Super Woman I Am

I know that you have noticed that you don't see many pictures of me on the blog.  That is for two reasons:  (1) I, like many women I know, don't like pictures of myself and (2) I am the one taking the pictures and you can't be BOTH behind the camera and in front of the camera at the same time.

I am trying to have more pictures taken of me.  From time to time I will share them with you.

Remember when we went to the ice-cream store over the weekend?  Lulu took these pictures of me.

Oh... and if you are wondering... I still feel like Super Woman.

Weekend Update

Friday night we went to Menchi's.  Menchi's is a ice-cream/yogurt place where you mix your own flavors and add your own toppings.  Yum!!!

For example, I added banana, chocolate, and strawberry ice-cream with Reeses Cups and caramel toppings.

Lulu added red velvet cake with cake batter ice-cream with a coconut topping.

Bro selected vanilla ice-cream and added gummi bears and m&m toppings.

Bri tasted her first ice-cream...

... and I think she liked it!

After we finished the ice-cream that we purchased, we went around and sampled the rest of the flavors.  Yes, we did!  No, they don't mind.

Then, we went to Target to grab some tennis shoes for Em.  She spotted this pair of shoes and said, "OH MAWM... aren't these ADORABLE???"

Looking at my baby in these big girl shoes was more than this mom could handle.  She is growing up... and is dragging me along for the ride... kicking and screaming for the ride to s-t-o-p.  I know you all can feel my pain.  Can't you?

On Saturday I enjoyed my first Girl's Night Out since the great cookie swap of 2010, and I made this strawberry trifle to share. 



The get together was for a bunco night with some ladies I knew from high school... and other friends whom I had never met before.  A good time was had by all... to say the least.  I will not post the details of the night, even though I was threatening to start taking notes for reference because the conversations were just so juicy.  I did come home with $30 I won by getting the most buncos.  However, the hostess (and my dear friend) tried to tell me that I was technically NOT eligible for the prize because I did not grab the pink dice and run around the house like a maniac each time I got a bunco, which is apparently part of the official rules.  My bad!  Next time I am going to bring a load speaker with me... like a siren or something... to sound off when I get bunco.  {{hee hee hee}}  

  

On Sunday, I stayed home with the babies while Dear Husband took Lulu to cheer practice.  I have said this before and I will say it a million times again... I am an only child and so the world of siblings is very new to me... one of my greatest pleasure in life is seeing how well the kiddos play together and interact with each other.  

In this picture, Bro is lying down to read a book to Bri... 

... and here he is playing tickle with her.

You cannot imagine how refreshing my weekend was.  I feel like Super Woman.

     

How are you feeling on this Monday afternoon?

Technology

What was the world like before computers?

Computers are such an integral part of school now.  Here are some changes that I have noticed over the past few years.

Homework - all homework is online now.  Parents needn't wonder what their students have to do for homework... it's all available on the net.

Grades - ALL of the grades are uploaded onto the computer several times a week.  I always know if Lulu is handing in assignments and sometimes I know her quiz grades before she does.

Textbooks - All of the textbooks are available online.

And now... for the latest and most shocking evolution of all... Lulu's latest science homework will be handed in via you tube.  Can you believe it?  You tube?

That's right.  She had to do a project on the vocabulary works in this week's lesson.  She chose to do a "news report" about photosynthesis.  The teacher said that Lulu could just hand in the link to the video.  SHOCKING!

Here it is for your viewing pleasure.



Does anyone else find this shocking?????  I never got to do cool stuff like this when I was a kid.

Pop Quiz Revisited

You all remember the pop quiz, right?

WHAT WOULD YOU DO? - POP QUIZ
You go to back-to-school night. You are sitting in 7th grade French. The teacher tells you that the students are going to have a surprise/pop quiz tomorrow. Do you tell your child about the quiz? Yes or no.

Let me tally the votes.

No.  Do not tell her that she has a quiz.  (0 votes)
Giver her a hint that she should study.  (5 votes - 1 vote came in via facebook... ahem)
Yes, of course.  Definitely tell her that she has a quiz.  (1 vote - that's MY vote)

Really?  You wouldn't tell her that she has a pop quiz? 

I only find this so interesting because I CLEARLY remember going to my 7th grade Spanish Class the night after back-to-school night.  EVERYONE {{well, it seemed like EVERYONE}} in the class knew there was a pop quiz, except for me.  When I asked my parents why they didn't tell me about the quiz they said, "The teacher told us not to tell." 

I was shocked to be faced with the same dilemma for my own daughter.  And... for 24 LONG YEARS I have known OF COURSE I WILL TELL HER!!!!!!!

Conclusion:  I did not tell Lulu about the quiz because she had already taken the quiz.  As it turns out, the French class is divided into A-Day and B-Day.  A-Day students had already been to school the day of back-to-school night.  B-Day students would be coming to school the next day.  Lulu takes French on A-Day... thus, she took the pop quiz before I even knew about it.

My apologies if you think less of me now.  :-)

Speaking of Lulu... she is having a hard time deciding if she is a Ravens fan or a Redskins fan (as we have both fans in our family).  Her dad got her front row seats to the nail-biter Redskins game on Sunday... and she wore this shirt to school on Monday.

She did suggest cutting up both team jerseys and sewing them together.  What a sweetie... always a people pleaser.

Who are you cheering for this season?

Back-to-School

In honor of back-to-school night, I have a polling question for you at the end of this post. It's a little survey I am doing. I can't wait to read your responses. You can read about boring back-to-school if you want to... or just skip straight to the poll.

Recently, I attended back-to-school night for Lulu's school. She is now in 7th grade. Here were my observations.

Language Arts Teacher - Very nice. Very interested in seeing the students succeed and love reading. {{great}} Explained that this is an advance class. The students will be moving at a very fast pace. Has 36 students in the class {{a very large class}} due to budget cuts.

Math Teacher - Very nice. It is her goal that every student get a "B" or higher.

After many years of struggling {{not mild struggling but c-r-a-z-y struggling}} in math, only to be told that Lulu is "advanced," she was finally placed in the nonadvanced class. {{sheesh... what took so long}} Yes. This is more our style. Nonadvanced students get to do something I have never heard of before... it's called "re-dos." Yeah - they get to re-do any and all assignments, except for tests, to get a better grade if they don't like the original grade. {{Whoo-oo... bowl me over with a feather... this is what I'm talking about... sign us up!}}  This class only has 21 students.  {{Let me hear you shouting YEAH... I can't hear you!!!!}} 

French Teacher - French teacher seems cool enough.  There is a trip to Canada for students who take french in the 8th grade.  {{Lovely.  I can't wait to go back to Canada.}} 

Science Teacher - Science teacher is young and bubbly.  She says that she is "on a cart."  {{What?  Did I hear that correctly?  You are on a cart?}}  Oh, she doesn't have a regular classroom so she wheels her cart from room to room.  Thanks you budget cuts!  {{snicker}}  The kids will be doing some dissecting this year.

Social Studies Teacher - Loved this lady but the kids are gonna walk all over her.  Her class is located outside of the school building in a portable {{portable = fancy name for trailer}}.  Another very large class.

Overall it was a successful night.  I can see why Lulu is optimistic about the school year - I am optimistic too.

Now for the fun part...


WHAT WOULD YOU DO? - POP QUIZ

You go to back-to-school night.  You are sitting in 7th grade French.  The teacher tells you that the students are going to have a surprise/pop quiz tomorrow.  Do you tell your child about the quiz?  Yes or no.

ADHD Awareness Week: Day 3

Day 3 AD/HD Topic:  Help for Parents of AD/HD children.

Our nation has four leading ADHD organizations.

They are:

ADHD Coaches Organization (ACO);
Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA);
ADDitude magazine; and
Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD).

Parents,

I believe that the ADDitude magazine comes with the membership to CHADD.  I just joined CHADD and got the magazine and thought that the magazine was full of good information.  Just sayin'.



Tomorrow we will talk about... something dealing with AD/HD... I'm not sure what yet.

Don't Worry Mom

I took Bro and Bri to the park after recently.  Bro mostly played while I mostly held onto Bri.  After pushing Bro on the swing playing for about 20 minutes, I told Bro to finish up because would be going home in 5 minutes.

As I gathered my stuff for Bri and put everything back in the stroller, I turned and saw Bro doing something he had NEVER done before.

 
I ran to him shouting, "No!  Brody!  No!  Stop!"  To which he replied very calmly and confidently, "It's okay Mom.  THIS is for KIDS.  THIS is for KIDS, Mom.  It's okay."

And then... {{like a good Mom}}... I said, "Okay.  Be still.  Let me put Bri down so that I can... hold onto you take your picture!!!!!" 

"CHEEEESE!"

AD/HD Awareness Week: Day 2

Welcome to Day 2 of AD/HD Awareness Week.

Day 2 AD/HD information is Girls and AD/HD.

My post today is specifically geared towards educators.



Dear Educators:

You may have a girl in your class who is sweet and wonderful and "such a joy to have in class" and extremely obedient.  She may excel in most subjects and do okay in others. 

Outside of class, however, her parents may be struggling to keep her afloat.  The homework that takes most families 15-30 minutes is taking this family HOURS.

If you meet with this family and they say that they think that their daughter might have AD/HD (or something)... please stop and think... don't just dismiss them and tell them that their child "just needs to get her head in the game."  Just because she is not hyperactive doesn't mean that there is nothing wrong. 

At the lunch table this child's peers are bragging about being on the honor roll... again... and that the Spring Break math packet was e-a-s-y.  At home, her misinformed parents are threatening to take away every privilege she ever had if she doesn't "get her head in the game."

Fast forward 5 years.  The child who once wrote on her notebooks "I ♥ school" and played teacher nonstop is starting to hate school (not the teenager kind of hate but has real anxiety about school) and wonders why school is easier for everyone else but her... as her parents wonder the same thing.

Please do not send your girl students to middle school without the proper tools to help them succeed.  I am not asking for an AD/HD diagnosis for every B-grade student.  I'm just asking you to read a small article about AD/HD in girls... and to keep an open mind.

Thanks!

p.s.  I don't get any kickbacks if you click this link or buy this book.  But you can click thru and check it out if you want to.  Understanding Girls with AD/HD by Kathleen G. Nadeau; it has 39 customer reviews (33 are 5* reviews).

Need some nationally recognized resources for an AD/HD child in your life?  Tune in tomorrow.

Today's Post is Brought to You by the Letters A-D-H-and-D

AD/HD (attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder) is a disorder most often diagnosed in school-age children.  It is a neorological disorder that causes them to be hyperactive and/or have difficulty paying attention.  I am not going to go into the details of AD/HD here.  You can google it for yourself and read more about it.

I do, however, want to point out a few things.

First, September 13-17 is AD/HD Awareness Week.

Second, AD/HD is often misunderstood.  I know that there are plenty of you reading, many of whom are teachers, who probably know an AD/HD child.  I have been hesitant to blog about AD/HD because I know that this blog has several teacher readers and I am becoming aware that an AD/HD diagnosis is not often well received in the world of primary school education.  I am asking you (teachers and nonteachers... that means ALL of you) for one favor this week.  One favor = please keep an open mind when dealing with a nonattentive child. 

My goal during AD/HD Awareness week is to provide you with one small piece of AD/HD information each day. 

We skipped Day 1 {{you're welcome}} so we can start with Day 2.

Day 2 ADHD Information

7 Myths About ADHD Debunked.  This link is a pdf.  It is one-page in length.  It is a very quick read.

Tomorrow we will look at AD/HD in girls. 

I hope to see you back then.

Sewing

And while we are on the subject of sewing...

I made this John Deere pillowcase for Brody's toddler pillow.

Look - it even has a nice coordinating yellow edge.

Bro says that he is going to be a farmer when he grows up.  He is going to have chickens on his farm, he says.  Every budding farmer needs a John Deere tractor, so I made this pillowcase to inspire him.  He was so excited.  He couldn't go to sleep until I finished it.

I offered to make a pillowcase for Lulu as well.  Uh... she told me that she could make her own.  Oh.. well then... now I know!

When I was little I wanted to be an astronaut.  What about you?

You Learn Something New Every Day

Lesson #1:  Where we learn the purpose of the dangling portion of a pin cushion.

You know those tomato pin cushions that people use to put their pins in?  And you know that little decorative thingy that hangs off of the end {{it's called a strawberry}}? 

Lulu was standing in line waiting to be dismissed from sewing class.  She mentioned that the purpose of the strawberry part of a tomato pin cushion is to sharpen your pins.  The teacher said that Lulu was wrong and that the strawberry is decoration only.  Lulu insisted that during her fashion design class this summer she was told that the filling in the strawberry sharpens your pins.  The teacher insisted that it did not but that IF Lulu could proved that it did then the teacher would give Lulu a "public apology"  {{whatever that means}}.

Answer:  Typically the strawberry is filled with emery to help keep the pins sharp and free of burrs that could snag your fabric.  {{Amazing.  I had NO idea.}} You can read it for yourself on Amazon.


Lesson #2:  Where we learn one way to feed Buzz Lightyear.

While I was making dinner, Bro was tending to baby Buzz Lightyear.  He said, "Look at me Mom.  I'm feeding Buzz!"  I rounded the corner and found this sight.  Ok... well... that's one way to do it... maybe. 

What have you learned today... besides what you read just now.

I Survived

I survived... the Justin Bieber concert, that is.

{{sigh}} oh what we do for our children.

With tickets already in hand, we headed to the fairgrounds first thing in the morning... to wait in line...

This is the actual line that we waited in... for TWO hours. 

... to get an early-entry wristband, which would hopefully get us as close to the stage as possible for the 7:00 p.m. concert.

It was a crazy long day... but we finally found a space among the crowd of 12,000 screaming Justin Bieber fans...

... and eventually wiggled our way closer to the stage.

I cannot tell you how miserable I thought I was going to be, but how much fun we really had.  These girls had a blast.  There was so much energy at the concert... it was like nothing I have ever experienced.  Before I began my Bieber adventure, I had wished that Lulu's dad would take her to the concert.  Now, I think that there is no where I would rather have been but standing there with a sore back and sore knees listening to the girls sing.  It was fabulous.  As a bonus, Lulu told me that I was "the best mom ever" AT LEAST 2 dozen times... but that didn't matter.  Folks... when you live with Lulu you live a drama-queen life with so many highs and lows... I have never seen her this excited EVER!  My day started at 6:30 a.m. and ended at 1:00 that night... something I haven't done.... ever... probably.  But I would do it all over again in a heart beat. 

Moms - if you ever get the chance to stand in line to get your daughter into a concert... and then you get to STAND all night at the concert... just do it... totally just do it... you will be so happy that you did.  This was such a bonding experience for us.  Just do it!

Oh, and I made a toddler-size pillowcase for litte Bro-man.  He took it to daycare today.  I hope it made him feel special when he went to take his nap. 

What's your most memorable mother-daughter bonding experience?