Education

10/27/11

Having a child brings a whole. New. World. The world of education. When do you start teaching them things? What do you teach? Should they go to pre-school? Public school? Home school? Private? So many questions!!!

Well that's WAY too many questions to answer right now. But I do know that as of now I am planning on homeschooling and honestly it's already starting. It's nothing fancy or really structured. It's just being intentional and interacting with her. I do have this book that I got when Abigail was first born. I am for the Montessori methods at the young ages, for the most part. It's an awesome book that explains a lot of their development.

I also got this book. You know that dvd set, My Baby Can Read? Well, this book is from the actual institute and guy that stumbled onto this concept of teaching kids to read. It's extremely informative and I couldn't put it down!! It lays out all the steps of how to teach your child to read and all the benefits for their brains when doing that.

Here's a few things I have for Abigail right now. I have a couple Montessori toys for her and a book that has tons of crafts and ideas. Then I have cards that are sand paper letters and cards with pictures on them.

Here are those cards. I am so excited to use them with her!

My Baby Can Read....

I have heard a lot about that program and a couple of my friends have it now. One of my friends who has it doesn't really use it anymore, but today we decided to put our girls in front of it. After looking at everything, the books and dvd's, I have concluded that I like it but I don't. I don't like putting my child in front of the TV for 25 minutes straight and expecting her to watch it all. I do like the books and cards though.

Kyle and I decided before Abigail was born to not have her watch TV at all for the first couple years of her life at least...not that it won't ever be on. But I mean put a show on just for her and sit her in front of it. It's extremely bad for their ability to learn and causes lots of issues. Everything I've read has said that there's no reason for a child 2 years and under to watch TV. So true! They don' know anythings about it. We as parents are usually the ones to introduce it to them. It's usually by our laziness that we sit them in front of it.

So when I sat in front of the My Baby Can Read, I cringed. I know it's educational but I don't think it's necessary to teach her that stuff through the television. I can teach her the same stuff without it. Will it take more time on my part? Yes. Will it be inconvenient sometimes? Yes. Will it not give me a "babysitter" when I want to get a few things done. Yup. But the truth is, I've been fine without it the whole time! I enjoy not turning on the TV everyday. I like listening to music or just playing in silence. That's ok.

Now, if someone reading this has this dvd set and likes it, that's fine! This isn't bashing or looking down on anyone who does. It took me a while to get myself "off" watching TV when Abigail was first born and it was hard, honestly. I was addicted to stupid morning shows and crude primetime dramas. So I don't want to go back to watching it during the day and especially using it as a tool to get stuff done and keep my child occupied. So that's where I am with education right now. Would love advice from parents who have taken similar routes as I am. :)

Birthday Party!

10/26/11

Abigail's first birthday party!!!

Like I said, my daughter turned 1. CRAZY! Well, the party was mostly a success...I didn't get to do everything I wanted and was rushed right before the party cause I didn't give myself ample time to decorate and such :/....but life goes on and it was her first birthday...she's not going to have a clue!

Here's the invitation. I did different paper backgrounds. I liked it :)

Here's a fun banner I made.

The spectacular cake and cupcakes Abigail's grandma made!

Here's the birthday girl in her party hat.

Not so sure about this cake and frosting deal.

Ate some frosting but that was it. Wasn't really into it....all that healthy eating is paying off ;)

We also went to Chick-fil-a on her birthday and let her try chicken nuggets there for the first time. She liked them until I put a grape down and threw the chicken on the floor to eat the grape. ha! I love it.

But all the people that came were so amazing and gracious. Abigail got lots of presents and money towards her Education Savings Account! Thank you to everyone who made her first birthday special :)

Birthday Present

10/17/11

This is a shorter post, but you're probably relieved! ha. I am working hard on stuff for Abigail's first birthday party which is on Saturday. So lots and lots of things to do! Can't wait to post pics of it all.

My future sis-in-law...that's what I like to say...Rebecca...had a birthday on October 13th. I saw her this last weekend and gave her the birthday present I made this last week. I think it turned out great and I've never made one like it before!

It is a block! I used a piece of wood and painted the back, then used scrapbook paper and buttons for the rest. My handy-dandy Cricut was fabulous and printed the letters so fast. All I had to do was glue everything on! She seemed to like it and I am so excited about the future :)

1 Year Old

10/15/11

Happy Birthday to my little Abigail!!

One year ago I was in the hospital recovering and soaking in my child. I was in awe at how precious she was. I still think it's amazing, even more so since having a child, how two people can create another human being. God's design is mysterious and beautiful.

What are all the things my little monkey doodle does now?! Well, she is pretty much over crawling. She walks as much as possible. She is learning to use a fork and a spoon, and is good at it! Drinking out of her new sippy, with a straw, is going well too. Doggie and kitty are words Abigail is working on. Her love for books is still going strong. She has found a new love for the outdoors. At first she hated being outside in the grass. Now, she will practically jump out of my arms to get out the door if it's open!

Here she is in her playhouse outside. She finally discovered it the other day and played in it at least 5 minutes. :)

My walking girl!

Playing more.

Can I get cuter? Somehow she does....each day!

My little girl, how I love you. I can't explain the bond we have. I am so blessed and grateful to be your mommy :)

Surprise!

10/11/11

On Friday night my sister and I threw a surprise party for my mom's 50th birthday! It was fun and we had fun doing it. I wish I could blog about all the other fun things I've been doing but there really is no time! Maybe someday...but who really wants to see my life anyways??!

Here's what was on the menu:

Appetizers...3 different kinds of hummus, almond and cranberry chicken salad, both served on melba toast, and mozzarella sticks (what do you expect with men at the party? ha)

Main Dish...Caesar salad, veggie lasagna, sausage and mushroom lasagna, ground beef lasagna, and garlic bread. We made the noodles for the lasagna. This was as homemade as you can get! The veggie lasagna had lots of different vegetables in it also. Fantastic!

Dessert....I made vanilla cupcakes with buttercream frosting and my sister made a butter pecan cake. We had some french vanilla ice cream too. yum!

I took some pics of part of the noodle making process. We made spinach noodles. Man, my sis can cook! Wonder where we got it from????? ;)

The dough started in a ball (kneaded for 10 minutes) and this is when she started rolling it out.

Here is it getting bigger...

Now she is cutting the sheets for the lasagna. This thing was almost as big as my island!

Here's a pic with my parents...we are being goofy :) It was a success and my mom loved it! Happy 50th Mom!

Abigail...11 months and Fall!

9/27/11

Fall is here! This means, fall decor is out.

Exciting. I think fall is my favorite season. I look forward to Christmas and the snow until the new year. But I like fall. Jackets, jeans, sweatshirts, and cute clothes layering is fun. Plus warm cider, hay, pumpkins, leaves, color, and cool weather brings so many warm memories. Here's some of my decorating.

Love my scarecrows. I got them the first year we were married, on clearance :)

Cute basket with flowers I put together the other year too. Cost me about $2.

Different look this year. I have pumpkin salt and pepper shakers on the leaf plate.

This is a new project my hubby started. I like it. 2 huge boulders in our front yard at the corner. He always has great ideas. Soon there will be grasses and plants around this. I really like it cause most of his projects outside don't cost us money...just like this one :)

....................

Now to my girl. I haven't had time to post her 11 month update. So here it is, a little late. She has changed and grown even more this month. She is now walking and the last couple days she's been walking as much as possible at home. Crazy! She's also responding even more to things I say. She said "g-ma" yesterday! She also said "night night" when she went to bed tonight. I love this girl. We have so much fun together.

Here she was playing with a bowl. She kept knocking and pushing it everywhere and chasing it.

What a cutie. I love how playful she is. Lots of days I find her in her room playing by herself and "reading" her books. She still loves books. I like to go and secretly watch her and giggle to myself. The warm moments of mommy hood :)

The other day she had a huge curl in her hair. I love her curls after baths. So I tried to get a good picture of it. She's so beautiful.

This is Abby exploring the outdoors with lots of trees. We waited to pick up Kyle from work a week and a half ago and his boss's house has lots of acorns. Well, here she is trying to shove one in her mouth, while practicing walking, and trying to get away from me. Ha. She is really warming up to playing outside. She used to not like grass and didn't explore. That's changed!

Abby will be a year old in half a month. My goodness! I can't wait to post about her birthday party and one year update.....well, I can wait :) I want to cherish all these moments of her first year. I can't believe it's already almost over 'tear'.

Where is God?

9/25/11

Goals can be made, articles read, and a step by step program laid out for you on losing weight or being healthy. You can commit to exercising 3 times a week and have a buddy call you to keep you accountable. Within 3 weeks your motivation is gone and you just want to eat those cookies and order a pizza. Exercise is a joke on a Saturday....annnd suddenly it's an impossible task during the week. You "don't" have time, your back hurts, etc.

What happened to the excitement? The suspense of fitting into your pre-pregnancy jeans again? Where did it go? I propose that the focus is wrong. I propose that we try to do it on our own strength.

This week's challenge, I would like to push you to seek God about how to be healthy. Now, I'm not talking about just doing whatever you want and saying, "Well if God wants me to eat healthy then He better put the fruit and veggies on my doorstep." I'm talking about REALLY, truly seeking Him. How many of us (Christians) treat our bodies the way Christ wants us to? How many of us thinks He cares? How many of us have asked Him to help us? To show us where we need to change? To show us how to change?

Now, there are guidelines to this other than just saying, "Lord, help me be healthy." because that is very general. God gave us brains. With those brains, very committed and intelligent people have researched the best ways of being healthy. I think if we look at the things that are proven to be healthy and pray about how to implement those areas into our life, God will show us.

Maybe you can't see the areas you lack. God give us eyes to see.

Maybe you are very busy. God give us energy and planning to fit things in to reach a healthy life.

Maybe you are tight on money. God give us resources and careful planning to purchase food that honors You and fills our body the right way.

Maybe you don't have motivation. God give us a renewed energy and a passion to honor You with our health.

Here are guidelines that we know keep us healthy...

• Eating whole foods (fruits, vegetables, not processed)
• Eating lean protein
• Exercising several days a week for at least 30 minutes
• Eating little junk food
• Eating smaller portions, 5-6 times a day
• Drinking around 72 oz of water and not drinking sodas/diet sodas

Now that we see the guidelines, I challenge you to pray about them each day this week. Seek wisdom and direction from the Lord of how to incorporate these into your life at least once a day. I would love to hear stories about what God does in your life. If you ask, He will move. Give it to Him. So where is God? Hopefully He will be in all these things!