Homework

Mini Me came home telling me she had homework. I did not help her with it. My four-year old does not need homework.

My kids are in school about seven hours a day. If their teachers can't get it together and teach them what they need in that length of time, they should be fired. Think about it. When you are at work all day long, do you want to bring home an hour or more of work? My kids are...children. They need to be children. The job of a child is to play. Children learn through play.

Here is something else to think about. If your child starts doing an hour or two of homework every night in second grade, where do they go from there? When does it end? When does your child get to love school and love learning?

If in elementary school your child busts their butts with homework, are up until 1:00 am in high school doing homework, with more of the same in college, by the time your kid hits the work world, he/she is burned out! And they missed their childhood.

I love the way the kindergarten teacher at Mini Me's school next year does homework. First, reading 20 minutes/day to your child is the most important "homework".  A homework sheet is sent home about once every 3-4 weeks. On it, there are about 18-20 items, of which the students are asked to do about 15-18 of those in a 3-4 week period. Things like: "Count to 100 by 10's", "Count how many socks are in your sock drawer",  "Draw a picture of the third building past your home".

These are practical activities the children can do on their own without the help of a parent. Activities that take into account what they are learning in class. They do not take an hour. I don't think parents should have to do their kids' homework. We already did this stuff.

Motor Mouth's Birthday

Happy 8th Birthday, Motor Mouth!

I'm a little late on my birthday posting for Motor Mouth. It was a busy, busy week. We let the kids choose where they wanted to go for their birthday dinner. Mini Me chose a Chinese food restaurant chain in a strip mall. We have some of the best Chinese food in China Town and she chooses that. LOL. 

Motor Mouth chose Rainforest Cafe for his birthday dinner. He wanted the volcano dessert. Mini Me was afraid of the alligator, elephants, and monkeys. It was kind of sweet the way she gripped my leg like her life depended on it.

Knowing Me, Knowing You - Mar '11

Time again for the monthly question series, Knowing Me, Knowing You, originated by The Fairy Blogmother. Enjoy and play along on the Blogmother's site.

1. Do you consider yourself a foodie?Nope. I don't know much about food. J is a foodie. He can taste a food and tell you what the ingredients are (spices and all). I can't eat white sauces or cheese. No food worth their weight can possibly shy away from these prime ingredients.

2. Are you a spender or a saver?Both.

3. What was the last movie you saw?I Am Four. Loved it!!!!!!!! J and I finally went on a date for the first time in months and months. It was nice to do dinner and a movie with my husband.

4. What is the closest book to you?My iPhone is closest to me so my current iPhone books are:
- Audiobooks: The Secret Garden
- Audible: Inbound Marketing


Across from me, the physical book on top of the nearest bookcase is:
- Tribes by Seth Godin

5. Do you celebrate St. Patrick's Day?Yes! Widney is an Irish name. The children wear green. I found a green sweater to wear. We have a new tradition of going to the Greening of the River on the Chicago River. And of course, we have Shamrock shakes! I do have a box of St. Patty's Day decorations I put around the house. I also try to make the kids green shamrock pancakes on March 17. 

Mini Me - 5 Years in the Making

J put this video of Mini Me together. 

Truly, it is 5 years in the making.

Be sure your sound is turned up.

The 2nd song is what we sing to her all the time.

Hanging at Home

I'm Married to a Criminal

Ever watch Criminal Minds?

J would be referred to as an 'Unsub'

(Unknown Subject/Assailant)

Looks like the Unabomber.

Hold your purses close.

End of an Era??

Motor Mouth is about to lose his top front tooth. 

This means he might start going through that 'awkward phase'.

You know, the one that typically starts around third grade. 

We all went through it. 

Enjoy this pic.

Wordless Wednesday - There Are No Words

Mini Me is S.I.C.K.!!!

Mini Me woke up Monday morning with a 105.1 degree fever.

Where is Mini Me?

Can you find her? 

I walked into my bedroom and found this instead of my child.

It's a wonder she can breathe.

Only I Could Screw Up Like This...

Monday evening, I went in to the office to do some design work from 8:00 pm to 11:00 pm. I knew someone else was in the building when I got there because of the alarm status code. It is a large building that is used by space sharing organizations.

About an hour in, I heard the alarm warning sound indicating it was set. I ran to adjust the alarm so I would not set off the motion detectors. In doing so, I locked myself out.

No key to the building. No key to my car. No cell phone. No shoes. No coat.

It was snowing outside. And a rather desolate street after dark.

I saw a cop car driving by. Tried to flag him down. He stopped. Waited. I waved some more, jumping up and down. He drove off.

Then I saw the guy who set the alarm driving out of our parking lot. I waved. I jumped up and down and waved some more. He drove off. He stopped. I wave and hopped towards him. He reversed. I ran towards him. In my socks. On the snow. I have big boobs and no coat. Must have been a sight.

He agreed to let me back in. Nice man. I know his name but from now on, he will be 'Jesus' to me because Lord only knows what he saved my evening from being.

Did I mention J is out of town and I had a babysitter at home, expecting me back at 11:15 pm? Even if I had flagged the cop down, I don't know a single person in Chicago's cell phone number by heart. The only co-worker whose home I know how to find w/o aid is the Irishman's wife. She would not have appreciated riding in the backseat of a cop car. Oh, but the stories we could tell our co-workers in the morning...

Mindful Monday: It Takes A Village

J travels with his new job. That is our reality and I need to deal with it. I keep telling myself that once both kids are in the same school and that once recruiting and swim meet seasons are over, it will be fine.

Right now, I rely heavily on the goodness of my village. One of Mini Me's teachers and a friend of mine have let me drop Mini Me at their homes by 7:30 am and taken her to school for 9:00 am so I can get to work before my 8:00 am meetings. I've banked co-op babysitting hours so I can go back to the office when the kids are in bed. My employer has graciously worked around my schedule, letting me come in 90 minutes later than normal on days when I drop Mini Me to school myself.

Lots of fathers travel with their jobs and lots of moms deal with it. Being a solo parent is not something I have ever wanted. About 20 years ago, my then boyfriend got a great job that entailed travel. I told him we would not marry because I did not want a husband who traveled and I did not want to raise our children by myself. My opinion has not changed in 20 years. I still don't want my husband to travel. 

I thought to seek advice from several friends who have multiple children and their husbands travel. But they either don't work, or work from home. I think that makes a big difference in making life happen. I can't work from home every day. It is physically impossible to give school tours when you are not in the facility... 

Ultimately, I need to find a system that works for us/me and go with it. This is still pretty new. I'm willing to take suggestions!

18 months

This would be the primary reason why we can never lease a vehicle.

Car dealers will offer as few miles as they can get away with, perhaps as few as 10,000 per year, or 30,000 over a 3-year lease. But they will go as high as 15,000 miles per year if you negotiate it. You'll pay anywhere from 10 cents to 50 cents for each additional mile you drive over the limit. (Source: www.thinkglink.com)

We did 30,000 miles in 18 months.

4 trips to Canada, 2 trips to Tulsa, 1 trip to Branson.

Exploring our amazing city.

All worth it!

Got Enough In There?

Do you think Motor Mouth has enough friends to sleep with?

Knowing Me, Knowing You - Feb '11

Time once again for everyone's favourite monthly interview project.. Knowing Me, Knowing You, originated and hosted by the incredible Fairy Blogmother.

1. Are you a morning person or a night owl?
After my shower in the morning my personality gets perky. However, I can get a LOT done from 8 pm to 1 am at the office, alone.

2. What is favorite show of all time - you've seen all the episodes, you've watched it over and over and quote from it all the time?
I don't watch anything over and over. I tend to quote Oprah or her guests. 

That said, L.A.Law. I would not schedule anything or talk on the phone during L.A.Law. I love Jimmy Smits. Love him. Would have his babies. Or just practice. A LOT. 

And Criminal Minds. And Star Trek Next Generation. And Six Feet Under. And Nip/Tuck.


3. Who would you invite to a celebrity dinner party?
Oprah Winfrey, Steve Jobs, Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Barack Obama, and Seth Godin.

And no, I would not invite Jimmy Smits, Lenny Kravitz, Jeff Goldblum, or George W. Bush to dinner because I want to have each of them for dessert, one yummy morsel at a time.

4. Would you rather have breakfast out or dinner out?
Dinner. I don't care for breakfast out - never enough salt and pepper, too much butter. Besides, I'm the kinda girl that would rather spend money on dinner than for brunch. I can justify spending money on a good steak but not eggs and pancakes. 

5. Packers or Steelers?
After the Packers beat the Bears, I lost all interest in football until next year. It was almost 2 weeks before I found out who won. And even now, I'm not really sure .

Now, head on over to The Fairy Blogmother to play along.

Freestyle Relay - Feb 19, 2011

Sean, Dean, Parker, Jazz

Ready to Play Outside

Mini Me declared she is ready to play outside.

This is what our neighbors saw...

What I'm Reading

Sadly, my current life expectations prohibit me the luxury of sitting and reading a book, whether paper or on my iPad. It is a shame, because I LOVE reading. But, I have discovered audio books!!!

Audible on iPhone

- Purple Cow by Seth Godin

- Inbound Marketing by Brian Halligan & Dharmesh Shah

Free?

If you sign up for a free Audible membership, you get 2 books free.

Audiobooks on iPhone

- Anna of Five Towns by Arnold Bennett

Free?

Some books are offered free.
The only downside of this is that I'm on Part 8 of 14 and on the 3rd person reading to me. This works if you like the voices. I don't care for the current voice but I love the story.

On My iPad

- Port Mortuary by Patricia Cornwell

Not Free?

The only one I paid for was Port Mortuary. Technically, J paid for that as it was one of my Christmas presents. See, Christmas. It's taking me 2 months to read a book by my favorite author!

Book on CD in Car

- Ramona and Beezus (I have kids!)

Free?

I have started borrowing kids' books on CD from our local library.

Keeps the kids quiet in the car.

Monday Magic - Widney Banana Bread

I could win a prize for my banana bread.
My first posting for this recipe in August 2008 was a straight copy from Betty Crocker's recipe. I've since put my own touches to enhance the moistness and flavor. My family LOVES this recipe.

For you, I share my recipe.

WIDNEY BANANA BREAD

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup white sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 eggs

6 mashed ripe bananas

(ripe as in, if you don't use today, they are gone)

1/2 cup buttermilk

(I make my own w/1/2 cup 2% milk & 1 tsp lemon juice, let stand 5-10 min.)

1 tsp vanilla

2 1/2 cups white flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

(Optional: Nuts. I don't but you can)

Note: You can make this healthier but it won't taste as good so don't tell people it is my recipe.

Pre-heat & Pan Info

Place oven rack in lowest position.

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray Pam on 2 loaf pans.

Use either 2-8" pans or 2-9" pans

What to Do

Mix sugar and butter in a large bowl.

Stir in eggs until well blended.

Add bananas, buttermilk, and vanilla.

Beat until smooth.

Stir in remaining ingredients until just moistened.

If you are going to add nuts, here is your chance.

Pour into pans.

Baking Info

Bake 8-inch loaves about 1 hour or 9-inch loaves about 1 1/4 hours.

Or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. 

Cool 5 minutes.

Loosen sides of loaves from pans

Remove from pans.

Let it cool as long as you can stand waiting before slicing. 

Storage

Wrap tightly with Saran Wrap.

Store at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Store in refrigerator for up to 10 days.

Calories

2-12 slice loaves (24 slices); 85 calories each. 

In real life, more calories per slice than that.

Using the Recipe
I don't mind if you use this recipe.
Just keep the name and link back here, please.
It's a matter of courtesy. Thank you.


Original Recipe

This recipe is adapted from Betty Crocker's 40th Anniversary Edition Cookbook, Prentice Hall, (c) 1991. I didn't follow some of their directions and added my own but most of the credit goes to them.

Mini Me wanted meatloaf for dinner. She has been watching Sponge Bob on her iPod.

J wanted mashed potatoes. He has been sick but has his appetite back.

I got this recipe from Cooks.com

BEST EVER MEATLOAF

2 eggs 2/3 cup milk 3 slices bread 1/2 cup chopped onion 4 oz of shredded cheese 1 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper 1 1/2 lean ground beef TOPPING: 1/2 cup tomato sauce 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 teaspoon mustard Beat eggs. Add milk and bread and let stand until bread absorbs liquid. Stir in onion and cheese. Add ground beef. Mix well. Shape into a loaf.Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Combine topping and spoon over meatloaf after about 30 minutes. Spoon topping over meatloaf every 10-15 minutes while meatloaf is cooking. ENJOY! Submitted by: Lisa Edmonds