I was not one of those parents who got on preschool waitlists while pregnant, touring every school in my neighborhood and enrolling my son at the most academically rigorous one we could find. Nope, not by a long shot. I'm a single, freelance working mother, and I needed a preschool that fit three specific criteria: affordable, flexible hours, close to home. It was preschool, for goodness sake, not SAT prep, so a safe place where he could play and learn how to take turns would do just fine. We found it and our preschool experience has been fantastic, but now kindergarten looming on the horizon this fall is freaking me out!

I had moved to this school district for my son to attend the public language immersion school and after their information night, I was sold. Let's do this! Where do I sign? Unfortunately, hundreds of other equally stressed-looking parents felt exactly the same way, resulting in a school lottery for very limited space. Looking at the numbers, hundreds of chi

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Whenever I meet parents who have a child in kindergarten, I always say the same thing: That first year of school is pure magic.

Sure, the ups and downs over the course of that school year -- any school year -- are many. Kindergarten brings tough and emotional days as kids (and their parents) learn to adjust to school life and adopt new social and life skills. They hate writing. They love writing. They want to love writing by oh holy cow it hurts their hands and their arms because they are squeezing the bejeezus out of a pencil or crayon.

But kindergarten year as a whole? It's pretty cute.

Those true kindergarten moments -- when they are immersed in class art projects that bring to you as their masterpieces; when they use their sweet "kid spelling" as they try to write a story; when they show how insatiably curious they are by asking their teachers (and parents) question after question -- make me want to bottle up the energy and excitement of the kindergarten year and give it kids

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THIS WEEK IN M.O.M…Do your kids love to play dress up? It seems like every child at one time or another becomes obsessed with the popular play time activity of dress up! It must be the magic of make believe that intrigues them because when they put on that pink tutu they become a ballerina. Or when they don that hat and tie, they become daddy. No matter who your child pretends to be when they dress up, it's wonderful to watch as parents. We've gathered some home videos of kids being kids and dressing up as anyone else!

Do your kids love to play dress up? What do they dress up as? Leave us a comment below and share your stories with us!

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My older son and I have been knocking heads lately, so much so it seems like I'm always arguing or disciplining or being a wicked mother and it is starting to give me a bit of a complex so I did the one thing I could think of to relieve some of my teenaged boy anxiety and irritation. I took my daughter and nieces to go see Beauty and The Beast in 3D this past weekend. It was girls' day out, complete with licorice, chocolate, popcorn and mushy musicals.

Sometimes girls just need a chance to be girls and sometimes that means copious amounts of junk food, the inclusion of a Disney princess and a timeless love story.

(There may have been some nostalgia on my half as well. Beauty and the Beast [non-3D] was the movie I saw on my very first date. His name was Chad and he was shorter than me. I was smitten with him. He dumped me for some rich girl named Mary. I'm not bitter or anything. Not anymore at least.)

One of my favourite parts of Beauty and the Beast is when Mrs. Potts yells at t

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Every once in a while, your child says something that makes you feel like a total mommy rock star.

Last night, tired and wondering what I could possibly make for dinner, I improvised this pasta dish with what I had on hand in the fridge. Much to my surprise dinner was received with, "Mommy, this is the best dinner you've ever made!" Wow. It felt like winning the Academy Award of home cooking. High marks, to be sure. Either that, or my regular culinary output leaves much to be desired by my 4 year old's "advanced" palate…hmm. Anyway, I pride myself on serving as much real, non-processed food as my schedule and budget allows, and this dinner was simple, quick and apparently, the best thing I've ever made!

In case you are experiencing that oh-so-familiar loss of what to make for dinner, here's a simple one pot dish you can try:

The "Best Dinner Mommy Ever Made" Pasta

5 pieces of bacon, cut into small strips

½ an onion, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, minced

2 ta

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