Kadi Prescott sat under a shade tree watching her children cool off in the fountains at Rancho Cucamonga's Victoria Gardens.

She concentrated, her brow furrowing above her sunglasses.

The majority of youngsters scampering through the capricious jets of water on the hot July day were hers.

The 29-year-old is the biological mother of seven children, ages 2 through 9.

"We love coming here because the kids play and have a great time and we can have our weekly business meeting, too," Kadi said. "Our husbands help us with the kids, so we can talk about what's happening in our online businesses."

The "we" includes Kadi's business partner, Cherish Wicker, 28. The two young mothers manage Cherished Events LLC and RanchoParent.com.

As we talked, Kadi's husband, Daniel, watched the children from the edge of the fountain, continuously counting heads.

There was Marlie, 9; Daniel Jr., 8; Trenton, 7; Phillip, 6; Aiden, 4; Ella, 3; and Reed, 2.

Earlier in the morning, Ella had fallen in the bathtub and Daniel had taken her to the emergency room, a trip that resulted in four stitches and a bright blue bandage.

Hopefully, there would be no more falls this day.

"Part of being a parent and a good business person is knowing things are going to happen and just rolling with it," Kadi smiled.

"You seem sane," I told her. "You don't even have a twitch."

"Oh, she had one last week - an eye


Advertisement

twitch," said Cherish, whose 3-year-old son, Braeden, joined in the water fun.

Kadi laughed. For a woman who had already spent 63 months of her life pregnant, she seemed quite calm.

It wasn't always that way, she revealed.

Last winter, the family moved from Rancho Cucamonga to the High Desert. Both Kadi and Daniel were feeling overwhelmed by the demands of their brood, and Kadi was feeling isolated from their friends.

"Supernanny" to the rescue.

Kadi had contacted Jo Frost, star of ABC's "Supernanny" show.

"We had so many kids and I felt so alone in the new neighborhood," Kadi said, "so Jo Frost came out with a camera crew and for about 12 days they observed how we live on a daily basis. It was a surreal experience but it helped a lot.

"`Supernanny' showed us what we were doing right, what we were doing wrong and helped us understand how to make each child feel more special.

"She encouraged me to get out and meet people. I had closed myself off."

The show, which originally aired in March, will be rebroadcast Aug. 27, and will be screened at "Supernanny Night," a Ladies' Night event at WineStyles, Rancho Cucamonga.

"`Supernanny' told me I had a gift for helping others and could bring other moms together," Kadi said.

That "moms-helping-other-moms" philosophy brought Kadi and Cherish together.

Kadi started writing a weekly column for Cherish's online family resource, RanchoParent.com.

Kadi went from being overwhelmed to helping others who felt the same way.

The RanchoParent online newsletter has a subscription of about 3,000, with the Web site attracting an average of 50,000 hits each month. In addition, Kadi manages a popular blog for parents.

"The blog has been good therapy for me," she said. "I call it `A Womb at the Inn.' It's about the funny things and disasters that are always happening. The blog site is www.kadiprescott.blogspot.com."

"Everything is a family affair with us," Cherish said.

She noted that RanchoParent.com features more than 100 pages of resources, a parent chat section, classified ad section, parenting tips and listings for everything from local doctors and day care to moms' groups and real estate agents.

"Basically, anything to do with families," Cherish said.

"When we met, we decided to start another mom-related business because we are good at organizing things and know several groups of moms in the Rancho Cucamonga area," Kadi said.

The new Cherished Events LLC is the happy result of their idea that moms - particularly those with at-home businesses - need to get out of the house, relax and network with other women.

The dynamic duo work with WineStyles, classic wines of California, and will present a Ladies' Night event each month. The mini-parties at WineStyles, Rancho Cucamonga, will feature wine sampling, appetizers, shopping, prizes and networking.

Most of the vendors are moms.

"We give moms a chance to take a break and promote their home business in a safe setting," Kadi said, "especially if they feel overwhelmed, it can relieve stress. Usually husbands stay with the kids so we can get as much business done as possible."

The fee is $15 per Ladies' Night event.

"We had so many e-mails - so many moms who said it would be nice to get away for an evening, meet people and supplement their incomes," Cherish said.

On Aug. 16, Cherished Events LLC will host its official grand opening with a special fundraising event at Etiwanda Gardens to help two little boys.

Cherish and Kadi have decided to donate all proceeds from the event to Lane and Tate Terrill, who lost their father, Scott, on July 4.

"We are so fortunate that we have families that are happy and healthy and husbands who are so supportive," Kadi said.

"As much chaos as it is, I wouldn't have it any other way. It's a good crazy."

michel.nolan@

inlandnewspapers.com

(909) 386-3859