More things I love!

I have gotten a few new things lately and wanted to share the goodness with you all!

First off is a great site that is helping me teach Gabby how to write her name. It has tons of great free worksheets and makes learning to write fun for her. Go here to see what I mean!

We are so lucky to have found a great dog that is so well behaved most of the time and doesn't tear her toys up. She still has all the toys we got for her when we first rescued her! Well, I saw this toy awhile ago and knew that it was perfect for Spooky- it is perfect for keeping your dog busy and thinking. Better yet, there are other variations if your dog is as attached to the toy as ours is- a magician hat with rabbits, a bird house with birds, etc. Here is a good site to get it from!Nothing is worse than having your child sick and not wanting to eat anything. Last week when the "ick" claimed our house (all but me), I went to the grocery in search of popsicles and found the most wonderful new product- Slow Melt Mini Popsicles!! For some reason when I searched the web for them I could only find the full size Slow Melt ones, but believe me, there are mini versions that are perfect for toddlers. They have gelatin in them that makes them melt slower (or not at all if your kids are like mine) and are soooo yummy!

And finally, here is a cool and quick project for all you budding sewers out there- a simple Tea Towel Apron. Easy as pie and cute as a button!


I am sure that there will be more goodness heading your way, happy shoppin everyone!

Ni Hao Kai-lan!

I don't know how many of you reading this have small children but if you are like us and encourage your kids to learn about other cultures and languages then there is a tv show that you have try out- Ni Hao Kai-lan on Noggin!

Having taken two semesters of Chinese in college and of course being a student of Buddhism I am drawn to everything about the Eastern cultures. Noggin, which is a branch of Nick Jr, just premiered this new show and I am hooked. This is what the website says about the show:

Ni Hao, Kai-lan is the next generation of preschool television programming
that introduces the psychology of biculturalism. If Dora and Diego popularized
bilingualism, Kai-lan will weave together being bilingual and bicultural. Ni
Hao, Kai-lan reinforces the idea that being bicultural and bilingual is being
American. The show will familiarize the viewing audience with elements of
Chinese and Chinese American cultures to promote multicultural understanding in
the next generation and goes beyond featuring "culture" as only ethnic food and
festivals. Instead, it celebrates growing up in an intergenerational family,
having friends from diverse backgrounds, and "habits of the heart" that are
Chinese American.

One of the best things about the show is that it stresses being calm and content, not jumping around crazy and shouting to get things done like the plots in Dora. The songs are pretty cute as well!! Definitely another show that I won't mind watching with the girls!

Books that Have Made a Difference in My Life

I always read this feature in O Magazine and thought that it might be interesting to think about my own reads that have made me better in some way, helped me look at the norm in a new way, or just touched my heart.

One that I know I would take if I am ever stuck on that deserted island is A Night Without Armor by Jewel Kilcher. From the first song that I ever heard by Jewel (Foolish Games) I knew that this was one artist that will stay with me on my journey. Her poetry is just as touching as her songs, earthy, personal, cavalier, and all together captivating. There are poems about love, leaving love, hating love, and just being- something I am working on daily. Every time I read this book I learn something new about Jewel and about myself.

Another book that I can read over and over is Bless the Child by Cathy Cash-Spellman. Although a work of fiction, this book opened my eyes in high school to the fact that there are other religions out there and got me reading more about different schools of thought from Buddhism to Judaism. This book has everything from Catholicism to Satanism, ancient Egyptian mysticism to Islam. It is very graphic, very violent at times, but there are moments that just make you stop and think, "Wow!". (Please don't rent the movie in lieu of reading this- the movie does not even scratch the surface of what this great novel is about).

What do you get when you cross archaeological curiosity and a lot of research on pre-historical races? The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel. I have always been fascinated by archeology and especially the races that led to the development of our own race that eventually dominates the planet. When I read this book in college I immediately signed up for Archeology 101 as well as a sociology course, which led to more courses and such. The book is in a series that is such insight into our human past that you can't help but put yourself in the time period! (Again, please do not watch the movie- it is so bad that if I were to remake it with my family and friends, it would be an improvement!)

I don't remember the first book that I read by myself, but I do remember first reading the Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. There is nothing better to help you remember that today's worries are so trivial compared to how things used to be for early settlers in the midwest. When I feel like my world is getting too complicated I like to sit down with one of these books, written so long ago by someone who did live a more simple and humble life. It makes you look at your own life more closely when you read about the family losing everything when a swarm of locusts eat all the crops, how the girls received a few pieces of candy for Christmas and were overjoyed for that gift, and see that hardships to us would have been blessings for the family. There is a lot to be learned from this series, whether you are eight or eighty.

I am sure that there are more books and I will continue this post when I remember them. What books have touched your soul and changed the journey of your life?

Preschool Worksheets

I was working on making some worksheets for Gabby to help her with her letters and came up with this... I am sure that there will be more to come, it is a lot of fun making sheets like this!