HRM Parent Blog

What a difference six years can make.

From this:



To this:



Where does the time go?

My little boy turned six years old today. It was a big day for him - Alex has been counting down to his birthday since the end of November, each day moving his cupcake marker a day closer. Today we enjoyed the big snowfall, went sledding and bowling with friends, opened presents and ate some really yummy chocolate cake. (Because what's a birthday without a cake?) His official party will be on Saturday, another big day he is waiting for, quite impatiently now.

The past six years have been a crazy combination of the best and the hardest times of my life. It's been said before, but for me, being a parent really is like having my heart walking around outside of myself. I love that little guy. Happy birthday Alex!

To bring this post back to having *something* to do with HRM Parent and not just being sentimental ramblings, this birthday of Alex's is a big one for HRM Parent as well. You know, "HRM Parent, for families with kids under 6"? Yeah, I don't have a kid under six any more. Oops. So I've decided that HRM Parent will grow up with Alex! Over the next few months there will be some changes to the site, reflecting the fact that HRM Parent is now for families with kids of all ages. But I really believe the under six years are unique and a time where parents really benefit from extra connection and community, so HRM Parent will remain very much focused on this age group. No scary changes, I promise - just extra information to benefit families with older kids too.

If you have any suggestions for changes or information you'd like included for older kids, please do leave a comment below.

You'll probably notice a few changes to the layout here at HRM Parent over the next few days. I'm reorganizing things a bit, hoping to make things a bit easier to navigate and bringing more of a focus to this blog, which is now on the front page. Please bear with me while I play with the site, and let me know what you think by leaving a comment below!

Yup, our activity calendar is pretty bare at the moment - but don't worry, I'm on it! I'm busy updating and checking activities this week and as I receive confirmation that they're a go for 2009 they'll be back in the calendar. Sorry about the delay, and thanks for your patience!

Looking for something to do this weekend? Me too! It seems like most activities aren't back to normal until next week - most library programs start next week, along with the Museum of Natural History weekend programs (Jan 12) and a lot of others. I promise I've looked for you all, but it does seem like we have a rather event-less weekend ahead of us.

If you aren't looking forward to a quiet weekend after the hectic holidays, why not check out the Places to Go listings in our Parenting Directory for ideas? Or if you know of activities and events happening this weekend, let us know by posting a comment below!

I admit the activity calendar has been a bit neglected the past few weeks while I've been concentrating on the changes to the site. Ooops. But I'm on it, I promise! Lots of activities and events coming soon.

We've been busy little elves over the holidays, adding new features and reorganizing parts of the website. Here's a quick rundown:

• The Parents Connect groups have been replaced with forums. The bulletin board feature of the previous groups didn't make it easy to 'talk' to each other, so we decided to go the old-fashioned route with spiffy new forums. This also should make visiting the various 'groups' easier.
  
• We've added new features to your profiles, including your very own photo gallery and a 'wall' for notes from other parents. Don't be shy - share your Christmas photos and write on your friend's (or soon-to-be friend's) walls!
• And last, but certainly not least (we hope), this blog. Our handy Registration Alert section can be found here, along with news on contests, playdates, weekend events, and lots more.

And don't forget to sign up to receive blog posts by email!

Happy 2008 to everyone!