Recently my husband and I were discussing with a friend the different travel requirements of my husband’s job.

Briefly, my husband works for a major auto company (think 2 letters…but not the one going bankrupt) as a liason between their corporate credit division and all the dealerships in SE Texas.  He spends a lot of time traveling his district (SE Texas is big, y’all), meeting face-to-face with people, keeping everything on track and helping to grow his company’s business.  He’s also flown regularly to vast and varied areas of the country to meet with company execs and other district managers.

He’s gone about 50% of the time.

Our friend said something to the effect of, “Wow, it must really mess up your family’s schedule to have you coming and going like that.”

To which I responded that my husband isn’t very often part of our schedule.

Doesn’t that sound awful?  But it’s true.  The kids and I do our thing – I keep our world rotating, do what needs to be done, and when my husband can slide into our orbit, he does.  We’re usually pretty unfazed by the coming and going at this point.

Part of me is bothered with my complacency.  But a larger part understands that this is how I “handle” it – I can’t be lost and alone every time he’s gone, because he’s gone a lot.  And sometimes without much warning.  And sometimes for much longer than he intends to be.  Our lifestyle demands total flexibility on my part, and almost total independence.

I said we were unfazed, and this – at least for me – isn’t entirely true.  If I’m being honest, I’ll say that sometimes it’s hard for me to figure out our roles when he’s home.  I know that when he’s gone, everything is up to me.  But when he’s home, what’s “my” job?  What’s “his” job?  It’s a challenge to always communicate our expectations to each other when he is home, because the distribution of responsibilities is a bit out of whack.  That does lead to misunderstanding at times.

There is also the added challenge that when he’s home, he’s HOME – meaning, he works out of our house.  There’s a whoooooole other kind of lifestyle attached to that – like how he’s here, but unavailable, which is confusing to the kids and sometimes frustrating to me – but I won’t go there right now.

I look at how our lifestyle has evolved to this point, and I’m not sure it’s something I would prefer over, say, a husband who works 9-5 and is home for every dinner.  But in these times, with this economy, and with our family’s needs, I’m grateful he has a good job and that we are provided for.  I just know that this lifestyle isn’t for everyone, even if it has to be for me right now.

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In this month’s Parents magazine, editors surveyed 50 “fast-casual” restaurant chains looking for the most family-friendly dining experiences. “Fast-casual,” as defined by Parents, is a hybrid of a pricier sit-down restaurant and a bag-it-and-go fast-food joint.

Among the criteria used to measure the family-friendliness of these restaurants were healthy menu options for children, as well as relevant conveniences for the parents (booster seats available, changing tables in the restrooms), and opportunities for children to keep themselves occupied before, during, and after the meal.

Coming in #9 on this exhaustive list was the popular Mexican restaurant, Taco Del Mar!  Parents magazine applauded Taco Del Mar for offering authentic, healthy options for kids, and for including programs like teacher and librarian-led storytimes during dining hours. 

What’s just as exciting as this honor from Parents is the promotion that Taco Del Mar is running through the end of July.  For the rest of July, the Taco Del Mar Loves Kids! special means that all children’s (12 and under) meals are free with the purchase of an adult meal after 5pm.  That’s every day, at every participating location.  Check here for a location near you.

And if that’s not enough…I have a little something from Taco Del Mar for one of you to keep handy in your wallet – a $5 gift card and 4 BOGO coupons for their famous mondo burrito.  One lucky winner takes it all!  Hey, that’s a lot of good grubbin’ for a fraction of the price.  To enter, just leave a comment on this post telling me:  what’s YOUR favorite place to take your kids for dinner?  All entries are due by midnight (CST) Friday, July 24.  Good luck!

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PBS, I love you.  I have always, always loved you.  To me, you are the epitome of community, of education, of quality entertainment.  You care about my family, and when someone cares about  my family, I can’t help but care about that someone.

Now you – my readers – might think I’m being silly or a bit over-the-top, but I do truly love all things PBS, and I’m happy to say that affection extends to the newest show for their PBS Kids line-up, Dinosaur Train.

From the PBS website:

The new series embraces and celebrates the fascination that preschoolers have with both dinosaurs and trains while encouraging basic scientific thinking and skills as the audience learns about natural science, natural history and paleontology.

DINOSAUR TRAIN is seen through the eyes of Buddy, a preschool-aged Tyrannosaurus Rex. Buddy and his adoptive family of Pteranodons go for adventures on the Dinosaur Train to meet all kinds of dinosaurs in different eras and learn fascinating new facts about these incredible creatures.

Recently our family was able to view a screener of the new show, and we loved it!  The CGI animation is fantastic.  The characters are fun and funny.  The storylines are engaging and full of age-appropriate scientific information. 

I should point out that we watched with some friends who have preschool-aged children, and they commented that the show may not be as interactive as some younger children might prefer.  There’s no request from the characters to “help” find letters or look for clues or solve problems/riddles.  This is something to consider.

Though perhaps less interactive than PBS Kids shows like Super Why!, the show follows along the lines of PBS Kids’ popular Sid the Science Kid, where preschoolers are led through questioning/reasoning and an exploration of facts and learning experiences.  Each 11 minute episode in the 30 minute time slot is followed by a discussion with world-renowned paleontologist Scott Sampson on topics covered in the show (note:  in the episodes we watched, “Dr. Scott” helped clarify the difference between herbivore and carnivore, and also some of the modern-day relatives of different dinosaur classes).

What I know is that my 8yo son and my 22mo old son watched the show together, and both were totally entertained.  My older son enjoyed learning about the dinosaurs, and especially watching the clips with “Dr. Scott.”  My 22mo son literally laughed out loud at some of the funny antics of the characters (and I can’t help but think the quality animation added to that pleasure).  We’ve watched the DVD screener several times already, and it has me very excited for the season to begin on September 7.

And on a semi-related note, the theme song is super catchy, evidenced by the fact that I can’t seem to get it out of my head!  All aboard the Dinosaur Train!

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