Mari Walker

First published on Baton Rouge Parents magazine's website . Christmas 2020 looked super different for our family , and as parents, my husband and I did something that we probably wouldn’t have done otherwise. We fulfilled our nine-year-old’s request for a gaming system, specifically a Nintendo Switch. She had been asking for it throughout the pandemic saying everyone she knew had one, but it felt too expensive and one more screen to fight over.  And of course, earlier in the year, the Switches were pretty hard to come by. I’m a great deal shopper, even online–scoring Clorox wipes when they were scarce and Lysol for my friend who had COVID in July. But I didn’t want to activate my shopping powers for something we weren’t sure we could handle as a family or to pay too much just because it was hard to find in stock. But a good deal that was available for pickup and our daughter’s persistence led us to make the purchase in early December. It was SO HARD to not tell her

Originally published in the January 2021 issue of Baton Rouge Parents Magazine and on its website . Although 2020 was a hard year for everyone, the White family’s experience was extra challenging.  Their eight-year-old, Hayden, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma. His victory over the rare bone cancer was complete when he finished chemo on December 11, one of the first in-patients to do so at Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital.  “Hayden started having leg pain probably in February,” says his dad, Corey. An X-ray in March led to consultations with orthopedists and soon thereafter an orthopedic oncologist, and chemo began in April. “It happened really fast,” Corey says. Hayden’s mom, Karen, says, “From the time we saw the pediatrician to the time we started chemo, it was about three weeks.”  COVID-19 complicated everything, with only one parent being allowed with him during some of Hayden’s procedures. Karen and Corey were even told separately about their son’s diagnos

Originally published in the January 2021 issue of Baton Rouge Parents magazine and on its website . When so many things shut down last year, Matteo Runge was lucky to find a silver lining. The sixth grader at Baton Rouge International School became a 2020 Louisiana state chess champion and credits his success to extra practice time. “Since coronavirus happened, I improved on chess,” Matteo says. “I wouldn’t have gotten second in the state if it weren’t for coronavirus because I was online and practicing every day for that state championship.” Now 11, Matteo has played chess for several years and is a member of his school’s chess club. “I thought he was too young to learn the game of chess when he was in Kindergarten,” says Donald, Matteo’s dad. “I didn’t learn myself until I was about in seventh grade. But he kept insisting on learning how the pictures moved.” Matteo’s mom, Isabella, first taught him the basics. Virtual tournaments have allowed chess competitions to c

As Education and Community sections editor, I wrote pages pages 14-21 and page 26 of the January 2021 issue of Baton Rouge Parents magazine. See the web layout on the magazine's website .