Quick Compliment to My Library

One of the few places where I don't mind paying a late fee is the library. - Please no jokes about 10 cent fees. I've got quite a tab running that I am not willing to confess. (chagrin)

I Love Him

Preschool is Unnecessary

Okay, I'll confess that when I first moved to this house, I had my first two kids in Mothers Day Out two days a week. I knew nobody here and I wasn't aware of any play groups or homeschool groups. I didn't think homeschool groups really kicked in until you actually missed the school bus. I promptly removed my kids from MDO when I found a homeschool group to play with. Enough said about that.

Don't pay for preschool. It isn't worth it. Find a play group/homeschool group or whatever to meet others at the park. Your kid will actually get more time on the playground this way rather than being trained to mimic an older school age child at 2,3, & 4.

To teach your kid to count play Hide and Seek and Chutes and Ladders. Easy enough. You can count just about anything with your child too. Also if the TV must come on, put it on Sesame Street.

For colors talk about rainbows and jelly beans and play Candyland. Ask what color crayon they want to color with or what color shirt he wants to wear. My third child required no intentional color training at all. (She also indirectly learned the Sanctus prayer in Latin without my having "taught" her.)

For writing first let them scribble all over the lines on a coloring sheet over and over again. Then take notice when they draw an intentional - you'll know the difference - kind of "line". Have them draw lots of these almost-lines for rain or just to play. When they get the almost line, try some easy dot-to-dots with those numbers they know. Eventually you get to tracing, stick figures, and then the letters and numbers!!!

For the alphabet. Sing the song. Again and Again. Draw letters with sidewalk chalk. Ask what different letters are in the title of a book. Read, read, read, and read and make it fun. Have books to play with that are easily digestable as these also have to pass. lol Make letter pancakes and eat them into other letters. B to P to l. Or O to C. M and W can turn into V then if you eat it just right, you can get an 'i' out of it.

That is preschool and with enough reading they'll be reading before kindergarten.

August 13, 2009

Whew! Exams ended; $ has come in; the car is working; I've spent time with adults; my will-power is returning; and the house is CLEAN - very clean! Sure there are other problems I don't divulge on the blog, but I am very well.

The Boo is three today. 3! My husband has been in law school her whole life, but he should be finished a few days before she turns 4. Tonight we are going to keep the house clean and eat out. Birthday girl picks where and there is much to celebrate.

Living on the Edge

Mortgage payment goes out tomorrow and we are going to make it as usual but really cutting it close there... too close. Law school tuition kills me. If my husband didn't have the GI Bill he would get all of his tuition money up front via the Hazelwood Act, but thanks to his GI Bill 'benefit' that he earned Hazelwood won't pay out until the GI Bill does its part and we end up paying interest on a loan for tuition that is supposed to be covered.

Our other benefit... our FSA hasn't reimbursed me for the birth of my son. We are sending in paperwork again. Is this the third or fourth time? I don't know, but it would be nice to get my money back that I should have received a while ago. Because everything is all convoluted, I will send my midwifery receipts to my medical insurance instead of the FSA. The medical insurance will cover nothing of course (don't get me started on Obama's plan) and automatically kick my claim over to the FSA which should - if they are feeling nice at the moment - reimburse me.

Pardon my tone but I'm feeling trapped. My van doesn't run well these days and I've been trapped at home with 4 kids with very little cash. It is exam week for the husband too. Really, what husband? My feeling is similar to having jeans on that are way too tight while I'm bloated; they stick even more cause they're wet; I can't get them off; and I'm having trouble breathing.

Sweet Baby James

Baby James was born at home on June 2, 2009 at 11:04 p.m. weighing in at 9 pounds and 9 ounces and measuring 22 inches long! Woo hoo! That is a big one!

Unlike the time when we delivered Julia at 10 till 6 am and immediately fell asleep exhausted, we stayed up and celebrated a little while this time. I wasn't up all night laboring this time and so I was up for it. The night was still young and the rest of the kids were next door. So why not? John brought out some crystal wine glasses with grape juice. The midwife, her assistant, John, and myself had a toast and celebrated the new baby. Afterward the baby and I had a candle light herbal bath together. The midwife recommended that I lay the baby back until his ears were just under the water. So I gave it a try and it was amazing! The crying baby completely quieted and relaxed with his legs spread out floating on my left hand. It was an experience I am glad I didn't miss.

Look who is a big sister now!

The next morning the three older siblings filed into the bedroom quietly and walked around to the side of my bed to get a look at their new baby brother. They were so quiet, careful, and excited with large smiles on their faces. Little Julia finally broke the silence and asked, "Is that baby James?" I was glad to finally tell her yes. For little Julia the pregnancy must have felt like eternity. I know it did for me at times. Whew! Now we can start the path to a new normal. I won't have to be sidelined for dodgeball games much longer.

The Baby Countdown

Some quick updates... Baby James is due in five days (the first day my spouse returns to classes for summer school). I tend to run late though. Jessica was born on her due date; Johnny was two days late; Julia was seven days late. The trend is for each child to be born later and later. I hope not. Sleep is eluding me.

Diet this pregnancy has been quite an ordeal. Every day I take 1 prenatal vitamin 4 times a day with food and one fish oil tablet. I've been trying to ensure that the foods I eat are high and iron and then I need to eat vitamin C to absorb the iron. I've also got to get in a yogurt with acidopholis and cranberry juice each day to help to stave off the Strep B infection women get tested for during prenancy. And yes just a few days ago I came up NEGATIVE for Strep B! I had never tried a diet to stave off this infection before and in this test case, it has worked. No antibiotics for me this labor! In the meantime, I feel like a total pig cramming all these foods in me and then trying to eat something different.