"Don't yell at each other." Okay. :)
We've been walking at night and K has told us, "Ask me a question. Any question."
I also asked her, "What is Pi?"
"Well, it's a dessert in cherry, apple . . . "
It makes us giggle.
"What is the point that paper will burn?"
"A thousand degrees? Um, no. 104."
We'll keep on asking her questions to see what her answers are. They make the walk seem shorter.
Have a great day!
Monday, September 24, 2012
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Teaching and learning the same lesson.
This week, we hit a speed bump in the land of learning. Despite studying as a family for a math test for an hour and a half, K bombed a math test. A 47% bomb.
Ouch.
I e-mailed her teacher in a near heart attack. I knew K would be devastated. (Grades were posted online that night which is how I knew before school the next day.) I told her that our normally A-B student doesn't generally get F's, much less on tests, and I was just trying to figure out what went wrong so as not to repeat again. She was kind in responding back that afternoon that K did well at working through problems and where the big issue was was in the finer details. She added or left off a zero. She did long work on figuring out an answer, but wrote the wrong one down - that kind of thing. K was crushed that morning and cried. "But Mom, I worked very hard on that." She did say that she had the option of staying back and listening to Mrs. H talk through each question or to press on. She went ahead, got a bit behind on details and instead of stopping and asking for directions on her problems she, "Problem solved, Mom!" Mrs. H did report that the grades for the whole class were not good, but the same happened the year before. In the end, K will have a D on her interim report - something she hasn't had yet. It is fixable. I will take time, though.
K took a lesson from this. She studied from 3:30-8:45 PM on Thursday. When I commented on how long it was taking, she looked at me with tears in her eyes and said, "Mom, you tell me not to rush and I was not rushing. Now you are telling me to rush because you said I took too much time. I like to study, Mom."
Mother of the Year right here, folks!"
I felt so horrible. She is right. The ADD in me says, "GO! GO! GO!" Yet, I need to step back and take stock of the mixed messages I was giving. I apologized. We have a policy of open communication in our house and I thanked her for talking to me about what bothered her. Her teacher says it is fixable and every student ditches a test once in a while. K has learned and so have we.
Ouch.
I e-mailed her teacher in a near heart attack. I knew K would be devastated. (Grades were posted online that night which is how I knew before school the next day.) I told her that our normally A-B student doesn't generally get F's, much less on tests, and I was just trying to figure out what went wrong so as not to repeat again. She was kind in responding back that afternoon that K did well at working through problems and where the big issue was was in the finer details. She added or left off a zero. She did long work on figuring out an answer, but wrote the wrong one down - that kind of thing. K was crushed that morning and cried. "But Mom, I worked very hard on that." She did say that she had the option of staying back and listening to Mrs. H talk through each question or to press on. She went ahead, got a bit behind on details and instead of stopping and asking for directions on her problems she, "Problem solved, Mom!" Mrs. H did report that the grades for the whole class were not good, but the same happened the year before. In the end, K will have a D on her interim report - something she hasn't had yet. It is fixable. I will take time, though.
K took a lesson from this. She studied from 3:30-8:45 PM on Thursday. When I commented on how long it was taking, she looked at me with tears in her eyes and said, "Mom, you tell me not to rush and I was not rushing. Now you are telling me to rush because you said I took too much time. I like to study, Mom."
Mother of the Year right here, folks!"
I felt so horrible. She is right. The ADD in me says, "GO! GO! GO!" Yet, I need to step back and take stock of the mixed messages I was giving. I apologized. We have a policy of open communication in our house and I thanked her for talking to me about what bothered her. Her teacher says it is fixable and every student ditches a test once in a while. K has learned and so have we.
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
I may be regretting our current lack of heat this evening.
It is supposed to go down to a crisp 42 degrees this evening. I left all of our windows open a crack all day. Currently, the house is a bit chilly. I have dropped an extra heavy blanket onto my slumbering child. I'm curled under a fleece blanket while sitting on the couch and have a pillow and my sleeping bag on standby. You see, Hubs took my allergy meds yesterday, and he was unable to sleep last night. Hubs is not one to go without sleep well, he came home from work and went right to sleep. I cannot have him give the furnace a once-over before starting it and it will have that yucky burn-off smell. I don't want to do that with two people asleep and keeping the windows closed.
It's going to be a hair chilly here in the land of Bailey's Leaf. I have a candle burning, but I don't think it can generate enough heat. It's a little to early to start cooking up my pot of mulling spices. It's all good. A little chill in the air won't kill us. I may have to chip myself off the couch in the morning, though.
It's going to be a hair chilly here in the land of Bailey's Leaf. I have a candle burning, but I don't think it can generate enough heat. It's a little to early to start cooking up my pot of mulling spices. It's all good. A little chill in the air won't kill us. I may have to chip myself off the couch in the morning, though.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Warm milk for your brain.
When K was an infant, my sister-in-law gave her a handful of music CDs to listen to. One of those CDs got the most play, even earning an emergency copy after the CD was cracked when the radio fell out of the car. She listened to it so often that even I can predict the next note.
Recently, K was having some difficulty sleeping. We looked through music CDs and found the old standby.
It worked like a charm. Just like the days of old (when she was an infant until she started Kindergarten) it put her right to sleep.
I tell you, even after all this time it still remains as warm milk for her brain. You see, kiddo has taken to going to bed listening to books on tape. There are occasions that she gets so wrapped up in what she is listening to that she can't shut her brain off.
It makes me smile to know that it still soothes. She isn't too old yet!
Recently, K was having some difficulty sleeping. We looked through music CDs and found the old standby.
It worked like a charm. Just like the days of old (when she was an infant until she started Kindergarten) it put her right to sleep.
I tell you, even after all this time it still remains as warm milk for her brain. You see, kiddo has taken to going to bed listening to books on tape. There are occasions that she gets so wrapped up in what she is listening to that she can't shut her brain off.
It makes me smile to know that it still soothes. She isn't too old yet!
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Have I ever mentioned my lack of grace?
No, I didn't break anything. I will, however, tell you that being short is not a plus in some circumstances.
I was at work, busting out a Halloween display (my absolute least favorite display that I have to do since Halloween isn't my gig), I decided to stand on a not-a-step-ladder and since it wasn't heavy enough in the middle to hold my sheer girth, I punched through the middle, fell back, my feet were stuck in this thing that was now like a trash can, I finally got my feet loose, but couldn't get my balance and kept stumbling backwards until I bounced into a shelving unit and had tripped over an August sale bin-- all the while this is sounding like a herd of elephants to my coworker downstairs. Julia, one who generally rolls with things and doesn't bother to check, opens the door and says, "Amy, are you okay?"
"The good news is that I didn't break any merchandise and I do believe that I didn't even chip my wrist, though I do believe that I will have a heck of a bruise, though."
"You need to not rush and push!"
She's right. I was trying to speed through the very end of a display and ended up leaving a mess for them to clean up upstairs and downstairs.
More good news is that the blasted Halloween display is up. I struggle with it because I just don't like scary, creepy Halloween and I work extra hard on it since I don't want it to reflect my general dislike. The display is pretty decent, if I do say so myself!
Smiles in my day:
- I didn't break a bone!
- K- is actually starting to feel better from her virus. (Not strep, thank you God!) The doctor said that she was on the backside and was pulling out of it. Tonight is the first time in a week that she has expressed interest in playing outside or doing anything other than laying in bed and sleeping. That is not my child. She would come straight home, put her pajamas on and go straight to bed. Eek!
- I tagged butterflies at work with some of my coworkers and they thought it was the neatest thing!
- The computer is briefly cooperating. After the neighbor goes on vacation and returns, he and his computer geek friends are going to take our computer and give it some computer geek love. I'm hoping that they can resuscitate the box. We are trying hard to save money for a truck for Hubs and I would really love to have the savings continue to accumulate for that. They are pretty good with saving the unsaveable, so I trust their judgment. Have I mentioned that they work for free? :) Being that they are all single men, I'll cook them a good dinner and all will be well.
Have a great night!
I was at work, busting out a Halloween display (my absolute least favorite display that I have to do since Halloween isn't my gig), I decided to stand on a not-a-step-ladder and since it wasn't heavy enough in the middle to hold my sheer girth, I punched through the middle, fell back, my feet were stuck in this thing that was now like a trash can, I finally got my feet loose, but couldn't get my balance and kept stumbling backwards until I bounced into a shelving unit and had tripped over an August sale bin-- all the while this is sounding like a herd of elephants to my coworker downstairs. Julia, one who generally rolls with things and doesn't bother to check, opens the door and says, "Amy, are you okay?"
"The good news is that I didn't break any merchandise and I do believe that I didn't even chip my wrist, though I do believe that I will have a heck of a bruise, though."
"You need to not rush and push!"
She's right. I was trying to speed through the very end of a display and ended up leaving a mess for them to clean up upstairs and downstairs.
More good news is that the blasted Halloween display is up. I struggle with it because I just don't like scary, creepy Halloween and I work extra hard on it since I don't want it to reflect my general dislike. The display is pretty decent, if I do say so myself!
Smiles in my day:
- I didn't break a bone!
- K- is actually starting to feel better from her virus. (Not strep, thank you God!) The doctor said that she was on the backside and was pulling out of it. Tonight is the first time in a week that she has expressed interest in playing outside or doing anything other than laying in bed and sleeping. That is not my child. She would come straight home, put her pajamas on and go straight to bed. Eek!
- I tagged butterflies at work with some of my coworkers and they thought it was the neatest thing!
- The computer is briefly cooperating. After the neighbor goes on vacation and returns, he and his computer geek friends are going to take our computer and give it some computer geek love. I'm hoping that they can resuscitate the box. We are trying hard to save money for a truck for Hubs and I would really love to have the savings continue to accumulate for that. They are pretty good with saving the unsaveable, so I trust their judgment. Have I mentioned that they work for free? :) Being that they are all single men, I'll cook them a good dinner and all will be well.
Have a great night!
Monday, September 10, 2012
Recipe alert! Mexican lasagna
First off, I haven't forgotten about you. My computer has been ailing more than usual and frankly, sometimes it isn't worth the intense fight just to get it to boot up. With that said, since you've heard from me last, I've had 10 hour (in some form or another) PTA meeting, a Garden Fair at school for the kids, a butterfly hike to my house where we taught 20 people how to tag butterflies all the while our child was in the house quarantined to her bedroom because of a virus that had given her a fever that we didn't want to share. Oh, and PMS. Let us kick that in just for giggles, eh?
But here is your recipe. I found it delightful even after it was frozen. Yum. I ate most of it!
Mexican Lasagna (that isn't what they call it, but I made a copy and can't see the title)
Makes 4 servings
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 17 minutes
From: Fitness Magazine
1 15-ounce can pinto beans (though I used kidney since that's what I had.)
1 1/2 cups chopped roasted tomatoes (I used those fire roasted from a can.)
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 1/2 cups shredded poached chicken
1/2 cup scallions (I always use less)
1 T chili powder *
1 T ground cumin *
1/4 t salt *
8 6-inch corn tortillas, each cut into 6 wedges (I used wheat.)
1 cup shreadded Monterey jack (I used rice cheddar instead.)
1 small beefsteak tomato (I used cherry tomatoes from the yard.)
* I used taco seasoning instead.
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat an 8 x 8 inch baking dish with cooking spray. (I used two loaf pans so that K- and I would be able to have two dishes out of it, since it isn't something that Hubs can eat.
2. Combine pinto (kidney) beans and their liquid, tomatoes, corn, chicken, scallions and seasonings in a large saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until mixture is bubbling and corn is completely thawed. (I actually cooked it for an hour. I wasn't in a rush so I thought I would let it cook for a while and get happy.)
3. Layer about a third of the tortilla wedges, half bean mixture and a third of the cheese in a prepared baking dish. Repeat this until done. I ended up making another layer. Top with remaining cheese, bake until cheese is melted and the casserole is heated through. Let it cool slightly before serving; garnish with diced tomatoes.
Yummy!
Yes, the computer decided to have a convulsion and I had to finish the post on the Kindle.
But here is your recipe. I found it delightful even after it was frozen. Yum. I ate most of it!
Mexican Lasagna (that isn't what they call it, but I made a copy and can't see the title)
Makes 4 servings
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 17 minutes
From: Fitness Magazine
1 15-ounce can pinto beans (though I used kidney since that's what I had.)
1 1/2 cups chopped roasted tomatoes (I used those fire roasted from a can.)
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 1/2 cups shredded poached chicken
1/2 cup scallions (I always use less)
1 T chili powder *
1 T ground cumin *
1/4 t salt *
8 6-inch corn tortillas, each cut into 6 wedges (I used wheat.)
1 cup shreadded Monterey jack (I used rice cheddar instead.)
1 small beefsteak tomato (I used cherry tomatoes from the yard.)
* I used taco seasoning instead.
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat an 8 x 8 inch baking dish with cooking spray. (I used two loaf pans so that K- and I would be able to have two dishes out of it, since it isn't something that Hubs can eat.
2. Combine pinto (kidney) beans and their liquid, tomatoes, corn, chicken, scallions and seasonings in a large saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until mixture is bubbling and corn is completely thawed. (I actually cooked it for an hour. I wasn't in a rush so I thought I would let it cook for a while and get happy.)
3. Layer about a third of the tortilla wedges, half bean mixture and a third of the cheese in a prepared baking dish. Repeat this until done. I ended up making another layer. Top with remaining cheese, bake until cheese is melted and the casserole is heated through. Let it cool slightly before serving; garnish with diced tomatoes.
Yummy!
Yes, the computer decided to have a convulsion and I had to finish the post on the Kindle.
Monday, September 3, 2012
Clothes don't dry real well on the line in 88% relative humidity and other things I learned this weekend.
I tried to dry laundry on the line today. I did happen-- eventually. I found that the humidity of a terrarium tends not to dry laundry so well. My cousin used to live in Gonzales, Louisiana and she used to say it was like living in a terrarium. Isaac was kind enough to bring that air to us and when I was hanging laundry at 9:30 AM and sweat was rolling down my back in all of 83 F (generally a very nice temperature), I felt just a taste of the humidity pain she lived for a while. Wow.
The Black Bean Nacho Burgers were so good the other day that since I had the general supplies on hand (except for needing another can of black beans), I decided to make another batch and freeze those for later dinners. Yum. Lookie here! I added some red pepper and carrots this time.
We've been tagging Monarchs and were successful in getting 10 tagged and on their way today. It was a family effort, but we're chipping away at the 100 tags that we purchased.
On Saturday, we went to Amish Country. We stopped in at our favorite vegetable stand and I purchased yellow squash, 3 pounds of green beans, 5 pound of fresh dug potatoes, a few sweet candy onions, 3 red peppers, a few heads of butter lettuce and a mum. The squash was shredded, bagged in snack bags then double bagged into freezer bags. Green beans were blanched and got the same treatment. Onions were sliced on my Pampered Chef slicer (the one that straddles a bowl) and those were bagged, as well as the red peppers. While at our favorite bulk food store, I did purchase a number of things for my Christmas baking, since it doesn't look like we'll make it back down until after the holidays. I also purchased a lovely salad spinner. We washed and rinsed the butter lettuce, then gave it a good ole spin. Damp salad is a pet peeve of mine, so I was thrilled with how wonderfully it worked!
We stopped in at an antique mall on the way home and darned if I didn't find 2 more Holly Hobbie glasses that I didn't have. Drat. I just found a few more. I just marked them for Hubs :wink, wink: for Christmas.
I may not have mentioned that I burned the top of my hand on my birthday when I was trying to help my sister get lunch for 6 kids. I've been using the Avalon Organics Lavender Hand and Body Lotion on the burn a few times a day. They don't advertise it as burn cream at all, but it has done a wonderful job at keeping the area well hydrated and though there is an area that is still quite tender (where the blister formed and subsequently was injured further when I accidentally smacked my hand against my nightstand- ouch!), I'm happy to say that it seems to be healing nicely. Yes, it will leave a permanent mark.
I scored some lightly worn Ann Taylor Curvy jeans at the thrift today for a whole 50 cents. I found a pair of Docker jeans for the same. I scored a pair of uniform skorts for K for a dollar and we found a white graduation gown for $2.00 for her to wear when she is Princess Leia for Halloween. (We have to go with something big enough to fit over a winter coat.) We've collected the whole set at this point, so Hubs will go as Darth Vader, I'll go as Queen Amidala (Amidolly, in our house) and K- as PL. She's thrilled and apparently, we have the correct order of mom, dad and child. Who knew?
I've gotten to the bottom of my laundry bucket. HOORAY! It won't last long.
We went to University Circle yesterday and visited the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and the Cleveland Museum of Art. It's been wonderful to stop in at the art museum and see how far they have gotten with their 10 year remodeling/addition plan. This time, there was a huge courtyard open for people to walk through and the flow of the museum is now a bit more friendly. CMNH was busy and we stopped in at the cafe for a snack, but they only had two people on staff and they were so very much in the weeds. We bailed, knowing that we'd never get out in the next hour with anything and when we walked by a half hour later, they had a sign up that they had closed early. That's okay, because we went ahead and went here. Why yes, we took a hungry child to the largest candy store in the states. Don't worry. She was good and we didn't go out with a bill the size of the national debt. We found things for my FIL's 70th birthday tomorrow (Charles Chips chip tin and a refill bag, candy of "his time" and some Velamints, which he used to love.)
We've done lots this weekend and frankly, I'm tired.
Have a great day!
The Black Bean Nacho Burgers were so good the other day that since I had the general supplies on hand (except for needing another can of black beans), I decided to make another batch and freeze those for later dinners. Yum. Lookie here! I added some red pepper and carrots this time.
 |
| Yum! Getting ready to cook these up to freeze for two different meals for K- and me. Recipe in the previous post. |
On Saturday, we went to Amish Country. We stopped in at our favorite vegetable stand and I purchased yellow squash, 3 pounds of green beans, 5 pound of fresh dug potatoes, a few sweet candy onions, 3 red peppers, a few heads of butter lettuce and a mum. The squash was shredded, bagged in snack bags then double bagged into freezer bags. Green beans were blanched and got the same treatment. Onions were sliced on my Pampered Chef slicer (the one that straddles a bowl) and those were bagged, as well as the red peppers. While at our favorite bulk food store, I did purchase a number of things for my Christmas baking, since it doesn't look like we'll make it back down until after the holidays. I also purchased a lovely salad spinner. We washed and rinsed the butter lettuce, then gave it a good ole spin. Damp salad is a pet peeve of mine, so I was thrilled with how wonderfully it worked!
We stopped in at an antique mall on the way home and darned if I didn't find 2 more Holly Hobbie glasses that I didn't have. Drat. I just found a few more. I just marked them for Hubs :wink, wink: for Christmas.
I may not have mentioned that I burned the top of my hand on my birthday when I was trying to help my sister get lunch for 6 kids. I've been using the Avalon Organics Lavender Hand and Body Lotion on the burn a few times a day. They don't advertise it as burn cream at all, but it has done a wonderful job at keeping the area well hydrated and though there is an area that is still quite tender (where the blister formed and subsequently was injured further when I accidentally smacked my hand against my nightstand- ouch!), I'm happy to say that it seems to be healing nicely. Yes, it will leave a permanent mark.
I scored some lightly worn Ann Taylor Curvy jeans at the thrift today for a whole 50 cents. I found a pair of Docker jeans for the same. I scored a pair of uniform skorts for K for a dollar and we found a white graduation gown for $2.00 for her to wear when she is Princess Leia for Halloween. (We have to go with something big enough to fit over a winter coat.) We've collected the whole set at this point, so Hubs will go as Darth Vader, I'll go as Queen Amidala (Amidolly, in our house) and K- as PL. She's thrilled and apparently, we have the correct order of mom, dad and child. Who knew?
I've gotten to the bottom of my laundry bucket. HOORAY! It won't last long.
We went to University Circle yesterday and visited the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and the Cleveland Museum of Art. It's been wonderful to stop in at the art museum and see how far they have gotten with their 10 year remodeling/addition plan. This time, there was a huge courtyard open for people to walk through and the flow of the museum is now a bit more friendly. CMNH was busy and we stopped in at the cafe for a snack, but they only had two people on staff and they were so very much in the weeds. We bailed, knowing that we'd never get out in the next hour with anything and when we walked by a half hour later, they had a sign up that they had closed early. That's okay, because we went ahead and went here. Why yes, we took a hungry child to the largest candy store in the states. Don't worry. She was good and we didn't go out with a bill the size of the national debt. We found things for my FIL's 70th birthday tomorrow (Charles Chips chip tin and a refill bag, candy of "his time" and some Velamints, which he used to love.)
We've done lots this weekend and frankly, I'm tired.
Have a great day!
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