The oldest two went downstate to visit with their father for the holiday, luckily we did not hear of any issues while they were gone. :) When they came back up, they brought up the gifts that MY grandmother was sending to us. This woman is quite a mystery to me sometimes, and I am thankful to have her in my life, even if it is not as much as I would like.
She bought all 8 kids coats for NEXT year. Because her sister, yeah, my Great-Aunt, worked at Sears, they go and get the coats there. 70$ coats for about 20$ is hard to pass up! (with employee discount and kidvantage saving on top of sales) There were a few coats that were just not going to work out for next year as they fit this year, so we piled into the van and switched them out for bigger.
Not only do my kids have awesome coats for this year, they have next years set as well. Nice.
I like to shop for stuff at the end of the season, but this is such a small town, there isn't always a selection at the end of the season. :(
So that was a very big part of our thanks for giving holiday.
We did some giving of our own this past week as well. The high school was hosting a canned food drive, so we had DS1 bring in about 70 jars of baby foods. I figured that the big canned goods always get donated, but hardly ever baby stuff.
DS2 was doing a sock drive. For his class, DS2 was going to get a holiday party if his class could bring in 50 pairs of socks. (new of course) I went out and bought a pack of 10 toddler socks and he happily took them in. The sad part of the entire thing, no one else brought in any socks. It came down to the last day that people could bring in socks and DS2 was a bit sad he was not going to have a party because no one else was giving (it was not just his class either, the highest number donated in a single class was 30.) I went out to the store and bought enough so that if no one brought in any socks, he could still get his party. It was a give, give, and win, win. DS2 will get his party, and needy people will have warm toes. :)
Did you have any giving or receiving this past holiday?
Monday, November 29, 2010
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Words to be heard: Amazon Fail
I was shocked and sickened to learn that Amazon had a "how to" book for sale that it should not have.
I was AMAZED to see the people of social media step up and really come together to get this book removed! As of about 30 minutes ago all links that I have seen have been broken and the dirty manual removed from "shelves."
I love that a peaceful protest can get noticed and heard around the world in just a matter of minutes. I love that we banned together to be heard!
Nice work everyone!
I was AMAZED to see the people of social media step up and really come together to get this book removed! As of about 30 minutes ago all links that I have seen have been broken and the dirty manual removed from "shelves."
I love that a peaceful protest can get noticed and heard around the world in just a matter of minutes. I love that we banned together to be heard!
Nice work everyone!
Saturday, November 6, 2010
its not always puppy dog tails and hair clips...
While my DH was on the road the other day he got a call from a doctor *reminding* him of his appointment this coming Monday, an appointment that we told our doctors office, well over two months ago, that would not work due to his work schedule.
So DH said to the woman that he "wasn't sure that he could make it" and that he "would call her back" and then he promptly called me. I was in the shower and heard his ring tone so I answered it and tried to rinse of with out dropping the iPhone in the tub. (thank you otterbox for your splash protection) He then asked ME to call them and tell them he was not going to make it.
Oh yes, there was a small tirade on my part on how I was not the damn secretary and that he should have just said WHILE HE WAS TALKING TO HER that he could not make it because he would be at work.
You see, he leaves for work at 3 AM on Monday morning and is not back into town until well after dinner on the following Friday. As a trucker he can not just *skip* a day of work for an office visit. If he does not leave, he does not work that week.
Of course I had some choice words, and he sounded like I just butchered his favorite dog or something, so when we got off the phone I dried off and then calmed down. No time to even brush my hair as the kids were already asking for food, but I made sure to call him back.
I let him know, I have no problem calling around for him if he needs something done, that is part of my job as a house wife/mother, I tend to the house needs. If he was on the phone with someone and he KNEW the answer he needed to just answer it though. It was my way of saying I am sorry, and for him to not be so daft.
I really need to learn how to say I am sorry, and possibly not snapping off... but its not always puppy dog tails and hair clips here on the homestead and I am only human.
So DH said to the woman that he "wasn't sure that he could make it" and that he "would call her back" and then he promptly called me. I was in the shower and heard his ring tone so I answered it and tried to rinse of with out dropping the iPhone in the tub. (thank you otterbox for your splash protection) He then asked ME to call them and tell them he was not going to make it.
Oh yes, there was a small tirade on my part on how I was not the damn secretary and that he should have just said WHILE HE WAS TALKING TO HER that he could not make it because he would be at work.
You see, he leaves for work at 3 AM on Monday morning and is not back into town until well after dinner on the following Friday. As a trucker he can not just *skip* a day of work for an office visit. If he does not leave, he does not work that week.
Of course I had some choice words, and he sounded like I just butchered his favorite dog or something, so when we got off the phone I dried off and then calmed down. No time to even brush my hair as the kids were already asking for food, but I made sure to call him back.
I let him know, I have no problem calling around for him if he needs something done, that is part of my job as a house wife/mother, I tend to the house needs. If he was on the phone with someone and he KNEW the answer he needed to just answer it though. It was my way of saying I am sorry, and for him to not be so daft.
I really need to learn how to say I am sorry, and possibly not snapping off... but its not always puppy dog tails and hair clips here on the homestead and I am only human.
winner of the 10$ gift card! Meghan!
Lets see if I can get the picture of the Random draw up here:
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yipee! I figured out how to make it look right! thanks for your patience as I go through this learning curve.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Winner of 75$ gift card.
O.K. I don't know how to copy this and make it still look like the grid lol. And I haven't learned how to check the old post for who it was to put it here with this post. Boy, what a learning curve lol. I'm gonna go ask for help and then come back with the winner of the 10$ gift card and see if I can get it laid out to look better. :)
Remember, if winner does not claim gift I will redraw. :)
Friday, October 22, 2010
Unschool to public, my hard time transition
When I started homeschooling I was going to have the smartest kids. They were going to win the National Spelling Bee, the National Geography Bee, and we would even have a Bee named for something we did and we were going to WIN THAT TOO!
And then as we went along, with two kids age 5 and 6, I slowly learned to let go. I let them start to lead because I realized that if they were interested the learning would "stick" better than I could get it to. I tirelessly dragged them to museums, parks, playdates, gymnastics, swimming ponds, zoos, shopping malls, banks, post offices, doctors offices, basically everywhere. Trying to make sure they had a well rounded exposure to everything out there that was offered for them to be interested in. When they had questions, and they did have questions, we would dive into that subject as much, or as little, as they wanted. There were many times when I wondered if they would EVER learn to read, or "Do" math, what every that meant. There were times that I doubted myself (what good would I be as a parent if I DIDN'T worry?) and there were times when I could *totally* see that we were on the right path.
Then my world, and the kids, was turned upside down, you can read about the homelessness in a previous entry.
Which led us to public school. Our move took us to a small town with little to none, of the enrichment things my very busy family loved to do. Just a few little homeschooling opportunities to gather, so we put our kids into school. I didn't put them in for education, because I already stated that kids WILL learn, despite our best efforts. ;) But I put them in so that they could really get into their small town and meet friends. So they could have some fun things to do in the winter months where the only other option is one Mc Donalds playland. (and it is not that big)
So the teachers think I am nuts, I tell them that my children are gone ALL DAY at school, so when they get home they have family time and not "homework" time. I tell them that my kids go to play more than they go to learn. I know that I may sound like I have two heads, being that I went to college for Early Elementary Education and mainly focused on psychology, I KNOW what the majority of teachers think of me. And I don't much care.
The kids have really made themselves a home, and despite my oldest two starting school out in middle school, they have really taken to it, more so than I thought they would.
The girls all love the crafty things, and singing times, and playground games. Although they don't much care for math, they do it for the teachers better than they would for me.
I walk on tip toes to keep my opinions of the "system" away from the kids because THEY really love it. But here I am, and unschool mother that is doing what the heart of unschooling is (letting the child lead the way) and I feel so out of place.
I miss all the times with them. I miss the fun things we all did. The school year is moving forward rapidly, and I can't wait to get back to unschooling when the summer hits. When my house can feel like home again.
And then as we went along, with two kids age 5 and 6, I slowly learned to let go. I let them start to lead because I realized that if they were interested the learning would "stick" better than I could get it to. I tirelessly dragged them to museums, parks, playdates, gymnastics, swimming ponds, zoos, shopping malls, banks, post offices, doctors offices, basically everywhere. Trying to make sure they had a well rounded exposure to everything out there that was offered for them to be interested in. When they had questions, and they did have questions, we would dive into that subject as much, or as little, as they wanted. There were many times when I wondered if they would EVER learn to read, or "Do" math, what every that meant. There were times that I doubted myself (what good would I be as a parent if I DIDN'T worry?) and there were times when I could *totally* see that we were on the right path.
Then my world, and the kids, was turned upside down, you can read about the homelessness in a previous entry.
Which led us to public school. Our move took us to a small town with little to none, of the enrichment things my very busy family loved to do. Just a few little homeschooling opportunities to gather, so we put our kids into school. I didn't put them in for education, because I already stated that kids WILL learn, despite our best efforts. ;) But I put them in so that they could really get into their small town and meet friends. So they could have some fun things to do in the winter months where the only other option is one Mc Donalds playland. (and it is not that big)
So the teachers think I am nuts, I tell them that my children are gone ALL DAY at school, so when they get home they have family time and not "homework" time. I tell them that my kids go to play more than they go to learn. I know that I may sound like I have two heads, being that I went to college for Early Elementary Education and mainly focused on psychology, I KNOW what the majority of teachers think of me. And I don't much care.
The kids have really made themselves a home, and despite my oldest two starting school out in middle school, they have really taken to it, more so than I thought they would.
The girls all love the crafty things, and singing times, and playground games. Although they don't much care for math, they do it for the teachers better than they would for me.
I walk on tip toes to keep my opinions of the "system" away from the kids because THEY really love it. But here I am, and unschool mother that is doing what the heart of unschooling is (letting the child lead the way) and I feel so out of place.
I miss all the times with them. I miss the fun things we all did. The school year is moving forward rapidly, and I can't wait to get back to unschooling when the summer hits. When my house can feel like home again.
Down with Stranger Danger!
I do not teach my kids "Stranger Danger," and with good reason, follow me for a second...
I am a very tiny person, 5'2" and on the thin side all my life, so picture me before my growth spurt. Quite old enough to be out past dark, but easy to be seen as otherwise.
I was walking the two blocks home from my friends house. It was fall, and only about 8, so it was not late, but it WAS very dark. I had seen a vehicle drive past me twice, I noticed it was full of teens the first time and just let it be a fleeting thought. The second time it passed I made sure to take note and perk up my awareness. By the time I turned the corner for MY street I noticed it was slowly turning the corner and I heard, "QUICK, GET.." and I didn't hesitate to cut across the grass towards the front door of a home that I didn't know. I opened the screen door as if I was going to walk in... the kids drove off.
I might have saved myself from being kidnapped that night, or worse. I might have just been a little paranoid, either way I know the end result was that I was able to make an informed choice of action! I knew that if I knocked on a strangers door and asked for help that I might be better off. Knowing that the danger had passed and I was only 3 doors from my own, I let the screen door close and I went home, across all the yards as opposed to on the sidewalk.
I don't advocate "Stranger Danger," what I ask is that my kids are Aware and Prepared! They need to pay attention to their surroundings, if they are lost they need to walk up to a stranger and ask for help so I can not have them lost in a sea of faces that look fearful, but they also need to know that they can NOT go into a back room, or vehicle, or other situation where they are going to be taken from public view. Just because a person has a uniform, does not guarantee that person is a safe face. Just because they have kids, or have animals, or a badge, does not prevent something bad happening. They do not need to walk around fearful for their safety at every turn, but they do need to be aware of their safety options!
Many that would prey on children are actually people they ALREADY know, statistically its been proven that predators go after the easy targets that they already know and are close to. For this reason, we also teach that we have every right over our own bodies and if we need more personal space, no matter who is invading it, we have the right to say NO! If Aunt Betty wants a big kiss and the kids don't want to, they can say NO!
By empowering our children with awareness, instead of fear, we can help them advocate for themselves and learn to speak up.
I am a very tiny person, 5'2" and on the thin side all my life, so picture me before my growth spurt. Quite old enough to be out past dark, but easy to be seen as otherwise.
I was walking the two blocks home from my friends house. It was fall, and only about 8, so it was not late, but it WAS very dark. I had seen a vehicle drive past me twice, I noticed it was full of teens the first time and just let it be a fleeting thought. The second time it passed I made sure to take note and perk up my awareness. By the time I turned the corner for MY street I noticed it was slowly turning the corner and I heard, "QUICK, GET.." and I didn't hesitate to cut across the grass towards the front door of a home that I didn't know. I opened the screen door as if I was going to walk in... the kids drove off.
I might have saved myself from being kidnapped that night, or worse. I might have just been a little paranoid, either way I know the end result was that I was able to make an informed choice of action! I knew that if I knocked on a strangers door and asked for help that I might be better off. Knowing that the danger had passed and I was only 3 doors from my own, I let the screen door close and I went home, across all the yards as opposed to on the sidewalk.
I don't advocate "Stranger Danger," what I ask is that my kids are Aware and Prepared! They need to pay attention to their surroundings, if they are lost they need to walk up to a stranger and ask for help so I can not have them lost in a sea of faces that look fearful, but they also need to know that they can NOT go into a back room, or vehicle, or other situation where they are going to be taken from public view. Just because a person has a uniform, does not guarantee that person is a safe face. Just because they have kids, or have animals, or a badge, does not prevent something bad happening. They do not need to walk around fearful for their safety at every turn, but they do need to be aware of their safety options!
Many that would prey on children are actually people they ALREADY know, statistically its been proven that predators go after the easy targets that they already know and are close to. For this reason, we also teach that we have every right over our own bodies and if we need more personal space, no matter who is invading it, we have the right to say NO! If Aunt Betty wants a big kiss and the kids don't want to, they can say NO!
By empowering our children with awareness, instead of fear, we can help them advocate for themselves and learn to speak up.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
My Review means a Prize for you!!!
One lucky reader will end up with a cool 10$ towards my twitter friends, @taderdoodles, shop, as long as you read on...
I had been to Chaotic Craftiness in search for a little bag for my daughter to carry around, there are several good options and so I chatted with TaderDoodles to create the perfect fit for my pint size sprite. I was very happy, and then I read a tweet saying she would love someone to do a review of a Little Dribbler ! Well, of course, I jumped at the chance to help out since she helped me with my little purse dilemma.
I chatted up fabrics with TaderDoodles and decided that penguins would be very fitting since it is getting so cold here! It's good to be stylish. ;) To my great happiness the next time I went to get the mail it was there waiting for me.
Upon first inspection I noticed that one side had my fabric choice and the other side was a very absorbent fuzzy material in coordinating color. ( I would love to tell you what it was but I am not good with fabric. Perhaps it was terry cloth but when washed it didn't get scratchy like some terry cloth wash cloths I have, so it might be something different.) There is a plastic snap that looks the same on each side, making this a reversible item.
We first tried the patterned side up. It did keep him from drooling onto his clothing and kept his neck dry. 4 top teeth at once is SOOOO not cool, but he is working it like a champ. I noticed with some previous children that they sometimes had weird neck *funk* from drooling and collecting dirt in their neck chub. Neck chub is super cool, funk is not, so keeping this away was a total bonus feature to me. The neck line is very form fitting under his chin, I suggest that you send in measurements on neck for your baby and add a smidge for room for growth if you think your child might need a "roomier" one. :) For my baby, it worked out perfectly.
One awesome feature was that he can crawl with out snagging himself on a long bib tail and when trying to pull to a stand, there was nothing to get tripped up on. It was able to be efficient with out a lot of excess. Love that!
Since I wanted to really test the Dribbler out, we washed it and wore it on the reverse side the following day. I had even better results. Well, perhaps not better results, but I noticed another cool thing! When my little boobie monster unlatched with one of those fling-head-back-circus-trick things he does, the dribbler caught the milk he drooled all over, and the milk I was squirting all over was mostly caught. I say *mostly* because I over shot and got my iPhone. lol!
So here is the part where you can win big!
Go over to Chaotic Craftiness and let me know what item you like best. You may want to check out the difference between the girls and the boys styles! This is a mandatory requirement.
To get more entries you may do the following and report back here with what your choice was. One entry per type, limited to each type of entry once a day. (so each day do all of them for more chances!) You can use your 10$ prize on anything in her shop. ;)
Tweet:
Two tweeps will win from @Justthe10 75$ GC to Sears, or 10$ to @taderdoodles shop! http://tinyurl.com/justthe10
Make up your own inventive tweet mentioning @justthe10 and linking to this give away.
Make up your own inventive tweet mentioning @justthe10 AND @taderdoodles and linking to Chaotic Craftiness page.
Friend me on Google thingie over there --->
Blog about this give away, or another post of mine for TWO entries. Make sure to comment twice so I don't overlook the bonus entry.
Good luck and happy shopping!
THIS JUST IN, I AM ALSO PLACING A 75$ Gift Cert TO SEARS ON THIS GIVE AWAY. IF YOU HAVE ALREADY ENTERED BEFORE I PLACED THIS HERE, YOU ARE ALREADY ENTERED FOR THIS AS WELL.
THERE WILL BE TWO SEPARATE DRAWINGS FROM RANDOM OF ALL THE ENTRIES, ONLY ONE WINNING ALLOWED.
This review was based on my opinion of how it worked for my baby, your results may vary. I was only compensated by receiving the Little Dribbler and nothing more. Give away will be open until October 29th 2010, 11:59 pm EST. Make sure to leave a way to contact you, either twitter handle or email address. If winner does not respond within 1 week, another winner will be chosen. Winner chosen at random.
I had been to Chaotic Craftiness in search for a little bag for my daughter to carry around, there are several good options and so I chatted with TaderDoodles to create the perfect fit for my pint size sprite. I was very happy, and then I read a tweet saying she would love someone to do a review of a Little Dribbler ! Well, of course, I jumped at the chance to help out since she helped me with my little purse dilemma.
I chatted up fabrics with TaderDoodles and decided that penguins would be very fitting since it is getting so cold here! It's good to be stylish. ;) To my great happiness the next time I went to get the mail it was there waiting for me.
Upon first inspection I noticed that one side had my fabric choice and the other side was a very absorbent fuzzy material in coordinating color. ( I would love to tell you what it was but I am not good with fabric. Perhaps it was terry cloth but when washed it didn't get scratchy like some terry cloth wash cloths I have, so it might be something different.) There is a plastic snap that looks the same on each side, making this a reversible item.
We first tried the patterned side up. It did keep him from drooling onto his clothing and kept his neck dry. 4 top teeth at once is SOOOO not cool, but he is working it like a champ. I noticed with some previous children that they sometimes had weird neck *funk* from drooling and collecting dirt in their neck chub. Neck chub is super cool, funk is not, so keeping this away was a total bonus feature to me. The neck line is very form fitting under his chin, I suggest that you send in measurements on neck for your baby and add a smidge for room for growth if you think your child might need a "roomier" one. :) For my baby, it worked out perfectly.
One awesome feature was that he can crawl with out snagging himself on a long bib tail and when trying to pull to a stand, there was nothing to get tripped up on. It was able to be efficient with out a lot of excess. Love that!
Since I wanted to really test the Dribbler out, we washed it and wore it on the reverse side the following day. I had even better results. Well, perhaps not better results, but I noticed another cool thing! When my little boobie monster unlatched with one of those fling-head-back-circus-trick things he does, the dribbler caught the milk he drooled all over, and the milk I was squirting all over was mostly caught. I say *mostly* because I over shot and got my iPhone. lol!
So here is the part where you can win big!
Go over to Chaotic Craftiness and let me know what item you like best. You may want to check out the difference between the girls and the boys styles! This is a mandatory requirement.
To get more entries you may do the following and report back here with what your choice was. One entry per type, limited to each type of entry once a day. (so each day do all of them for more chances!) You can use your 10$ prize on anything in her shop. ;)
Tweet:
Two tweeps will win from @Justthe10 75$ GC to Sears, or 10$ to @taderdoodles shop! http://tinyurl.com/justthe10
Make up your own inventive tweet mentioning @justthe10 and linking to this give away.
Make up your own inventive tweet mentioning @justthe10 AND @taderdoodles and linking to Chaotic Craftiness page.
Friend me on Google thingie over there --->
Blog about this give away, or another post of mine for TWO entries. Make sure to comment twice so I don't overlook the bonus entry.
Good luck and happy shopping!
THIS JUST IN, I AM ALSO PLACING A 75$ Gift Cert TO SEARS ON THIS GIVE AWAY. IF YOU HAVE ALREADY ENTERED BEFORE I PLACED THIS HERE, YOU ARE ALREADY ENTERED FOR THIS AS WELL.
THERE WILL BE TWO SEPARATE DRAWINGS FROM RANDOM OF ALL THE ENTRIES, ONLY ONE WINNING ALLOWED.
This review was based on my opinion of how it worked for my baby, your results may vary. I was only compensated by receiving the Little Dribbler and nothing more. Give away will be open until October 29th 2010, 11:59 pm EST. Make sure to leave a way to contact you, either twitter handle or email address. If winner does not respond within 1 week, another winner will be chosen. Winner chosen at random.
Friday, October 15, 2010
I have been challenged!
Sears is challenging me to think about what one appliance in my home
that I could not live with out, or rather, what is THE most important
one in a household of my size. This is a very easy peasy blog for me
because I am currently living with out it and I HATE IT! My washing
machine!
I have eight children, times that many kids by a pair of socks, pants,
shirts, underwear, towels, blankets, pillows, and then factor in 7
days! Well, you get the idea, I have a LOT of laundry! There was a
time that I had 4 kids in cloth diapers and I decided to quit renting
a machine in my apartment and have a smaller water bill, so I picked a
Kenmore HE3 washer and a Kenmore HE dryer to match. (It was a several
years ago so you can't find these models anymore, but you can find
newer ones with newer gadgets.) When I purchased these I fell in LOVE
with doing laundry. Not only did I have more room to do more laundry
at one time, which saved me a TON of time, I had tons of water saving
cycles, and ones that would allow for extra rinse cycles! Cloth
diapering was never easier!
When we upgraded our washer we bought the HE4T for the germ killing
sanitary wash, one that came in handy when my husband started hauling
Biosolids for a living. His uniform shirts and denim pants didn't just
look clean, they were actually clean.
Because of the larger drum and the front loading spin, as opposed to a
top loader with pole in middle, I could wash an entire load of bedding
at once, or get all the towels in the house clean at once. We love
those really big fluffy blanket towels and they tumble around nicely
in the wash with out getting all tangled up. The dryer we bought to
match worked like a charm to dry the clothing in just about the same
time as the next load of wash so I was never sitting around waiting
for one to finish before I could switch.
I know you are all wondering, why am I raving about a product but
saying that I currently live without it? Sadly, after running my
washer and dryer for several years, several times a day, the washer
requires maintenance. We need a few parts replaced on it and instead
of replacing the parts we are going to wait until tax time to get a
new model! Currently, I am dealing with a top loader that uses too
much water, takes forever to fill, and has very limited cycles. I
figure that our family size makes us do a lot more laundry than an
"average" family of 4, so we definitely got our monies worth out of
the one we had, and I can't wait to get our next workhorse of a
machine from Sears!
Sears did not compensate me in any way for my opinion of this, but they did give me a GC to give away to one of you guys! :)
that I could not live with out, or rather, what is THE most important
one in a household of my size. This is a very easy peasy blog for me
because I am currently living with out it and I HATE IT! My washing
machine!
I have eight children, times that many kids by a pair of socks, pants,
shirts, underwear, towels, blankets, pillows, and then factor in 7
days! Well, you get the idea, I have a LOT of laundry! There was a
time that I had 4 kids in cloth diapers and I decided to quit renting
a machine in my apartment and have a smaller water bill, so I picked a
Kenmore HE3 washer and a Kenmore HE dryer to match. (It was a several
years ago so you can't find these models anymore, but you can find
newer ones with newer gadgets.) When I purchased these I fell in LOVE
with doing laundry. Not only did I have more room to do more laundry
at one time, which saved me a TON of time, I had tons of water saving
cycles, and ones that would allow for extra rinse cycles! Cloth
diapering was never easier!
When we upgraded our washer we bought the HE4T for the germ killing
sanitary wash, one that came in handy when my husband started hauling
Biosolids for a living. His uniform shirts and denim pants didn't just
look clean, they were actually clean.
Because of the larger drum and the front loading spin, as opposed to a
top loader with pole in middle, I could wash an entire load of bedding
at once, or get all the towels in the house clean at once. We love
those really big fluffy blanket towels and they tumble around nicely
in the wash with out getting all tangled up. The dryer we bought to
match worked like a charm to dry the clothing in just about the same
time as the next load of wash so I was never sitting around waiting
for one to finish before I could switch.
I know you are all wondering, why am I raving about a product but
saying that I currently live without it? Sadly, after running my
washer and dryer for several years, several times a day, the washer
requires maintenance. We need a few parts replaced on it and instead
of replacing the parts we are going to wait until tax time to get a
new model! Currently, I am dealing with a top loader that uses too
much water, takes forever to fill, and has very limited cycles. I
figure that our family size makes us do a lot more laundry than an
"average" family of 4, so we definitely got our monies worth out of
the one we had, and I can't wait to get our next workhorse of a
machine from Sears!
Sears did not compensate me in any way for my opinion of this, but they did give me a GC to give away to one of you guys! :)
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Shingles
Nope, not the roof kind! And nope, not me!
My 14 yr old has shingles. I would go into some details about how he has had chicken pox 3 times before, or that he is generally healthy kid, but I'm typing on an iphone and the other kids are calling lol. More later
My 14 yr old has shingles. I would go into some details about how he has had chicken pox 3 times before, or that he is generally healthy kid, but I'm typing on an iphone and the other kids are calling lol. More later
I should have known
You talk to your kids, you know their friends, you know what they are doing and you have an open relationship... or so you thought.
I raise my children with the understanding that they can come to me when they make a bad choice, this does not mean there will be no consequence and I wont get mad, but it will lessen their punishment and we will talk about taking responsibility for their actions.
This week I found out that my 13 yr old has done drugs. Mind you, he was not in my care, so I shouldn't feel too bad, but I am a mother, I do blame myself for letting him down somehow.
My two eldest sons went to their fathers side of the family this weekend so they could get all 17 cousins in a family picture. I figured this was a fairly safe activity, and they would get to see their father for a bit when he got out of work on Sunday. They were gone about 48 hours, in care of their family.
Back story on family, the Aunt has adopted 5 children, the Grandma has adopted 8, these people have big hearts. They have been through the ringer from time to time and most of the children are grown now.
Now to my story, some of these cousins have been making bad choices. I would not disallow my boys the chance to be in a picture with said children, but I would not allow them to be unsupervised either. The one child, had he been mine, would be homeschooled a long time ago and only at homeschooled functions and sanctioned activities under direct super vision because he lacks respect for any authority, but that is another blog...
The family that was watching the kids "lost" them for 20 minutes. Assumed they were doing something wrong and questioned my son about it, being that my 13 yr old has never been into trouble they believed his story. No one told me when they dropped him off to me that something "seemed" fishy.
During the middle of the week my 14 yr old said, "You need to test him for drugs" and I was flabbergasted. I have no idea where this is coming from, so I had to question his reasoning. He said that he just didn't feel right about what happened because he always gets pestered to play outside and no one invited him, nor the other cousin... Not really enough evidence there.. But I did agree to talk to 13 yr old.
He bold faced lied. I was not aware of the lie, but my eldest would not let it go, he said he would find evidence. I said if he had evidence, or there were several weird situations I would be more into checking out the story and thinking I was lied to, but my DS2 had never lied to me.
Then DS1 managed to get one cousin to out himself in chat by saying that they were all caught. The "oh crap" said it all.
Slowly my son told me that his older cousin/brother (yes you read that right) gave him "something" and he has no idea what it was. Upon further questioning I found out that same child gave him something on Labor day weekend! That was a 72 hour stint with his fathers side of the family. He openly gave up the first time and seemed honestly distraught. I could almost feel the sigh of relief that he was able to let go of this lie.
I told my son that we are going to have a plan set forth. He is going to sign a contract that is going to give him natural consequence for future actions and hold him accountable for his past discretion.
1. Should he ever choose to do drugs, or alcohol, while in care of his fathers side of the family, he will not be allowed any overnight visits. His father lives over 4 hours away, he understands that he will only see his dad for a few hours the 4 or 5 times a year his father comes to get his brother. I will not go downstate to take him on visits to rest of family, so he will be giving up visits with them all together.
2. Should he ever choose to do drugs, or alcohol while in my care, he will IMMEDIATELY return to homeschooling where I can better scrutinize his friends, and their parenting situation and home life. This does not equate to sheltering and not doing anything, just that he has me there for better back up before he makes a bad choice. (the dude, my mom would soooo know because I see her in 20 minutes excuse)
I don't know that it will be the end of this for him, because when asked why he would never do drugs again he said "I don't want to disappoint you, and I don't want to do this again, (the contract) I asked him what would stop him in the future (he had admitted liking the feeling of being on the drug) and he said that he wouldn't want to have to explain it to his kids, or try and stop his kids from doing drugs. I also asked what would he have done if one of his little siblings had done it and he suspected, he replied that he would do the same as his big brother did for him.
I told them that all those sound great, but an even better answer was "because he is WORTH NOT DOING THEM!" I tried to impart to him that he is important, he is an individual, and I like him the way he is. He doesn't do his hair like anyone else in the family, he prefers chinos to jeans, and likes goofy hats, there is no reason why he needs to try and "fit in."
I can only hope that he takes it to heart, and follows through.
I raise my children with the understanding that they can come to me when they make a bad choice, this does not mean there will be no consequence and I wont get mad, but it will lessen their punishment and we will talk about taking responsibility for their actions.
This week I found out that my 13 yr old has done drugs. Mind you, he was not in my care, so I shouldn't feel too bad, but I am a mother, I do blame myself for letting him down somehow.
My two eldest sons went to their fathers side of the family this weekend so they could get all 17 cousins in a family picture. I figured this was a fairly safe activity, and they would get to see their father for a bit when he got out of work on Sunday. They were gone about 48 hours, in care of their family.
Back story on family, the Aunt has adopted 5 children, the Grandma has adopted 8, these people have big hearts. They have been through the ringer from time to time and most of the children are grown now.
Now to my story, some of these cousins have been making bad choices. I would not disallow my boys the chance to be in a picture with said children, but I would not allow them to be unsupervised either. The one child, had he been mine, would be homeschooled a long time ago and only at homeschooled functions and sanctioned activities under direct super vision because he lacks respect for any authority, but that is another blog...
The family that was watching the kids "lost" them for 20 minutes. Assumed they were doing something wrong and questioned my son about it, being that my 13 yr old has never been into trouble they believed his story. No one told me when they dropped him off to me that something "seemed" fishy.
During the middle of the week my 14 yr old said, "You need to test him for drugs" and I was flabbergasted. I have no idea where this is coming from, so I had to question his reasoning. He said that he just didn't feel right about what happened because he always gets pestered to play outside and no one invited him, nor the other cousin... Not really enough evidence there.. But I did agree to talk to 13 yr old.
He bold faced lied. I was not aware of the lie, but my eldest would not let it go, he said he would find evidence. I said if he had evidence, or there were several weird situations I would be more into checking out the story and thinking I was lied to, but my DS2 had never lied to me.
Then DS1 managed to get one cousin to out himself in chat by saying that they were all caught. The "oh crap" said it all.
Slowly my son told me that his older cousin/brother (yes you read that right) gave him "something" and he has no idea what it was. Upon further questioning I found out that same child gave him something on Labor day weekend! That was a 72 hour stint with his fathers side of the family. He openly gave up the first time and seemed honestly distraught. I could almost feel the sigh of relief that he was able to let go of this lie.
I told my son that we are going to have a plan set forth. He is going to sign a contract that is going to give him natural consequence for future actions and hold him accountable for his past discretion.
1. Should he ever choose to do drugs, or alcohol, while in care of his fathers side of the family, he will not be allowed any overnight visits. His father lives over 4 hours away, he understands that he will only see his dad for a few hours the 4 or 5 times a year his father comes to get his brother. I will not go downstate to take him on visits to rest of family, so he will be giving up visits with them all together.
2. Should he ever choose to do drugs, or alcohol while in my care, he will IMMEDIATELY return to homeschooling where I can better scrutinize his friends, and their parenting situation and home life. This does not equate to sheltering and not doing anything, just that he has me there for better back up before he makes a bad choice. (the dude, my mom would soooo know because I see her in 20 minutes excuse)
I don't know that it will be the end of this for him, because when asked why he would never do drugs again he said "I don't want to disappoint you, and I don't want to do this again, (the contract) I asked him what would stop him in the future (he had admitted liking the feeling of being on the drug) and he said that he wouldn't want to have to explain it to his kids, or try and stop his kids from doing drugs. I also asked what would he have done if one of his little siblings had done it and he suspected, he replied that he would do the same as his big brother did for him.
I told them that all those sound great, but an even better answer was "because he is WORTH NOT DOING THEM!" I tried to impart to him that he is important, he is an individual, and I like him the way he is. He doesn't do his hair like anyone else in the family, he prefers chinos to jeans, and likes goofy hats, there is no reason why he needs to try and "fit in."
I can only hope that he takes it to heart, and follows through.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
pumpkin rice crispy treats
This isn't going to be a pretty entry into the blog, but it will be one none the less lol!
I decided that I wanted to use some pumpkin in SOMETHING! While looking around the kitchen I realized that I needed to make that batch of rice crispy treats I promised the kids, and a new idea was born! lol
I started with 1.5 tablespoons of butter, and 5 cups of mini marshmallows. Melt in big non stick pot, stirring often! I really like to make sure that all the mallows are coated with the butter as they melt over a medium to low heat. I don't want to scorch the butter or burn the mallows.
I added about 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg while stirring. When combined and melty I tossed in 1/4 cup of plain pumpkin. Stir constantly to mix well and keep anything from sticking or burning. Once the pumpkin seemed like it was going to start to cook I turned off the heat and quickly stirred in 6 cups of rice crispy cereal.
Take a buttered glass baking dish and pack tightly with crispy treats. Fridge over night.
This did not turn out with an overwhelming "pumpkin" taste, instead it was a mild pumpkin and the major flavor was the cinnamon. I only made this first batch on a whim, so we will see if I can play around with it to get different results. I do not believe that I can add more pumpkin, then the crispy treats might not hold properly.
6 out of 7 that are allowed to eat solids liked them. The one said she prefers the one with the mini chocolate chips and regular much better.
Play around in the kitchen! See what you can come up with. :)
I decided that I wanted to use some pumpkin in SOMETHING! While looking around the kitchen I realized that I needed to make that batch of rice crispy treats I promised the kids, and a new idea was born! lol
I started with 1.5 tablespoons of butter, and 5 cups of mini marshmallows. Melt in big non stick pot, stirring often! I really like to make sure that all the mallows are coated with the butter as they melt over a medium to low heat. I don't want to scorch the butter or burn the mallows.
I added about 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg while stirring. When combined and melty I tossed in 1/4 cup of plain pumpkin. Stir constantly to mix well and keep anything from sticking or burning. Once the pumpkin seemed like it was going to start to cook I turned off the heat and quickly stirred in 6 cups of rice crispy cereal.
Take a buttered glass baking dish and pack tightly with crispy treats. Fridge over night.
This did not turn out with an overwhelming "pumpkin" taste, instead it was a mild pumpkin and the major flavor was the cinnamon. I only made this first batch on a whim, so we will see if I can play around with it to get different results. I do not believe that I can add more pumpkin, then the crispy treats might not hold properly.
6 out of 7 that are allowed to eat solids liked them. The one said she prefers the one with the mini chocolate chips and regular much better.
Play around in the kitchen! See what you can come up with. :)
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Are you KIDDING ME? What is a life worth?
I get that if we let one person slide, then we have to let everyone slide. I have eight children that remind me of what is fair each and every day.
They also remind me that I have to be held accountable for my actions/reactions.
So when I read an article of how fire fighters didn't respond to a fire over 75$, well, I just don't know how to react. Sure, the guy should have paid his fee. According to the video he has paid the fee in the past, according to the article he said he didn't really think it mattered. If they allowed him to not pay the fee and then the outskirts would ALL want services with out paying and the loss to the fire department would be big. I "get it," I really do.
But what if his wife was in there? His child? They didn't come AT ALL. They knew that there was a building that people eat, sleep, LIVE in, that was a blaze and they didn't come. It wasn't until a neighbor, who had payed the fee that year, called and said come protect my house. Then the fire fighters sat there and what this mans entire life go up into flames.
If it were me, I would not be able to sit there and watch this mans history/legacy get erased by flames when I had gallons upon gallons of water at the ready. I can only assume that the fire department will be held accountable for their inaction.
For the story, as opposed to my reaction, look here.
What do you think? Are you on one side, the other? Can you see both sides to the story?
They also remind me that I have to be held accountable for my actions/reactions.
So when I read an article of how fire fighters didn't respond to a fire over 75$, well, I just don't know how to react. Sure, the guy should have paid his fee. According to the video he has paid the fee in the past, according to the article he said he didn't really think it mattered. If they allowed him to not pay the fee and then the outskirts would ALL want services with out paying and the loss to the fire department would be big. I "get it," I really do.
But what if his wife was in there? His child? They didn't come AT ALL. They knew that there was a building that people eat, sleep, LIVE in, that was a blaze and they didn't come. It wasn't until a neighbor, who had payed the fee that year, called and said come protect my house. Then the fire fighters sat there and what this mans entire life go up into flames.
If it were me, I would not be able to sit there and watch this mans history/legacy get erased by flames when I had gallons upon gallons of water at the ready. I can only assume that the fire department will be held accountable for their inaction.
For the story, as opposed to my reaction, look here.
What do you think? Are you on one side, the other? Can you see both sides to the story?
Friday, October 1, 2010
homelessness can hit when you least expect it
I know there are some people that have heard me say that I was homeless, with 8 kids. Let me start by saying it is very true. Was I completely to blame? No. Was the government to blame for lack of jobs or not enough help? No. It was a series of events that led to something much bigger than I could ever imagine. No one thing can be blamed.
For me to really go in depth I would have to write a book. For the short, which will still be really long, of it then stick around. Perhaps grab a cup of coffee and a sweet treat to keep you company at the desk.
We were living in an apartment in a very busy town, which means the cost of living was high. Being that my first two children are from a previous relationship and the father was paying some child support to me, I was living with my current DH and we both had good jobs and only 2 kids together, the cost of living was not that bad. But then things started to take a downturn.
The apartment complex was not keeping up with the building and my children were getting sick, this and the rising cost of the apartment (and the city health inspector) caused us to look for another apartment. I found one but it was income sensitive. We qualified and it was going to be a major break so I said lets go!
We moved to a new city that I knew nothing about. We only qualified because my family was "larger" The apartment was home for several years, but we had to move, again, when we "outgrew" it by state standards. State says *two heartbeats* per bedroom, and they only had 4 bedrooms so when I gave birth to my 5th child during our lease, we had to go upon renewal.
Which is when we found a very small 3 bedroom privately owned. No one cares how many kids you have when the house is privately owned. So thankfully this was our mainstay for a while. One day a homeschooling friend in our group said that they were trying to sell their big 5 bedroom house, but they couldn't because it didn't really have a yard. There was no side yard, or back yard, no garage, and barely any side yard on the street side. There was yard in the front for the kids to play and the house was huge. We could do land contract! Perfect!
So we moved again. Here I am, after birthing my 7th child, and come to find they have financial troubles. They have to "turn in" the keys of the property that I am living in, but they can move us to this other property. So I move and we bring a renter to help us cover utilities, this place used to be 4 apartments and was turned into one house, so we just left one apartment and had the other 3 for us.
Until we found that they did not have occupancy permit! So we moved, again.
While living in the new house we quickly realized that my ex was no longer going to help out with his two sons, I no longer had a job, and DH was never going to get a raise. Food stamps were common place in our city for just a family of 3. let alone a family of 9, with a new one on the way. We asked our landlord to help us get help.
The only way that we could get help for our rent was if he tried to evict us. I explained it to him so he applied through the court and we went and saw the judge and got the proper eviction papers. Then I promptly turned them into the state asking for help. DH had signed up for schooling so that he could get skilled in a new job that would be able to fully support us with out help from ex and with out help from foodstamps. We just needed to bide about 2 months or so. Just enough to get through the program and we figured our savings would be depleted just about time for things to turn around.
Then we got the notice that DHS (department of human services) declined us. They said that the 800$ of rent was not affordable. A 4 bedroom house, housing 9 people. We would have to move or figure something out they said. So we applied for FEMA through our local community action agency. They helped, but it was only a one month help per year. So we would be back in the situation the following month. We also found out that the program that DH was waiting to get in had been delayed. He would be still stuck at his minimum wage job, and we would be homeless.
I researched camping, it was about 25$ a night, much better than a hotel, but not doable for an entire month when we were going to be living off of minimum wage and there was no way for me to get work with his work schedule. We figured with our big van we could camp some, and sleep in the van some. It would work until he got out of school and we did have ONE month more before the eviction went through because we got help we got that bonus month.
Our dear friends said come, move across the entire state and live with us. We just bought a small home and you can stay with us till things turn around, at the max lets say a year. * I was totally set on two months but they assured me it would probably be longer* So we moved. Packed what we could and drove across the entire state with what could fit in a truck and van.
We live off of 30 to 32 thousand a year ( that's including the food assistance we receive!) and we live a good life. We can only thank our good friends that took us in. Their family of 7 and my family of 10 all living in a 900 sq foot, 3 bedroom, house for a year. Not only did they help when my family didn't, they went above and beyond and didn't judge. They never once condemned any of our choices. Thanks to them we are safely in a "fixer upper" and DH has finished his program, and found a good job. We can only go up from here!
This is a true account of my story. It is not a complete account as there is not time for it all in this blog. Remember that homelessness doesn't have a face.
For me to really go in depth I would have to write a book. For the short, which will still be really long, of it then stick around. Perhaps grab a cup of coffee and a sweet treat to keep you company at the desk.
We were living in an apartment in a very busy town, which means the cost of living was high. Being that my first two children are from a previous relationship and the father was paying some child support to me, I was living with my current DH and we both had good jobs and only 2 kids together, the cost of living was not that bad. But then things started to take a downturn.
The apartment complex was not keeping up with the building and my children were getting sick, this and the rising cost of the apartment (and the city health inspector) caused us to look for another apartment. I found one but it was income sensitive. We qualified and it was going to be a major break so I said lets go!
We moved to a new city that I knew nothing about. We only qualified because my family was "larger" The apartment was home for several years, but we had to move, again, when we "outgrew" it by state standards. State says *two heartbeats* per bedroom, and they only had 4 bedrooms so when I gave birth to my 5th child during our lease, we had to go upon renewal.
Which is when we found a very small 3 bedroom privately owned. No one cares how many kids you have when the house is privately owned. So thankfully this was our mainstay for a while. One day a homeschooling friend in our group said that they were trying to sell their big 5 bedroom house, but they couldn't because it didn't really have a yard. There was no side yard, or back yard, no garage, and barely any side yard on the street side. There was yard in the front for the kids to play and the house was huge. We could do land contract! Perfect!
So we moved again. Here I am, after birthing my 7th child, and come to find they have financial troubles. They have to "turn in" the keys of the property that I am living in, but they can move us to this other property. So I move and we bring a renter to help us cover utilities, this place used to be 4 apartments and was turned into one house, so we just left one apartment and had the other 3 for us.
Until we found that they did not have occupancy permit! So we moved, again.
While living in the new house we quickly realized that my ex was no longer going to help out with his two sons, I no longer had a job, and DH was never going to get a raise. Food stamps were common place in our city for just a family of 3. let alone a family of 9, with a new one on the way. We asked our landlord to help us get help.
The only way that we could get help for our rent was if he tried to evict us. I explained it to him so he applied through the court and we went and saw the judge and got the proper eviction papers. Then I promptly turned them into the state asking for help. DH had signed up for schooling so that he could get skilled in a new job that would be able to fully support us with out help from ex and with out help from foodstamps. We just needed to bide about 2 months or so. Just enough to get through the program and we figured our savings would be depleted just about time for things to turn around.
Then we got the notice that DHS (department of human services) declined us. They said that the 800$ of rent was not affordable. A 4 bedroom house, housing 9 people. We would have to move or figure something out they said. So we applied for FEMA through our local community action agency. They helped, but it was only a one month help per year. So we would be back in the situation the following month. We also found out that the program that DH was waiting to get in had been delayed. He would be still stuck at his minimum wage job, and we would be homeless.
I researched camping, it was about 25$ a night, much better than a hotel, but not doable for an entire month when we were going to be living off of minimum wage and there was no way for me to get work with his work schedule. We figured with our big van we could camp some, and sleep in the van some. It would work until he got out of school and we did have ONE month more before the eviction went through because we got help we got that bonus month.
Our dear friends said come, move across the entire state and live with us. We just bought a small home and you can stay with us till things turn around, at the max lets say a year. * I was totally set on two months but they assured me it would probably be longer* So we moved. Packed what we could and drove across the entire state with what could fit in a truck and van.
We live off of 30 to 32 thousand a year ( that's including the food assistance we receive!) and we live a good life. We can only thank our good friends that took us in. Their family of 7 and my family of 10 all living in a 900 sq foot, 3 bedroom, house for a year. Not only did they help when my family didn't, they went above and beyond and didn't judge. They never once condemned any of our choices. Thanks to them we are safely in a "fixer upper" and DH has finished his program, and found a good job. We can only go up from here!
This is a true account of my story. It is not a complete account as there is not time for it all in this blog. Remember that homelessness doesn't have a face.
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