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Going The Extra Mile

M has to run "The Mile" in PE soon and she is really dreading it. I soooooo remember that feeling. It was never, "We're running a mile in PE today." It was "We're running THE MILE today." Anyway, I decided that today, since she was out early, we would take E to her gymnastics class and instead of doing our "walk and talk" around the indoor track there at the YMCA, we would run.

Those of you who know me well can stop laughing anytime. Really. That's enough, now.

She actually did ok and we probably walked half and ran half. She said at school, it takes her 15 min, and today, we did it in a record breaking 13.

I was trying to teach her to control her breathing - in through nose, out through mouth, and that when she needed to stop and walk, to not slow down to a leisurely stroll but to keep power walking.

Two questions for all you runners out there:

1. What other pointers do you have for us?

2. With every running step, my shins screamed and never loosened up. I tried to invert my toes and lift them up and down to warm up, but yikes, it still hurt. Is that something that I just have to put up with?

I'm not trying to compete in a marathon - or even in a 5K - but I figured that if I am willing to help her in all her other subjects, I should try to help her in PE, too. Even if that means running.

The Easter Egg Grab

Here's our girls waiting for the "GO!" signal at our town's Egg Hunt at the Park yesterday. Actually, we decided "Egg Grab" would've been a better description, as they were all just laying out in the soccer field. The said there were 10,000 eggs. I'm guessing at least 600 kids were there. I was amazed that neither of my girls got knocked over as they were reaching for eggs.

All the flyers around town said it was from 11-1pm. I looked at my watch when we were all through and it was 11:10! The kids who showed up at 12:30 sure hated it, I bet!

It was crazy, and I think we'll stick to our own egg hunts next year! In fact, we did come home and the girls took turns hiding them for each other. When it was time to hunt, M said, "Actually, I just want to stay here and watch E look for them." Cute!

Now, That's Being Dedicated to Conservation!

M has been extremely environmentally conscious lately, and has even switched over to taking showers instead of baths because she heard that showers use a lot less water.

Last night, I pronounced it a "bath night" or "shower night." M said, "Actually, I think I'll take a bath with E. That's even more eco-friendly!"

I think I've actually seen that bumpersticker somewhere... "Save Water! Bathe With a Friend!"

New Class Update

Just wanted to give thanks to M's new teacher. Her first week went seamlessly and we are so pleased! M has such a happier demeanor and is back to her old bouncy self when she gets off the school bus each afternoon. It was a hard call to switch classes, but I am convinced it was the right one. It has been so nice to breathe a little easier while she's at school each day. Not trusting your child's teacher is not a very comfortable feeling!

Hooray for Ms. B!

"Children may not remember what they're taught, but they'll always remember how they were treated."

Read This Book!

I just finished reading "The Prayer Chest" by August Gold and Joel and I have to take a second to highly recommend it to everybody. It was a quick, easy read but it was profound and will stay with me for a long time. Even if you don't consider yourself a religious sort, I think you'd still like it, and if prayer is part of your daily life, I think you'll enjoy it even more!

Thanks, Mom, for recommending it to me! But, we'll both warn you that the ending might make you yell, "WHAT?!?"

"Please bless us to travel safely..."

I was puzzled when P didn't come home at his usual time this afternoon. With a basketball game this evening, I was pretty sure he wouldn't go to the gym. (We're too old for that!)

I got in the car to go pick up E from preschool and heard "breaking news" (that actually wasn't about a certain NY govenor) that a Metro bus had collided with a car on a certain hwy near the Kent-Des Moines road and that there were 6 ambulances on the scene and at least 15 hurt.

That is P's bus. That is the road his park n ride is on.

I tried not to panic, and was frantically trying to figure out how I could get ahold of him. He doesn't have a cell phone (he must be the last person in Seattle who can claim that). I kept trying to tell myself that he would get to a phone and call me if he'd been involved...assuming he wasn't unconscious ("OK! Stop it right there!" I commanded myself!)

I decided that when I got back from getting E, I would find Metro's website and see what info they had, and then I would start trying to call the radio station I had been listening to, 'cause they already had people "on the scene, reporting live."

What relief to see that teal-colored Protege in the driveway when I got back! It turns out that, yes, that is his bus, but he had missed the bus this morning, so he'd driven all the way in and parked at a co-worker's house. He did ride that bus today, but got off long before his usual stop. (In case you're wondering, he was only late getting home b/c he'd stopped off at the library).

Sometimes, it feels so redundant to say, "And please bless us that we can travel safely today" during our prayers. We always pray specifically for Daddy at work, and M at school, and for our general safety. Sometimes I wonder if it's too automatic.

I'm glad it's part of our "prayer routine!!!"

(But I have to wonder about the 50 injured - 15 serious enough to go to the hospital - I'm sure at least some of them prayed for safety today. The only way I can explain it is that God has a different plan for them, different lessons they need to learn. I am so relieved that we don't need that one at this time!!!)

One More Bathtime Funny

When E got in the tub this morning, she said,

"Mom! Ouch! This is too hot! You needta put some milk in it!"

"Who Did You See At Work?"

When our "guy" comes home every day, at least one of us is sure to ask, "Did you see anyone famous at work today?" At least once a week, the answer is yes, and since there have been an ap-PAUL-ing lack of entries about our family's favorite guy, I thought this should become a feature on the blog. That, or I could keep you updated on how church basketball games have been going, but winning-by-forfeit isn't very exciting. So, without further ado...

Last week, Edgar Martinez came through P's lane at the airport and he had to dig and dig for his ID. P said he told him, "I totally know you're who you say you are, but I gotta go by the rules." He eventually found the ID. Don't you feel safer, knowing that no Edgar Martinez impersonators got on an airplane that day?!

The next day, Coach Mike Holmgren was professionally screened by P, too. He, however, was more organized and was at the ready with his ID and ticket. Way to go, Coach!

Bathtime Funnies

As I handed E the washcloth in her bath tonight, she peered into her Tinkerbell mirror and exclaimed,

"Oh! I look naked!"

Then she swung her wet hair around her shoulder and said,

"Now I am beautiful."

I had her pose for me with her "beautiful" hair for this picture. When I showed it to her, she said,

"That's how princesses smile."

(So sorry about the crooked picture...I've tried everything!)

More Deep Thoughts

When I was in college, I had to take an English class just for Elementary Ed majors. And, no, it wasn't to make sure that we knew our alphabet! Our final research paper had to be about - duh - something related to teaching. After years of hearing about classroom management strategies and techniques, I decided to do a paper about how the TEACHER'S attitude affects classroom management. What really inspired me was the quote I'll share below, and I included it in my paper.

I had forgotten about it until a few weeks ago, when the quote resurfaced again in a Young Women's lesson at church. It's now on my fridge as a reminder to me of just how much power I have...

"I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element. It is my personal approach that creates the climate. It is my daily mood that makes the weather. I possess tremendous power to make life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration. I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated, and a person humanized or de-humanized.

If we treat people as they are, we make them worse. If we treat people as they ought to be, we help them become what they are capable of becoming. " - Goethe


Isn't that humbling?! It's so easy to say, "The kids (or my husband, or my co-workers, or my relatives...!) are making me crazy!" and then treat them accordingly. But really, I have so much more power than that. I have been thinking about this quote a LOT ('cause it's on my fridge, and you know I spend a lot of time there) and I totally, totally believe in it. Doesn't mean I always succeed in practicing it, but it is a worthy work in progress!

OK, you want to know another reason this quote has been on my mind? We are in the process of having M transferred to a different third grade class. The first day I met her current teacher, she said, "Just so you know, I have the class from hell this year." I have volunteered many hours in that classroom, and while she does give sporadic compliments, it's pretty much a steady stream of "You Guys Are The Worst Class I've Ever Had." Does she have some challenging kids? Absolutely. I'm not disputing that. But it is a miserable place to be, and not a good placement for our daughter. The teacher called me Monday night and we had a pretty open conversation. I told her, "If you walk into your classroom every day thinking, "I have the class from hell," then I can promise you that you are going to have a class-from-hell kind of day." Look how brave I am! I was shaking and my face was flushed, but I said it! (SO glad the conversation was over the phone!) Anyway, I wish I were brave enough to email her this quote, but I'm not.

So, you get it, instead! ;)

1000 Hours

I went to a "kindergarten readiness" class this week and they gave us the following info. I am putting it on my blog b/c 1) I thought it was interesting 2) I don't want to hold onto the paper, but if I put it here, I can reference it in 5 years when I'm trying to remember what it said! Here goes...

It takes 1000 hours of "lap-time" for young children to have the readiness skill in place to learn to read. National Institute for Children's Health and Development.

"Lap time" means one-on-one interaction between a parent or caregiver and a child where meaningful language interactions take place. Types of lap-time activities include: talking, singing, rhyming, chanting, and, of course, reading.

If we begin at birth, children who receive 1/2 hour a day of lap-time will have the developmental skills they need to read when they come to kindergarten.

If we wait until they are two to three years old, it will take an hour a day of lap-time to prepare children with the readiness skills they need to read.

If we wait until they are four years old, it will take two hours a day of lap-time to prepare children wiht the readiness skills they need.

If we wait until children are five years old and entering kindergarten, it will take three hours a day of lap-time to catch these children up with their peers in order to be ready to read.