Okay I think I’m pretty convinced now. Julie over at A Celebration of Our Journey has written about the full moon and new moon having an effect on her son, and we had discussed it some through email. We have Windows Vista, so I found a moon phase widget to put in my sidebar on my desktop. I was even able to enter the exact longitude and latitude of our location. It changes throughout the day and I can click on it to find out the illuminated fraction. I have really enjoyed having it there. The dates of the next two new moons and full moons are listed. Today is a new moon.

The moon is the darkened circle next to the info

Last night when I put Caleb to bed, he was very restless. I spoke to him several times before just starting his CD of music over and leaving the room. He started crying after a few minutes. I put him in our bed and laid down with him. All in all, it took me an hour and a half to get him to sleep. I mentioned to Scott before bed that it was probably going to be a bad night. And sure enough, he kept me up until 3:30am tossing and turning. I carried him back to his bed because I was so tired and frustrated. He was back at 6:00, wanting to get up for the day. I felt like I had just laid down. We did sleep until 8. I didn’t want to get up then, but 8 seems to be the time by which we need to be up and potty-ed to make sure he’s dry. Much later and I’m washing sheets.

When I’m not completely exhausted, the moon thing is just fascinating to me. He drove me nuts on Friday too. Obstinate would be a good word for it. He’s honestly a really good kid overall. But we all have our days.

While I’m rambling I’ll just go ahead and tell you, I have now nicknamed him Chatty Caleb. If you will listen, he will talk. Nevermind your shopping. You can do that later. Complete strangers. He talks their ear off! Most giggle and humor him but we actually had one guy run from him in Lowes the other night. And don’t even try to ignore him. He will put you in your place.

A little girl, probably about 5, and her mom were on the paint aisle in Lowes. Caleb walked up to the little girl and said, “Hey!”

She smiled.

“You have Dora on your shirt!” he says, just busting all up in her personal space and poking at her. She had already back up against the shelf as far as she could.

She still didn’t say anything.

“Seek (speak) to me! Mommy why won’t she seek to me?!”

We all began chatting about our chalkboard paint and her daughter’s room. She asked several questions about brush and roller types. Meanwhile Caleb continued to chip away at the little girl’s shy shell. Finally he just got a paint brush and started painting her. That got her giggling and with Caleb stirring the pot, they both turned into little trouble making wild indians! Climbing all over stuff and painting all us parents with brushes and rollers. As we were about to part ways, I said “Come on monkey.” The mom said “Monkey. I call her monkey sometimes too. Well a friend of mine does.”

Little children are always quick to correct, “Not a friiiend, your boooyfriend,” she exclaimed.

Her mom told me it hadn’t been long, she still just wasn’t used to saying that yet. We chuckled together at the honesty of a child.

At the playground a few weeks ago, Caleb was flagging down every passerby to talk to him. As he chatted up one lady, she asked how old he was. “I’m free years old, how old are YOU?” No secret is safe, no question shall go unasked by an inquisitive three year old.

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It makes me feel like I can do anything!

I’m talking about baking soda people.  Jeez, where is your mind today?

Seriously, the uses for regular old baking soda never cease to amaze me!  I’ve been on a cleaning spree here lately, and the badly neglected microwave fell victim today.  I poured a small clump of baking soda in a bowl with a little bit of warm water.  Microwave for a minute, let some steam build up in there, and stuff was just wiping right off.  Amazing.

Until I looked at the neighboring toaster oven.  Can I just say, “Ew.”  It is so bad that food doesn’t even taste right coming out of there.  You open the door and the smell of ‘burnt’ just hits you in the face.  Burned what, I don’t know.  Just burned.  I scrubbed and wiped everything down, trying to avoid using chemicals.  I put everything back, but it just still wreaked.  I couldn’t see anything else in there, it looked clean.  It just didn’t smell clean. Now if you’re like me, you have that cute little box of baking soda in the back of the fridge.  It has been there for over a year (hey, did you know you’re supposed to change it every month?).  “They” say it helps absorb odors, but you have no idea whether it actually works.  Maybe you just remember your mom doing it.

So I was a bit skeptical that my microwave application might have the same wondrous effect in the toaster oven.  After all, the microwave didn’t smell this bad.  But I decided to give it a try.  I covered the tray in foil (I always do this anyway, so I don’t have to scrub all the baked on stuff) and dumped some baking soda and water on there and popped it in to bake.  I turned the oven up to 450 for 5-10 minutes.  When I returned, it had created a big ball of gas that erupted into flames and the paint was melting off the walls!

Nah, just kiddin :)   I balled up a hot cloth (so as not to crack the glass!) and wiped off the door, which now looks significantly better.  But I was amazed to find, the smell was gone.  No hint, no remnants, nothing.  Once I replaced the foil cover, I was all done!

So there’s my cleaning tip for the week.  I see you over there shaking your head.  Yep, you’re toaster is gross too isn’t it?  What’s that?  Don’t even look inside the microwave?  Your secret’s safe with me.

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You’re probably wondering where I’ve been or what hole I fell into. I’ve had so much I’ve been meaning to sit down and write about, just no time to do it. I’m sure everyone can relate to that at some time or another.

Tuesday, I had an orthodontist appointment bright and early at 8am. Now that we live 40 minutes away, it complicates things a bit though. I always ask for the first appointment of the day and try to get there early so I can get in and out as quickly as possible. Scott stays home with Caleb, so I’m always in a rush to get right back home so he can leave for work. They were running behind as usual, and when he finally got over to my chair, he looked at my teeth and asked if I wanted to get my braces off that day! Totally unexpected, I thought it would be next visit. So I was really excited to get that done. My teeth are all nice and straight (Again. My second time in braces. This time I did a combination of Invisalign and braces though.)

I can’t even remember what I passed the day doing, but I do remember as soon as Scott got home, we rushed out the door to go meet the newest member of the family. Scott’s nephew and his wife recently welcomed little Levi last month and are in town this week visiting. We didn’t get home until 9ish, and I hurried to get Caleb in the bed so I could prepare for Wednesday. My orthodontist is located where we used to live and where my dad currently lives during the week for work. Since I had to go right back on Wednesday to pick up my retainers, I figured Caleb and I could spend the day at my Dad’s apartment and do some shopping. But this meant I had to pack toys, books to read at naptime, lunch, clothes in case of accidents, etc, etc.

The tropical storm/hurricane, whatever it was, moved through Tuesday night and all day yesterday. It poured. And poured and poured. So much that Scott had to run out and drain some water out of the pool because it was about to overflow (which is probably not good for an easy set pool)! Of course, it was pouring when Caleb and I piled in the car to head out for my orthodontist appointment. I carefully backed out through the river at the end of our driveway (think I’m kidding? pictures below), and headed on my way in amazement at all of the flooding. The drive is through back country roads and it always makes or breaks your trip time depending on who you get behind. For once, I found myself hoping to get behind someone, so there would be a guinea pig in front of me. I could watch where they hit water and know to slow down or scoot over. I slipped several times and the passenger side hydroplaned pretty good one time. It wavered for about three seconds and then I felt the tire grab pavement again. Scary. Driving is an entirely different experience when your whole life is in the backseat. He kept pretty quiet for the entire ride, I think he sensed that I needed to concentrate. I white knuckle gripped the steering wheel so hard the entire way, I felt like I had arthritis by the time we arrived!

Something became evident to me when I came home last night. There are many days where I feel like I’ve done nothing all day, but yet, the day is over anyhow. Well now I see, I must do a lot of things without thinking, because the house looked like a tornado hit. Clothes everywhere, not really even that many toys, but just stuff. Stuff everywhere. Things that needed my attention. Needed to be washed or put away or both. I left all of it last night, and just started immediately this morning. After all, I needed somewhere to feed the kid breakfast!

So I have already cleaned up a bunch of stuff, done some laundry, filled the dishwasher and started it, vacuumed, and put my new steamer to work (more to follow on this newest family member later!). All before lunch. For getting up at 8am, I think that’s pretty good!

So that’s mostly where I’ve been. Just busy. And you know, hanging on to my phone pole for dear life, hoping I didn’t get washed away!

See that river?  It isn’t supposed to be there!

And there’s a curb buried somewhere under there.

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I’m going to venture to say we did our share of home learning today. Caleb had a blast getting this on the wall. This is another one of those things I’ve been watching for over a year. I saw it go on sale around Christmas last year, and I’ve been checking on it frequently ever since. Finally, I got impatient and emailed FAO Schwarz to see when and if it might go on sale again. By some ironic stroke of luck, a representative emailed me back the very next day to let me know that it was the sale of the week, and was indeed $75 off again. When I headed over to the website to order, it said it was out of stock! I was absolutely crushed, but I decided to give the store a try. They had plenty available and were happy to send it to me. I dream of going there. It seems like it would be so cool.

The pictures definitely don’t do this map justice, but it is in the hallway, so it is hard to photograph.  We were working our way across, so Asia and Australia were not completed yet.

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Oh yes. Pink tools. In a pink purse. Everything has its own little place. Perfection. It actually screamed at me from the shelf. I didn’t know that a grocery cart could squeal tires coming to a stop.

What’s included, as you’ll see, there are very few pieces that aren’t pink.

And it even comes in this state of perfection. The only thing that has to be unwrapped is the eye protection. Everything else is already in place. If you’re a travelin’ girl, it also has a shoulder strap.

The only additional thing you’ll have to purchase is a padlock. But maybe the thought of using pink tools will ward off Mr. Fix-it. Because these clearly belong to Mrs. Fix-it. ;)

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sneak peak

Aug 22

Posted by: Rachel in: blog, me myself and i, ramblings

My mom called yesterday and asked me to make her a business card for her pet sitting business. I made her one a few years ago, but I have since honed my skills a good bit. Enough to make the previous business card very embarrassing. Anyway, here’s a peak at the business card before the business owner even gets to see it!! She’s out and about right now, so she isn’t able to check her email. Constructive criticism…what do you think?

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Okay, I totally am, but anyway. I’ve now been cutting Caleb’s hair for a year myself. It takes me a while, and makes me nervous, but I feel like I’ve gotten reasonably decent at it. Haircuts were such an embarrassing nightmare, so one day last year I said, “Do you want to go somewhere for a haircut, or do you want Mommy to do it?” I ask him every time, and every time he picks me. He sits still better (although still not great) if I ask him first. I give him a the choice already knowing his answer. Saved a few bucks too, which certainly doesn’t hurt my feelings!

Plus no hairdresser seems to comprehend when you say “leave it a little shaggy”  Apparently it must go against some oath they take.

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We worked on the front yard this weekend.  And by we I mean Scott.  Caleb ran around outside playing with sticks and hay and pine straw while everything was done.    He was peering into the leaf cart when he suddenly spotted a bug.  He immediately called Scott and I over to meet his “wittle bug fwiend named Oscar.”  I have no idea where the Oscar thing came from, but he was adamant that the little bug’s name was Oscar.

Oscar is a bug that likes to live under ground/rocks etc.  Oscar kept diving down, perhaps he was hiding from the prodding fingers of his new friend.

It came time to go and empty the leaf cart, so we agreed that Oscar should live in the flower bed in front of the porch.  Scott scooped up a handful or dirt containing Oscar and tossed it in the bed.  Caleb was about halfway devastated that he couldn’t find Oscar again.  We assured him that Oscar would be quite the happy bug having brand new fresh pine straw to bury in and lots of food to eat.  He kept up the search party for several minutes, but it seemed Oscar had found a pretty good hiding place to call home.

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Just another example of one of the many reasons I am choosing to homeschool.

Texas school district to let teachers carry guns
HOUSTON (Reuters) – A Texas school district will let teachers bring guns to class this fall, the district’s superintendent said on Friday, in what experts said appeared to be a first in the United States.

The board of the small rural Harrold Independent School District unanimously approved the plan and parents have not objected, said the district’s superintendent, David Thweatt.

School experts backed Thweatt’s claim that Harrold, a system of about 110 students 150 miles northwest of Fort Worth, may be the first to let teachers bring guns to the classroom.

Thweatt said it is a matter of safety.

“We have a lock-down situation, we have cameras, but the question we had to answer is, ‘What if somebody gets in? What are we going to do?” he said. “It’s just common sense.”

Teachers who wish to bring guns will have to be certified to carry a concealed handgun in Texas and get crisis training and permission from school officials, he said.

Recent school shootings in the United States have prompted some calls for school officials to allow students and teachers to carry legally concealed weapons into classrooms.

The U.S. Congress once barred guns at schools nationwide, but the U.S. Supreme Court struck the law down, although state and local communities could adopt their own laws. Texas bars guns at schools without the school’s permission.

(Reporting by Jim Forsyth in San Antonio; writing by Bruce Nichols in Houston, editing by Vicki Allen)

I think the key words in this report are “small, rural” – it can happen anywhere and “unanimously” – not one person on the board said do we really need to do this? Nor have the parents. This is sad. Very sad.

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When it comes to encouraging your child to be a smart ass, you’ll probably find that much of it comes naturally, especially in the teenage years. But it is never too early to start, and you may find that it comes naturally even early on in sarcastic prodigies. Take for example our situation this morning…

I finally decided to break down and vacuum. I have found that in housekeeping, one task always gets behind. If I’m caught up on the laundry, the house is in desperate need of vacuuming. If the vacuuming is done, the pool looks more like a swimming hole with the beginnings of aquatic life forms. If the pool is clean, the dishwasher and sink are full of dishes. You get the picture. So alas, the vacuuming has taken the back burner for, gasp, nearly two weeks. Or maybe it was more than two weeks. Whatever. Anyway, I’m still trying to adjust my cleaning routine from 90% carpet with only kitchen and baths non-carpet, to only one room with carpet. I love my floors, don’t get me wrong, they are hardwoods, I don’t think I have to elaborate any more. I love them. BUT, my vacuum sucks, or perhaps I should say doesn’t suck enough on these floors. I have to leave the carpet brush spinning when I vacuum the floors or it won’t pick up a grain of rice.

I decided to try something a little different this morning. Even though it is taking an ungodly amount of time, I stuck the tiny brush on the end of the too short pole and I’m using it on the floors lugging the huge upright vacuum along behind me. When I switched the vacuum setting over from the big upright part to the attachment pole, I heard screaming! I quickly turned the vacuum off to ask Caleb what was wrong. I didn’t hear anything. So I turned the vacuum back on. There it was again, what had he done? This was that gravely injured type scream. But then I see him coming up the hallway with his little mini upright vacuum. Only, he’s not the one screaming. It’s my vacuum. Spectacular, I though. Caleb cut the vacuum a look and with his ears covered, said, “Can you pwease turn dat OFF?!” I told him I needed to vacuum. He disappeared around the corner. After a minute he returned. Wearing his Monster Jam ear protection. He delivered “The Look.” You know, the one that is pictured in the English dictionary next to sarcasm.  I couldn’t help but laugh.

Not “The Look,” this is from a few months back. His ear muffs are adult size, as he was not even having the child size one, they were extremely tight. But you can see how it might crack you up to see him in them regardless of the situation.

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