Moms of young children are often terrified of choking -- and with good reason. It's one of the scariest and yet most realistic ways a parent could lose a child. But usually, by the age of 8, most parents think that fear has passed.

Now, a story out of Pennsylvania should have us all rethinking that confidence. Eight-year-old Aizeya Mattocks died on Tuesday after choking on a hot dog at school.  As a parent, my heart goes out to her family in every way. But I am also terrified.

As a mom of a 5-year-old and a 3.5-year-old, I am well-versed in choking hazards. I don't ever feed my children (tofu) hot dogs without cutting them in half length wise and then slicing them to minimize choking risk. The same goes for carrots and just about any other food (like grapes) that feels scary to me. But I have become more lax with my older child. This adds a whole different layer of fear.

Sarah Palin has political power. No one could deny that. But even so, her recent declaration that she is not ruling out jumping in the race should there be a brokered Republican convention this summer is a little unnerving. Just when you think it's safe to get back in the water. She's back!

Palin is many, many things. She is a highly entertaining and motivational woman. She is a mom. She is a runner (her half marathon time is excellent!). She is a funny and passionate talking head. But one thing Palin most certainly is not is presidential material.

Regardless of whether you like her or you don't, few would say she is smart enough or has the skills necessary to lead this country. She has things she is good at, but that (thank goodness) isn't one of them. Here are five reasons Palin needs to stop terrifying teasing us all with this "I might run" nonsense:

The single woman is still, even in 2012, a year where we are supposed to be all enlightened, a vilified entity. This is, according to Slate, a problem we will always be dealing with. For some reason, single women terrify us as a culture. And yet, the reality is, there are many plusses to being single over being married.

Yep, you read that right. Despite our societal and collective fears of "crazy cat ladies" and "old maids" and whatever cruel and mean ways we find to demean women who don't get married, the fact is, there are huge benefits to remaining single.

I have been married nearly a decade and with my husband for even longer and never once have I regretted our union. Still, I have many single friends. And I don't fear them or even feel sorry for them (unless they feel sorry for themselves), but I do sometimes envy them.