Favorite Finds - Kids' Math site and garden find

Flash Reader http://exstatica.net/flash/psychic.swf-- Ok the first find is courtesy of Isaac. He came home from school and showed me this incredibly fun math site for kids. Isaac spent at least an half-hour on it. The whole time he was adding and subtracting -- practicing math for fun. Isaac seriously hates math. But he loves this site. What happens is you do this equation and the answer corresponds to a symbol. You do the math in your head without telling the computer what equation you are doing and then the computer's "crystal ball" guesses what symbol corresponds to your answer. My explanation may sound complicated but it is way simple. And it totally freaked me out, because the website picked the right answer every time. Tom is like, "it's just simple math." Whatever accountant. I don't know how it works but it is really cool. Isaac was even playing phone tag about the site with his friends while they were playing it.

My second favorite find this week comes from the gardening catalog Dutch Gardens. I love to garden but I am no green thumb when it comes to containers. I can't lay out my flowers beautifully. They don't grow all that great. It is just frustrating when I see everything else in my yard growing just fine. Well I found this handy little container helper. The bulbs come all laid out in the bulb tray and apparently grow to look like this. Plus bulbs come back every year. I totally love the look of Alliums and have ordered some for other places in my flower beds, So I ordered this little helper. I plant them in my pots this Fall and so the work is already done come Spring. They have tons of other flower combos and you can also put these trays in the ground. If you need help with your pots too go visit Dutch Gardens at http://www.dutchgardens.com/Allium%20Bulb%20Bed%20for%20Pots/22738,30790,default,cp.html. I am still trying to figure out how to make my links into words.

Talented Thursday -- Halloween Carols

I know it is a little early for this but I wanted to share this with everybody. A family friend of ours (Kristen Lawrence for those of you who know her)just released her first CD of Halloween Carols. Sounds wierd hugh? But I actually love these songs. They have this eery clever beauty. She is a composer and organ player and I think she has come up with some amazing original Halloween music. I am not a huge Halloween fan but I am still going to get her CD. I know Halloween is still a couple months away but hey go have a listen at her link.http://cdbaby.com/cd/klawrence You may decide you want a CD too. I mean I love Monster Mash but it does get a little old when it is one of the only songs that gets played at those Halloween parties.

Talkative Tuesday

Monday I acheived a milestone. I had my first 2 1/2 hours of all my kids being in school. It was breathtaking; as in I took a huge gulp of air and let it out in relief. As much as I am not ready for Lia to be in school every day, I love that she got to start preschool this week. She goes two days a week, which means I have five hours of time all to myself every week. If you don't think I know what to do with all that time you are truly mistaken. I have so many ideas of ways to fill that time; painting, writing, sleeping, cleaning out the basement, throwing old dolls into the DI box, reading. I also really love the program and her preschool. It is through the Iron County School District and is great. Lia was pulling me and begging me to hurry all the way to the classroom. She is so happy to be in school like her big brother and sister.

Saturday we watched Tom's band, officially dubbed "Forbidden Donut" perform at a battle of the bands in Enterprise, Utah. It was called Cornfest. Enterprise grows lots of corn. Yes this is an itty bitty town but there were several bands from all over Southern Utah there. I really think they should have won one of the top three prizes and I like to believe that they took fourth place. We had a blast hanging out with the kids listening to bands, dripping popsicles and chowing down on dutch oven dinner. I'm already looking forward to Cornfest 2009, and I am not even being sarcastic.

The rest of the week is filled with soccer. Isaac won his first game this week and will play again on Thursday. Becca has a game at the same time so I am grateful Tom will be in town so we can play musical soccer games together. I really love soccer but the schedule is truly kicking my butt this year.

My kids will finish their first week of charter school. Becca seems to love it but the jury is still out on what Isaac's experience will be. He does like Spanish and Art. I am a little bit fed up with the school's pick-up policy and must say I am a little bit of a rebel. I refuse to wait in that gas guzzling, sun beating down on me snail pace of a car parade to pick up my kids. Oh no I am done. I am just going to park and walk into the school everyday to get them. I am excited about the charter school but their pick up method has a few kinks to work out. I totally respect all those patient parents willing to wait in the car line for their kids to be brought out to them at the curb. They are saints.
Anyway that's it for my update on Talkative Tuesday.

Prayers -Inspirational Thought

This week our community suffered a terrible tragedy. We lost 10 of us in a horrific airplane crash. With Cedar City being a small town, many of us knew at least one of those killed in the crash. Both me and my children had been treated by the doctors killed. My husband and I know surviving family members. It has been a shocking event. I never know what to say to those who are mourning. What can you say? I only know that I will raise my thoughts and voice in prayer this week for those who have lost love ones.

Today at church we talked about meaningful prayers. As I sat there and listened I knew this was the topic I needed to write or reminisce about today. Lately, my busy hectic schedule has caught me praying less frequently, less sincerely, more quickly. I feel as if there is something missing in my days, as if I am forgetting something vitally important.
Prayer has always been a source of great strength in my life. There has been so many pivotal moments in my life that center around prayer. There have been so many moments of strength and comfort found in prayer. Indulge me for a moment as I reflect on some of these times in my life, I need to remember how central prayer is in my life.

When I was attending college I found myself confused about what subject to pursue. I prayed many nights and days to find direction. I finally discovered that after praying about pursuing journalism I felt motivated and excited. I knew this was the answer to those prayers. I have been forever grateful to the answer to this prayer.

I have found true solace and comfort from prayer: When someone very dear to me was struggling with an abusive marriage and her life was often threatened I would stay awake for hours worrying for her safety. I have never felt so utterly helpless to protect someone. Unable to sleep I would plead for her safety. There were nights I could not fall asleep until I felt the still small whisper: "She is safe. I am watching out for her." I could then drift off to sleep knowing a higher power than me would keep her safe for another night.

I have found the faith to be healed from prayer: When I became ill last year, I was unable to take care of my family the way I wanted. The illness and the surgery to cure that illness were both uncommon. I worried that the surgery would have complications. I feared I would not be able to get well. I prayed fervently for the faith to be healed. I have often been sick in my life. At times I have just felt that I don't have enough faith. This time I went to my Heavenly Father and told him I had a family who needed me. I knew he wanted me to be a mother and a wife and a caretaker. I needed him to heal me and I knew my motives were just. I felt an overwhelming peace that all would be well. I knew there would be no complications and that I would recover enough to care for my family again. I had found faith to be healed.

Every day as my children grow I am confronted with an array of problems I don't know how to solve on my own. My own impatient nature doesn't allow me to always choose the most kind, loving gentle path of mothering. I have often prayed for a sense of humor, patience or the wisdom to say the right thing to a child struggling with a problem. I have often felt extra strength given to me in these areas. I know my Heavenly Father answers mother's prayers for their children. We did accept the job after all.

I know that our Heavenly Father loves all his children. He will give us what we need (not always what we want) when we earnestly ask for his help and listen carefully for his answers. Sometimes my Dad calls me on the phone and simply says," "That's better, I just needed to hear your voice." I am sure our Heavenly Father just wants to hear from us sometimes. Sometimes my Dad needs to have a longer more meaningful talk with me. I am sure that sometimes our Father in Heaven needs a more meaningful conversation with us also.

This week I will pray for many things, but I will add my prayers to those of other community members pleading for comfort for those in need of comfort and I will spend a moment mourning with those who mourn.

First Day of School

Notice the collars. We have a ton of collared shirts now, due to my kid's school dress code.

I just want to say thanks for all the awesome advice on my last post, especially from those who have daughters. I did talk to her, apparently she is not the only friend doing this. She did say it would make her feel bad to know she moved down someone's list. I pointed out that if you have several "best friends" you can refer to them as "one of your best friends" without assigning them a number.

My kids started school today. What a relief. The drop off and pick-up system was a little wierd and they definitely have some kinks to work out or it is going to be a giant traffic jam everyday. My kids didn't want me to walk them into the school, even though it was their first time inside. I had Lia with me and she was dressed up in her fluffiest dress-up gown (already at 8 a.m. in the morning). They were embarrassed to be seen with her. At least that is what they told me. So I drove up to the curb as instructed per the school's drop off requirements, they jumped out, I made one of the traffic helpers take a picture of them and then I drove off. It was a little disconcerting. By 2:00 I was a nervous wreck, wondering how their day went. Would they be totally wierded out by the new school? Would they be begging me to take them back to their old school?

Becca made it through a whole day of first grade -- which she thought was boring. They went over all kinds of behavior directions. The kids get to move through the class rooms a lot more than in their previous school and the teachers took the time to really teach them proper etiquette about going up and down stairs, moving their chairs, etc. The kids felt a little silly. I tried to explain to them that they get to move around a lot more on their own in this school and it was important they learn how to respect their environment. They kind of got it.

They still seemed to enjoy some of their first day. Isaac thinks his German art teacher is cool. Becca really likes the fish and water frogs in her classroom. And she already made a new friend. I really liked the orderly pace of my day. Well almost orderly. We did have a few backslides in the potty training department. Still I was excited to have them back. So far they haven't begged me to take them back to their old elementary school.

Just Words Wednesday or Just Numbers

I have a crashing headache yet again, so I am going to make this short, kind of.

My six-year-old Becca recently let me in on a little secret. She ranks her friends. I am more than a little disturbed by this. The only friend that doesn't move around in the ranks is her best friend since she was three. This friend gets to be number one. I don't think she tells her friends their rankings it's just her own little friend filing system that she keeps to her self.
Last week one of her friends slipped to number 7 because she told Becca she was not funny at all. Apparently this is an insult to Becca. If you insult her you get rearranged. If you are nice or she just happens to see you more often that week you get booted up the list. It's a constant fluctuating phenomenan.

I know this is a horrible thing to confess about your daughter. It almost sounds like something off the "Mean Girls" movie. I just can't fathom where this friend ranking thing came from. Is this normal for six-year-old girls? What should I do? Should I have a friendly talk with her or just let her outgrow it? Of course it may just be that she is a number oriented girl. She could add before she could read. I am completely confused about what to do here. At least there is only one of me so I get to be her number 1 Mom.

Write A Little - Find a Moment

This week's writing prompt. Maybe you are a morning person. Maybe you are a night person (that would be me) maybe you are a 1:30 p.m. person. Pick your favorite time of day sometime this week. Find a favorite outdoor spot and sit for half-an-hour and do nothing. Just enjoy a moment of stillness or splendor or a view. Write what comes to your mind.

Summer Nights
Sometimes I forget how happy I am. And then I take a moment to revel in the synergy of a Southern Utah summer night. It is amazing what happens to my soul when I watch the warm breeze tousle and dance with the gray branches of bushes back-dropped by mountains crowned in a distant lightning storm. Everyone should find thirty minutes to watch clouds unscroll themselves over the mountain tops; sit still and anticipate flashes of lightning. Patience is rediscovered in the slow steady lifting of a cloud front. Stillness is found listening to a solo cricket belt out its song above the cacophony of a cricket orchestra. Perspective is achieved watching nature when all is shadowed, only to be illuminated by stars and electric bolts miles and light years away. Finally, when my mind is still, I remember how blessed I am to be surrounded by beauty, how happy I am to have a yard teeming with life, how lucky I am to have big porch with a panoramic view.