Not to mention Green Week, for which I'm still soliciting ideas.

I won't bribe my kids, but I'm not above bribing you. So here's a deal. If we hit 400 comments by 6 p.m. tonight, I'll bake you a virtual treat and post it next week.

Hungry?

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 2:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: How to Use and Comment on This Blog
        

Edamommy is the winner of our 300th comment prize, with this comment under suburbancorrespondent's tongue-in-cheek list about how you know when you have too many kids:

I'm one of 7 kids and my only child is one of 19 grandkids. I think my cousins had some sort of bizarre fertility contest among them because each one has 6 or more kids.

I really wanted more but I love having one and being able to really enjoy each and every phase with her. And, we have some wonderful friends whom we see often who are like siblings to my daughter (but I don't have to care for or feed them).

Now, two dogs is too many : )

Tomorrow I'll take and post a photo of the books she gets to choose from. Even if you didn't win, you might help out a fellow CCM reader by telling us whether you've read any, and which one you'd pick if you had won.

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 7:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: How to Use and Comment on This Blog
        

Congratulations, CCM readers: We're rapidly approaching our 300th comment. In honor of the occasion, the author of comment 300 will be able to choose a parenting book from the many titles that have been piling up on my desk.

I'll announce the winner and the prize after the 300th comment arrives. Good luck!

(Photo by Mauricio Rubio, Sun photographer, 2007)

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 12:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: How to Use and Comment on This Blog
        

Parenting is a game that changes constantly. One minute, you're all about how to get that baby to sleep. The next, you're wondering when she's going to walk. And before you know it, you'll barely remember those obsessions, because now you're worried about whether she's old enough to date.

That, my friends, is why the handy categories are on the right rail of our blog. Because a post that might not have applied to you last month may seem suddenly relevant today, we've preserved them for you under areas of interest. If you want to catch up on past installments of Father's Day Tuesday, Dinner Together or our Monday consultations with parenting experts, they're all there, too. (There's even a category on how to use the blog, in case you're not sure about how to post a comment.)

If those are still too general for what you're looking for, you'll also find a search engine on the right that will let you look for posts by keyword.

Is there a category I haven't covered yet that's of burning interest to you? I'm all ears; let me know by posting a comment below, or in an e-mail.

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 8:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: How to Use and Comment on This Blog
        

It occurs to me that there are two main reasons some of you readers haven't left a comment under one of the many fascinating posts on Charm City Moms.

 1) You were just about to, but at that moment your oldest yelled that the toddler "just went down the street to get something." And when you went to investigate, your middle child decided your keyboard would look much better covered in glitter glue, from which it may never recover.

 2) You're not sure how this commenting thing works.

Just in case it's reason #2 ( if it's #1, sadly, I can do nothing but sympathize) here's a guide to commenting cribbed from my colleague and super-successful dining blogger Elizabeth Large. I edited it for my purposes:

--What's the URL, or Web address? You should only care about this if you have a blog of your own you'd like people to know about. If so, fill it in and your name will be linked with your address -- a bonus for your own blog. Otherwise, just leave it blank.

 --Do I have to include my e-mail address? Nope. Just leave it blank if you like. Fill it in if you'd like me to be able to contact you, but rest assured I won't share the address without your permission. It might be handy to include in case another parent wants to contact you privately about an issue you've raised, and you want me to be able to pass on that person's e-mail address without identifying yours.

--Do I have to put in my full name? Not if you don't want to. You can use your full name, your first name, a fancy nom de plume or no name at all. Just comment.

--What's this funny letter I have to put in the box before posting? Is it important? Yes; it helps us weed out spam. And don't forget to hit "Post" once you've filled it in.

 As for the site owner approving the comment before it's posted, as I mentioned before, that's me. I read over a comment to make sure it a) isn't computer-generated spam, b) doesn't contain obscenities, c) doesn't involve personal attacks on other posters. (I'm fair game, but I do prefer you make your criticisms in a constructive way.) I don't edit it for spelling or grammar. Then I post it as quickly as I can.

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 6:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: How to Use and Comment on This Blog
        

I was struck by this: Thursday night, I last checked my email at 11:15 p.m. and went to bed. When I got up at 5:15 a.m. to work out, I checked again. And during that too-narrow window of sleep, I got a comment and an email from two blog readers.

This leaves me with two thoughts:

1) I should tell you that I'm the person responsible for approving your very welcome comments. So if you don't see yours appear right away (especially if it's at 2 a.m.), it's because I'm sleeping, driving someone to art class, cooking, reading and writing stories for the newspaper, giving baths, trying to locate someone's missing socks, telling a story about opossum detectives, explaining what "hypnosis" is, dancing to polkas in the living room, checking homework, looking for a misplaced permission slip, or bandaging a boo boo. Please be patient, and do check back.

2) Moms and dads definitely need more sleep, but it's hard to come by. How many hours a night are you getting?

Posted by Kate Shatzkin at 7:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: How to Use and Comment on This Blog