Kids and Social Media

My 10-year-old daughter went to "play" with friends yesterday and came home 45 min later.  When I asked her what she did, she said that her two friends sat there with their phones looking at Instagram the entire time.  Noelle kept inviting them to play, but they were too glued to their phones.

As Noelle looked over one of the girls shoulder, the girl was astonished to find a scantily clad photo of women on her Instagram feed.  She quickly "unfriended" that person.  Noelle's other friend had to also "unfriend" someone that kept swearing.  I admire these girls for doing the right thing, but my daughter came home feeling very unsettled about the image she had seen.

My post today is one for you parents out there. What do you do to protect your children from the onslaught of negative words and images available so readily at their fingertips?

Ironically, we just had a chat our children on Monday night about what to do if they ever saw pornography...shut down and tell a parent.  I feel like there is a battle going on every day, and I need to remind my children to put on their "Armor of God" because Satan is on the offensive--trying to shoot our kids with offensive images that are available at the click of a button (many of which are unsolicited).

How do you prepare your kids to fight their daily battles?

Getting Boys to Hold Still at School? Really?

I wish more teachers were aware of how to teach and engage boys! As the mother of 3 boys (who have always had a hard time sitting still), this is something I am passionate about. One hundred or more years ago, these boys were out working their energy off in the fields. That is what made them successful...and now we want them to hold still for hours on end in school? Yikes. I love this professionally done clip that talks about how we can help boys be successful!
http://youtu.be/OFpYj0E-yb4

Running For Christine

An update on my cousin Christine that passed away suddenly last month at the age of 45.  She was preparing to run the Phoenix Marathon this weekend.  To celebrate her and her life, 26 members of the family and friends will each be running 1 mile of the marathon for her.  They will have on shirts that say "Running for Christine."  Her husband gets to run the last mile for her with more family and friends waiting at the finish line.

This is such a sweet gesture.  And it makes me want to pack my bags for Phoenix this weekend to join in this second celebration of her life.

https://www.facebook.com/christinesphxmarathon

Algebra, Oh Algebra, How I Don't Miss You!

To my high school Algebra teacher 20-plus years ago,

Do you remember how I asked you, "When am I ever going to use this?"  Well, I still haven't used any of that algebra.

Yes, I know my 6th grader is now doing algebraic equations that I couldn't help him with if I tried (thank goodness for Math Lab!)  I was reading over a question on his paper the other day.  Here is what the question said,

"Joel has twice as many CDs as Mariella has. Subtracting 7 from the number of CDs Joel has and dividing by 3 equals the number of CD's Blake has. If Blake has 25 CDs, how many CDs does Mariella have?"

What?  Really?  I would probably just write on there, "I would text Mariella and ask her to count them for me."  Yes, I know that isn't using the algebra that the teacher wants them to use, but I've never been a fan of math problems.  Don't even get me started on Common Core stuff...sigh!  I know that it is important to teach things so that different students learn how to "divide" in way they can understand....BUT if by teaching them 4 different ways to divide, some kids NEVER learn to do it proficiently or are so confused that they can't figure out the answer anyway, is that really beneficial?

Okay, I'm off my soapbox.

I am glad there are scientists and mathematicians who do know and LOVE Algebra so that I don't have to.  I am glad we each have our own strengths and that we don't have to be perfect in every subject!  Whew!  And I am glad that I don't live in a world where I have to do Algebra every day.

Kindness of Others

Last fall we took the kids out to eat for their good grades to a local restaurant.  I always try to go somewhere like that prepared for if Nathan gets upset, so I brought a Game boy with Nathan’s favorite game (Mario Kart) and an IPod.  We sat down and about a minute into our stay Jordan called and I told him where we were.  Nathan saw me pull my phone out and talk to Jordan.  Shortly after he then started whining and saying IPod.  So, I offered him the IPod, which he refused.  Then I got out the Game boy.  He refused that as well. 

Every once in a while I feel the need to be stubborn right back at Nathan.  I didn’t want to give him my phone because I had brought other items that I knew he could and would play with.  So, our lovely 15 year old started pitching a very big fit at the restaurant yelling very loudly “No” at everything I offered him.  After 2 minutes of Nathan yelling Justin finally had to take him out to the car screaming and crying and we ended up taking our meal “to-go.”  Yes, my stress level was at about a 10 out of 10 at that point.  But I was stubborn and wasn’t going to back down.

Yes, I probably should have given him my phone and the evening would have been just fine….but what is that teaching Nathan?  It is teaching him that if he pitches a big enough fit, that mom will give me anything I want.  Is that what I really want to be teaching him?  No, not really.  I want to teach him that even though he has autism he has choice “A” and choice “B” and that Mom isn’t going to cave to whatever his whim is.  Does that make me a bad mom, maybe…but maybe it doesn’t.  We still had a great evening at home with our kids eating “to-go” food.

As I was waiting for our “to-go” food a sweet elderly woman that had witnessed the whole scene our family created came up behind me and tapped me on the shoulder.  She told me, “You have great blessings awaiting you in heaven.”  Now, I don’t usually tear up when strangers talk to me, but I did that night.  I simply said, “Thank you.”  To all you strangers out there, a little kindness and understanding goes a long way!

Kudos to all the moms or dads out there that have ever had to deal with a tantruming toddler or special needs child.  It is never easy.  Just going to the store or the restaurant requires special planning, a little stubbornness, and a lot of love.  But don’t worry--blessings await you in heaven.

Spaghetti Shirts

The kids painting in their "spaghetti shirts."

Not so many years ago I used to have all my kids wear "spaghetti shirts" to the dinner table when I served spaghetti. I had a stash of large shirts t-shirts that would completely cover their outfit (kind of like a dress) so they could eat their spaghetti and I didn't have to worry if they spilled on their clothes. It was a blessed arrangement that made dinner much less stressful for me.  When we were done eating I could hose the shirts off in the sink and then wash them for the next use.

The "spaghetti shirts" also got pulled out anytime we did painting or any other messy thing. Sometimes I would let them wear them to go splash in puddles when it rained in the spring or summertime. We would also don the "spaghetti shirts" when we were dying Easter eggs when the kids were small.  I have some very fond memories of our "spaghetti shirts."

The great thing about spaghetti shirts was that it didn't matter if the kids got them dirty or stained because that is exactly what they were for...to get dirty and stained.  Not too many months ago I pulled out the basket of "spaghetti shirts" from my closet.  I smiled as I thought of the fun memories associated with that bunch of stained shirts that didn't fit any of my kids anymore.  Like many other things, they have outgrown their "spaghetti shirts." It made me kind of sad to realize that we were done with that phase of their lives.  How is it that kids grow up so fast?  So today I will celebrate stained shirts and happy memories!

Spa at the Airport

Did you know that they now have spas at the airport? A few weeks ago when I was traveling, my flight was delayed by two hours and I wondered what I was going to do. So, I wandered the terminal...and what did I find? A spa. Seriously...where you can get a manicure and a chair massage at the same time. I thought, why not? 

It was so nice to sit there in the massage chair after rushing to get to the airport in time. It allowed me to let the stress be rubbed right out of my body. And lets not forget the nails. That was pretty fun to because as a full-time mom I don't usually take time for myself.

So, next time you are traveling and have a flight delay...think "Spa" for a little R & R before your flight. It makes traveling a lot more bearable!

#spaattheairport #takingsomemomtime