Religious Education/Sunday School Teacher Gifts

You shared your divinity with me... Now I share mine with you.

I wanted to make some treats for my kids' RE teachers on their last day of class. I spent way too much time looking over recipes for fudge, bark, cupcakes, etc... Then I realized I've been wanting to make divinity for a few weeks, what better treat than divinity. I mean the definition is 1) the state of quality of being divine; 2) the study of religion; theology. Perfect! Except divinity is very, very hard to make in humid climates and we live in a humid climate. I thought I'd defy the odds and give it a go. The first batch, Chocolate Butterscotch Divinity, worked rather well. The 2nd batch never even started to hold it's form, even after 30 minutes of beating. The 3rd batch didn't form perfectly, but while beating this batch, I found out a storm was blowing in. So even though they weren't all perky like my mom's, I knew I did better than most could on a rainy day.

Since I spent all day on the candy, I didn't have much time to make the cards. They said, "You shared your divinity with me....Now I share mine with you."

Another ADD Morning

Well, we almost made it out the door without an ADD meltdown. We were so close, but then Lauren found the paper measuring chart she made yesterday. Caleb bought a How-to draw Angry Birds book at the book fair yesterday (with his own money). After school, while Abby and Spencer were napping, Lauren cut several sheets of paper in half and attached them lengthwise. Then she carefully used a ruler to make inch marks. At each foot, she made a picture of a different Angry Bird. Caleb took part in it, but I'm not sure what he did.

Last night, when Lauren and Caleb were in bed, Abby drew a rainbow and a black bird. That is what set Lauren into a panic. She screamed at Abby and told her she ruined it. I tried to calm her down, but I swear she can't hear me when she is like this. Caleb stepped in and tried to help. I can't believe how good he is at trying to fix these situations whenever they arise and he is only 7! He told Lauren, "Abby did a great job! She wanted to help and I like it, thanks, Abby!" To which Lauren replied, "Look, she made a rainbow, too, ugh!" Caleb actually told Lauren that he made the rainbow, but I know that Abby did it last night. I told Lauren I didn't want the day to start out this way, I asked her if we could turn it around and start out happy.

I took the chart away from her and told her she could make another one after school if she wanted to do her own thing, but this was a family project and she wasn't going to treat Abby that way. She was definitely "hyper-focused" as she continued to cry, scream, and shout about how it was ruined and she worked so hard. Caleb continued to tell her is was wonderful just the way it was. I lost my patience COMPLETELY and told her we had to walk out the door and if she said another word about it, I'd spank her 8 spanks (because she is 8). I really didn't want to do it, but that threat didn't deter her. I hate to admit she is really the only one who pushes me so far over the edge that I spank. I just don't know how to get her to snap out of it. Even after the 8 "spanks" (they were not full force), she went on and on so I told the others to get in the van and not to talk about it anymore. We all filed out the door and she followed us saying, "I really feel like trash."

As I was debating whether or not to address her, I decided to address her self esteem. We got into the van and it continued. So before even pulling out of the garage, I cranked up the Christian song on the radio and asked God to bring peace to the situation. I sat there and prayed. When I turned the radio down and started down the street, I heard Caleb trying again to convince Lauren. "Lauren, Abby did a good job, the chart isn't ruined. We can do things together."

How can I have 2 children only 18 months apart that are 180 degrees different? I mean, I do know the answer, I know that identical twins can be complete opposites, but really?

Lord, please show me how to understand Lauren and love her more.  Help me be more patient when she is hyper-focused and guide me in my thoughts, actions and words. Help Lauren to always know how much she is loved, even when she pushes me over the edge. Let her feel Your presence and always know she was created in Your image. Amen!

Summer Bucket List Part 2

If you haven't seen part 1, click here.

#209 Modern Art found on this site. Supplies needed: black tempera paint, Elmer's glue, watercolor paper, watercolor paints.

#210Watercolor ATC found at Art Projects for Kids. Supplies needed: watercolor paper, watercolors, brush or eyedropper, lemon juice, tissue, ballpoint pen.

#211 Fluffy Stuff found at Play Create Explore. Supplies needed: bowl, 2 boxes of cornstarch and 1 can shaving cream, powdered tempera paint optional.

#212 MYO Rainbow crayons. Supplies needed: broken crayons, empty cans, empty pill bottles, pan, water.

#213 Gigantic Bubbles. Supplies needed:   6 cups water, 1 cup corn syrup, 2 cups regular strength Joy dish soap

#214 Backyard Alphabet Hunt by Play Dr. Mom- Supplies needed: letters, objects that start with each letter of the alphabet.

#215 Lego Maze found at this French blog. Supplies needed: legos, lego mat, marble.

 

#216 Sharpie and Solo cup stained glass found here. Supplies needed: Sharpies, clear plastic cups, hole punch, string/ribbon.
1) Color the cups with the Sharpies.
2) Place the cups on foil sprayed with Pam.
3) Melt the solo cup in a 350 degree oven for 3-4 minutes
4) Immediately after taking them out of the oven, pat them down to completely flatten them and make hole if desired.

 

#217 Smash Balls found on Time For Play blog. Supplies needed: some flour, water, food coloring and cotton balls! Place them on a greased cookie sheet or aluminum foil, bake for about 45 minutes at 300 degree's. Yep, that's it. Maybe a hammer too.

 

 

#218 DIY Outdoor Scrabble found at Constantly Lovestruck. Supplies needed: 12x12 paper, giant letters, fun friends

 

#219 Tissue Paper Stained Glass Windows found here at Kinder-Craze.  Supplies needed: tissue paper squares, 2 borders, clear contact paper



 

#220 Glowing Rainbow Rice found here at Growing a Jeweled Rose. Supplies needed: rice, ziplock bags, flourescent or glow-in-the-dark paint, rubbing alcohol.

 

#221 Glow in the Dark Slime found at Domestic Charm. Supplies needed: clear or blue Elmer's glue, water, glow-in-the-dark paint, neon green food coloring, Borax

 

 

 

 

#222 Target practice from Family Fun.



 

#223 Apple Pie Play-Doh found on Little Wonders. Supplies needed: I just used our regular recipe, a lot of red food coloring and apple pie spice (cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice).

 

 

#224 Cinnamon Spice Play-Doh found on Be Organized. Supplies needed: 2 c flour, 1 c salt,  4 t cream of tartar, 5 t cinnamon, 1/2 t nutmeg,  1/2 t cloves, 2 c water,  2 T oil, food coloring

 

 

#225 Beautiful Dough Ornaments found on Pinterest. Supplies needed: 1/2 cup cornstarch, 1 cup baking soda, 3/4 cup water. Bake at 175 for about an hour.

 

 

#226 Yarn embossing found at We Heart Art. Supplies needed: foil, yarn, Sharpies, and spray adhesive.

 

 

#227 Sharpie stained glass found at 2me4art. Supplies needed: Sharpies, inexpensive craft paper.

 

 

#228 Paper Plate Weaving

 

#229 Watercolor mosaic found on this blog.

 

 

Work in progress, come back tomorrow for more.

Lent 2013

 

 

I love decorating for the holidays. I have precious memories of my mom decorating and I want to do the same for my kids. I think I might have a holiday decorating obsession. Every time we go into Hobby Lobby, I quickly head to the holiday display that sweetly greets me as I enter. I don't have one Pinterest Board for all holidays, I have a separate board for each and every one and I really enjoy browsing other people's holiday boards and planning for the next year.

 

This year I finally started a Lenten display. I wanted to last year, but I just couldn't get it together. We do not have a mantle so I had to make-do atop some shelves in our living room. It is a very simple scene, inspired by my friends, but simplicity is what we are called to so I believe it is perfect. It served it's purpose of reminding my family of what was to come and to pray more than ever.

 

We also "buried" the Alleluia and it resurfaced Easter morning. I forgot to give my kids the countdown coloring sheet on Catholic Icing, but Easter morning I did start the 50 days to Pentecost countdown. They help me prepare for Divine Mercy Sunday, Ascension, and Pentecost. I only wish I had learned about the beauty of Catholicism a long time ago.

 

 

 

 



Curse You, ADD: A family's journey

Most of my friends know that Lauren(8) has ADD. She wasn't diagnosed until the middle of first grade, even though some of the symptoms starting showing up a few weeks before she started Kindergarten. Since I worked at her school in KG and 1st grade, I visited with her teachers frequently about my concerns. Her KG teacher, Mrs. Baskett, was just wonderful. She told me that Lauren did handle things differently, but she didn't expect her students to be like robots, all acting the exact same way. She also said that with Lauren's determination, she will be a CEO one day.

I'll talk about her diagnosis in another post. This morning I was faced with another ADD meltdown and on my way to take the kids to school, I decided I would track our experiences through blogging.

On Thursday mornings Stephen leaves bright and early so he can attend a men's group at church. That means I am all on my own for morning routine. We have it down to a science. Stephen makes the kids' lunches before he leaves and I wake the kids up, make sure they get dressed quickly, prepare their breakfast, and remind them to brush their teeth and hair. Sounds simple, right? I don't have to remind Caleb (7) to do anything. As a matter of fact, I wake him up 15 minutes later than Lauren and he still runs circles around her. At the beginning of the school year, Lauren was barely getting it all done before we were walking out the door. I am pleased to announce that now we have about 15 minutes to spare.

So this morning Lauren had extra time and she asked me if she could do my hair. This was a very strange request, Lauren doesn't usually ask to spend time with me. I really didn't want her pulling on my hair and tangling it, but I knew it was an important moment to bond so I agreed. She gathered my hair into 6 rubber bands (I have really long hair right now). She tried making the design where you make several ponytails at the top of the head, then take half from one ponytail and half from another to make a new ponytail. When she was finished she said it didn't look very good. I did my best to assure her that it was great and all things take practice to get better.

Just as we do every morning, I went upstairs to carry Abby and Spencer down from their beds. That is a signal that we are getting ready to leave. When I told Lauren and Caleb to get their backpacks, Lauren decided she needed to look for her Kanani chapter book. I told her she did not have time, we had to walk out the door and that she had plenty of time to look instead of doing my hair. She insisted that one of the kids must have moved it. This is part of her ADD, she always blurts out that someone else must have moved things that she can not find. I told her not to accuse others and that we had to leave. She proceeded up the stairs. I grabbed her arms and lifted her in the air and put her down on the couch while telling her, "Lauren, you are hyper-focused. You need to stop right now. We are going to school." She burst into tears. This surprised me because she usually does not 'get it.' She said, "I have done something REALLY, REALLY bad. I have done something AWFUL." I was totally surprised, when she gets hyper-focused, we usually can not redirect her for a long time. Then she said, "You hair just looks so bad."

See, ADD! She totally missed the part about not getting her book and we were going to school. This is NOT the way I like to start our day. I just want peace and happiness for all. Then, something else odd happened, Abby tried to console her, "Lauren, Mommy's hair looks really good." That just touched my heart. Abby is only 5 and doesn't usually know when to say things like that. I got the kids to the van and then it was Spencer's turn to throw a fit. He was upset because I slid the carseat buckle up his chest. He waited until I had buckled myself in to tell me he wanted to do it himself. So I had to get out and slide it down so that he could slide it back up. I buckled myself in again and he cried, "I can't do it." I unbuckled again, and we agreed to do it together. Then on the way to school, Lauren said, "Mommy, my Kanani book was in the van."

See, ADD not only affects the patient, it affects the whole family. I have a friend whose daughter is an only child. She has much more patience and less frustration with her daughter because she is not also being a mommy to 7, 5, and 2 year olds.

I will continue to journal here about our experiences with this invisable disability. I look forward to sharing stories with other people who are being affected by ADD/ADHD.

Future posts:
How ADD affects her schoolwork
Lauren's delays in learning household/school routines
Teachers who get it, and teachers who don't!
Trying new medicine
I don't feel as close to her as my other kids
Trying to find what makes her happy
Mess after mess after mess (more than the other 3 combined)

Spring Break 2013

We don't usually get the opportunity to go out of town during Spring Break. but this year we had 2 life-changing events to attend so we spent an entire 7 days catching up with some of my favorite people.

Sunday morning I spent 3 hours, yes 3 hours, packing. I never knew it took me so long, I have a list of things to pack for trips so I'd say I'm more organized than most when it comes to packing. We drove up to little bitty ol' Rendon, Texas, where Stephen was raised. We unloaded and took his mom to meet his brother and our sister-in-law for dinner.

Monday morning we said goodbye to a wonderful man, David Arnold.

He suddenly lost his battle with cancer on February 19. I say suddenly because one day he was up and moving around with energy and that night he went into a deep sleep and didn't "wake up". He slept for 31/2 days before going home to rejoice with the Lord.

 

I have never been to a military funeral. I've only seen them on TV. It was touching. After the Navy Sea Bee presented the flag to my mother-in-law, he remained on his knees and took off his personal Sea Bee pin to give that to her as well. He had tears in his eyes as he thanked my mother-in-law for his service.

Here's a rare picture of the entire Arnold gang. We spent the rest of the day at the house watching movies and playing outside.


Tuesday morning I took the kids to see Mandy, Shane, Aidan, and Owen. We finally got to see their beautiful new house. After one little love-spat between Abby and Owen, the kids got along really well. I regret not taking pictures.

Stephen spent that time with his mom and brother, cleaning out Dad's things. When we got back to the house. the kids ran amuk in the open and vacant motorhome garage while we enjoyed the amazingly beautiful weather.

Tuesday night I got some bestie time. I met Hyla at Five Guys. Why on earth did they wait until I moved away to put a Five Guys in my favorite shopping center? Again, no picture :(

Wednesday we stayed put and around lunchtime I changed the channel to FOX News to get an update on the conclave. The caption said that smoke was expected within seconds. I stood in great anticipation until it happened. I saw the white smoke. I immediately texted my Aunt Joanie, who was on a pilgrimage with her church, and said I hoped she was getting to see the smoke in person. She immediately called me. She said the group was in France, did we have a new pope? I told her yes and she got to share the news with her fellow pilgrims. I'm, not sure why, but I felt that was a huge honor.

I promised to text her the name and information as soon as it was revealed. What an exciting day, indeed.

That night we joined Dirk, Jennifer, Sean, and Alex for dinner and fun at their house.  I just love how my kids get along so well with others, no matter where we go.

Thursday morning we headed over to the Ross house, where we spent the next 4 days. That night some of my friends from our old Young Adult Ministry group came over for a mini-reunion.

Friday morning I got to join Rochelle at her Mom's Group at Good Shepherd in Colleyville. It was amazing to see that their group is pretty much like our group. I also got to see another YAM friend at the meeting.

Friday night we went to meet my Goddaughter, her sister, and their dad, at CiCi's in Grapevine. It has been wonderful to reconnect with them. As soon as someone teaches me how to get pics from my phone to the computer, I'll post pictures. The highlight of the night was when Spencer blessed us by coming into the dining area with no bottoms on. Gotta love potty training!

Saturday was relaxing. The kids got to go to their first wedding as my niece, Jessica, married her love of 7 years, Brad.

 

Caleb, Abby, and Spencer tore up the dance floor. They enjoyed the chocolate fountain and candy bar. It was a great way to end the week.

Sunday morning we attended mass with the Ross family and then headed home. It's always so hard to say goodbye to good friends. It's funny to me that I didn't know Rochelle that well when I lived in Fort Worth. We were in the same YAM group, but it seems like we were never grouped together. In the last 3 years we've gotten to be like best friends. She and Tommy open their home to our tribe and we always enjoy just sitting around the table and having good conversations. Her older kids are just as wonderful, always there to offer help and love the kids. It hurts me to be so far away from them.

And just like that, it was over. Back to reality. I'll just spend the next 2 months trying to plan another friend-filled trip to Fort Worth.

Angry Birds Birthday Party

My oldest son turned 7 today. He wanted to have an Angry Birds party so I did what most do these days and I searched Pinterest for ideas. I was extremely short on time so I picked a few things that I thought we could pull off quickly.

Decorations:
My wonderful and amazing hubby printed these on cardstock for me. He saved the images for other decorations and labels that you'll see below.

Stephen also downloaded a font that was close to Angry Birds and made this banner. I just used scrapbook paper to frame out each letter. The wooden bench came with our Little Tyke kitchen set. The napkins and plates came from the party store and Wal-Mart.

 

 I bought this little grapevine wreath last year for my Lenten display. It was perfect to display this nest. Since Easter is in a few weeks, it was easy to find some white plastic eggs.

Food:
I found these gummies at Hobby Lobby, too. They are gluten free- that's just as important these days as nut-free. We also found some Angry Birds cheese crackers at the store. I served fruit and veggies as well.

               

 

The cake:
I have learned to stop wasting hours planning my kids' cakes because they have their own ideas. This was Caleb's plan. My hubby has become quite the expert in fondant rolling and shaping, wouldn't you agree?  The blocks are wafer cookies that he wrapped in fondant. The flash made the green icing appear to be different colors, but I assure you it looked great in person.

 

Goody Bags:
Stephen made these bookmarks to put in the goody bags because I just needed more ideas, I didn't have time to run all over town finding Angry Birds items. He used a picture of Caleb in his Halloween costume.

We found some Angry Birds graham crackers, the plastic eggs, a little maze, and some stickers. Stephen made labels with AB pictures. He made extra labels and we used them on cups and juice boxes so everyone could write their names on them. I noticed it worked because the kids kept up with their drinks and didn't come back for more and more.

Mother of the Year Award

And the Mother of the Year award goes to..................................................


Not me!

Well, not that I was up for it or anything, but I am still feeling awful about Caleb's party yesterday. See, I have known for months that we would have his party on March 2. I've known that it was also the date that College Station ISD students who read more than 250 pages would be going to the Texas Aggie basketball game so I knew I'd have to plan around that game. Well, this year March just snuck up on me. Maybe it was because we made a day trip to Fort Worth to say goodbye to Stephen's dad and be with his mom who had a stroke that morning. Maybe it was because I had something on my calendar every single morning last week. Maybe it was because there are only 28 days in February, I don't know, but last Sunday morning I woke up in a panic because I realized that his party was 6 days away, NOT the 13 I thought. I jumped out of bed and completed the few invitations we had before church. I knew that most of Caleb's class would be able to come with such short notice. I ran into some good friends as I was dropping the kids off in their Sunday School classes and I told them about the party, followed by, "I know it is really short notice, and I am so sorry. I understand if you have plans." Then I was reminded that the 2nd graders were making their First Reconciliation at the same time as Caleb's party. EPIC FAIL on my part. A few sweet friends told me not to worry, just keep this one small. So, if you are one of the dear friend I forgot to contact, I am so sorry, it was not intentional.

A dear friend and mother of 5, who is the RE director of her Parish in OK posted that she was on her retreat this past weekend when she realized today is the Youth Mass and she forgot to find anyone to usher, lector, serve Eucharist, etc....so it does happen. We are human and we are forgiven.

Thankfully, kids (especially Caleb) are so grateful for whoever shows up and whatever I threw together. It was a success in his eyes and that should be good enough for me...but I am still thinking of a few friends who were left out and I'm so sorry!

Sewing

My fondest memories of my mom include her cooking and sewing. When I was a child, it seemed like she was at her sewing machine every day. She taught me how to sew baby doll clothes. It seemed like all moms sewed back then. Lisa, Amy, and Shannon were my neighbors and their moms sewed. I'm sad to say I didn't really pay attention to those sewing lessons and I lost everything I ever learned.

I think my mom would be proud of me now. A few years ago we were visiting my friend, Rochelle, and she started showing me all her albums from 4-H. I had no idea what 4-H was. She said she was involved from 3rd through 12th grade and she still uses just about everything she ever learned from 4-H. I thought that would be great for Lauren so when we got home from Rochelle's I started searching for a local 4-H group. I found many websites, but was so disappointed not to see anything about sewing. I assumed it just didn't exist anymore. I gave up.

Last summer I ran into another friend who mentioned 4-H and she said there IS still a sewing group. The good news is kids can't start 4-H until 3rd grade so Lauren didn't miss a thing! We went to our first meeting in August and I was surprised to find that about 30% of the families go to our church. Here are some pictures of Lauren's first project:

I have to say I think I had as much fun as she did. We started planning on making some towels for Christmas gifts:

Then I was inspired by some dance bags I saw at the dance studio so I made the girls these:

 

And then I got the bright idea on Pintrest to make some clothes for Lauren's new American Girl doll:

Next, I made a sleeping bag for the doll, but I don't think I took a picture yet. I have tons of patterns printed from Pintrest and hope to sit down and make more help Lauren make them soon.

On a side note, I remember when I met Stephen's parents for the first time and I noticed that his mom, who was born and raised in the San Antonio area, had the exact same sewing machine and cabinet that my mom had! I never realized how odd the chances were until I tried to find their sewing machine and cabinet on the internet. I have searched thousands of pictures and finally found the cabinet, it sure brings back memories for me: