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" What&amp;#039;s dinner like in your family? My husband, Dave, 35, and I make family outings and at-home meals less focused on eating and more focused on socializing and telling each other about our day, so that Jack -- who can&amp;#039;t eat most solid foods \u2014 always feels involved.  How do you stay organized? Every morning, I check my day planner to see who has to wear orange to school, or who has show-and-tell or gym class.  What&amp;#039;s one me-time activity you can&amp;#039;t live without? Exercising in the morning helps me prepare for my day. I bring Jack and Leah with me to the gym, where they play together in the day care while I work out for an hour.  How else do you unwind? Once a month, I get together with my circle of friends in my neighborhood. My friends keep me sane. They always make me laugh and lighten my load. Our husbands and kids are all friends too, so it&amp;#039;s fun to bring our families together. Last summer a group of us \u2014 10 adults, 16 kids \u2014 rented a house in the Outer Banks and vacationed together. Each family cooked dinner one night of the week.  How do you and Dave stay close? Date nights in. We go through the whole dinnertime routine with the kids, then after we put them to bed, we make dinner for ourselves and open a bottle of wine. We find a little time at the end of each day to reconnect, even if it&amp;#039;s just me sitting next to Dave on the couch, painting my toenails while he watches TV. Linda&amp;#039;s to-do list   Drive to the Children&amp;#039;s Hospital of Philadelphia My 4-year-old son, Jack, has an allergic disorder in which most foods cause his esophagus to swell, making it uncomfortable for him to eat. Every six weeks, I take him to the hospital for an endoscopy to monitor his condition.   Take Leah to gymnastics After school, my neighbor takes my son David, 7, to soccer practice with her son, and I drive my daughter, Leah, 6, to gymnastics.   &amp;quot;Hoot and howl&amp;quot; My neighborhood friends and I have a Hoot (Husbands Out of Town) and Howl (Husbands Out Working Late). We order pizza and our kids eat while we hang out until the guys come home.   What&amp;#039;s on your to-do list? Click here and tell us all about your full life \u2014 from car pools and conference calls to gigglefests with your girlfriends and date nights with your sweetie. You might be in our next issue. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.redbookmag.com/life/mom-kids/advice/a279/hsdi-linda-hl/>