Fredericksburg Parent

6 Fredericksburg Parent and Family • November 2022 parent fredericksburg & family Entrepreneur of the Year PROUD FOUNDING MEMBER ADVERTISING phone 540-429-3572 email leighanne@fredericksburgparent.net CALENDAR & SOCIAL MEDIA email webmaster@fredericksburgparent.net EDITORIAL phone 540-429-3572 email fredparenteditor@gmail.com snail mail P.O. Box 7884, F'burg, VA 22404 www.fredericksburgparent.net The publishers reserve the right to reject any advertisement, editorial or listing that does not meet the publication's stan- dards. No part of this magazine may be reproduced with out permission. Listing and advertising rates are available upon request. Every effort has been made to assure the accuracy of the information con- tained herein, however, the publisher cannot guaran- tee such accuracy. Listings and advertisements are subject to typographical errors, ommissions and/or change without notice. For terms and conditions please visit our website at www.fredericksburgparent.net © Copyright 2022 Nurture, Inc. All rights reserved. LIKE facebook.com/ FredericksburgParent SIGN UP www.FredParent.net TWEET twitter.com/fredpar- ent PIN www.pinterest.com/ fredparent FOLLOW @fredparentmagazine WRITTEN BY CHRIS JONES editor's note editor's note Photo by Corey Miller Photography It's Time It's Time to Pause and to Pause and Reflect Reflect PUBLISHER Leigh Anne Van Doren Tabitha & Jamie Nelle's mom EDITOR & WEBMASTER Chris Jones Quincy, Hayden & Olive's dad MEDIA & ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Megan Walsh: Mia, Noelle & Adelaide's mom DESIGN & PRODUCTION Cheryl Carter: Alex, Kate & Jackie's mom CALENDAR & COOL THINGS TO DO ELETTER Caroline Murray: Nate and Brendan's mom EDUCATION & INFANT ELETTERS Debra Caffrey: Aidan's mom SPECIAL EVENTS COORDINATOR Jessica Trask: Cye, Asher and Ragan's mom SOCIAL MEDIA DIRECTOR Mira Dover MARKETING & EVENT INTERN Ragan Trask It's crazy how fast we go from summer into the holiday season. From pumpkin every- thing to spooky season, early fall can be a blur of school, sports and festivities followed by disbelieving chants (at least for me, anyway) of "It's almost November already?" November is one of the most multifaceted months of the year that can still yet be summed up in one theme—gratitude. We open the month with civic and military observances in Election Day and Veterans Day. Election Day is always a reminder for many of us of those who endured ridicule and abuse to afford many that right and Veterans Day is an opportunity to thank those who have served in our armed forces. We follow this with Thanksgiving, which reminds us to enjoy our families, count our blessings and remember our wins from throughout the year. It's a great time to bond over cooking, eating and of course, football. These little traditions create lifelong memories for children. If you're a shopper, the open season starts Thanksgiving night with an unofficial Black Friday kickoff (Yes, we've become that impatient as a society!) followed by a weekend of crowded stores leading into Cyber Monday. No, there aren't many months like November, but it's one of the best. Finding ways to be grateful will keep you sane as we come in for a landing on 2022 next month. For some people, like my fellow writers, that sanity project is National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), an event where you write—you guessed it—a novel in 30 days to the cadence of 1,667 words per day to reach 50,000 by November 30. For others, it's keeping a daily gratitude journal, or sharing on social media platforms something or someone you're grateful for. I like that practice, though I've scarcely par- ticipated. And for the rest, it's charity season. It's a time to take care of those less fortunate by providing meals, supporting organizations and nonprofits through service, and donat- ing goods. All of these are great examples to expose to your children. Kids have the desire to do good and it's up to us to present as many of those opportunities as possible. In the Disney film, "Remember the Titans" there's a scene in the locker room where if you look at the mirror, there's a message that's inscribed: "Reflection is the better part of a champion." I wish you a fun and festive November filled with thoughts of gratitude and personal reflection. As par- ents, we are champions to our children. Stay grateful.

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