It's that time of year again...my biggest pet peeve!

Ahhh...Fall is in the air.

The leaves are changing. The air is getting crisp. Each morning is a little cooler than the one before it.

Jackets are being worn and the old blue jeans have been pulled out from the back of the closet. The warm summer mornings full of bright sunshine are gone till Spring.

So parents out there reading this blog...please do me a favor...

PUT YOUR CHILDREN IN SOME CLOSED TOED SHOES!!!!!!!

I don't have many pet peeves. I'm a very relaxed go with the flow kind of Mom.
It seriously takes a lot to get me riled up.

But seeing a child wearing long pants, a sweatshirt and flip flops will do it every time.

If you are of latin descent like me (Puerto Rican, Cuban, Dominican, Italian, Spanish...heck, I'll even throw in Greek) you most likely grew up with a latin grandmother. Mine is Spanish and she is the most wonderful, caring, giving human being on the planet. She is the kind of woman that will do anything for anyone...and if that anyone is her grandchild? Forgetaboutit. I clearly remember this woman making 4 separate dinners for 4 different grandkids. Yes, she spoiled us rotten but there was also a price we paid for all that attention she gave us.

We had to obey.

My grandmother had a set of rules I call the Holy Commandments. She didn't have 10 but she had a few rules we knew we better pay close attention to.

You must never leave wet towels or clothes on the floor.
You must always (and I mean always) drink you milk.
You must never run and jump in the house.
You must always use Vicks Vapor Rub when you're sick. (I still have to obey this one)

And the cardinal rule...you must always wear socks on a cold day.


This last one always makes me laugh since I grew up in Florida. We would get about 10 cold days in an entire year. But it didn't matter...it she thought it was cold, we better keep our socks on.

Now that I live in a colder climate and have a child of my own who hates to wear socks (just like his Mama), I find myself sounding exactly like my grandmother. That rule has stuck with me to this day and I make sure my little guy has them on whether he likes it or not.

So you can imagine how I cringed yesterday when I saw a kid walking into my son's school wearing a huge bulky warm sweatshirt, jeans...and a pair of skimpy yellow flip flops.

I had to restrain myself from asking that little girl where her mommy was.
(Just kidding. I would have never done such a thing. But I did fantasize about it on the way home.)

Here's my rule of thumb. If it's below 60 degrees outside and you feel the need to cover every part of your exposed skin to the outside air...

COVER YOUR FEET!

I know sometimes it's not easy. Kids are hardheaded and don't want to listen to Mom. I get it. I have a 5 year old who lives to do the opposite of what I say. But you are the parent. You rule their world. So make them wear the socks and sneakers.

And if all else fails,

Hide the flip flops!
Have a happy Tuesday!