Lora Langston's Blog, page 53
August 29, 2013
Learning How to be a Community Leader Together: Service Projects for Kids
Michelle from Life is my Lemonade is guest posting today. Michelle and I met in college where we pledged Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority. Needless to say, we've known each other awhile. Michelle also helps out with Pinterest account management. Today, she shares her reluctant adventures in teaching a child how to be a community leader. (Psst... Michelle's a little shy.) Here are some great ideas for service projects for your kids.
Race for the Cure 2011
What do you do when your child says I’m bored? I decided to
take a page out of my family’s book and take her on a new adventure. It started when she was old enough to put
groceries away. I took her to the food
pantry to help put groceries away on the shelves and explained why we were
helping out. Over the years, this
evolved into working to bag up the bags for Saturday openings. Then she asked if she could help out on
Saturday’s when the pantry was open. She
wanted to be able to work directly with the people that came into the food
pantry and help them out to their cars. Aww! That
was a great idea so we stepped into the rotation and did a Saturday morning
every once in awhile.
Helping out at a food pantry doesn't mean just donating items.
I’m
proud of how she stepped up and asked for more time with the people that came
in. Her Grandpa would be proud of
her. She didn't get to know him because
he died from Leukemia a few years before she was born. One of the proudest memories I have is of his
funeral, there were so many people there that came up to me and explained how
they knew him. He had helped them
throughout the years. He gave so many pints of blood I can’t even tell you what level
he was at. He also was an EMT for many
years, picked up people who needed transportation to doctor’s visits and
church. He and my mom both volunteered
for numerous committees. When those
people that he has touched came to show respect it made an unbearable day
better. I was proud to know that he had
done so much for others. Those are the
moments I share with my daughter now. I
am hoping that she will be able to say that she is proud of me for giving back
as well. Here are some of the things we do or plan to do when she says she is
bored.
Race for the Cure –whenever we can to support my Aunt who
is a survivor and the friends we have lost. Relay for Life-again whenever we can to remember my dad
and find a cure.
Sheltering Wings-This is a local domestic violence
shelter that helped me out. We have done
many projects from planting flowers around their building, donating money,
going to their various fundraising events, donating items for the silent
auctions, earrings for the kids to give their Moms on Mother’s Day, numerous
sweet treats just because and most recently Megan has written and received
grants to help provide pre-school supplies for their new pre-school classroom
and make up Birthday boxes for the kids.
Yep, she really did the work on writing the grants. It’s one of the requirements for the grant
because it is a Youth as Resources grant from United Way. Parents can assist but the kids are on the
ones that write it up and give the presentation. When she was younger I helped out with the
grant writing but now that she is a teen it’s all her and her Girl Scout
troop.
Pinterest idea turned into a warm welcome treat for Sheltering Wings
Pre-school supplies purchased with Grant monies
So while Megan is learning to help out in the community she
is having a good time and getting great experience. She donated time at the shelter to babysit
and play games with the kids. And she
learned that she likes to babysit and she can earn money when she’s not
donating her time.
Another bonus to helping out in the community is that she is
setting goals. Goal #1 earn the Bronze
award for Girl Scouts. Happy to say
that’s checked off, She earned her bronze award with a book drive and building
a bookcase for the shelter. Goal #2 the
Silver award for Girl Scouts. And another check, She earned her silver award
with the birthday boxes. For Goal #3 she
is going for the Gold award. She has a
list of the different places that she wants to help and a year to wait and plan
so we will see what will happen. Top of
the list for today is animal shelter, Riley or Peyton Manning children’s
hospital, or outdoor area. Whatever she
decides to do will be on her to plan from start to finish and raise the money
for because this is an individual project.
She can get help from the community but she has to put in at least 100
hours of time to meet the goal. I don’t
think it will be a problem though because she put in close to that with the
Silver award.
Going for the Gold Award
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Race for the Cure 2011
What do you do when your child says I’m bored? I decided to
take a page out of my family’s book and take her on a new adventure. It started when she was old enough to put
groceries away. I took her to the food
pantry to help put groceries away on the shelves and explained why we were
helping out. Over the years, this
evolved into working to bag up the bags for Saturday openings. Then she asked if she could help out on
Saturday’s when the pantry was open. She
wanted to be able to work directly with the people that came into the food
pantry and help them out to their cars. Aww! That
was a great idea so we stepped into the rotation and did a Saturday morning
every once in awhile.
.jpg)
Helping out at a food pantry doesn't mean just donating items.
I’m
proud of how she stepped up and asked for more time with the people that came
in. Her Grandpa would be proud of
her. She didn't get to know him because
he died from Leukemia a few years before she was born. One of the proudest memories I have is of his
funeral, there were so many people there that came up to me and explained how
they knew him. He had helped them
throughout the years. He gave so many pints of blood I can’t even tell you what level
he was at. He also was an EMT for many
years, picked up people who needed transportation to doctor’s visits and
church. He and my mom both volunteered
for numerous committees. When those
people that he has touched came to show respect it made an unbearable day
better. I was proud to know that he had
done so much for others. Those are the
moments I share with my daughter now. I
am hoping that she will be able to say that she is proud of me for giving back
as well. Here are some of the things we do or plan to do when she says she is
bored.
Race for the Cure –whenever we can to support my Aunt who
is a survivor and the friends we have lost. Relay for Life-again whenever we can to remember my dad
and find a cure.
Sheltering Wings-This is a local domestic violence
shelter that helped me out. We have done
many projects from planting flowers around their building, donating money,
going to their various fundraising events, donating items for the silent
auctions, earrings for the kids to give their Moms on Mother’s Day, numerous
sweet treats just because and most recently Megan has written and received
grants to help provide pre-school supplies for their new pre-school classroom
and make up Birthday boxes for the kids.
Yep, she really did the work on writing the grants. It’s one of the requirements for the grant
because it is a Youth as Resources grant from United Way. Parents can assist but the kids are on the
ones that write it up and give the presentation. When she was younger I helped out with the
grant writing but now that she is a teen it’s all her and her Girl Scout
troop.
Pinterest idea turned into a warm welcome treat for Sheltering Wings
Pre-school supplies purchased with Grant monies
So while Megan is learning to help out in the community she
is having a good time and getting great experience. She donated time at the shelter to babysit
and play games with the kids. And she
learned that she likes to babysit and she can earn money when she’s not
donating her time.
Another bonus to helping out in the community is that she is
setting goals. Goal #1 earn the Bronze
award for Girl Scouts. Happy to say
that’s checked off, She earned her bronze award with a book drive and building
a bookcase for the shelter. Goal #2 the
Silver award for Girl Scouts. And another check, She earned her silver award
with the birthday boxes. For Goal #3 she
is going for the Gold award. She has a
list of the different places that she wants to help and a year to wait and plan
so we will see what will happen. Top of
the list for today is animal shelter, Riley or Peyton Manning children’s
hospital, or outdoor area. Whatever she
decides to do will be on her to plan from start to finish and raise the money
for because this is an individual project.
She can get help from the community but she has to put in at least 100
hours of time to meet the goal. I don’t
think it will be a problem though because she put in close to that with the
Silver award.
Going for the Gold Award
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August 21, 2013
Pinterest Tips & a Magic Trick: The Secrets of Bookmarklet
Well.. the Google+ chat didn't work out, but you can see my secret magic trick tutorial here.
Lora from Kids Creative Chaos shares insider tips and tricks for Pinterest.
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Lora from Kids Creative Chaos shares insider tips and tricks for Pinterest.
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August 19, 2013
How do I get recipes from Pinterest? You've got an account, what's next? Tutorial (Pinterest 102)
You've set up your Pinterest account, you did everything they told you to do. You even started following your friends on Pinterest. Why do you only have 2 followers? Why aren't people finding you and following you? You wonder, " What am I doing wrong on Pinterest? " Here is your Pinterest Tutorial.
Pinterest Tips & Tricks.
Nothing- Everything.
You say, " Hey, all I really want is to know, how do I get recipes on Pinterest? My Facebook friends are blocking me. They hate it when I fill their feed with pictures of food, especially my dinner at a restaurant. I think they'd like it if I shared pictures of the beautiful meal I cooked all by myself after going on Pinterest. How do I do Pinterest?"
What kind of recipes do you like? Healthy Recipes? Vegan Recipes? Dessert Recipes? Gluten Free Recipes? Pinterest has you covered. There are three ways to go about finding recipes on Pinterest.
Click the big Pinterest at the top of your page and scroll through your home feed.
Nothing good? Pictures of your friend's kids? Images of the 1980's? Weird geek stuff? You need cooler friends. No worries, we can help.
2. Click the search bar on the left side of the screen. Type in recipes, pick "pins", and scroll through until you find something you like. Heart it. Pin it. This could take a long time. You have unusual taste. There aren't any pins for road kill stew. What's a hungry pinner to do?
3. Click the search bar on the left side of the screen. Type in "road kill recipes". Now, you could click pins, or pinners, but this time click boards. Now follow all of the boards titled "ROAD KILL RECIPES".
Funny bunnies road kill from Indulgy.com
Scroll through the boards that you find most appetizing. See anything you like? Pin it. Here's where it gets fun! When you come back tomorrow to pin and click the big Pinterest to find your home feed, you will see all the new pins from the road kill boards. Are some of them super stellar? Click the pinner and "follow all"; I'll bet you have a lot in common.
Boy, oh, boy do you have a lot in common. You are special. Only a elite few share your tastes.
That was easy. Now, you've learned how to search for you favorite topic, follow the boards, pinners, and pin it to your own "Road Kill" board. Go create some fun boards so like minded individuals will want to follow you. In the right top bar, click on the " + " sign. Choose create a board. Follow the prompts to create your own unique boards. For example, if you are into a road kill theme, you might want to add these board titles: Things to do with Raccoons, Dead Deer Projects, Awesome Opossums, Skunk Oil Tips, Squirrel Secrets, and Duck Dynasty Fun. Fill your boards, by doing a search in the Pinterest bar just like I taught you in the above paragraphs. Can't find anything good? Oh yeah... you're a little off, but that's okay. Try a Google search, copy the url, go back to the " + " and choose add from a website. Paste your URL in the bar.
Voila! You've done it.
Keep it up, I promise you will gain a follower or two if you keep pinning all these awesome pins.
Next time, Bookmarklet- will it harm my computer? Should I use it? And, the MAGIC secret that will blow your mind. In the meantime, you might like these Raccoon coloring pages. ;)
Pinterest Account Management
Pinterest Tips & a Magic Trick (The Secrets of Bookmarklet) Pinterest (201)
How do I do Pinterest? (Pinterest 101)
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Pinterest Tips & Tricks.
Nothing- Everything.
You say, " Hey, all I really want is to know, how do I get recipes on Pinterest? My Facebook friends are blocking me. They hate it when I fill their feed with pictures of food, especially my dinner at a restaurant. I think they'd like it if I shared pictures of the beautiful meal I cooked all by myself after going on Pinterest. How do I do Pinterest?"
What kind of recipes do you like? Healthy Recipes? Vegan Recipes? Dessert Recipes? Gluten Free Recipes? Pinterest has you covered. There are three ways to go about finding recipes on Pinterest.
Click the big Pinterest at the top of your page and scroll through your home feed.
Nothing good? Pictures of your friend's kids? Images of the 1980's? Weird geek stuff? You need cooler friends. No worries, we can help.
2. Click the search bar on the left side of the screen. Type in recipes, pick "pins", and scroll through until you find something you like. Heart it. Pin it. This could take a long time. You have unusual taste. There aren't any pins for road kill stew. What's a hungry pinner to do?
3. Click the search bar on the left side of the screen. Type in "road kill recipes". Now, you could click pins, or pinners, but this time click boards. Now follow all of the boards titled "ROAD KILL RECIPES".
Funny bunnies road kill from Indulgy.com
Scroll through the boards that you find most appetizing. See anything you like? Pin it. Here's where it gets fun! When you come back tomorrow to pin and click the big Pinterest to find your home feed, you will see all the new pins from the road kill boards. Are some of them super stellar? Click the pinner and "follow all"; I'll bet you have a lot in common.
Boy, oh, boy do you have a lot in common. You are special. Only a elite few share your tastes.
That was easy. Now, you've learned how to search for you favorite topic, follow the boards, pinners, and pin it to your own "Road Kill" board. Go create some fun boards so like minded individuals will want to follow you. In the right top bar, click on the " + " sign. Choose create a board. Follow the prompts to create your own unique boards. For example, if you are into a road kill theme, you might want to add these board titles: Things to do with Raccoons, Dead Deer Projects, Awesome Opossums, Skunk Oil Tips, Squirrel Secrets, and Duck Dynasty Fun. Fill your boards, by doing a search in the Pinterest bar just like I taught you in the above paragraphs. Can't find anything good? Oh yeah... you're a little off, but that's okay. Try a Google search, copy the url, go back to the " + " and choose add from a website. Paste your URL in the bar.
Voila! You've done it.
Keep it up, I promise you will gain a follower or two if you keep pinning all these awesome pins.
Next time, Bookmarklet- will it harm my computer? Should I use it? And, the MAGIC secret that will blow your mind. In the meantime, you might like these Raccoon coloring pages. ;)
Pinterest Account Management
Pinterest Tips & a Magic Trick (The Secrets of Bookmarklet) Pinterest (201)
How do I do Pinterest? (Pinterest 101)
Sign up for our free newsletter!
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How do I get recipes from Pinterest? You've got an account, what's next? Tutorial
You've set up your Pinterest account, you did everything they told you to do. You even started following your friends on Pinterest. Why do you only have 2 followers? Why aren't people finding you and following you? You wonder, " What am I doing wrong on Pinterest? " Here is your Pinterest Tutorial.
Pinterest Tips & Tricks.
Nothing- Everything.
You say, " Hey, all I really want is to know, how do I get recipes on Pinterest? My Facebook friends are blocking me. They hate it when I fill their feed with pictures of food, especially my dinner at a restaurant. I think they'd like it if I shared pictures of the beautiful meal I cooked all by myself after going on Pinterest. How do I do Pinterest?"
What kind of recipes do you like? Healthy Recipes? Vegan Recipes? Dessert Recipes? Gluten Free Recipes? Pinterest has you covered. There are three ways to go about finding recipes on Pinterest.
Click the big Pinterest at the top of your page and scroll through your home feed.
Nothing good? Pictures of your friend's kids? Images of the 1980's? Weird geek stuff? You need cooler friends. No worries, we can help.
2. Click the search bar on the left side of the screen. Type in recipes, pick "pins", and scroll through until you find something you like. Heart it. Pin it. This could take a long time. You have unusual taste. There aren't any pins for road kill stew. What's a hungry pinner to do?
3. Click the search bar on the left side of the screen. Type in "road kill recipes". Now, you could click pins, or pinners, but this time click boards. Now follow all of the boards titled "ROAD KILL RECIPES".
Funny bunnies road kill from Indulgy.com
Scroll through the boards that you find most appetizing. See anything you like? Pin it. Here's where it gets fun! When you come back tomorrow to pin and click the big Pinterest to find your home feed, you will see all the new pins from the road kill boards. Are some of them super stellar? Click the pinner and "follow all"; I'll bet you have a lot in common.
Boy, oh, boy do you have a lot in common. You are special. Only a elite few share your tastes.
That was easy. Now, you've learned how to search for you favorite topic, follow the boards, pinners, and pin it to your own "Road Kill" board. Go create some fun boards so like minded individuals will want to follow you. In the right top bar, click on the " + " sign. Choose create a board. Follow the prompts to create your own unique boards. For example, if you are into a road kill theme, you might want to add these board titles: Things to do with Raccoons, Dead Deer Projects, Awesome Opossums, Skunk Oil Tips, Squirrel Secrets, and Duck Dynasty Fun. Fill your boards, by doing a search in the Pinterest bar just like I taught you in the above paragraphs. Can't find anything good? Oh yeah... you're a little off, but that's okay. Try a Google search, copy the url, go back to the " + " and choose add from a website. Paste your URL in the bar.
Voila! You've done it.
Keep it up, I promise you will gain a follower or two if you keep pinning all these awesome pins.
Next time, Bookmarklet- will it harm my computer? Should I use it? And, the MAGIC secret that will blow your mind. In the meantime, you might like these Raccoon coloring pages. ;)
Sign up for our free newsletter!
Sign up for our free newsletter!
Pinterest Tips & Tricks.
Nothing- Everything.
You say, " Hey, all I really want is to know, how do I get recipes on Pinterest? My Facebook friends are blocking me. They hate it when I fill their feed with pictures of food, especially my dinner at a restaurant. I think they'd like it if I shared pictures of the beautiful meal I cooked all by myself after going on Pinterest. How do I do Pinterest?"
What kind of recipes do you like? Healthy Recipes? Vegan Recipes? Dessert Recipes? Gluten Free Recipes? Pinterest has you covered. There are three ways to go about finding recipes on Pinterest.
Click the big Pinterest at the top of your page and scroll through your home feed.
Nothing good? Pictures of your friend's kids? Images of the 1980's? Weird geek stuff? You need cooler friends. No worries, we can help.
2. Click the search bar on the left side of the screen. Type in recipes, pick "pins", and scroll through until you find something you like. Heart it. Pin it. This could take a long time. You have unusual taste. There aren't any pins for road kill stew. What's a hungry pinner to do?
3. Click the search bar on the left side of the screen. Type in "road kill recipes". Now, you could click pins, or pinners, but this time click boards. Now follow all of the boards titled "ROAD KILL RECIPES".
Funny bunnies road kill from Indulgy.com
Scroll through the boards that you find most appetizing. See anything you like? Pin it. Here's where it gets fun! When you come back tomorrow to pin and click the big Pinterest to find your home feed, you will see all the new pins from the road kill boards. Are some of them super stellar? Click the pinner and "follow all"; I'll bet you have a lot in common.
Boy, oh, boy do you have a lot in common. You are special. Only a elite few share your tastes.
That was easy. Now, you've learned how to search for you favorite topic, follow the boards, pinners, and pin it to your own "Road Kill" board. Go create some fun boards so like minded individuals will want to follow you. In the right top bar, click on the " + " sign. Choose create a board. Follow the prompts to create your own unique boards. For example, if you are into a road kill theme, you might want to add these board titles: Things to do with Raccoons, Dead Deer Projects, Awesome Opossums, Skunk Oil Tips, Squirrel Secrets, and Duck Dynasty Fun. Fill your boards, by doing a search in the Pinterest bar just like I taught you in the above paragraphs. Can't find anything good? Oh yeah... you're a little off, but that's okay. Try a Google search, copy the url, go back to the " + " and choose add from a website. Paste your URL in the bar.
Voila! You've done it.
Keep it up, I promise you will gain a follower or two if you keep pinning all these awesome pins.
Next time, Bookmarklet- will it harm my computer? Should I use it? And, the MAGIC secret that will blow your mind. In the meantime, you might like these Raccoon coloring pages. ;)
Sign up for our free newsletter!
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August 15, 2013
Art Develops Critical Thinking, Reasoning, and Fine Motor Skills
Art
is creativity in action. Creating and playing with art supplies is stimulating
to our brains. Our imagination takes over and helps develop critical thinking
skills. Everyone can play and learn with
art regardless of their socio-economic background.
Let them paint with no restraints. This is supposed to be a black bat box. :)
When
taught in preschool, art and sensory play help every child, no matter their
family income, to learn on the same plane.
In early childhood, art can level the playing field and aid in other academic
areas.
Creative
outlets such as art and dramatic play strengthen critical thinking skills. When a child is creating, they are also
solving problems. Whether they make a
simple choice of what color to use or they experiment with different mediums
and techniques, children learn to strengthen problem-solving skills through
creation.
eco-crayons by
eco-kids
They
learn to form shapes, to match colors, to highlight areas of particular
interest as they bring their vision to life.
As the work begins to take shape, the child works to improve fine motor
skills building a sense of pride or self-confidence in their newly discovered
abilities. Learn more about how the arts
can help in education by visiting Americans
for the Arts.
Sensory
play is an art form. When we use our
senses to learn, it is easier to retain information. Creating with art supplies is
an ideal form of sensory play. The
powder from chalk, the way the watercolor brush slides across the page, and the
smell and feel of the modeling clay in a child’s hands develops a connection
between learning and the five senses.
.jpg)
Encourage
imaginative play.
Unstructured,
investigative play with common art supplies helps build and refine cognitive
skills through problem solving. How does
this marker work? What will happen if I
swirl the brush in a circle? How does
water affect my painting? Fine motor
skills are refined as the child learns to draw a straight line or manipulate
the clay. The exploration of language evolves
by using descriptive words. For example,
the clay is cold, the chalk is dusty, and the paint is smooth. Learn more about sensory play and child
development at PBS.org.
Child
Development
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August 14, 2013
Schedule Dates with Your Children: Mommy and Me Days Make Lifetime Memories
Tracey Thomas is the Chief Elf at Santa's Elves of Indy. She is a frequent guest blogger for Kids Creative Chaos. This week, she shares her insights on the Mommy Share. Do you take your kids out for special alone time with Mommy or Daddy? Here are some ideas for mommy-dates with your children.
Mom & Me Day
We have a large family, which means busy schedules and lots
of group interaction. Don’t get me wrong, I love our big family, but sometimes
the craziness that is our lives leaves little room for individual time with the
kids. With my oldest son, “mommy and me” time wasn’t scarce at
all, because he had no competition, but after baby #2 came along, it started
becoming evident that I would need to build in time to spend one-on-one with
him. It is now 12 years later and, not only have I acquired 4 children of my
own, but also 2 step-children and I still try to build in that individual time
with the kids.
A trip to the orchard is a special treat that doubles as edutainment.
In a perfect world, I would have an endless bank account to
pull from that would allow me to take each child on an exotic weekend
excursion, but here in the real world, this isn’t exactly the case. Ok, so it
isn’t the case AT ALL. So to preserve the budget and to help keep our time
special, each month a different child gets to have their day. Sometimes, it’s
something as simple as driving to the nearby frozen yogurt shop and sometimes,
when the funds allow, we will plan something a little more expensive, like
going to the movies, or out to dinner, etc.
What kid doesn't love the movies, even better when you only have to share popcorn with Mommy.
For my son’s 12th birthday, he opted to combine
his birthday present with his “Mom & Me” day and was able to have an
afternoon downtown with his friends. To date, this was actually one of my
favorite “Mom & Me” days with him because, even though I had to share it
with four other 12 year old boys, the extra-sweet bonus was when he still
wanted to sit by good ole Mom during the basketball game at the end of the
night.
Too cool for Mom... not this boy!
As our kids get older, make new friends, and gain new
freedoms, they will have less time for Mom. Until that time, and as far into it
as I can get, I will always try to maintain the one-on-one visits with the
kids. It’s our time to catch up, hang out, and stay connected. And I hope that
“Mom & Me Day” will become as important to them as it is to me.
Check out her other posts in the boxes below and on the sidebar. She is the author of "Slurpin' for Worms".
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Mom & Me Day
We have a large family, which means busy schedules and lots
of group interaction. Don’t get me wrong, I love our big family, but sometimes
the craziness that is our lives leaves little room for individual time with the
kids. With my oldest son, “mommy and me” time wasn’t scarce at
all, because he had no competition, but after baby #2 came along, it started
becoming evident that I would need to build in time to spend one-on-one with
him. It is now 12 years later and, not only have I acquired 4 children of my
own, but also 2 step-children and I still try to build in that individual time
with the kids.
A trip to the orchard is a special treat that doubles as edutainment.
In a perfect world, I would have an endless bank account to
pull from that would allow me to take each child on an exotic weekend
excursion, but here in the real world, this isn’t exactly the case. Ok, so it
isn’t the case AT ALL. So to preserve the budget and to help keep our time
special, each month a different child gets to have their day. Sometimes, it’s
something as simple as driving to the nearby frozen yogurt shop and sometimes,
when the funds allow, we will plan something a little more expensive, like
going to the movies, or out to dinner, etc.
What kid doesn't love the movies, even better when you only have to share popcorn with Mommy.
For my son’s 12th birthday, he opted to combine
his birthday present with his “Mom & Me” day and was able to have an
afternoon downtown with his friends. To date, this was actually one of my
favorite “Mom & Me” days with him because, even though I had to share it
with four other 12 year old boys, the extra-sweet bonus was when he still
wanted to sit by good ole Mom during the basketball game at the end of the
night.
Too cool for Mom... not this boy!
As our kids get older, make new friends, and gain new
freedoms, they will have less time for Mom. Until that time, and as far into it
as I can get, I will always try to maintain the one-on-one visits with the
kids. It’s our time to catch up, hang out, and stay connected. And I hope that
“Mom & Me Day” will become as important to them as it is to me.
Check out her other posts in the boxes below and on the sidebar. She is the author of "Slurpin' for Worms".
Sign up for our free newsletter!
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August 12, 2013
Back to School Life Lessons and Discount Code for School Supplies
By now, most kids are
back in school full-time. As
homeschoolers, we officially started August 12 with Connections Academy, since there were no scheduled live lessons
we eased back into it. Brick and mortar
schools have late start Monday, so why can’t we? We started late (10:00) did a lesson, took a break, did another
lesson, ate lunch, did another lesson, went swimming (hey, it counts as P.E),
and then called it a day. Although, it
sounds easy- it wasn’t! I’m great at
giving advice, remember this post on summer brain drain? Well, turns out, I didn’t follow my own
advice. How much brain power can one
lose in a few weeks, right? W-R-O-N-G!
School is back in session.
Jake is doing great,
on task, a little hurried so he can get back to his video games, but overall
excellent. He had a perfect spelling
test, near perfect Math homework, and he was all smiles and ready to roll. He hates school, but it comes easy.
Mayhem. Mayhem.
Mayhem. That’s not her given
name, but that’s what we call her, Mandy
Mayhem. We woke up, brushed our teeth,
freed the chickens, collected eggs and tomatoes, took a walk to the pond, and
then made scrambled eggs and toast.
Everything was fine. She was excited to start school- and then we started
school. GRR. “I can’t make this work- the page disappeared-
do I have to read this?” AND “I can’t
find my notebook- where is a pencil? –You wrote in my sketchbook!” On a positive note, reading her assigned
story, Iris and Walter went well. It seemed she’d retained more than I thought.
AND THEN…It was time for written work. “Number your page for a spelling test”, Mommy
politely said. “Are you ready? This is
just a pre-test”, Mommy smiled ignoring the tantrum. “Don’t worry, it is only practice.” There was much complaining, whining, and
pencil pounding. “I’m sure those
letters are backwards!” “I can’t
remember how to spell that word!” “Which
letter comes first?” And so, it resumed. All the work, we’d done last year, on the “it’s
probably not dyslexia just age appropriate transposition of letters and numbers”
was lost.
The paper wasn’t
numbered from 1-15. There were big words
and small words scribbled all about, there were capital A’s and small a’s
intermixed in the same word. There were
words, that had just been practiced in a worksheet, spelled on tiles, and read
in the story. Not one word was written
correctly. Although, if you paid close attention and understood the
common transpositions, backward or upside down letters, you could decode the
correct spelling word.
DeKs, backward J-oB,
sAD, LTis, S A backward C- K, DutS, and pockt.
I think its
interesting, that the only misspelled word is the only one written in
appropriate all lowercase letters. Did
you need a translator? Desk, job, sad,
list, sack, dust, and pocket. A teacher
would have taken one look at the sloppy mess and given up. Mommy took the time to decode it. Then, I wrote lines in pink highlighter,
filled in the word 'desk' written correctly, and asked her to recopy her words
with proper capitalization.
Dust, chop, Desk,
Durm, backward j-ob, t- backward a and g, letts, snack, rook, Rib, engine,
mess, and list.
She did a great job on chop, engine, mess, and
list, but snack and rook aren’t on the list.
I will have to decode those later. The good news is the words are written
within the lines with appropriate letter size, and numbered from 1-15. We’ll focus on that for now- 2nd grade.
Teacher asked if I wanted
to pass her last year. “What kind of
question is that?” She had straight A+’s
in first grade. She hated it. It was “boring” and too easy. Except, if the teacher and I hadn’t taken the
time to decode the hand-written work…
Did you see that? Handwritten work? That’s right, she doesn’t transpose when
typing! Unfortunately, in second grade,
she is required to turn in handwritten papers in preparation for academic
testing. Bummer, next year I won’t waste those summer months.
In the meantime, she’s
going to relax with some art and sensory play with her favorite medium, clay. Green Rainbow Revolution has a great fun
dough product perfect for sensory play for children with autism or other processing
disorders. Crazy Aaron’s putty is
unique. It has thermodynamic and phosphorescent properties perfect for science exploration. Thermodynamics explores the relationship between heat and other forms of energy. The putty changes colors when touched.
Thermodynamic putty.
Green Rainbow Revolution offers affordable, eco-friendly
art supplies and products for kids and adults.
Through Sept. 8, they are offering a 20% discount on orders over $60
with the coupon code SAVE4school. I’ve listed some of my top picks below.
For younger kids:
Check out the lunch supplies by Fluf and ECOlunchbox
Angry Birds fans will love this cloth lunch bag.
Cool, brightly colored, square chalks by Mercurius.
Mercuris vivid pastel blackboard chalk.
For older students, teachers, or art minded adults:
Funky, graphic notebooks.
Forest Choices colored pencils by California Cedar Products.
Woodless colored pencil set.
Sign up for our free newsletter!
Sign up for our free newsletter!
back in school full-time. As
homeschoolers, we officially started August 12 with Connections Academy, since there were no scheduled live lessons
we eased back into it. Brick and mortar
schools have late start Monday, so why can’t we? We started late (10:00) did a lesson, took a break, did another
lesson, ate lunch, did another lesson, went swimming (hey, it counts as P.E),
and then called it a day. Although, it
sounds easy- it wasn’t! I’m great at
giving advice, remember this post on summer brain drain? Well, turns out, I didn’t follow my own
advice. How much brain power can one
lose in a few weeks, right? W-R-O-N-G!
School is back in session.
Jake is doing great,
on task, a little hurried so he can get back to his video games, but overall
excellent. He had a perfect spelling
test, near perfect Math homework, and he was all smiles and ready to roll. He hates school, but it comes easy.
Mayhem. Mayhem.
Mayhem. That’s not her given
name, but that’s what we call her, Mandy
Mayhem. We woke up, brushed our teeth,
freed the chickens, collected eggs and tomatoes, took a walk to the pond, and
then made scrambled eggs and toast.
Everything was fine. She was excited to start school- and then we started
school. GRR. “I can’t make this work- the page disappeared-
do I have to read this?” AND “I can’t
find my notebook- where is a pencil? –You wrote in my sketchbook!” On a positive note, reading her assigned
story, Iris and Walter went well. It seemed she’d retained more than I thought.
AND THEN…It was time for written work. “Number your page for a spelling test”, Mommy
politely said. “Are you ready? This is
just a pre-test”, Mommy smiled ignoring the tantrum. “Don’t worry, it is only practice.” There was much complaining, whining, and
pencil pounding. “I’m sure those
letters are backwards!” “I can’t
remember how to spell that word!” “Which
letter comes first?” And so, it resumed. All the work, we’d done last year, on the “it’s
probably not dyslexia just age appropriate transposition of letters and numbers”
was lost.
The paper wasn’t
numbered from 1-15. There were big words
and small words scribbled all about, there were capital A’s and small a’s
intermixed in the same word. There were
words, that had just been practiced in a worksheet, spelled on tiles, and read
in the story. Not one word was written
correctly. Although, if you paid close attention and understood the
common transpositions, backward or upside down letters, you could decode the
correct spelling word.
DeKs, backward J-oB,
sAD, LTis, S A backward C- K, DutS, and pockt.
I think its
interesting, that the only misspelled word is the only one written in
appropriate all lowercase letters. Did
you need a translator? Desk, job, sad,
list, sack, dust, and pocket. A teacher
would have taken one look at the sloppy mess and given up. Mommy took the time to decode it. Then, I wrote lines in pink highlighter,
filled in the word 'desk' written correctly, and asked her to recopy her words
with proper capitalization.
Dust, chop, Desk,
Durm, backward j-ob, t- backward a and g, letts, snack, rook, Rib, engine,
mess, and list.
She did a great job on chop, engine, mess, and
list, but snack and rook aren’t on the list.
I will have to decode those later. The good news is the words are written
within the lines with appropriate letter size, and numbered from 1-15. We’ll focus on that for now- 2nd grade.
Teacher asked if I wanted
to pass her last year. “What kind of
question is that?” She had straight A+’s
in first grade. She hated it. It was “boring” and too easy. Except, if the teacher and I hadn’t taken the
time to decode the hand-written work…
Did you see that? Handwritten work? That’s right, she doesn’t transpose when
typing! Unfortunately, in second grade,
she is required to turn in handwritten papers in preparation for academic
testing. Bummer, next year I won’t waste those summer months.
In the meantime, she’s
going to relax with some art and sensory play with her favorite medium, clay. Green Rainbow Revolution has a great fun
dough product perfect for sensory play for children with autism or other processing
disorders. Crazy Aaron’s putty is
unique. It has thermodynamic and phosphorescent properties perfect for science exploration. Thermodynamics explores the relationship between heat and other forms of energy. The putty changes colors when touched.
Thermodynamic putty.
Green Rainbow Revolution offers affordable, eco-friendly
art supplies and products for kids and adults.
Through Sept. 8, they are offering a 20% discount on orders over $60
with the coupon code SAVE4school. I’ve listed some of my top picks below.
For younger kids:
Check out the lunch supplies by Fluf and ECOlunchbox
Angry Birds fans will love this cloth lunch bag.
Cool, brightly colored, square chalks by Mercurius.
Mercuris vivid pastel blackboard chalk.
For older students, teachers, or art minded adults:
Funky, graphic notebooks.
Forest Choices colored pencils by California Cedar Products.
Woodless colored pencil set.
Sign up for our free newsletter!
Sign up for our free newsletter!
August 6, 2013
Goodbye Summer, C U Next year....
Goodbye Summer, we'll miss you. You've been mild, kind, and bountiful with beauty. School starts next Monday. The blog has missed us. We'll be back Blog, sorry you couldn't join us outside. Now that we have a new tablet, we'll take you with us during school recess. We can go on hikes for p.e. or read with you under the Walnut grove. We'll have so much more to share with you once home-school takes over our lives again. We needed a much deserved break. See you all next week :)
Scenes from our summer.
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Scenes from our summer.
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July 29, 2013
Great Read for eReaders: Alicewinks eBook is a modern update to Alice in Wonderland. #apps
Did you know it is the 150th anniversary of Alice in Wonderland, the legendary Lewis Carroll children's novel? In celebration, Alice's adventures in Wonderland is now a multimedia iBook. Alicewinks brings the timeless illustrations of Alice’s Adventures to life for a new generation. To learn more about the video and history of the story visit: http://www.alicewinks.com. Take a look and checkout the this interactive media book in iBooks.
The beautiful, early 20th century illustrations include one-hundred and ninety-three original animated illustrations from twelve different artists, and the images are brought to life by nineteen voice actors. It it more like watching a movie than reading a book.
What we love about the book:
Cultural Immersion. My kids associate Johnny Depp with Alice and Wonderland. While, they love the Cheshire Cat they thought he was the "Thresher Cat". With Alicewinks, they learn about classical literature in it's purist form.
The voice of Alice brings the story to life. Hearing the inflection as she speaks makes some of the subtle humor easier for kids to understand.
The story is long, but reading the iBook version allows you to pause whenever you like.
In May of 2013, Alicewinks received the Kirkus Star for exceptional merit.
The book is interactive. Kids can easily skip forwarded and back among the pages.
When I asked the kids if they wanted to skip ahead, they both shouted "no". Translation 1-hour of peace and quiet.
"Everything's got a moral if only you can find it."
- The Duchess.
So, what is the moral to this post? "One story is good until another is told." The re-telling of Alice in Wonderland in digital format is a great way to share a good, classical story with your kids.
In celebration of the 150th Anniversary of Alice’s Adventure’s in Wonderland, Alicewinks brings the story’s classic illustrations to life for digital audiences through animated video and rich narration. To download this one of a kind iBook, visit iTunes.com/alicewinks
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Alicewinks. The opinions and text are all mine.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Alicewinks. The opinions and text are all mine.
Sign up for our free newsletter!
Sign up for our free newsletter!
The beautiful, early 20th century illustrations include one-hundred and ninety-three original animated illustrations from twelve different artists, and the images are brought to life by nineteen voice actors. It it more like watching a movie than reading a book.
What we love about the book:
Cultural Immersion. My kids associate Johnny Depp with Alice and Wonderland. While, they love the Cheshire Cat they thought he was the "Thresher Cat". With Alicewinks, they learn about classical literature in it's purist form.
The voice of Alice brings the story to life. Hearing the inflection as she speaks makes some of the subtle humor easier for kids to understand.
The story is long, but reading the iBook version allows you to pause whenever you like.
In May of 2013, Alicewinks received the Kirkus Star for exceptional merit.
The book is interactive. Kids can easily skip forwarded and back among the pages.
When I asked the kids if they wanted to skip ahead, they both shouted "no". Translation 1-hour of peace and quiet.
"Everything's got a moral if only you can find it."
- The Duchess.
So, what is the moral to this post? "One story is good until another is told." The re-telling of Alice in Wonderland in digital format is a great way to share a good, classical story with your kids.
In celebration of the 150th Anniversary of Alice’s Adventure’s in Wonderland, Alicewinks brings the story’s classic illustrations to life for digital audiences through animated video and rich narration. To download this one of a kind iBook, visit iTunes.com/alicewinks
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Alicewinks. The opinions and text are all mine.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Alicewinks. The opinions and text are all mine.
Sign up for our free newsletter!
Sign up for our free newsletter!
July 23, 2013
Healthy Living Tips and Ideas on Pinterest: Why I'm Taking Baby Steps to Change my Life
A few weeks ago, I published a post with a BMI calculator asking you to join me in my weight loss endeavor. I've been trying to shift my focus to healthy living. For me, eating isn't really the problem, but I'd like to get the entire family on a healthy schedule and diet. So, I've been visiting lots of healthy living websites looking for tips and ideas and pinning healthy lifestyle pins on Pinterest.
Tomato plants in our organic garden.
I'm too young to be a hippie and too old to be a hipster, so I guess I'll just become a crunchy mama. I lean that way for sure, but it isn't always practical for me. I am into attachment parenting though, so I am well on my way. Only... I don't look the part. I lost my way, and I am struggling to get back to an appropriate level of fitness.
Fake it 'til you make it. That's what I intend to do.
Yep, I have a little garden patch, some chickens, and a few ducks. I've been building a coop and a barn for something else. Maybe a goat or a llama? It popped into my head this week that I need to build a greenhouse for my plants. I kill Rosemary every year. This year, I didn't even bother with her!
Enter Pinterest.
Wyandotte Chickens and Pekin Ducks at 3 months old.
If you follow this blog, you probably know we're kind of Pinterest superstars. As a visual person, I love Pinterest. No, I probably won't get back to any of the things, but I sure like to look at the pretty pictures and dream. So, what are my favorite boards for healthy living?
Crum Creek is a health food company with the motto "indulge in healthy". They have great Pinterest boards with lots of ideas for making healthy choices.
Vegetarian Zen is a blog about a family learning to become vegetarians with the motto "happy body, healthy mind". This is a great place to learn all about how to be healthy. Vegetarian Pinterest Boards.
Pure Health Girls this is a site focused on raising awareness on how to take control of your health and longevity. They provide valuable information about the dangers of pesticides, hormones, and GMO's. See the Pinterest Boards here.
Green Rainbow Revolution is a new company dedicated to finding the best ethical, healthy, and sustainable products. They have fun, educational Pinterest boards.
For great healthy living tips be sure to hop over to Pinterest and check out all of these great pinners :)
Sign up for our free newsletter!
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Tomato plants in our organic garden.
I'm too young to be a hippie and too old to be a hipster, so I guess I'll just become a crunchy mama. I lean that way for sure, but it isn't always practical for me. I am into attachment parenting though, so I am well on my way. Only... I don't look the part. I lost my way, and I am struggling to get back to an appropriate level of fitness.
Fake it 'til you make it. That's what I intend to do.
Yep, I have a little garden patch, some chickens, and a few ducks. I've been building a coop and a barn for something else. Maybe a goat or a llama? It popped into my head this week that I need to build a greenhouse for my plants. I kill Rosemary every year. This year, I didn't even bother with her!
Enter Pinterest.
Wyandotte Chickens and Pekin Ducks at 3 months old.
If you follow this blog, you probably know we're kind of Pinterest superstars. As a visual person, I love Pinterest. No, I probably won't get back to any of the things, but I sure like to look at the pretty pictures and dream. So, what are my favorite boards for healthy living?
Crum Creek is a health food company with the motto "indulge in healthy". They have great Pinterest boards with lots of ideas for making healthy choices.
Vegetarian Zen is a blog about a family learning to become vegetarians with the motto "happy body, healthy mind". This is a great place to learn all about how to be healthy. Vegetarian Pinterest Boards.
Pure Health Girls this is a site focused on raising awareness on how to take control of your health and longevity. They provide valuable information about the dangers of pesticides, hormones, and GMO's. See the Pinterest Boards here.
Green Rainbow Revolution is a new company dedicated to finding the best ethical, healthy, and sustainable products. They have fun, educational Pinterest boards.
For great healthy living tips be sure to hop over to Pinterest and check out all of these great pinners :)
Sign up for our free newsletter!
Sign up for our free newsletter!
