You’ve Got Maids is opening a new house cleaning franchise that will service Toledo, Maumee, Perrysburg, Ottawa Hills, Sylvania, and Oregon. Founded in Orlando in 2005, the You’ve Got Maids brand has locations from coast to coast, successfully operating in over twenty states as a trusted name in professional house cleaning. You’ve Got Maids of Toledo is owned and operated by new franchisee Chris Anthony, a Navy veteran.
Sloan Eberly Mann
Imagination Station Education Director
Imagination Station’s Education Director Sloan Eberly Mann says her two boys thinks she goes to work all day to play. “It’s too funny. They think I hang out at the exhibits all day and ride the (high wire) bicycle,” the mother of Noah (8) and Oliver (5) said.
While juggling her role at Toledo’s science center with being a hands-on Mom is certainly a balancing act, Mann seems to do it all with ease. She said the key is having some flexibility in her job and limiting her work week to 30 hours. “I try to be there for all of the important family moments,” said the Sylvania resident. “When I’m at work, I try to focus, and when I’m home, I try hard to limit all distractions so I can be there 100 percent for my family.”
Supportive family
Mann said she receives excellent family support from not only her husband, Pete, but from the grandmothers on both sides. “They are the main reason we decided to stay in the Toledo area,” she said. “The grandmas are the caregivers for our kids when my husband and I can’t be there. That is priceless.”
Team captain
For the past 13 years, Mann has overseen a team that brings family workshops, homeschool programming, summer camps and educational outreach to the community. She is also credited with helping secure the $10.4 million giant-screen theater that will open in the summer of 2020.
Even though she is the mother of boys, Mann is quite proud of a task force she chaired for Girl Power, an annual career day for girls. She enthused, “I love serving as a role model for girls” instead of the iconic male figure in glasses with a lab coat and a pocket protector.
Proud accomplishments
Mann was a member of a small team who helped to re-open Toledo’s science center following its closing after a levy failure in 2007. The Education Director and another team member took science out into the community, traveling in a van, to reach students. The small crew, led by now Executive Director Lori Hauser, kept science education interest alive in Toledo until the center re-opened in 2009. “Bringing Toledo’s science center back to our community is by far my proudest professional moment,” she said.
What’s your favorite activity to do with your family?
All things baseball. We love to play ball, go to Mud Hens games and watch the Tigers on TV. (Ok, it was not a ton of fun to watch the Tigers this season…)
Best holiday memory from when you were a kid?
Snuggling together as a family and reading ‘The Night Before Christmas’ on Christmas Eve. It’s a tradition that I’ve carried on with my kids.
What’s your go-to activity when you have a few minutes to yourself?
It depends on my energy level. I’ll either go for a run or pick up a book.
Describe your life in five words or less.
Controlled chaos, sprinkled with laughter.
What is your favorite Toledo hangout?
Village Idiot…but pretty much anywhere with live music.
Describe Toledo in one sentence:
Toledo is a wonderful place to raise a family, rich in cultural and natural resources.
October 2019 Giveaway—Swaddle Designs
New mom giveaway!
SWADDLE DESIGNS has perfected the sleep sack. The Swaddle Sack has a 2-way zipper for easy diaper changes, a hip-healthy design, and swaddle snugness to make baby feel secure. The newborn option (0-3 months) comes with arms-up sleeves and foldover mitten cuffs. The small sack (3-6 months) offers arms-up sleeves, foldover mitten cuffs, and a velcro swaddle option. Choose from either option. Organic SPROUT Teetherz also included!
Yogaja Yoga Downtown Grand Reopening
If you work or live downtown, squeezing in a bit of exercise during or after your work day just got a little easier. Yogaja Yoga Downtown, 701 Madison Ave., was closed for renovations and is re-opening this month with a fresh, new look. Classes are available during lunch hours from 12:00-12:50 and after work. All yoga packages apply to both the downtown and Cricket West locations, making it easier to practice wherever and whenever is most convenient for you.
For more info and a class schedule, visit yogajayoga.com.
Open House Guide 2019—Part 1
A child’s comfort at school can make or break his/her relationship with learning, which is why choosing the right school for your child is a key component to a successful educational experience. With so many options in the area, how do you know which one might be the best fit? It’s Open House season at many local schools; read on to decide which one you’ll visit!
St. Ursula Academy
4025 Indian Rd., Toledo
419-531-1693 | toledosua.org
Open House: Sunday, November 3, 2019 from Noon-3pm.
St. Ursula Academy (SUA) is the oldest all-girls Catholic high school in Toledo. SUA’s college preparatory curriculum delivers premier academics with 20 advanced placement (AP) courses and 18 honors classes. The positive, supportive, all-girls community provides an environment rich in tradition and creates confident leaders for the future. The faith-filled student body is also active in serving the community, teaching girls empathy, compassion, and service. During open house, you can tour the school with current students, talk to faculty and staff, look at academic profiles and materials and get a feel for the warm atmosphere of SUA.
Children’s Discovery Center
Locations in Toledo, Holland, Perrysburg and Waterville
419-867-8570 | childrensdiscoverycenters.com
With education and childcare programs for children as young as 6 weeks up until 10 years, Children’s Discovery Center has a place for your child. Children’s Discovery Center offers full-day kindergarten programs, before and after school care, and a summer camp for school-aged children. With multiple centers throughout the Toledo area, all open from 6:30AM to 6:00PM (with some variation), Children’s Discovery Center stands apart from other centers by using the Reggio Emilia educational
philosophy, which focuses on inquiry-based learning. Children explore and learn concepts by investigating, creating, and collaboratively solving problems in a group atmosphere. Additionally, their enhanced teaching approach incorporates S.T.E.A.M. fields of study into early childhood education.
The Maritime Academy of Toledo
803 Water St., Toledo
419-244-9999 | maritimeacademy.us
Open House: See website
There are only 18 maritime-themed public schools in the United States, and Toledo lays claim to one of them. Catering to grades 5-12, children benefit from the school’s focus on character development, independence, accountability, discipline and education. The Maritime Academy of Toledo supports students’ interests, strengths, and emerging academic needs using individualized and small group instruction methods and hands-on, life-based learning experiences across the curriculum. Students can “get their feet wet” and learn the ropes of nautical and maritime values.
Horizon Science Academy
2600 W. Sylvania Ave., Toledo
419-474-3350 | horizontoledo.org
Open House: Call for appointment
Horizon Science Academy,a K-12 college prep charter school, aims to prepare students to succeed in college and beyond. With high-quality courses, STEM education and partnerships with local businesses and universities for real-world experience, Horizon is the perfect choice for students looking to improve their academic and life skills to become successful in life.
iLead Spring Meadows
1615 Timberwolf Dr., Holland
419-491-7423 | ileadspringmeadows.org
Open House: Call for details
iLEAD Spring Meadows is a tuition-free, nonprofit public charter school. At iLEAD, learners are encouraged to be leaders as they are fully immersed in real-world, project-based learning. iLEAD Spring Meadows is establishing a new paradigm for education. Their vision is to use project-based and social-emotional learning concepts to inspire and motivate lifelong learners with the skills they need to lead in the 21st century.
St. Francis de Sales High School
2323 W. Bancroft St., Toledo
419-531-1618 | sfstoledo.org
Open House: 11/3/19 1:00-4:00 pm
A Catholic college prep school for young men, St. Francis de Sales promotes the academic, spiritual, social and physical development of students in the spirit of St. Francis de Sales, who challenges you to “be who you are and be that well.” Find a rich history of academic and athletic excellence, including the Toledo area’s largest program for AP courses, for grades 7-12.
West Side Montessori
Perrysburg: 13587 Roachton Rd., 419-874-9385
Toledo: 7115 W. Bancroft St., 419-866-1931
montessoritoledo.org
Open House: Nov. 5, 9-10:30AM both campuses
West Side Montessori (WSM) uses the Montessori method to create independent and self-motivated learners who are committed to their own education. WSM creates lessons that are geared towards each student’s learning style, allowing children to work at their own pace and to choose work based on their own interests and abilities. Additionally, unique to West Side Montessori is their world language curriculum. World languages are introduced to students at three years old, which then leads to an immersion program in the upper levels.
Maumee Valley Country Day School Preschool Program
1715 S. Reynolds Rd., Toledo
419-381-1313 | mvcds.org/playtime
Open House: Select from 3 sessions: Oct-Nov, Jan-Feb or April-May
Maumee Valley’s Preschool Program is hands-on and play-based. Teachers plan a variety of age-appropriate, developmentally stimulating activities for children to explore at their own pace inside and outside of the classroom. Teachers monitor their learning, and from time to time, step in with questions or suggestions, helping children move to their next levels of skill and understanding.
The Parent & Child Preschool Playtime program follows the same philosophy and is taught by our own Early Learning Center faculty. Each week teachers will lead parents and their children through different aspects of child development, such as language, pre-mathematics, literacy, motor skills, and social-emotional skills, and sessions are kept small so that children and parents have the opportunity to grow friendships from week to week, also allowing teachers to have a deeper understanding of each unique child and their family. Register online today at www.mvcds.org/playtime!
Select from three eight-week sessions:
Spaces limited to 10 children per session.Session 1
Oct-Nov (October 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, November 5, 12, 19)
Session 2
Jan- Feb (January 7, 14, 21, 28, February 4, 11, 18, 25)
Session 3
April- May (April 7, 14, 21, 28, May 5, 12, 19, 26)
Spaces limited to 10 children per session.Session 1
Oct-Nov (October 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, November 5, 12, 19)
Session 2
Jan- Feb (January 7, 14, 21, 28, February 4, 11, 18, 25)
Session 3
April- May (April 7, 14, 21, 28, May 5, 12, 19, 26)
Letter from the Editor: Mummy of the Year this Howl-oween
I loved Halloween as a kid–the opportunity to resemble and imitate whomever I most admired, and then, of course, there was the candy — but I surrendered both my love of costumes and candy as I entered the teenage years. Almost two decades later, with the arrival of our first baby, came the opportunity to don a costume as an adult…and steal our children’s candy.
Each Halloween, our oldest typically decides his preferred costume and the rest of us follow suit. Last year Dexter (then 5) chose Spider-Man, so Camille (3) opted for Spider-Girl; I went as Wonder Woman and my husband was Doc Ock (by far his most creative Halloween costume to date). The year before that we were Batman, Batgirl, Joker and Harley Quinn. Before that, the costumes all a blur thanks to pregnancy/baby brain.
Besides the fun of costumes, one of our neighbors hosts an annual outdoor Halloween Party for our block, complete with adult beverages, costumes and a potluck dinner. Halloween evening, we join together with other neighborhood kids and parents for trick-or-treating. And that hot cider in our coffee cups? It might be spiked.
As my children age, I aim for an over-the-top decorated house, complete with ghoulish sounds, frightening yard displays, and cheesy tombstones like Barry M. Deep, so if in a few years you see just a few tasteful autumn decorations, call me out. We can be more than that — I know it.
Halloween is special. The expectations are low and the monetary investment is minimal, yet the sense of community, social interactions and creativity are all great opportunities for family fun and tradition. It’s one of the many times of the year that I’m thankful to call Toledo my home.
Your spooktacular Assignment Editor,
Erin Schoen Marsh