Reading to your babies

The previous article I posted supports what you are doing with your babies. Language comes from reading to your babies not watching videos. I am so grateful for the time we had together reading late into the night. There were some memorable books: So Far From the Bamboo Grove, Island of the Blue Dolphins, Little House on the Prairie (the whole series), etc.
This week I finished reading Holes to my class (they follow along with their book and every once in a while I randomly ask a student for the next word in what I'm reading). When we were finished, my high-risk readers--kids who hadn't ever completed a book--they were the most excited as we finished a book. They clapped. They were so excited. The funny thing is, I got choked up at the end when Zero finally found his mother. I'm such an old softie.

Baby Einsteins: Not So Smart After All

Baby Einsteins: Not So Smart After All

Playlist

This wonderful collection of music is Tiffany's. I could never be this patient or creative. She just put together such a fun, high energy bunch of songs. I listen to it all the time. SO...pardon your blogstalking, blogrobbing, low-down pig stealing mama...I couldn't resist.

Useless Information

I was setting up my plans for this school year. One of the things my kids have to do is write a persuasive paragraph. Let's just say my kids this year struggled with writing anything. So this year I decided they needed to master the art of oral persuasion before they started writing. I was looking up nonsense and useless topics and I came across this hilarious website. It's called the Surrealism Server. I can't stop hitting F5 to refresh and come up with a new line. Here's the one that caught my eye:

Your intelligence attains the grand summation of molecular motion

at absolute zero.

That probably isn't very complementary. However, let's try this little gem:

Sound barricades itself into rolls of peautbutter

when you speak.

I guess I really am an odd duck. Because I can't stop laughing. I will leave you with a final complement and can only hope you'll feel inspired:

Optical delusions still themselves when you pass by in convexing pomp and sacral trance

Now, don't you feel loved?

Watching my baby grow up

I got to hear my favorite song performed yesterday. The words just jumped out at me and seem to fit this moment in time when I'm watching my last birdie fly out of the nest...so with a few small changes to the lyrics, I wanted to dedicate this song to my little Courtie Pie...

I've heard it said that people come into our lives for a reason bringing something we must learn. And we are led to those who help us most to grow if we let them And we help them in return.

Well, I don't know if I believe that's true, but I know I'm who I am today because I know you.

Like a comet pulled from orbit as it passes a sun...like a stream that meets a boulder...halfway through the wood...Who can say if I've been changed for the better? But because I know you, I have been changed for good. It well may be that we will not live near each other. So let me say before we part, so much of me is made of what I learned from you.

You'll be with me...like a handprint on my heart.

And now whatever way our stories end I know you have re-written mine by being my daughter and friend...

Like a ship blown from its mooring by a wind off the sea...like a seed dropped by a skybird in a distant wood. Who can say if I've been changed for the better? But because I know you because I know you I have been changed for good.

And just to clear the air I ask forgiveness for the things I've done you blame me for...but then, I guess we know there's blame to share...and none of it seems to matter anymore.

Like a comet pulled from orbit as it passes a sun...like a stream that meets a boulder halfway through the wood...like a ship blown from its mooring by a wind off the sea...like a seed dropped by a bird in the wood.

Who can say if I've been changed for the better? I do believe I have been changed for the better. And because I know you...Because I know you...Because I know you...I have been changed for good.

Being in the same room

My mom got a picture today of her parents(on the right)...in the same room...smiling...and no lawyers present. It is the only picture she has ever seen of the two of them together. They had a nasty miserable divorce and then custody battle over my mom that went all over the tabloids...ah yes...the purple diary. But here they are...in black and white...in the same room together. At least once. It's too bad ex's can't get along--at least for their kids' sake. I sometimes feel like my girls are too worried or uncomfortable if I am in the same room as their dad. It's too bad. Grammy has only one picture of her parents in the same room...and never after that. I'm not sure what I can say or do so the girls can feel peaceful if their parents are in the same room. I guess time will heal...it only took Grammy 76 years to see her parents in the same room.

monsters vs. aliens

My friend Leslie and I went and saw Monsters v. Aliens this weekend in 3D. It was hilarious. It was a wonderful homage to the lovely sci-fi B flicks from the 50's. It brought back great memories of those scary sci-fi flicks my dad and brother and I would watch together on Saturday or Sunday afternoons. We loved Godzilla, Creature from the Black Lagoon, Teenagers from Outer Space, and my personal favorites:

The Blob

and The Crawling Eye.

Those two movies, in particular, terrified me. The titles were scary enough. My little (now 6'2") brother loved to see me jump out of my skin at those many breathless moments--like when the little girl dropped her ball and it slowly bounced, bounced, bounced, down the stairs...didn't she KNOW the BLOB was down there????

Monsters v. Aliens, however, had the cool elements of those funny old sci-fi flicks (don't worry, no spoiler here), but it didn't have any horrible scary awful parts. So we laughed...and I remembered...and I still jumped out of my seat even if it was just from wearing those psycho 3D glasses.