how to prepare your children for major events

Since March is National Reading Month and since my children have been blessed enough to have been born into a house of readers, I decided that they needed to prepare for our upcoming events with, yes, more reading materials.

I was really getting worried that SweetPea's flower girl book wasn't going to arrive in time but thankfully, it showed up on our doorstep this morning at precisely the perfect time for me to not throw all the toys in the house away. Reading is an awesome relaxation/reset button for us. Kind of like a mental yoga. It not only forces us to sit still and listen to each other when we are all ready to snap but it gives us something to focus on and learn from other than just our own problems.

preparedness reading

I will say though, there needs to be a better young children's selection of historical books out there. I picked one called Susanna of the Alamo to teach SweetPea about what she would be seeing on vacation. The book said that it could target grades kinder through fifth so I figured why not? Holy bananas, that book was long, ponderous, without enough pictures and with too many "words" for a kinder/preschooler. But it did the job well enough... SweetPea walked away with a small understanding of what the Alamo was and what happened there.

The more fitting book was definitely her Pinkalicious flower girl story. I think that we might have found another series to start looking into for her. I loved reading that one to her and Pork and they both giggled and pointed at the pictures, making it a GOOD story.

I also managed to sneak away some books for vacation today. Two new Lalaloopsy stories and two stories for Pork (Caps for Sale and Corduroy). I cannot wait to snuggle up in a hotel room with them and unwind from our vacation with some good reads.

March is National Reading Month

Do you have a time honored, cherished book? Do you want your child to enjoy that beloved friend as much as you do? For me, books ARE friends. They are always there when you need them, they offer a small escape into a familiar world with characters that you may love as much as your... um, friends. For me, I cannot wait until I can share the Ramona books with SweetPea. Growing up, I can remember spending hours on the phone with one of my friends, taking turns reading chapters of those books together. As we got older, we also read the Super Fudge books together. I tried sharing Ramona with Peanut but she just wasn't interested. SweetPea reminds me more of Ramona though and I am hoping that she can identify.

must have classics

For hubby, one of his favorite books growing up was The Story of Ferdinand. He loved hearing his mom read to him about the flower smelling, peaceful bull. In fact, if I close my eyes, I can picture my hubby as a small boy, curled up next to his mom, her reading and him leaning back into her to soak up that special something that mamas and sons have together.

Mistakenly, I bought Ferdinand for our SweetPea, thinking that PorkChop is SO Where the Wild Things Are. Instead, Porker curled up in my lap and listened to two readings about that bull while SweetPea bounded all over the house claiming that "when she grows up big", that she is going to sail away like Max and begin her own wild rumpus.

To see both their excitements over this latest door step arrival, I am determined to comb through every list I can find to bring home more treasured books for the littles. Sometimes, I think that I get too caught up in trending books to remember that some of the fondest memories I have of my own childhood were not necessarily including famed characters, but classic friends.

many happy reasons

Happy birthday, Dr Seuss! And happy March reading month! We love this time of year here. Not that we need an excuse to read but a whole month of celebrating that love? Pure awesomeness!

I kicked off the Seuss-a-thon yesterday morning by working with SweetPea on an "All About Me" Seuss-style workbook. Today? We started off the day with green eggs and ham bacon. Which means that we are going to have a few days of interesting diapers here now. Ah well, its once a year and its for a good cause.

Morning reading time today was spent enjoying "Wocket in my Pocket" and "Mr Brown Can Moo". Time for a secret.... I am not a fan of most of Seuss's works. Give me Shel Silverstein any day and I am a happy camper. But Seuss? I am just not that into the whole nonsense world. But PorkChop... That child has fallen in love with the rhythms and  rhymes of SeussWorld. So it looks like I will be branching out our home library for him.

Happy birthday Dr Seuss!

This afternoon, our family was treated to an amazing play date with some fantastic families! I am an unusually shy person by nature, introverted would be an understatement. But a friend of mine added me to a group on facebook of "intactivists" and I just KNEW that I had to break out of my comfort zone and make new friends. And I am so glad that I did! Getting to hang out for the afternoon with other families that share our thoughts and values was so wonderful. Not only that but I got my first intact cards! I am actually looking forward to heading to a mall and getting to "card". hee hee

On a side note, Porker is still feverish. Day three and he has finally broke away from the "low" side and is sitting at 102.8. I knew that we needed this, another fever, so we could get him officially diagnosised but ugh.... I wasn't ready for it to hit again so soon after the last. Now this weekend is going to drag by, waiting for Monday and a chance to get into the ID pediatrician. It almost makes me not want to celebrate my birthday this weekend after all. Not really feeling much like cake and family when my little buddy feels poorly.

my turn!!! my turn!!

Ugh!!! Why did I think that I could avoid the stupid illness that has been making the rounds here? Today is day 2 of me running a fever. Yep, me. Hubby has been awesome, taking over for me around the house, working major hours split between here and the road but I want to be able to do things for myself again. Mainly eat... I miss eating.... *sigh* Too bad my throat hurts too much to do much of that. In two days, I have had a bowl of cereal, three bread sticks with marinara sauce and um... yeah, that's it.

Since I haven't felt up to doing much, I have been sleeping and reading. And reading and sleeping. Allowing the kids WAY too much time on the television, not keeping the house up to par and taking more Motrin than I care to admit.

the view from here

But I have got to read.... I finished "Into the Wilderness" and started reading "American Legends: Sitting Bull". While I am waiting none so patiently for the newest tale of Jamie and Claire (Outlander), I am trying to keep my nose in the American wilderness. So far, American Legends is amazing. Its a  historical piece in the sense that its a shortened version of Sitting Bull's life but I wish that it was more. Not sure what I want more of but I want more.

Since SweetPea's fever lasted for two days, I am hoping that tomorrow, I will be better. I am tired of not being me. Especially since it means short blogging since the screen is making my head ache so much worse.

a little light reading

I love to read. Other than photography and crafting, I think that its my biggest hobby. I have other ones...  I love biking and walking during the warmer months. I adore swimming when I get the chance. Taking the kids to the park, the zoo, the beach.... I think that I might enjoy it as much as they do. But reading, its something that I HAVE to do every day. The same as I cannot imagine not picking up my camera for an entire day, I feel the same way about not having a book close at hand.

We might only be halfway through the first month of the year but I am already on my third book. I finished 11-22-63 by Stephen King last weekend while simultaneously beginning Pet Sematary for probably the fourth or fifth time. While finishing Pet Sematary, I began Into the Wilderness on the Kindle.

my reads for the year.... so far

I have noticed that since becoming a mother, my taste in reading has changed. While Stephen King used to be my favorite author, I just cannot get into his newer books. I blamed it on the accident that he was in, since I am not the only person to notice a great change in his writing style since then. But even books that I enjoyed when I was younger, I have a hard time reading now and finding the same enjoyment. The only exception that I have found so far has been It... which is still my favorite book of all time.

Now, though, I find myself reading historical pieces more and more. And especially historical pieces with a bit of romance thrown in. I do not believe for one minute that my childhood was so horrible that I "identified" with the horror novels more or that I live in a fairy tale fantasy world now so I crave romance more. I think that, where I found enjoyment in the horror books when  was younger, now I find them uncomfortable.

 I didn't see Pet Sematary as being a "scary" book as an adult. Instead, I found it sad and depressing. And what made it all the harder was PorkChop being so close in age to Gage... not to mention that Gage was on our list for him but was taken off because it felt too much like we were tempting fate. 11-22-63 should have been more my "now" style but the book just seemed to drag for me. Like it was being written to make a buck more than because you feel passionately about getting the story out.

Two books are coming out this year (or are slated to at least) that I am looking forward to, immensely. The newest book in the Outlander series (In My Heart's Own Blood.... MOBY to fans) and the newest book in the Song of Fire and Ice series. Vastly different writing styles, greatly varying in subject and content but I am eargerly awaiting both. I have a feeling that I will find crafting falling to the wayside when those arrive.

new loves

In our house, reading is a huge deal. The older kids all have an allotted 30 minutes of reading time before bed. SweetPea and PorkChop get read to daily before their naps. Hubby and I both spend quite a bit of time on our Kindles, compiling reading lists and cruising straight through them. Its a rarity when someone is not reading something. Reading for fun, reading for school, reading for learning or reading for enjoyment.... all of us love to read in our own ways.

For Christmas, SweetPea got something that she thought that she had to wait a few more years to get.... an American Girl Doll. And with that gift, a new story line to follow. Last year, SweetPea and I went on a very long journey with Jack and Annie (The Magic Tree House series). And while we didn't finish the series, it created some very fond memories. This year, we begin our journey to 1850s New Orleans!

a favorite past-time

I personally love history. I love hearing about daily life from "ago", I love learning about the styles, the nuances of the culture, how people thought and what motivated them. So far, I have yet to produce a history buff in any of the older children. The American Girl series reminds me of the Magic Tree House series. They both bring history to life in a fun and easy way. They are not "textbook" boring, but alive and colorful. They are fun and make you feel like you are part of the story. I am hoping that that also means that it will spark a flame instead SweetPea, one that wants to learn more about following the past instead of just living in the future.

There are so many series that I want to share with her and PorkChop. I hope that I can. For now, I will take it one small step at a time. And enjoy each and every step of those journeys.

dropped the ball on that one

It is definitely going to take me some getting used to our summer routine! Second time this week that things have been canceled or switched around but at least this time, its totally on me. Well, me and Pork Chop. He didn't sleep so well last night which meant that he was ready for a nap early today. I let him take a morning nap only to remember once he laid down that today was his special day at the library. Ooops. So yeah, no baby bear picnic for the little man. Hopefully, we can catch the second one in July. We still did end up at the library for a little while though. Its a great place to hang out during the summer year.

I am totally failing to see what the fascination with the train table is when there are about a million books in front of you but my kids all flock to it. So much so that I am seriously thinking about asking hubby to build a train table for the house. I saw the plans for one that doubles as a lego table... which would be pretty close to perfection in Sweet Pea's eyes.

We did manage to get everyone signed up for the summer reading program today. Punk and Peanut are both in the preteen group, meeting at the community center. Sweet Pea is now officially in the children's group! They have their summer reading sheets and know when and how many they need by each date to qualify for a "prize". Punk is reading through "The Lost Hero", Peanut is reading whatever book is closest to her hand when I tell her its time for silent reading and Sweet Pea is devouring her way through the Magic Tree House series.

never too young to start

To me, there is little more precious than the interaction between siblings. I whole heartedly love mine and adore the time that we can spend together. I am thrilled that my children are being raised in a large family with plenty of siblings to go around. It means that you always have a friend nearby, you always have someone you can count on, to learn from and lean on, to share your secrets, to fight with.... to grow.

I was worried how SweetPea would take PorkChop's arrival and was pleasantly surprised when after a few days, she totally came around. She never had any jealousy towards the new baby, more of an apprehension towards her parents. Now, five months later, PorkChop is one of her many self-proclaimed "best friends".

It was music to my ears this morning during our story time to watch SweetPea pointing out things in the book that PorkChop was amusing himself with, telling him the names of the pictures, explaining to him what the items did, imitating animal noises. It was equally endearing to watch PorkChop look up at her with his big, round eyes full of wonder. You could see that she was taking the role of teacher very seriously and her student was watching with all the hero worship that a baby brings to his older siblings.

I only managed to read two stories today, in fact, before SweetPea asked for her own "turn" to read to PorkChop. I allowed him to "sit" in her lap while she put her arms around him to keep him safe, barely managing to hold "Brown Bear, Brown Bear" in front of them both. She then told him to pay attention as she recited the book to her baby brother.

So precious!

I don't expect every day to be like this. Watching the three older ones tattle and fight and squeal and cry is enough to break the fantasy of a totally loving household of children. But its the moments like this, when I can sit back and just peek at my two youngest engaged in an activity together than my heart swells with pride at my family.

taking our sweet time

Ever just sit back and enjoy the moment at hand? Not worrying about what's coming next or how its going to get here, just living in the moment at present? I really think that I should have made that one of my personal goals for this year. Especially since I am such a planner, such a "do-er", such a "need to constantly fill each and every second of my day" person.

As I watched PorkChop nap today and listened to SweetPea "read" a story to herself, I realized that I don't have to be so structured. Yes, both my littles thrive on a routine too. I notice that they both behave better when we follow our normal day. Daddy came home early today and while everyone was happy to see him, it still changed our line-up.

PorkChop refused his afternoon nap. SweetPea woke up earlier than normal and was crabby as a result. The older kids failed to do what they should have been doing in the novelty that dad was home with them after school. I am not saying that it was a bad thing having hubby here with me more, just that it showed me just how dependent we all are on the lives that we have made.

Hubby being home early did give me time to finish "Little Men". So my first classic of 2012 has now been completed. I started "Game of Thrones" but am having a hard time staying focused on it. Hubby loves it though so I am going to keep plucking away. I also managed to finish my first gift of the year, the longies that I shared yesterday. Now I just need to wait for the chart that I ordered to duplicate stitch on them.

Happy New Year!

Its hard to believe that a new year is already upon us. In some ways, it seems like just yesterday that I had just announced "Gravy's" impending arrival and was waiting for SweetPea to turn the big two. And now look at us... SweetPea is almost three and our little man PorkChop is here and healthy. Being that it is a new year though, I think that its time to hold myself accountable for what I would like to accomplish this year.

For my children, I want to keep our family night going. I realize that its going to be hard soon with both soccer and baseball starting up again but I want to try. I want to continue tandem nursing as long as SweetPea wants and be able to hit those same goals with PorkChop. I want to continue "greening" up our lifestyle by really focusing on our garden and household living this year. I want to try a new recipe every week to every two weeks so we can switch things up a bit more. I want to work on my photography skills again this year, especially since I see improvements from last year to this already. I want to keep up with my "12 projects in 12 months" group, as long as make sure to complete another 365 photo blog. Which, in all honestly, will probably take place here since I am planning on being a more faithful blogger again. I want to get back into a homeschooling routine, right now with just SweetPea, but I want that connection again. I want to start becoming healthier, not just in body but in mind as well. I want to work on all my relationships and become a better, more rounded person. I also want to read a new classic each month and still make time for some "fluff" reading as well.

"Kindle"ing the passion to read

We are a pretty literary family. All of us, from hubby and myself, right down to SweetPea and PorkChop, all enjoy reading or being read to. This year for Christmas, we started the tradition of giving the littles a new book every Friday to read together from. This coming year, we will be delving into our list of "100 must read books before Kindergarten" as a way of starting our new homeschooling journey. As presents, each child received a new book this year, both older boys got some form electronic readers and hubby and I both received Kindle Fires.

Since I was given my Christmas present the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, I have forged ahead with reading the classics. I started with "A Christmas Carol" and quickly realized just how much I enjoy the older styles, the novels filled with morals, the feeling of peace that I get from reading works that have been deemed "out-dated" and yet "timeless" in the same breath.

Today, I started my sixth novel since Thanksgiving. I think that this is the most that I have read in years. I am used to re-reading books over and over again for the enjoyment factor but am not used to reading books based on how they make me feel. Reading the classics is bringing an odd sense of peace to my life, a centering and balancing feeling. I still adore my modern books, don't get me wrong. And I am sure that I will tire of reading the greater works eventually. But I think that one of my goals for 2012 will be reading a new classic every month. Which, at the rate that I have been reading, will not be a hard goal to meet.

Christmas countdown day 23- Twas the Night of the Dino Tales

The excitement is in the air! I don't think that the kiddos can handle our "just one more sleep until Christmas" preparations. What? You mean that tomorrow is NOT Christmas? Ok, its really not but both our families celebrated Christmas on Christmas Eve and left Christmas day for relaxing or celebrating our Savior's birth. And we like the tradition. Makes it easier to give real meaning to the season for the older kids and lets the littles not get quite so overwhelmed with sensations.

Dealing with a work Christmas party last night (which only PorkChop attended... SweetPea had her first "visit" to nonna's without mama or daddy with her), Christmas shopping today (while all the kiddos, minus PorkChop again stayed with my sister), I forsee a long night of wrapping ahead of us. *yawn* And I am already sleepy!

But to quell our anxieties, we took the time to share one last special holiday story with the family.... A Dinosaur's Night Before Christmas!

Maybe for the first time since hearing that our pirate Christmas tale would not be delivered on time to make our celebration, I have been happy for that mishap. This story was so cute and so well done that it definitely left a smile upon my face. And the Christmas carole cd that came with it... priceless! In fact, I may have a hard time next year teaching SweetPea the real versions of those songs.

So tonight when I tuck many young P's into bed and pray that they stay there until morning, I will do so knowing that so many Christmas dreams will soon be coming true. That tomorrow, we will begin our two days of family time, present opening and gift giving, laugh and food sharing, memory making.... Its almost Christmas time, the most magical time of the year!

Christmas countdown day 16- Too much Holidrama!

Our Friday nights are BUSY! Hubby usually rushes home from work so we can go out to dinner as a family. Every other week, he has to make the two hour round trip to drop Pickle off to his mom. We try to make sure that we have what we need at home for homework for the coming week, breakfast for Saturday morning and any small errands on the days that we don't have exchanges. Knowing that tonight was a drop-off night, I bent the rules a bit to our countdown and gave SweetPea her new book during the morning hours.

Let me preface this by saying that I had never heard of the Llama Llama series before I ordered "Llama Llama Holiday Drama". It was recommended on amazon and since I needed a fourth book and was trying to avoid "character" books, I gave it a spin. Its now a family hit for sure! Not only did SweetPea and PorkChop hear it this morning, SweetPea had Punk read it to her tonight, followed by mama again, followed by daddy, followed by her reciting passages.

It was seriously that cute! Even hubby, who tolerates most children's books for the sake of the littles really enjoyed this one. And what was there not to enjoy? It's catchy with its cute rhymes, the pictures hold even PorkChop's attention and us adults loved the meaning behind the sweet words. It was tempting to order another Llama Llama book for SweetPea's Christmas book but in the end, we opted for Fancy Nancy. I want to take SweetPea to the bookstore soon and see if she gravitates towards Llama Llama on her own.

Our family also got a surprise in the mail today. Our carrier left us a sweet thank you note for remembering her this Christmas. The kidlets were all impressed with getting that little thank you and I know that it made them feel good. I am anxious now for tomorrow and delivering our next batch of cookies to the fire station. Not because I want another note but because I want them to embrace that giving spirit while they are still touched by being thanked for doing so.

Christmas countdown day 9- Twas a Few Weeks Before Christmas

I cannot believe how quickly Christmas is approaching. It seems that the more that I prepare for the holiday, the quicker that the time is going by (and the less that I am able to accomplish). I am happy to note that other than the small odds and ends that I need to finish, I completed three of PorkChop's Christmas gifts today (sewn shirts with knit longies) and have his sweater done too. So his handmade Christmas is complete. Yay! I still need to finish Peanut's pajamas this weekend and hopefully get started on Pickle and Punk's. I even have SweetPea's handmade Christmas gifts complete and am already picking out her birthday ones. Oy! I need to remember to make it through this holiday first.

Since this was our official weekend with Pickle and since Punk and Peanut will not be leaving for their dad's until tomorrow afternoon sometime, everyone was here tonight for our Friday story night. Not that it was a huge hit.... All the kids found the story teadius minus the youngest two. Even hubby wished that we could have found the "American" version instead of the English one. But I LOVE this telling. I remember hearing this same storybook as a child and I am really grateful to have the same exact copy to read to my own children now.

This was not our intended story for tonight but I couldn't see the older thee enjoying "Llama Llama Holiday Drama" too much. And since our first choice for this evening still hasn't arrived via mail, our preChristmas eve book it was.

Christmas countdown day 2- The Nutcracker

Day two today of our countdown to Christmas. Hubby and I decided that Fridays, a normally very busy evening for our family, would be devoted to receiving a new holiday book, curling up on the couch and making the time to read together as a family. Since Punk and Peanut are usually at their dad's on Fridays, and Pickle is at his mom's every other weekend, I selected books that I thought were more "fun" for SweetPea. Imagine my shock tonight when Pickle came over to hear the story of the Nutcracker Ballet.

SweetPea hasn't seen anything before dealing with this story/ballet so tonight was her introduction into the magical world of the Land of Sweets. Even PorkChop sat enthralled and listened to his daddy read the story. I really think that one of our holiday purchases this year should be a small nutcracker to put out during the holiday season. Even just an ornament of one will do. I want a tangible reminder about being kind to those without expecting anything in return, like Marie (or as I was raised, Clara) did in the book.