duckens
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Posts posted by duckens
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:iagree:Hopscotch is awesome for number order - and fun. Chutes and Ladders and Monoply Jr are also terrific.Somebody has been reading the same scientific professional journals as Loverboy. Last year he brought me home an article about "how can low income families improve their children's math skills?" (without expensive curriculum or tutors or other fancy programs, etc). The most effective way was to play the exact games listed above. Yes, just normal, run-of-the-mill boardgames.
--Laura in Iowa
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When we make pizza, we make a LOT for company and for leftovers.
Pans: I use my pampered chef large bar stoneware pans. I generously grease them with olive oil to aim for a "pan pizza" experience. I'm not sure how successful I am, but you can try it.
Crust: Be brave and fearless. We often add spices/garlic to the crust. It depends upon the pizza for what we put in the crust. Rosemary, basil, italian seasoning, crushed garlic or garlic powder have all been used at differing times.
Sauce: Our sauce needs help. We either use tomato paste or alfredo sauce from a jar.
Toppings: Be brave and fearless, and try new things. We normally make a couple of traditional pizzas, then use a small pan (like the pampered chef small bar pan, but you could use a pie or cake pan) to try something crazy and experiment. What do you have in your fridge this week that you could throw on a pizza? Salami? Sandwich meat? Blue Cheese? Carrot (grated)?
Some of our favorites:
Green Chile Pizza (those from New Mexico will understand):
1) Use Alfredo Sauce instead of Tomato Sauce.
2) Add Sausage, black olives, and a small can of green chiles*
3) Top with Mozz cheese.
*Canned green chiles are not spicy. Do not fear the green chiles.
Taco Pizza
1) Use refried beans instead of tomato sauce
2) Add taco meat, onions, green peppers, black olives
3) Top with a mixture of mozz and cheddar cheese.
4) After baking, add cut up tomatoes, sliced lettuce, and crushed tomatoes.
Chicken Bacon
1) Use alfredo sauce instead of tomato sauce
2) Add a layer of fresh spinach
3)Cover with chopped up chicken, bacon, and tomato
4) Top with mozz cheese
4 Cheese Pizza
1) Tomato sauce
2)Parmo, cheddar, mozz, cheddar jack, or whatever else you have in the fridge for cheese.
Greek Pizza
1) Can't remember which sauce
2) A layer of fresh spinach
3) Add chopped up artichoke hearts, tomatoes, black olives, and cooked gyro meat
4) Top with a mixture of feta and mozz cheese
BBQ pizza
1) BBQ sauce instead of tomato sauce
2) BBQ chicken or beef w/onions
3) Top with Mozz cheese
Other pizzas:
Sausage & Black olives
Canadian Bacon with Pineapple (although people tend to feel strongly one way or the other about this pizza).
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I was born in 1970. And I have always loved math.
I don't remember specific tests in elementary school for math facts beyond the unit tests we took every 2-4 weeks that tested what we covered in the prior weeks. I don't know what other kids did, but I simply memorized the math facts because that was just what one did.
When we got to middle school, we had Mr. Craun for 6th grade math. He taught the traditional math out of a textbook, and that was fine. Also, every Friday, he gave us a standard one page test of math facts. One week, it was addition, the next subtraction, then multiplication, then division. For the first cycle, we had five minutes to complete the page; for the second cycle, we had 4.5 minutes to complete it; for the third, 4 minutes; etc, until we only had 3 minutes to complete the page.
I believe these goals helped me to become exceptionally good at math facts......which gave me a good basis for the higher math thinking (through Calc 3).
THANK YOU, MR. CRAUN!!!
In retrospect, this level of fact proficiency was probably a way for Mr. Craun to target students who had not yet learned their facts...so the issue could be corrected before they moved on in math and so their math mistakes didn't cause unnecessary wrong answers in his class of sixth grade math topics.
Also, a decade later, my cousin had Mr. Craun for math, but hated math and was failing. When I investigated the situation, Mr. Craun had been forbidden by the new principal from teaching the way he had for years. He was given a new textbook with a new style/theory of math, and only 5-8 story problems in each lesson rather than the traditional 20-30 facts on a page. Who can learn in that situation?
Math facts for math are like phonics for reading.
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Congratulations on the new baby.
With a new baby, I recommend the Carol's Affordable Curriculum advised earlier. I am using it as part of our day with dd and C3. Everything but glue, tape, crayons, and markers, arrives in the box once a month. All googly eyes, feathers, cereal pieces, etc, are in the box with an activity for each school day of the month. Some are just coloring pages, but others required cutting and gluing. We often suppliment with a lot of glitter in our house. Over the course of a school year, the letters, numbers, shapes, and colors are covered. Everything is in the box, and it is all self-contained. No muss, no fuss.
I also recommend "Letter of the Week." I did this last year with dd and C3, and, with a few other additions to the curriculum, both are well on the road to reading this year. Just know that LOTW is a little more effort than CAC, and with a new baby...........
http://www.letteroftheweek.com/preschool_age_3.html
If your daughter is already a wiz at the alphabet, explore the Letter of the Week website for the Sound of the Week outline.
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I remember always being cold as a child. Always.
It took me thirty years to learn these things, in order of importance:
1) Drink hot liquids. I used to drink a lot of hot tea, but I started to worry about it staining my teeth. Now I just heat water up in my hotpot, and use that to fill my waterbottle.
2) 20 minutes of aerobic exercise heats me up for hours!
3) Wash dishes by hand.
4) Get slippers that you like and that keep your feet warm. A nerdy cardigan that is heavy and has pockets for stuff, too.
5) Oooo...dare I say it....Get a SNUGGIE! :D
--Laura in Iowa
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This reminds me of a scavenger hunt we had at a "lock-in" as kids at a my best friend's church. Her dad was the pastor and wrote all the clues. Each item had a clue for the next item. We were divided into two teams with different clues.
I still remember the clue that stumped us, after 25 years:
I'm pink and on fire, or well I should be,
But look 'til you see what they've done with me.
They took me to her room, and left me there,
Except for the bag, I can't get any air.
There was a second verse, too, but not any relevant information.
We scoured that church from top to bottom just hoping to stumble on it. Finally, I found a pink birthday candle in a baggie, taped to the inside of the toilet tank.
--Laura in Iowa
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Everyone has given such wonderful feedback to the op so far!
We had the same issue with dd3.
At 20 months, she was only speaking a handful of words...or less. At 18 months, the pediatrician sent her to the audiologist to test her hearing (and to test for autism). She passed both. By 20 months, we had been referred by another professional to the local group "ACCESS" that tests FOR FREE and provides services FOR FREE for these sorts of things. Does your community have an organization that would be similar for testing?
ACCESS sent two ladies who put dd through a battery of a gazillion little tests. For example: they gave her a horse, and a page with six animals on it; dd put the horse on the proper animal. Another test: they wound up a little toy and set it off to run down; dd watched this, then brought the toy back to them to rewind (which meant that she passed the test).
The ladies determined that dd passed everything with flying colors, but they were troubled that she spoke less than the five words that 12-month-olds are expected to have. In truth, she spoke 4 and MAYBE 5, but had a wild vocabulary of baby sign language. They conferred with their peers and offered to provide speech therapy services in spite of her borderline situation.
Loverboy and I were comforted to know that dd was doing everything else well. For this reason we were happy that we had had dd tested. We knew that we were providing a loving and stable home for dd, too. After a lot of discussion, we decided to pass on the intervention and just give dd a little more time. We also asked ACCESS if they would telephone us in six months to see if dd was speaking. After all, a 26mo not speaking is much more worrysome than a 20 mo not speaking.
Sure enough, Loverboy and I both noticed the same day that dd started talking. At almost 25months, she just picked a day and started talking. She added 4+ words/day for the next several weeks. It was very similar to when she learned baby sign language. This was the second of many indicators that dd's personality is such that she will do things when she is good and ready, but do them very well.
One advantage of dd's delayed speaking (confirmed by other mothers of late talkers) is that we skipped the unintelligible babytalk babbling that most children go through. Now we are a year later, and dd (JUST turned 3yo) talks on the same level as her little friend C3 who I babysit. Oh, and she also started to read sentences a couple of days before her 3rd birthday, too. *shameless bragging by mother* This indicates that her language skills are doing just fine.
Our story had a happy ending, but it doesn't always happen that way. I do strongly recommend that you have your child tested if it is possible to do. It may put your worries to rest, or it may point to an issue that needs intervention sooner rather than later. Do a little research and then go talk to your pediatrician.
Good luck to you and your family.
--Laura in Iowa
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Loverboy's dentist says that dentists have one of two philosophies:
1) Fix every little thing
or
2) Wait an watch until something becomes a problem.
You seem to have stumbled into a dentist's office of philosophy #1. For yourself, your family, and your finances, you may be more comfortable with a dentist of philosophy #2.
Conspiracy theory to be implied below:
With the description of all of the nifty gadgets and new gizmos of the new/younger dentist, plus the fact that a young dentist may still have school costs plus the cost of buying into a practice, ya gotta consider who is paying for these items. Also, if you spend money on a new toy, you have to use it to justify it.
(Just like the riot gear our local police bought a few years ago).
Laura in Iowa
who wishes you wisdom in making the choices best for you and your family
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:iagree:I figure one time of getting cold outside is worth twenty times of me saying, "Put on your coat." Sure enough the next time he went outside he wore coat, gloves and boots without a peep from me.Dd just turned 3. I'm impressed that the other parents can get their kids to wear clothes at all. We are in the "always pajamas all the time" phase. Hey, I'd wear pjs all day if I could!
A year ago, the other kids in the daycare were coming to my house in their jammies. Not my kid; she insisted on getting dressed in clothing the night before. I finally realized that this gave me one less thing to do in the morning! Why would I fight that? :D
As with other families, we do have a couple of caveats:
1) Clothing must be worn when we are out of the home. We prepped dd for this when she went through the "undressing all my babydolls" phase. We were happy to help her undress them, but any naked babydolls weren't allowed to go in the car to the store with us. And last summer, if her clothes got wet in the yard, she had to at least keep her diaper on.
2)When company visits, she must be dressed.
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Creative Memories has very nice materials.
http://www.creativememories.com/
So does Close to My Heart.
http://www.closetomyheart.com/
I'm sure that representatives for either company would be happy to help you get started. If you want to go crazy, you may want to look for a scrapbooking event near you. It is a good way to see what other people are doing and how they are doing it. It is also a good excuse to get a lot of scrapbooking done.
--Laura in Iowa
who does not sell scrapbooking supplies, but has organized her own event for January 9th
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I am so sorry to hear that your little cat is missing, and how hard this is on your daughter. :grouphug:
:iagree:Call the shelters. PHYSICALLY GO to the shelters every few days. Cats (& dogs) are hard to identify & often shelters will misidentify incoming animals. They're busy and short-staffed; you need to go there and see if your cat is there.As a child, our dog Kibbles would run off. I remember calling the shelter and asking if they had a dog by his description. He also had a collar and license. Nope they didn't. We went to the shelter the next day. "Well, that dog has been here for three days....so you have to pay for the time even though you called about him a day and a half ago." GRRRRRR.
As an adult, my beloved cat Guinea didn't come home one night. The next morning, after leaving a message at the shelter, I drove down there to see who was in the cages. No Guinea. I filled out a missing cat report.
I got a call early evening: they had found my cat, but he wasn't in good shape. They suspect he had been hit by a car and attacked by a dog. (So he's down two of his nine lives). The shelter worker said that she prayed all the way back to the shelter that someone had filled out a missing cat report. She called me promptly, and I picked him up within an hour. She kindly waived the shelter fees because she knew that I would have some vet bills to pay. Thank goodness I worked for a vet at the time!!!
--Laura in Iowa
with Twinkle, Simon, and Guinea, who are now solely inside cats
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I have a registered in-home daycare. I am not a preschool, although both of my 3yo have started to read words and put together sentences. We work a lot on what a preschool curriculum would consist of: alphabet letters, calendar, counting to 100, etc.
1)Require payment in advance.
Most people are good, but I have one from over a year ago who still owes me a few hundred dollars. She would be rude and angry or hang up on me every time I called her for even a modest payment of $10/week. She got much nicer when, after months of this behavior, I left a message on her fiance's (not the boy's father) phone that I would try to reach her through her former fil (the boy's grandpa, and the only other link I had to her). She called back within 10 minutes, and everything changed. I suspect that she was collecting child support and the agreement was that she was supposed to pay childcare....but wasn't.
The same mom would also not show up (even when she asked if I could take her son at 5am), and then believed that she did not have to pay me. If she had paid in advance, then, hey, what do I care if she doesn't show up? I get paid the same,and I've already been paid.
Another mom I sit for is low income and receives subsidies from the state for childcare. One CAN live on a low income from paycheck to paycheck....as long as there are no disasters (car breaks down; work tells you that you need fancier clothes; your hours at work get cut; you are sick and have doctors expenses PLUS miss work for sickness; etc).
The state pays promptly, but I just carried her $10-$20/week payment until it hit six months. The first time, Grandma paid the $$$ for catch-up. The second time, Grandma was mad that this had happened again, so the mom has been paying an extra $20/month until her tax return come in next year. I need to be tougher because it doesn't do anyone any good for her to get further behind.
2)Be tough about pick-up times, with stiff penalties. Be tough about drop off times. One of my dads has finally learned that he needs to be enough of an adult to call me when the schedule changes. (I am totally willing to be flexible if I know in advance). If they drop off their child early, even by 10 minutes, this interferes with your planning time (even if all you were going to do was go to the bathroom). Charge a general$10 fee for everyone that shows up on your doorstep even one minute before drop off time is.
3)Require them to call you if they are delayed or not coming. Otherwise you will be holding activities for that one child that may not be coming. When parents sign with you, tell them that you will call them if they don't call you. Reassure them that you are only calling to make sure that everyone is safe. Every year, we hear about children forgotten in the back of a car who die from extremities in weather. I always wonder if the babysitter tried to call the parents in any of these tragic situations.
4)Consider becoming a registered provider with your state. This may be more hassle than it is worth, but you may benefit if you are registered. Because I am registered, I could telephone our local childcare resources place and tell them what age and what hours I am available for. They send people my way if they know I am looking. Let them do the work for you. There are a LOT of people looking for childcare. Plus, if one is registered in my state, one qualifies for low-cost ($5) CPR and first aid classes.
5)Make a list of all of the days that you are unavailable in 2010. Of course, you do need to plan your family vacation in advance (if your partner's work will let you do so). Be sure to ask off obvious days like Thanksgiving and the day after, Christmas, Labor Day, Memorial Day, and 4th of July. Is it important that you have Christmas Eve off? Is it important that you have Good Friday off? Do you want your birthday off? In this way, the families can plan ahead, and there is no excuse for them being unhappy for you taking the day off. Add a caveat about funerals in case of family death. Decide whether they should pay you for these days or not, and be clear about which days they need to pay you for and which they do not.
Of course, I have one dad, that even though he is given this information in writing every year and reminded in the weeks before, he is unable to plan ahead, or even realize that I have asked for the day off. (It's not as if he's actually working; he just wants to take off on a booty call with his new gf, so I have even less patience for this behavior).
--Laura in Iowa
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There are a lot of things that children are "taught" in preschool, but teaching children at that age is like throwing spaghetti at the wall: some stuff sticks, and some stuff doesn't.
If you want to explore $$$ with your little one, try these activities:
1)With the preschoolers that I have worked with before, I glue one of each coin on a piece of decorated cardboard. Every day we review their names and values. Don't be hung up if your preschooler doesn't know them all right away. It only takes a minute to review each day; eventually they will understand them all.
2)Using a pile of coins, see if they can pick out the pennies. See if they can pick out the nickels. Etc.....
3)Use post-it notes to play store with 3-4 of their toys. Use values of 1c, 2c, 3c, 4c, 5c, 10c, and 25c on the toys, and your child needs to match what kind/number of coins are needed to "purchase" the toy. Or you can be the buyer, but the child needs to tell you what coin you need.
4)When downtown, the child puts the $$$ in the parking meter. They need to tell me the type and value of the coin before they can put it into the meter, even if they repeat what I say. Again, don't get hung up on whether they can do this on their own after only three tries with you.
5)Buy your little one a snazzy bank. A friend showed these to me, and we got one for dd's birthday.
http://www.msgen.com/assembled/money_savvy_pig.html
Caveat: The bank is a reasonable price, but the shipping is $7!
--Laura in Iowa
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Loverboy is hard to buy for because he is not terribly materialistic, but if he wants/needs something, he just buys it. Last year I got him a couple of robot kits for he and dd to play with. Loverboy got to do sodering/building, and dd got to play with the robots with her dad afterward.
I asked dd if we should get her dad another robot kit this year for Christmas: "No. THREE robots."
The set up:
Loverboy's birthday is December 10th. The robots didn't arrive in time, so he got a book: The Breadmaker's Bible and these things:
1 can of root beer (his favorite)
2 bottles of 1-liter of club soda (my favorite)
and
a scrub brush
and NO explanation
The prestige:
For Christmas, Loverboy will receive this "recycled robot" kit that requires the items above.
There is also a physics building set and some minor stocking stuffer things.
--Laura in Iowa
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MelanieM says:
:iagree:We like quirky people and their quirky mistakes around here.My dear grandmother (89yo) keeps buying me unicorns. Although I love fantasy, I really haven't been in the unicorn phase since age 14. (I am now 39).
I love her dearly, add them to my collection in a box for when dd gets a little older, and know that she is the last of my grandparents. I don't think that she does this for either of my siblings or any of the great grandchildren, so I love her all the more for it.
--Laura in Iowa
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Several years ago, a couple of the kids for whom I nannied took Suzuki recorder lessons from a local woman. Since their mother didn't have time for lessons (and Suzuki method depends upon a parent in the household knowing the instrument and practicing with the kids), I eventually enrolled in lessons, too. I am hoping to enroll dd in lessons with me next year.
You want to start with a Soprano recorder. The cost is relatively cheap, and they are not very big to haul around. Alto recorders are a little bigger.
Our teacher required an Aulos Soprano Recorder:
http://www.amazon.com/Aulos-Soprano-Recorder-English-Fingering/dp/B0002E55XQ
Your local music store should have these on hand or be able to order them for you. Our teacher said that the Aulos has a better sound than other brands, and, as you can see from the price, it is very reasonable. I paid a little more for mine, but still <$10.
Alto recorders are one size bigger and have a range of a little bit lower/deeper. I read online that adults usually play alto recorders.
Here was our beginner recorder book:
Suzuki Level I (also may be ordered from your local music store)
Level II Suzuki uses the upper octive (starting at high E) for songs. I don't recommend it for a beginner since you need to master a quirky technique with your thumb to make the higher notes. I thought I'd never figure it out! and others I know have quit taking lessons at that point.
I also have an Usborne beginner book ("Easy Recorder Tunes") with a blue cover, but I can't find it for sale right now. Do not confuse this with Usborne's "Recorder Tunes for Children" (which also uses the upper octive).
I'm sure that your local music store may have other beginner books to recommend, or perhaps others here do, too.
--Laura in Iowa
P.S. Don't play your recorders right after eating; if you get food particles in your recorder, you'll never get them out, and it alters the tone of the recorder.
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Some communities have an "Ask-a-nurse" or "First Nurse" service. One can telephone and confer with the nurse whether one needs to come into the doctor or hospital, and if there is anything one may do at home in the meantime for the situation. They also send a note to your doctor so that your doctor is kept aware of the situation. This service is FREE.
I have called for mental health issues for a friend, vomiting for dd2 when she was a tiny infant, and for a major burn that I received at work when I was an uninsured teenager. As a new parent, I joke that we have First Nurse on speed dial!
If you are unaware of this service in your area, here are your options.
1) Check the yellow pages for physicians/clinics/hospital. The number may be listed there.
2) Telephone the hospital and ask if they have this service. They may just transfer you to the emergency room for an on-phone consult.
3) Call our local First Nurse. You'd be calling Ames, Iowa, but it IS an option. (515)239-6877
Best of luck.
--Laura in Iowa
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I second that you find a La Leche League group for support. I have found a wealth of information from my friends at LLL on nursing and other child-rearing issues.
Nurse on demand. In spite of dd sleeping consistantly through the night after the first night home from the hospital, she was gaining 1.2oz/day in weight in those first weeks. (We co-sleep, so it's not as if we made her cry herself to sleep. She could have nursed all night if she chose).
Hold your baby as much as you can; even when she sleeps. Splurge on a nice sling. Sleep with her and hold her with skin-to-skin contact as much as you can.
I also wanted to share that with dd, my nipples hurt terribly, in spite of the fact that Loverboy AND the nurse would double check her latch EVERY TIME SHE NURSED. The lactation consultant made me cry and sternly told us that we needed to do this every time....even though we had been doing that since the beginning. It wasn't until we got home that we started checking her latch EVERY FIVE MINUTES that she nursed. We learned that she has "lazy lips" and would turn a good latch into a bad one within those five minutes.
We made it, and you will, too. Dd will be three in a few days, and we still nurse on demand. She has been consistantly 90%ile for height and 60%ile for weight.
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A friend sent me information about FREE classes that the Iowa School for the Deaf offer. As I understand it, it is an actual class that you attend at a specific location once a week. Different locations are linked by technology. Go to the link below and click on the brochure.
http://www.iowaschoolforthedeaf.org/resources/signclass.php
Disclaimer: I have not taken these classes yet because I am working so many hours at this time.
Is there something similar in your state?
--Laura in Iowa
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I hope I don't gross anyone out here by some of the ways that I save $$$. Before Loverboy, I lived pretty thinly, and I was always looking for ways to save $$$.
1) I toilet trained my cats. I acknowledge that my cats are a luxury, but at times in my life, they were the only friends I had. I have three indoor cats, and I was cleaning out the litter box 2X/day anyway. I heard about toilet training cats and did some research online. I save a fortune on kitty litter!
After toilet training 3 cats, training dd2.5 is a snap!
2) I changed cat food. I did a study. For a month, I recorded how much money I spent on storebought cat food if I allowed the cats to eat as much as they wanted. Then for a month, I did the same with the cat food from the vet. The vet food cost me less! I couldn't believe it, so I repeated my experiment! The results were the same. Now I moderate how much food the cats get for more savings. Try it out with your own pets. Results may not be reproducible for your pets.
3) I made my own kleenex. I have one of those noses that runs constantly. Always have. I could go through a box of kleenex by myself each week. Now I have a collection of flannel cut up for hankies. They are soft, and they wash well.
4) I made my own feminine pads. This is NOT the right choice for everyone, although I did learn that a friend did the same for environmental reasons (she went paper free). I had thought I was the only one! I bought a couple of yards of the ugliest flannel I could find, and I cut it up so it can be folded to 6+layers the size of a store-bought feminine pad.
Disclaimers: This may be more complicated if you are gone from home for more than a couple of hours. Your daughters may not want to do this; I am planning to buy pads for dd2.5 when she starts menstruating to avoid any embarrassment with friends over the issue.
5) We almost never use paper towels. I have a drawer of rags. Even the toddlers know to use rags for a spill.
6) We use cloth napkins. They are washed 1X/week; more often if needed.
7) I am cheap for other kids' birthday parties. I buy playdoh for a couple of dollars. I hate to receive a birthday invitation and have it be like a bill in the mail. In the meantime, it is a rare parent that doesn't rant to me that their child has "too many toys." Playdoh can be used up.
In return, for dd's parties, I am clear to others that gifts are not required for the reasons listed above. If they want to come and eat a piece of cake in dd's honor and maybe play some games, they are welcome. I don't want to assume anything about others' budgets.
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You seem so much more ahead of us on this subject than our family is!
Some things we do:
1) Whenever we are on vacation (usually a long weekend for this age and budget), we make a point of taking a half day at a state park to go for an easy hike.
2) Our local Conservation Center has marvelous programs for the kids. Get on their mailing list and see what they have. In our area, there is:
a) Toddling on the Wild Side for 2-3yo (Exploration of nature)
b) Summer nature camps for age 5+ that you have to sign up for within the first few days of registration opening. Very popular! Older kids volunteer to be helpers in these camps.
c) Organized nature walks
d) Naturalist Lunchbox: Every other Friday in the summer, we pack a sack lunch and go to the Nature park for the ranger to read stories and do activities/crafts with the kids.
3) Buy some bug cups.
http://powscience.com/store/edcinsight/bugviewer.html
or buy in bulk to leave a few at Grandparent's house
http://www.inandoutgifts.com/proddetail.php?prod=9062
My daughter will come running across the yard screaming about a spider. I suggest we put it in a bug cup, and she is happy as a lark, her anxiety gone!
4) If you live near a university, see if they have an open house for a specific department. Our local entomology department organizes an insect horror film festival at Halloween in the local gardens complete with mealworms and crickets. Also, as part of our university's spring festival, one can touch a giant centipede, or choose a giant cockroach to race!
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Runamuk said:
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor or health professional.While most of this is normal behavior for her (the rudeness and complaining), I'm beginning to wonder if there is something else going on.Runamuk,
This could be the beginning stages of senility or Alzheimers.
If I remember correctly from an article that I read:
We all have impulses to say or do inappropriate things. Our cerebrum (the front part of our brain, the thinking part) has protections that stop these inappropriate impulses. When we age (or have brain injury), these protections degrade or disappear.
Is your mother willing to talk with you about this? I know you will be careful how you approach this with her.
***potentially inappropriate suggestion to follow*** Is it possible to tip off her physician before her next appointment?
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Brother's family had warned us a week ago that Brother might have opportunity to do light duty work for overtime wages on Friday, so we all prepared to possibly move Thanksgiving to Saturday at Mom's house. (We had no other plans, so we could be flexible).
No word on which day on Monday. Or Tuesday. Wednesday (the day before Thanksgiving), I received an email from sil that the family was sick (no other details) and we would not see them the next day. I sent an email confirming that we would see them Saturday at Mom's.
I made plans to feed my family for the long weekend by defrosting a few things from the freezer and starting a few meals to put in the fridge. (I'll cook a lot for a day or so, then we live out of the microwave).
I unexpectedly had no daycare kids on Wednesday (one sick, one with Grandma), so I took dd2 out for a special day of shopping, lunch, and playing/movie at the library. We got home at suppertime, and Loverboy informed me that my mother had left a message that Brother's family had H1N1 and we would not see them until Christmas. Thanksgiving was on for Thursday (tomorrow morning) again.
After supper, I called my mother to confirm this.
So this meant that I had a lot of cooking to do before bed that night. The squash and sausage for one of dishes I was going to bring were still in the freezer! Thank goodness Loverboy helped. We cooked for 2.5 hours (for both Thanksgiving and the meals that I had started for our own family) to get everything done. Dd2 watched a lot of Scooby Doo in that time!!!
The next day, I had two crying fits before we even left home for my parent house. (I have childhood issues).
I got to hear my dad rant about the trangressings of certain political leaders....things that sounded not right and were easily disproven via a brief internet search once I got home.
Oh, and my dad is cashing out my daughter's college fund. It's only about $5K from my grandmother, and it's invested in the stock market. We would prefer that we ride out the bumps in the market because we will not need it for another 15 YEARS. (She is 2yo, almost 3). In the meantime, the stock market is halfway to recovery from it's plummet a year or so ago, and dd's 529 (our college fund for her started by Loverboy) gained nearly 20% in just the past year. But my father is convinced that cash is the way to go.:mad:
I have no power over this. :mad::mad::mad: Brother and my dad are the executors, and I suspect this decision is because Brother has already started to dip into his sons' portion of the college fund. They have used 1/3rd of their part of the college fund to pay for Kindergarten and half of first grade for their older child to be in a small religious school.
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I had never lived in a trailer home before moving into the home in which we now live. There is a tornado shelter around the corner, and I have had to use it. I was grateful to have a disaster bag mostly packed at that time.
Not in the bag: Have 3 days worth of water saved for your family. This means 3 gallons/day/person. We have filled old milk gallons with tap water and put them in the back of our closet. We have never had to use them, but THIS IS THE NUMBER ONE THING YOU CAN DO FOR YOUR FAMILY. It costs almost no $$$ to do, and it is the one thing that you will need the most. Refill the gallons with fresh water every six months because it will get stale. (We are overdue to do this). This water is for drinking/cooking/washing.
You are supposed to have 3 days of food handy, but I'm not sure what that would look like.
In the bag:
20+ diapers (or 24+hours worth of diapers). I know that you are thinking of getting locked in the house via ice storm, but there are other disasters when you may need to cut and run. In our own town, there are over 80trains/day on the main track through town. We are overdue for a major train wreck/derailment in town. What kind of chemicals are being carried??? The train company would need some time to sort that out. (A friend of mine has asked). That would be a good time to throw the kids in the car and head to Des Moines for the day!
A few toys and books that the kids haven't played with for awhile.
An empty juice bottle for water(46oz is the size we use) to be filled as we leave the house in an emergency situation. Snacks that won't go stale. (100 calorie packs are an easy size and variety).
I see that you are expecting a baby: Congratulations! Whether you are planning to breastfeed or not, put a small can of dry formula in the bag. (We got a free one from the hospital). I was going to donate ours away, but Loverboy reminded me that he may need the formula if dd2 (as an infant) and he were ever separated from me in an emergency. Remember a bottle, too.
A couple of baby blankets.
A flashlight. Check the batteries every six months.
If you are computer savvy, fill a computer cd with copies of all of your important documents: driver's license, social security cards, insurance policies, bank names and account numbers, etc. Between seeing what people have gone through with flooding in Iowa and, of course, Hurricane Katrina, this can save you a lot of hassle later. Put an extra copy of the CD in your safety deposit box or with a trusted relative.
Extra change of clothes for the littlest ones.
Things in my car: Extra hats or gloves for everyone in the family. It is cheap enough to have an extra set, and if yours get wet, you will want extra. An extra blanket in winter or a really good sleeping bag. (I had a friend get stranded on I-35 in a snowstorm. She crawled into the really good sleeping bag in the back until the next morning. It saved she and her baby.) My mom routinely throws her boots and a shovel into the car once we have the first snowstorm of the season.
Other things in general, if you can afford it:
One year of savings in case of financial hardship.
One year of food storage in case of disaster. There are websites online with food suggestions of how much food you would need.
The last two are for the hard core planner. We have close friends whose breadwinner lost his job due to the economy less than a year after they bought a house. Their financial savings and food storage have brought them through for six months until the dad got a new and permanent job.
If you want more information, check with the Mormons either in your local town or online. (I am not a Mormon, and I am not stumping for or against any specific religion. Please no religious battles here). Most of these ideas came from Mormon friends of mine in town, and the leadership in Salt Lake City encourages each family to be as ready as possible. If you are lucky, there is a "readiness coordinator" for food stores, etc, who may have some written information on putting together a disaster kit.
--Laura in Iowa
Sight Words in Kindergarten, help me...
in General Education Discussion Board
Posted
Here is what I am using to teach dd and C3 their sight words:
http://www.buyteachercreated.com/estore/product/3174
and
http://www.buyteachercreated.com/estore/product/3225
So far, the kids are doing great!
Although I think that your child will be fine and eventually learn the sight words on her own whether you teach her them at this moment or not, I think of two things:
1)Are all of child's classmates learning these words at home, too? Is your child lagging them, which may cause her stress or frustration in the classroom during lessons? We want her to have a good learning experience.
2)Is the teacher expecting parents to participate and help their children to learn these lessons? I've met far too many parents over the years who refuse to help their children at home with lessons because "it is the teacher's job to do everything". This extends to educated parents who won't even read to their children at night. (I've seen a lot of crazy things as a babysitter/nanny).
I'm not implying that you are like this in any way, shape, or form. After all: you're afterschooling because you love your child so much.
I'm just saying that children do best in an educational system when the teacher does his/her job, the child does his/her job, and the parents do their job. The paradigm has shifted to add this as an expectation for parents because kids do best if lessons are reinforced at home.
--Laura in Iowa
who is hoping to not offend anyone or create controversy with these comments