Fun with Four

Four is fast becoming my favorite year with Hayden.  Of course, it is not without its challenges - I mean, he is FOUR, but it is also a great time of exploration, curiosity, and wonder at the world.  I love seeing him discover and learn new things.  The world through his eyes is a very cool place and I am enjoying showing it all to him.

Now that he is so interested in everything around him, I thought it was a good time to start preschool.  We chose to do this at home instead of sending him to a school, so I set about deciding on education approaches and curriculum.  I found an approach I connected with and some amazing curriculum which should be coming soon!  I'm so excited to get started.  In fact, we really started last week with my own materials and lesson plans that I made on my own or found online.  It's been fun pulling it all together each day, although it will be nice to have a curriculum to work with once it comes in.  Starting from scratch can be a little overwhelming - it's nice to have a starting point and then go from there.

I found a great phonics website (Progressive Phonics) that has FREE books you can print out that I will be using this week - they are really cute and I think Hayden will like them.  It's amazing how much free material is out there.  You really could educate your child for practically nothing - as long as you had a printer, internet access, and a library card - but it would take a little more time and planning than I have right now.  Thank goodness for curriculum!

Last week was so much fun and even though with the holiday we only had 2 days, I still felt like he learned a lot. He mastered the concepts of light and dark and which colors were "light" or "dark" colors, he colored inside the lines for the first time ever, haha, matched letters and words that started with the letter in a memory game, used the computer and manipulated the mouse perfectly to play a matching game,  answered all discussion questions correctly about a book we had read for the first time, got introduced to the concept of rhyming, and put together every jigsaw puzzle we owned (looks like I'll need to get some harder ones).

It just amazes me how much he learns and it's so fun being able to teach him all these things.  I can't wait for tomorrow!

I'd love to hear about any resources you've used and liked - even though we purchased a curriculum, there is always room for improvements or alternate activities!

A New Year - 2011

Welcome to 2011!  Is it just me, or did 2010 fly by?  I know we all say that each year, but this year felt like it went back quicker than any other.  Saying 2010 was a difficult year for us would be an understatement.  No need to rehash it, I'm sure we all have our stories for 2010 - this world can beat you down.

This is my fourth year of blogging and each year I have chosen a theme (I don't do resolutions).  As the years have gone on, more and more bloggers have chosen to do the same!  It's fun reading each other's theme's each year.

A recap of my "themes":

2008 was the year of "Right Now".  A little blog trivia for you - this is where the title "Just Me Right Now" came from.  Originally, my blog was "Just Me", but for fun I changed it to reflect my theme that year, and well, the rest is history.  I embraced mindfulness and peace in keeping my mind in the present moment - not looking back, and not looking forward.  I made an effort to let go of things past and to stop myself from constantly looking forward to "what's next?".  I focused on being content and mindful of where I was Right Now.  

2009 was the year of "Held".  A year of craziness and turmoil with two growing children and a kitchen remodel from hell - I needed to just be Held.  Held in His hands and rest in His peace.  I survived that year only through His grace.

2010 was the year of "Simplify".  This was the most impactful year yet.  I simplified my life in a thousand different ways.  I purged our lives of an overabundance of "stuff" and am still simplifying even into 2011.  That is one theme that will stick with me for life.  I radically donated all our extra stuff and have plans for donating so much more.  I cut down on our accumulation of material goods and became content in our house despite my earlier longings for a larger house.  Our house was not the problem, our accumulation of things was.  

And now that brings us to 2011.  This year it has been harder to pick a theme - probably because I am more at peace and contented than I have been in a long time.  Usually, I am full of regrets and desires for change each new year, but this year is different.

This year's theme is...

Be Still.

As a woman, a wife, and a mother my tendency is to fill up every moment of every day with something.  But there is strength and fuel in that stillness.  There is Him.  "Be still and know that I am God" ~Psalm 46:10.  This year I will make stillness a priority in life.  And along with stillness, mindfulness.  Being present in the moment with my spirit and mind still.  

How often to do we rush through life with no attention or thought to the present moment?  Just thinking about our "to-do" lists and missing opportunities to love others.  At church I rush through the doorway of greetings so I can run back to children's ministry and set up for the day.  I say hurried hellos and half-hearted "how are you?'s"  My head is buried in supplies and handing out papers and other items.  I make no notice of those around me or if maybe I'm needed in a capacity other than the one I have decided for myself.

I love reading about Jesus - He always had time.  Time for his disciples, time for the sick, time for the unloved, time for the children, and time for prayer and stillness.  Even though time was not on His side - He still moved through life present in the moment and available to each opportunity as it presented itself.

Can I say that about my own life?  What can I say about my life?  How am I living it?  I hope this year I can move closer to answering that question without regret.

Christmas Reflection

The Holy Spirit has really been working on me this Christmas season as I've been trying to navigate the holiday with two small children and a world that's focused on the trappings of Christmas instead of Christ Himself.  I've been worrying over if our Christmas is "Christ" enough and how we celebrate this or that.   And right in the middle of that the Holy Spirit quietly nudged me and said:

Christmas is every day - not just December 25th.  Christmas is how I live my life each and every day.  Am I living it looking toward our Savior and relying on Him for all of my needs?  Or am I seeking the fulfillment of those needs elsewhere?

This past year has been a slow, but steady transformation of looking to Christ each and every day.  My life is Christ and there is no difference between December 25th and December 26th - my thoughts, actions, and faith are still the same.

It doesn't matter how many nativity scenes I put up, or if I booted Santa from the house, or if I went to church 7 times that week, or made a cake and sang "Happy Birthday" to Jesus.  Doing is not living.  Living is every moment of every day - and I must live Christ each day.

I hope you all had a very blessed Christmas and pray for God's blessings for you for 2011.

Ho! Ho! Ho!

Oh hello bloggy world!  I've missed you.  Can we go random today?  Cause it's been too long.

1. This weekend we took our Christmas pictures for our card.  I've already been handing them out!  I still need to mail them to out of town folks...this may happen sometime before February if previous years trends hold true. Buying stamps is some how an obstacle for me...  I mean it shouldn't be.  It's as easy as going to HEB (where I go once a week ANYWAY) and saying (when they ASK me without prompting - Do you want ice or stamps?) "Yes, yes I would like stamps".  Why is this so hard??  My automatic reaction is always "NO, no ice or stamps, no!!!!"....

Here is our family shot:

2. I employed my own photography skills for our Christmas shots.  I have no money to pay a professional both to do the pictures AND print them.  And everyone's first question is: How did you get everyone to look at the camera??!!

Answer: During this "shoot" I took 140 shots of 4 poses and had 5 good quality, usable shots.  If you'd like to see the outtakes, just go to my flickr page.

3. Last week I successfully transitioned Corbin out of the high chair!  He now eats at the table like a big boy.  We are officially done with high chairs and boosters.  Woohoo!  They are also both drinking out of regular cups at mealtimes, although we keep the sippy cups for carrying around the house.  I'm a big believer in offering mostly water for our boys and I want to make sure they have access to it whenever they want so they get enough in each day.

4. I turned 30 a couple weeks ago.  Yes, the big 3-0.  I'm liking 30 so far.  I think the 30s will be my best decade yet.  Although, everyone still thinks I'm like 24 or younger, so I guess I can pretend I'm younger whenever I'm in the mood too.  This has proved interesting now that I'm moving into the children ministry director role at church and people look at me like...you're kidding me?  You're the team lead?  You probably don't even have kids.  How old are you?  Like 21?

NO PEOPLE, I'M THIRTY!!  I have two kids.  I've been married for 10 years!  I'm a college graduate.  I got skillz people, I swear.  I should get a t-shirt to advertise...

5. I've discovered my blogging time is in direct proportion to my camera time.  In other words, if I'm not taking pictures, I'm not blogging.  Lately, most photos have been from my phone which generally head straight to facebook and aren't blogged.  So I need to get my "big" camera out a bit more apparently.

6. I've made progress on Advent celebrations from previous years.  So there was 3 years ago, where I didn't celebrate Advent at all.  Then there was last year, where I bought a book with ideas for celebrating Advent, but did nothing.  And now we move into this year.  This year, I made an advent wreath with candles and we've (so far) done ONE advent devotional as a family...which went, well, as you might expect with a 2 and 4 year old.

In my mind, it should have looked something like this:

In the holy glow of candlelight - Children listening intently as Daddy reads advent passages from the Bible.  Hayden talking about the nights "discussion" (which was about babies - in reference to Jesus birth) and enjoying looking at his old baby pictures.  And then a family communion with the bread I had made, etc.

The reality:

The ominous glow of candlelight as Hayden "eyes" it like a pyro needing a fire fix.  Corbin banging on his tray for MORE BREAD and throwing his sippy cup.  Hayden offended that he was EVER a baby and NOT wanting to look at baby pictures - not even getting to the point about Jesus being a baby, etc.  "Hayden is a big boy, not a baby!!!" - Hayden.  Hayden fidgeting in his seat and interrupting every two words while Mark tries to make it through the readings in one piece.  As we talk about Jesus birth and the meaning of Christmas, Hayden screaming out - "CHRISTMAS IS ABOUT SANTA!! JESUS IS IN THE BIBLE".   Me yelling - "SIT DOWN!! DON'T TOUCH THE CANDLE.  CHRISTMAS IS ABOUT JESUS!!!".

Yeah, so that pretty much exceeded expectations right?  Merry Christmas.

7. For those that want to enjoy something truly beautiful - come hang out with us at The Oasis (5pm I think) for a Christmas Eve service our church does every year.  A great meal with some of my favorite people and then a wonderful service to celebrate Christ!  We'll be the ones in the back with the wiggly kids screaming "Jesus is in the Bible!"

Toys!

It's been interesting to see my selections in toys evolve as I change as a parent and continue learning through the developmental challenges we are currently working through with Corbin.

No longer do I look for the "flashy" or latest toy, but really evaluate it's potential as both an object of play and therapy.

I've found some really great ones that we love and since Christmas is coming up I thought I might share a few with you!  I'd also love to hear any of your recommendations as well.  I'm always on the lookout for quality toys to add to our play!

These are in no particular order, by the way.  Mommy fog prevents me from doing any real prioritizing in that regard, haha - they are ordered in the manner they popped up in my brain while writing this post.

1. Melissa & Doug Deluxe 10-Piece Alphabet Nesting and Stacking Blocks

Corbin uses these a lot in therapy play and just playing in general.  The stack and nest so you get two activities in one, plus they store well.  They all nest so they stay compact.  The outside also have animals and letters on them, so it's also a great starting point for learning letters and animals.  We have several nesting/stacking toys and this is by far our favorite.

2. Alex Toys Learn to Dress Monkey

I have spent a LONG time looking for a toy to teach self-help and fine motor skills that is NOT a pink baby doll.  Also, many baby dolls don't come with the various zippers, velcro, buttons, and snaps all on one outfit.  This monkey has snaps, zippers, shoelaces, socks, buttons (with two styles of closures), overalls, and a velcro shirt!  If you are looking for a dressing toy, this is definitely it.

3. Melissa & Doug Grill Set

Lacing cards and activities are definitely fine motor skills that are on our list to achieve.  However, for a 2 year old, and especially one who is delayed in motor ability, lacing with string can be a very difficult activity.  As a precursor to lacing with string, I have found this grill set to be awesome!  Instead of "lacing", he is placing the meat and vegetables on the skewers - which incorporates the same skills as lacing, but in a more controlled and easier to manipulate form.  The skewers are easy to hold on to and don't flop over like lacing string does.  There are also tongs (a precursor to scissor skills) and a knife for cutting.  The vegetables form together with velcro for easy cutting.  We love this toy and it's a hit with both Hayden and Corbin.  It's also a great pretend play activity.

4. 50 Counting Bears with 5 Cups

Oh the counting bears...I don't think I can really express how much we play with these.  Corbin can color sort very well, and I think these bears really helped with that.  Also, you can buy pattern matching games that go with the bears that are fun to add to.  Corbin loves pouring the bears from one cup to another (another great motor therapy) and also plays with the bears in all sorts of other ways.  Hayden loves to line them up like army men and Corbin likes catapulting them or having them go down his Little People slides.  Besides colors and matching, they are also great for counting and working on numbers.  This is the kind of toy that develops and changes as they get older.  It starts with simple pouring, works into sorting, then pattern matching, and finally simple math.  It's one of my favorites.

5. Shure - Chunky World - Magnetic Fishing

This game is played with almost every day - by both boys.  Again, another great therapy toy, but also has endless possibilities for pretend play.  My boys have made a boat out of a cardboard box to go fishing.  They've used the fishing pole to "catch" other metal things around the house.  They've pretend to "eat" the fish.  You name it, they've played it.

Okay, so there are five of our favorites.  As we get closer to Christmas, maybe I'll post some more if you're interested.  Some of these toys are a bit pricier than others.  We didn't get them all at once, but gradually added them to our household over the past few years.  But, I will say that each one has been worth it's money!  They have held up really well and I haven't had a single complaint with any of them.

So what are your "must have" toys?

Just Getting Away

There are some days you just need to get away.  Away from laundry and dishes and two boys fighting over the last goldfish and cleaning up the cracker crumbs AGAIN and well...just everything related to your house.

And no, a walk around the neighborhood just won't do.

You need a heavy dose of something beautiful.  And my something beautiful is about 90 minutes away at Bastrop State Park.  They have trees - real ones.  Not the bushes that dot our Austin landscape.  

So at 10am this morning I decided to pack everyone into the car for a day at the park.  

There is nothing better for two rambunctious boys than to run around the forest throwing rocks and collecting pine cones (for throwing too of course).

And because my son is Hayden, we had to have a picnic.  This boy is a picnic LOVER.  I think he would prefer all our meals served outdoor on a blanket.

And of course, no trip to the park would be complete without a long hike on the trails. The boys did great - Hayden walked the whole way and Corbin about half.

Overall the trip was just what I needed.  I got to soak in some "green" and let the boys run wild.  Hayden even got to practice his big brother responsibilities by corralling Corbin and bringing him back to the picnic area when he strayed too far.  Definitely a skill I'm going to be enjoying more of in the future!  

I just might have to add this outing to our schedule every week, as we all came home quite happy!

Rethinking the "Norm"

At Hayden's Birthday Party

This year we've been changing up a lot of how we "usually" do things.  There are a lot of values and character traits that I think are important to develop in our kids, and I am seeing more and more little ways we can contribute to that.  I also remember the aftermath of how we've done things in previous years and how I was left with an unsettling feeling of what I might be teaching our children!

The first was "The Birthday".  It has traditionally been a time where Hayden is lavished with gifts from both friends and family.  And, of course, there is nothing wrong with that.  However, he received so many gifts that he had very little appreciation for them!!  And that really saddened me.

I don't want Hayden or Corbin growing up without true thankfulness and appreciation for what they receive.  Having an overabundance of possessions can contribute to mistreating his toys and taking these things for granted.  Why be thankful for a new toy truck when you already have 10?  The truck would just land in the pile of seldom played with toys.

And how could they truly play with their toys if their selection was so great they could move from one toy to another all day without every running out of new toys to play with!

Hayden sharing his birthday hat with his friend Jake

I didn't like what I saw - and I also didn't like admitting that I was one of the primary causes of it.  The children don't buy the toys, I do.

So this year, we tried something new.  Hayden received one gift from us this year - a tricycle.  We also asked a few of our close friends to donate can goods in place of a gift for a food drive our church was participating in.  This opened the door for us to talk to Hayden about other boys and girls who went to bed hungry at night and didn't have all the toys and food that he did.  

We also shared a birthday party with two other four year olds who had birthdays in November.  It was a great way to show him that it was "not all about him" and for him to think of others - even on his birthday!

Hayden jumping off the slide

And what a wonderful day it was with those few changes!  Hayden got 3 presents from his friends that he has truly loved and enjoyed.  He also was excited about all the food we got to feed the hungry kids - "Wow!" (his words, hehe).  And he had no problem sharing the "spotlight" with his friends that day.

Mark and Corbin going down the big slide!

His birthday went so well, we're going to try and make similar changes to Christmas well.  Focusing more on Christ and the meaning of Christmas than the free-for-all gift extravaganza of years past.  I'll be posting more on that later!

I still can't believe our little boy is four!!

Hayden blowing out his candles.