February 24, 2012 was the day my life changed. I became a father to a precious baby girl. As a newly minted parent, I wanted to provide the best possible life for her. My wife was fortunate to have banked enough vacation and sick time to stay home for the first 12 weeks after birth, and I was able to modify my schedule to maximize my time with our daughter during those early formative months. Like many Americans with infants, maternity leave ended, and my wife went back to work earlier than both of us would have liked.

It’s the time of the year where we must be ready for hurricanes. Preparing in advance has numerous advantages, not the least of which is preventing the last-minute scramble when a hurricane is bearing down and shelves and supplies are depleted.

Pacific hurricane season starts May 15, and Atlantic hurricane season starts June 1 and runs through November 30.

Welcome to our Family Voices Blog/Vlog series! Grab your favorite cup of coffee or tea to enjoy while you immerse yourself in the real-world child care experiences of families from across the nation. These stories all have been written or video logged by people just like you and me who care deeply about the child care choices they have and see immense value in the opportunities that early care and education services offer for children, families, employers, and communities.

The most recent data shows that millennials are having children later in life than the generation before them. According to a study by Goldman Sachs, the median age for millennials to get married has increased from 23 to 30!

As I get older, I am bombarded with the following question: “When are you going to have children, Mia?”  It happens in every single family conversation! I usually shrug off the question and say that I’m just not ready. The truth? I am a struggling millennial, and between paying off my student loans, paying off my car, paying for insurance, and paying for the occasional meal out, I just can’t afford children. At least not right now.

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Bring Out the Best in Your Children

Poisoning is the #1 cause of injury death in the United States, and the number of children who die from poisoning has more than doubled since 1999. According to the American Association of Poison Control Centers’ National Poison Data System’s 2015 Annual Report, just under half of exposure cases managed by poison centers involved children younger than six.