Wednesday, July 27, 2011
When What I Really Want is a Pity Party.....
I look back at what I wrote yesterday....I told you it was more for me than for you :)
When 64 Colors Aren't Enough
So in my former life, I was a teacher....I spent the majority of my career teaching Language Arts (reading, writing...grammar when I could sneak it in) to 7th and 8th graders. Actually, not a lot has changed....I'm still teaching a lot of L.A. and the maturity of 2 and 4 year olds *is* a lot like that of 12-15 year olds :)
Anyway, while I was teaching the writing process, I was known for some....out of the box ways to combat writer's block as well as editing and proofreading. One of my favorites was to tell 15 year old boys to lay on the floor and write in crayon. Yep...crayon...worked every time. Well, every time they were willing to try it. There is something paralizing about holding a pencil and staring at a blank page. But while holding a crayon, they're so focused on how rediculous writing with a crayon is that they forget they were stuck and the ideas FLOW!!
Apparently it's the same with little kids. Not so much from a writer's block perspective, but from a it's-really-the-same-activity-but-because-we've-changed-one-thing-Mommy-buys-herself-more-time-to-cook-dinner perspective. My four year old has been coloring and making cards in the afternoon all week. She just made her umteenth card for Daddy, but I wasn't quite finished getting dinner in the oven and I didn't want to turn on the TV for them......so....
Black construction paper and yellow chalk! A whole new world of coloring discovery.
It's the little things.
To steal a line from one of my favorite blogs: "It's great to be a homeschooler." :)
Oh, and sorry there are no pictures of our latest art work. My camera is MIA and my Droid has gremlins...grrr...but that's a different blog post.
Anyway, while I was teaching the writing process, I was known for some....out of the box ways to combat writer's block as well as editing and proofreading. One of my favorites was to tell 15 year old boys to lay on the floor and write in crayon. Yep...crayon...worked every time. Well, every time they were willing to try it. There is something paralizing about holding a pencil and staring at a blank page. But while holding a crayon, they're so focused on how rediculous writing with a crayon is that they forget they were stuck and the ideas FLOW!!
Apparently it's the same with little kids. Not so much from a writer's block perspective, but from a it's-really-the-same-activity-but-because-we've-changed-one-thing-Mommy-buys-herself-more-time-to-cook-dinner perspective. My four year old has been coloring and making cards in the afternoon all week. She just made her umteenth card for Daddy, but I wasn't quite finished getting dinner in the oven and I didn't want to turn on the TV for them......so....
Black construction paper and yellow chalk! A whole new world of coloring discovery.
It's the little things.
To steal a line from one of my favorite blogs: "It's great to be a homeschooler." :)
Oh, and sorry there are no pictures of our latest art work. My camera is MIA and my Droid has gremlins...grrr...but that's a different blog post.
Monday, July 25, 2011
When You.....
This is more a reminder for me than advice for any of you amazing mommies out there. Heard a song tonight while I was sewing wet bags. My girls are up stairs asleep....and my little man is in the other room with his daddy....most likely tummy down in the crook of Daddy's arm as Daddy paces back and forth trying desperately to keep Lil Dude quiet so he can hear the baseball game.
So I was sitting at the kitchen table sewing wet bags (furiously...and continually kicking the dogs out from under the table....we've already had one bag with a doggie assist...I don't need any more!) listening to Pandora. A song I'd never heard before came on....which almost always means a check in the "thumbs down" box....I'm not much for branching out. Then the lyrics caught me.
(if I was fancy and tech savvy, I'd post the song here for you to listen to as you read....if you know how to do that, please let me know....otherwise, you'll just have to use your imagination. Ya know, like if you're in hypnotherapy and the shrink tells you to imagine yourself on a beach or something like that)
"Sacred"
by Caedmon's Call
This house is a good mess
It's the proof of life
No way would I trade jobs
But it don't pay overtime
I'll get to the laundry
I don't know when
I'm saying a prayer tonight
'Cause tomorrow it starts again
Could it be that everything is sacred?
And all this time
Everything I've dreamed of
Has been right before my eyes
The children are sleeping
But they're running through my mind
The sun makes them happy
And the music makes them unwind
My cup runneth over
I worry about the stain
Teach me to run to You
Like they run to me for every little thing
'Cause everything is sacred?
And all this time
Everything I've dreamed of
Has been right before my eyes
When I forget to drink from you
I can feel the banks harden
Lord, make me like a stream
To feed the garden
Wake up, little sleeper
The Lord, God Almighty
Made your Mama keeper
So rise and shine
Rise and shine, rise and shine 'cause
Everything is sacred
And all this time
Everything I've dreamed of
Has been right before my eyes
(me again)
When you can't stand to do the dishes, offer a prayer for someone who doesn't have enough food.
When your baby wakes up crying in the middle of the night, offer a prayer for someone who wants desperately to have a baby and cannot.
When your toddler whines all day like she's expecting an academy award, offer a prayer for someone who's baby died.
When you just want to go to a movie (or the bathroom) by yourself, offer a prayer for someone suffering from lonely depression.
When the bills are due, offer a prayer for someone who lost their house.
When there are more dust bunnies than living souls in your home, offer a prayer for a true hoarder.
When you don't want to part with whatever toy or outfit or *thing* you just put in the donation box, offer a prayer for the mother who hasn't enough money for a birthday gift for her child (and then put the thing in the box!).
When it's raining for the 39th day in a row, offer a prayer for someone who's home was flooded.
When it's over 100 degrees for the 5th day in a row, offer a prayer for someone who works....or lives....outside.
When you're at the grocery store and all of your best methods of confinement and bribery have made no difference in their behavior, offer a prayer for the woman who believed abortion was her only choice.
When they've asked you "why?" for the three thousandth time this hour, offer a prayer for the children whose questions only get answered by television and their peers.
When you're tired of eating leftovers, offer a prayer for the person whose dinner is whatever you threw away yesterday.
When your children say or do something that breaks your heart, offer a prayer to Mommy Mary....think of her heart breaking at the foot of the Cross.
When you feel like you just can't go on and your problems are more than you can bear.....look at the crucifix.
When all else fails (and really before you've tried "all else"), go to Mass, turn to God, have Hope.
So I was sitting at the kitchen table sewing wet bags (furiously...and continually kicking the dogs out from under the table....we've already had one bag with a doggie assist...I don't need any more!) listening to Pandora. A song I'd never heard before came on....which almost always means a check in the "thumbs down" box....I'm not much for branching out. Then the lyrics caught me.
(if I was fancy and tech savvy, I'd post the song here for you to listen to as you read....if you know how to do that, please let me know....otherwise, you'll just have to use your imagination. Ya know, like if you're in hypnotherapy and the shrink tells you to imagine yourself on a beach or something like that)
"Sacred"
by Caedmon's Call
This house is a good mess
It's the proof of life
No way would I trade jobs
But it don't pay overtime
I'll get to the laundry
I don't know when
I'm saying a prayer tonight
'Cause tomorrow it starts again
Could it be that everything is sacred?
And all this time
Everything I've dreamed of
Has been right before my eyes
The children are sleeping
But they're running through my mind
The sun makes them happy
And the music makes them unwind
My cup runneth over
I worry about the stain
Teach me to run to You
Like they run to me for every little thing
'Cause everything is sacred?
And all this time
Everything I've dreamed of
Has been right before my eyes
When I forget to drink from you
I can feel the banks harden
Lord, make me like a stream
To feed the garden
Wake up, little sleeper
The Lord, God Almighty
Made your Mama keeper
So rise and shine
Rise and shine, rise and shine 'cause
Everything is sacred
And all this time
Everything I've dreamed of
Has been right before my eyes
(me again)
When you can't stand to do the dishes, offer a prayer for someone who doesn't have enough food.
When your baby wakes up crying in the middle of the night, offer a prayer for someone who wants desperately to have a baby and cannot.
When your toddler whines all day like she's expecting an academy award, offer a prayer for someone who's baby died.
When you just want to go to a movie (or the bathroom) by yourself, offer a prayer for someone suffering from lonely depression.
When the bills are due, offer a prayer for someone who lost their house.
When there are more dust bunnies than living souls in your home, offer a prayer for a true hoarder.
When you don't want to part with whatever toy or outfit or *thing* you just put in the donation box, offer a prayer for the mother who hasn't enough money for a birthday gift for her child (and then put the thing in the box!).
When it's raining for the 39th day in a row, offer a prayer for someone who's home was flooded.
When it's over 100 degrees for the 5th day in a row, offer a prayer for someone who works....or lives....outside.
When you're at the grocery store and all of your best methods of confinement and bribery have made no difference in their behavior, offer a prayer for the woman who believed abortion was her only choice.
When they've asked you "why?" for the three thousandth time this hour, offer a prayer for the children whose questions only get answered by television and their peers.
When you're tired of eating leftovers, offer a prayer for the person whose dinner is whatever you threw away yesterday.
When your children say or do something that breaks your heart, offer a prayer to Mommy Mary....think of her heart breaking at the foot of the Cross.
When you feel like you just can't go on and your problems are more than you can bear.....look at the crucifix.
When all else fails (and really before you've tried "all else"), go to Mass, turn to God, have Hope.
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