Resources in Carmel Valley

I second the recommendations of Dr. de Freitas for ped and Dr. Ruymann for OB. They are both wonderful!

Hi M.,

My daughter goes to Scripps Clinic in Rancho Bernardo and her pediatrician is Dr Bleha. The just opened up their their expanded clinic.

Hi Michele! Here's some follow-up information to the private message I sent you yesterday. Again, welcome to San Diego. There's a Scripps Clinic in Carmel Valley right off Carmel Creek and the 56. There's a wonderful pediatric duo there, Dr. Richard Buchta (who is near retirement age, but about the warmest, most knowledgable man you could pick for a doc!) and I've heard Ann Engfelt, his partner is also fantastic. Phone is ###-###-####. Preschools: You will encounter some waiting lists so start ASAP. Our daughter went to Del Mar Hills Nursery on Del Mar Heights and Mango, just west of the 5 fwy. Playbased, fabulous outdoor area with an organic garden, wonderful music program, lots of activities and full-time care available if you need it. They start at 3 and have to be potty-trained. Web address is www.dmhns.com. I have lots of neighbors whose kids attended Carmel Valley Montessori - they rent space from the Boys and Girls club and the Middle School on Mykynos Dr. As far as music and dance - the Carmel Valley Rec Center is a great resource and they are just about to start up their new Fall offerings. You can pick up a program guide and reg forms at 3777 Townsgate Drive; ###-###-####. Hope this helps get you going here. Sure hope things work out for you - thank goodness for the parental nest when you need it! -Shannon

Hi M.,

I am very sorry to hear about your recent separation. I hope the move to San Diego will do you and your girls a world of good and open your door to new opportunities and a fresh, new life!

My family and I just moved here a few months ago as well and we are living in the Sabre Springs area right now, so my resources for you might be a bit out of your way but I'll provide them anyway.

Pediatrician - Dr. Gabhart in Scripps Ranch at Sharps Reese-Stealy

Preschool - Discovery Isle in Poway on Pomerado Rd. and Scripps Poway Rd. ###-###-#### My almost 1 year old and 3 year old both go there and we love it! At the school, they offer gymnastics, music/dancing, etc.

Fitness - Adventure Boot Camp! This is so much fun! Sarah is a wonderful instructor!http://www.scrippsranchbootcamp.com/index.html

Extra Income - Premier Designs Jewelry (ask me how!)

Good luck!

-Char

I agree with finding a play group through the parent connection. sandiegoparent.com has a link to parent connection. Also, MOPS- mothers of preschoolers is an organization for moms hosted by different churches in the area. MOPS.org is the website and you can find a local one near carmel valley. I know there is one in Solana Beach.

Hi Neighbor - I live right in Carmel Valley as well and am a married working Mom of soon to be two boys. One is 2 and the other is to be born in the next few weeks.

I am terribly sorry to hear about the circumstances of your divorce but you have made an excellent decision in protecting yourself and your children and I am excited for you as you embark on this new phase of your life.

Pediatrician: Dr. deFreitas right here in CV - Great bedside manner and she fits you in immediately when the children are sick. ###-###-####.

Great OBGYN: Dr. Tracy Ruymann ###-###-#### at North County OBGYN - Scripps La Jolla - everyone there is great.

Preschool - I am still looking for my son to start next year Jan after my maternity leave so we should compare notes. I have a great home day care contact if you are interested but availablity is only 8-2.

You mentioned your active lifestyle - check out the Pacific Athletic Club for membership http://www.pacsandiego.com/web/site/. They have great athletic programs for us adults and great kids camps and childcare while you workout!

Best of luck to you.

Hello M., welcome to Carmel Valley..Your my nieghbor. I live in Carmel Valley aslo.
My kids are a bit older so I'm not sure about dance classes. You can contact the YMCA or google for info in the area. That always works for me.
I am terribly sorry about your husband. I hear this is a true addiction. Do you still love him? How are your kids doing with out dad around? I wish you luck
H.

Grocery shopping: Henry's Marketplace. I shop mostly organic too and have found that they usually have the best prices. Occasionally I find good deals at Albertsons. I also have a lot of stuff delivered by amazon.com through their Subscribe and Save Program. 15% off the amazon price and free shipping. I also go to the Poway Farmers Market every two weeks to pick up CSA box of organic veggies and to get organic fruit. I use JR Organics for my CSA veggie box. Very reasonably priced at 29.50 a box. And it lasts us two weeks.

We use Dr. Kuangkai Tai for our pediatrician. He is in Poway on Pomerado Rd. The practice is called Valle Verde Pediatrics. They are right across from Pomerado Hospital.

I use Dr. Karen Kohatsu in Rancho Bernardo for my OB. LOVE HER! I had a very risky pregnancy and she was there for me at all hours of the day and night.

For mommy meetup and playgroups, check out meetup.com. I belong to a mommy group called the North County No Drama Mama's Meetup Group. They have all kinds of events.

Hi M.
I am so sorry to hear about your husband. I can't imagine what you might be going through!
On a happier note, ;-) welcome to sunny San Diego!
Here's a link to a GREAT parenting group that you might want to join, called The Parent Connection: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/parentconnection/ (there is info about how to join at the bottom of the page). You can join this Yahoo! group after you have joined the Parent Connection. They are a great resource for everything you have listed and so much much more. I guarantee that it will help you to find lots of info that you are looking for.
Here are a couple of more links:
http://groups.msn.com/SanDiegoMoms/_homepage.msnw?&pps=k
(msg board)
http://www.sdplaygrounds.cjb.net/ (online source to find playgrounds in your area)
All the best to you and your girls -Suzanne

M.- I am truly sorry for your hardships in your relationship and can only imagine how difficult it must be for you. I am sure that you made a tough decision..but it sounds like the right one for you and your girls. Carmel Valley is a fantastic neighborhood (we lived there for 6 years until just moving a little east out to Del Sur).

It sounds like you have some great advice already. I would contact Scripps La Jolla. Their parent connection is a fantastic resource for connecting with other parents in your area and also can help you coordinate playgroups with other children your kid's ages.

The PAC is also a great health club since you are fitness minded...and it has great activities/childcare for the little ones. Also a great place to meet people in your neighborhood.

I am sure you already discovered it, but Jimbo's in Del Mar Highlands has great organic selection of healthy foods.

I have heard great things about the Hanna Fenischel Preschool in Solana Beach. www.hannafenischel.org

Good luck to you all and welcome to the neighborhood.

Google "Parent Connection San Diego" and it will list tons of playgroups in your area, and they also have some for working moms and meet Saturday or after work. I think the Parent Connection will also help you find other services you're looking for. As far as dance classes, google "San Diego Civic Arts" and they have lots of dance classes for children and adults, for an affordable price. I wish you the best of luck. San Diego is a great area for things to do for kids and adults.

Hi M.:

I'm sorry you and your daughters are going through this, but glad that you have family support during your time of need.

We go to Dr. Richard Buchta at Scripps in Carmel Valley. My son loved Del Mar Hills Nursery School and we drove him there when we lived in Carmel Valley. He started there when he was 3 as well.

With my younger son we also did a play group through Las Madres which is an organization through Scripps Hospital. They do have single moms playgroups that get together on the weekend and they do fun things together as groups.

FYI - There are great things to do here for free as well. Every Tuesday there are several museums in Balboa Park that are open for free and they rotate every week. There's a schedle at the balboa park website. The beaches and parks are great and a good way to meet other moms. Also, Rady Children's in Solana Beach has music classes, movement classes (more for your younger one)speech classes and other classes that are available at no charge - they received a grant and have classes available from birth to age 5. I'm not sure if Legoland still does this, but they used to have a mom's pass that allowed you to go to Legoland on Thursdays for $30. The pass was good for one year, so something fun and different to do for not a lot of money. Also, there is a park called San Dieguito Park in Solana Beach that has ducks and my boys used to love to go there when they were little to feed the ducks. If you park along the street there is no charge, otherwise it's $2 for parking. I don't have any recommendations for dance because I have boys, but I'm sure you'll get a number of suggestions.

D.

I love our pediatrician! With everything going on w/your life right now, you need a DR for your girls that you can trust. I go to La Costa Pediatrics in Carlsbad, but their main office is La Jolla Pediatrics in La Jolla, which would probably be closer for you. Good luck! The positive side of all of this is that San Diego is a great place to live and raise children! =)

I'm sorry to hear of your situation. Here's a couple of daycares that I think are great near you:

Del Mar Hills Nursery School
Del Mar, Ca

UCSD Early Childcare Education Center
San Diego, Ca

Hi M.-
I am so sorry to hear about your situation.

My suggestion would be to contact Parent Connection through SHARP Hospital. They are one of the largest support groups and playgroups in the county. They have playgroups and support groups for all ages, all denominations, all work schedules and all marital status.

They have a number of events on the weekends for families as well.

As for doctors, I live in North County, so I don't know much except there is a fabulous pediatrician, Dr. Schmottlack in Encinitas. He has privileges at all hospitals.

I would look at Kinderdance for your age daughters for dance. There is also a great sports club called Kids City Sports and have they classes starting at 2 yrs. old. They have an intro. to sports called: Pee Wee Sports.

I hope that helps. Best of luck to you.

Hey M.,

Im so sorry that you are going through this pain. Divorce is such a hard thing to go through especially when there are children involved. I am also a single Mom of 3 (13yr old and 9 yr old twins) in the Rancho Bernardo area. My ex husband decided to make a pub waitress his girlfriend My oldest son found out and was the one that broke the news to me :(
I recently found out that she was not the first one, and that he did a lot of "bad" things behind my back for years. Its a scary thing but you will find your way in this new life that you are about to enter. Trust me...I learned to grow a thick skin quick and there has never been a day that I have regretted my decision! Contact me whenever you need to...your going to do great!