Not Last This Time

I know you all read about me being last at Nacho Club to have an i-phone.  I absolutely love it!  It seemed a little large to me after carrying a Razor for so many years.  Well no longer can you call me last.  This past week I ordered me this......

The I-Pad!

I LOVE IT!!!!

Since it has been so hot, Gary has been staying in the house a lot in the evenings.  Normally, he goes to his barn and tinkers with either his radio controlled air planes or his old cars and I have peace and quite in the house.  I can leave the television turned off if I want to (which is normally the case) and read or play on the laptop.  When he stays inside, the laptop is not available to me.  He researchs any and everything.  When we are watching something on tv and we wonder how old someone is, he googles it.  When we are on HGTV, he googles whether the guys are gay or not.  That totally makes me mad at him.  ha  Whatever crosses his mind, he googles it and finds the answer.  If only we could retain all this wonderful info, we could be super smart! ha  If he isn't googling, he is talking on one of his radio control websites to all the other pilots he has met over the years.  There is something on the computer to keep him busy all night.

Then I had this other "problem".  I got addicted to Words with Friends and do you know how small those letters get on an i-phone when your eyes are tired?  And when you have 6-8 games going, there is always someone to play with.  So, after asking Whitney several questions about what the I-Pad will or will not do, I broke down and ordered one.  Let me just tell you, it is the answer to all my problems! ha

If you are thinking or considering or have never thought about ordering one until you read this, let me give you one suggestion.  Step up and order the one that comes with 3G capabilities.  I debated and after discussing this with Gary, we thought it would be better to have it and never want it, than to not have it and decide we need it.  You don't have to take out the plan with AT&T unless you decide you want to and even then, you don't have to sign a contract.  We have wireless in our home, so we haven't signed on to a plan, but I can see if we travel, we would want to get the 3G for sure.  There is even an APP for Craig's List and Pottery Barn! ha  And they are large enough to actually see the items listed.  And the most wonderful thing for me is pre-ordering the books from my favorite authors and being able to read them on the I-Pad in the dark if I want to.  They will notify you when a new book is coming out by your favorite authors.  No more having to stalk Sam's Wholesale Club making sure you don't miss one.  And, the most expensive book I have seen is $12.99.  Much cheaper than the stores. 

The only down side I have noticed is that you can't text like on the I-Phone.  Well, you can through gmail or AIM, but not real texting as we are all addicted to.  So at night now, when you think of me (I know you do all the time - or at least ocassionally), you can picture me on the couch in our living room with I-Pad in lap and I-Phone on the arm of the couch.  I AM CONNECTED!

Have a Blessed Day!

Moms and Their Babies

This is the time of the year that mothers cry.  At least it is the time of the year that I used to cry when Whitney was going back to school.  After all, the teacher was going to have more waking hours with my daughter than I would.  What if the teacher was not really "called" to be a teacher?  What if the teacher was a screamer?  That would make me cringe!  What if the teacher was lazy and didn't challenge my child?  That would make me cringe even more!  What if the teacher wasn't loving?  There were so many unanswered questions when school was starting and kindergarten was the absolute worse year for all of those anxious thoughts.  However, I did cry on the first day for each year of elementary school I think.  We had a group of moms that would get together for lunch or breakfast to try and console each other, but that really didn't help because we were all down.  Maybe it was losing control that was the root of this.  Or maybe just the fact that our baby was growing up.  It is just a fact of life that it is a sad day for most moms.  I found a few pictures that brought back memories.

Her class picture from kindergarten.  Missing a few teeth I see.

Whitney's kindergarten graduation.  Oh how precious was Mrs Logan!!!!!!  I had nothing to worry about with Whitney spending more time with that lady than with me.  She was a wonderful influence and we loved her so much!  We loved her all the way through high school!  The Logan's were such a big part of Pleasant Grove Schools.  They are truly missed by all who knew Alice and Clarence.

This picture is not from kindergarten but I couldn't resist adding it.  She was artist of the day.  And those glasses!  One theme runs in all of these pictures.....big bows were in!  And we had one for every outfit.  :)
Our school experience was wonderful and I really had no reason to cry. 

Today I find myself teary eyed again.  Whitney is back in kindergarten, but this time, she is the teacher.  She has worked all summer on getting her classroom to be the best it can be.  We have scrounged, begged, crafted and out right bought all sorts of things to make this year a wonderful year for the students she will have.  When she posted pictures on Facebook last night, they brought tears to my eyes.  This time because I know how hard she has worked and I realize how Blessed her students are going to be to have Mrs. Kelly as their teacher.

Sorry, this is so blurred, but it is a glimpse of all the specialness that she has added to this room.  I am sure most of you have seen the better pictures on her Facebook page.  So glad she has gotten her master's and started teaching kids how much fun it can be to read and write and do arithmetic! ha  Kindergarten sets the pace for the next 12 years.  I think these 16 kids will have a postive experience with a teacher that will love them close to as much as their parents do.  We are proud of you!  I will also be remembering all you moms out there that will be shedding those tears in the next week.  You will finally grow to long for that day!

Have a Blessed day and school year!

Motherly Advice

No, I am NOT announcing that I will be a grand mother.....but that would be a cute way to do it! ha  I am here to give you some motherly advice.  If you don't follow this advice, you may turn this adorable crying child into this.....

A spoiled brat!

And we certainly don't want to live with that or be around that type of child.  What is my advice?  Very simple.  Do NOT promise your child a treat for every time you leave them with a baby sitter or for every time you take them to a store and they are well behaved.  Why do we always feel the need to reward good behavior?  What ever happened to expecting good behavior as the norm and punishing when there isn't good behavior?  You might say accentuate the positive.....well I say, that is spoiling a child for something they should be doing anyway.  We need to teach our children that polite, mannerly behavior is expected  - not rewarded - and bad behavior will not be tolerated.  Crying and making a scene will not get the child anywhere unless it is to time out.  Treats started out as something to give on special occasions.  We have taken that way too far.

Along this line is another bad thing we are doing these days......we are making our children think they are all winners.  There are no losers in life.  That is not true.  There ARE losers in life.  Only those that work hard and achieve are winners.  Don't give every child a trophy.  Let there be winners and losers.  Teach your child how to lose gracefully.  When they grow up, there will not be anyone there telling them they are winning even when their performance at work is less than acceptable.  Teach them the hard lessons in life in small doses as children.  Give them a reason to strive to be successful. 

The hardest thing in life is to be a parent to your children and not just their friend.  They are precious little angels and you cannot give them enough love and attention, but it needs to be balanced with reality.  Always count to 10 before you speak out in anger or hand out punishment.  And, never have punishment that punishes the entire family or punishment that you really can't follow through on because it is too tough.  Think before you speak and speak in a calm, loving manner when correcting.  Oh, and never ever spank a child with your hand.  The child will relate the punishment to the parent.  Use a wooden spoon if you have to spank.  There will probably be very few times in life you would ever have to use it.

Don't ask me why I chose this topic.  Maybe working in Whitney's classroom getting it all ready for these little angels, might have tilted my brain in this direction.  ha  Or, maybe the Lord knew someone needed this.

Have a Blessed day!