Motherhood: My Sweet Surprise

Yesterday evening after a full day of classes for both of us, Greg and I took June to the local water park.  I mean, school's in session and all, but it's still 96 degrees out and we're all on the verge of dying from a slow and miserable heat stroke.  (Hashtag summer please be over now.)

June was adorable at the water park- splashing in the water, crawling in the shallow end, going down slides, pooping in the pool.  (But seriously.)  It's crazy to watch her and see how active she is, how her little personality is developing, how she is so aware of everything that is going on.  She is such a little thing but she does big things.

Then we got in the car and she passed out cold.

When we got home I tried to give her a bottle, but she couldn't drink much because she was just so stinking tired.  She would give a few sucks and then her eyes would droop and finally I just gave it up.  So instead I held her in my arms in the darkness of her nursery and rocked my baby/ almost toddler and thought over and over how much I love being this girl's mom.  I felt her little sixteen pound body against mine, her heaving chest, her growing red hair, her legs that now hang off of my lap.

I know there are many moms out there or hopeful moms who yearn mightily for babies.  They go through rounds of IVF and pray and work themselves into the ground for a baby.  And sometimes it takes years for the babies to get to their mamas.  I think about the moms and how much it must mean to those women to finally finally get to be a mother.  I think many would agree that surely the struggle, the fight, the work, the years of wanting makes the experience of becoming a mom all that much sweeter.

I did not yearn for a baby.  I didn't struggle or fight or work for my little Junebug.  My husband wanted to start a family desperately and I knew I would want kids some day and after three years of marriage I finally took a leap of faith and agreed to try to start out family.  But I was scared and still not entirely sure I wanted it.  Even when I was pregnant, I didn't count down the days until her birth, I didn't even really think about what it would be like to hold her and cuddle her and nurse her.  I didn't have a nursery prepared and I didn't wash and fold loads of tiny clothes.  The pregnancy sped by, and before I knew it my mom-less days were over and I was being wheeled in to the surgical room so they could cut open my stomach  and still I didn't yearn for a baby.

And then I met June and just like that it all changed.  

The moment June was placed in my arms and every day since I was and am dumbfounded by the absolute joy of being her mom.  I sit and rock her and I can't believe how much I love her and what a sweet experience it is to be a mom.  I don't want to put June down because maybe if I never put her down she will never stop being my baby.  I feed her and play with her and change her clothes, and over and over I am surprised by my level of enjoyment.  I didn't fight and struggle and yearn for this experience and in some ways I feel like I don't even deserve to like it this much.  Like I didn't pay the price for motherhood.  But I wonder too if I am entitled to enjoy being June's mom as much as women who do have to fight for it.  Am I allowed to love it on the same level?  Maybe for me the struggle doesn't make motherhood sweeter, but the surprise does.  Like it snuck up on me.  This beautiful life experience waiting for me all these years that I never knew, never imagined would be like this.  And then here it was just waiting for me, waiting to surprise me, waiting for me to love it with an intensity that I never imagined I could.

I really love teaching.  It is a job that is very fitting for me.  But I knew I would love it.  When I was in school and throughout my student teaching and all the classes I enrolled in and the tests I took, I was sure it was all leading up to a job that I was really going to enjoy.  And then I became a teacher and I loved it.  But I wasn't surprised that I loved it.  I loved it just like I anticipated I would.

But motherhood.  Motherhood I didn't know I was going to love.   I didn't prepare for it and I didn't take tests and in fact the truth is I imagined I probably wouldn't be much good at it at all.  Like it was for women who are kinder and more patient and less crazy and more put together.  Like it was for women who were somehow different than me.  But then motherhood came to me, without me wanting or willing it, a gift I never understood how much it would mean to have.

And I look down at my sleeping June, who is so alive and so alert and who makes every day better and I think that I could not possibly love this sweet experience any more.

Homeward Bound

Last Saturday Greg, June and I loaded up in to our car and headed for a visit of my hometown: Price, Utah.

Price has a whopping population of about 8,000 people.  It is two canyons away from any major city.  Growing up, I didn't love my small town roots.  I hated how secluded I felt from the "real world", I dreamed of what it would be like to eat at Olive Garden whenever I felt like, to not have to drive an hour and a half to go to the mall.  I couldn't wait to get out and move to the big city and as soon as I graduated high school I booked it out.

In college I visited on holidays or a week or two in the summer.  But since my dad died I haven't been back to Price much at all.  The last time I was there was for my little sister's wedding open house nearly two years ago, and even that was just a couple hours and then we we were right back on our way out of there.  Greg has only been to Price a very small number of times, mostly because I haven't ever expressed much interest in going there.  The truth is that since my dad died and since my mom moved from Price it has mostly been painful to think of going back.  To remember all those times with my dad, all the places and people that remind me of him, everything that was changed after his death.  If I don't have constant reminders, the grief is more bearable, right?

Now, eleven years after living in Price and nearly six years from my dad's death, I strangely have a lot of interest in going to Price.  I  don't know why, but this summer it seized me.  I need to visit Price.  I need to take Greg and I need to take June and I need to show them my house, my high school, the burger bar that I worked at in high school.  I guess I kind of felt like I was losing a part of myself by not recognizing my roots.  There is a whole side of me, a whole 18 years of my life, that my new little family is totally unacquainted with.

So Saturday we bit the bullet and went to Price.  Two hours, two canyons and we were in my hometown.

First stop: Grogg's.  The best (and one of only a handful) little restaurant in town.

^^ Every time I look at this picture I want to cry at the grown-upness of my baby.

Greg ordered a coke and a club sandwich, I got my old time favorite, a Hawaiian Burger.  Greg was shocked at how good the food was.  The best coke he's ever had, he declared!  The restaurant had a handful of people in it, we were served quickly and kindly and it was all that good hometown stuff I've been missing that I didn't know I was missing. 

Next stop, the street I lived on, and the house I grew up in.

^^ My street.  The tree on the right was where I would wait for the bus stop every morning with the other kids on my street.

^^ The house I grew up in.  The garage door was open and it almost felt like I could go right in, turn left and throw my clothes in the laundry room, go right and grab a snack out of the fridge.

I knew it would be emotional to see my house, and it was.  The ultimate symbol of family and love and safety and protection is that house.  It was not easy when my mom sold it.  I wrote on my instagram account about seeing the house again, "I rarely rarely visit Price because I miss my dad so darn much, but I feel like my baby needs to know about her mama's roots.  This is the house I grew up in.  I started crying when I saw it, but they were happy tears because relationships carry on and family never ends."

Next up, my alma mater, Carbon High School.  Home of the only dinos in the country!

Next up: The Desert Wave Pool, where I spent many many many summer days.  It was the last Saturday before school started up, but the pool wasn't crowded at all, a stark contrast to all the pools we have visited this summer.  And that tube I am riding?  It cost $1 to rent for the whole day.  ONE DOLLAR.

A word about the wave pool in Price.  It is the ultimate wave pool.  It puts every other wave pool to shame.  The waves are big, powerful, and unforgiving.  If you're not looking you'll get flipped right off your tube.  If you hit a wave just right it can carry you in all the way to the shore.  Also, there are many band aids in the Price Wave Pool.

ONWARD!

Our last stop before we headed home was Sherald's Drive-In where I was a car hop during high school.  I made cokes and malts for the cars that drove in, and when I made $60 in tips one night I thought I had died and gone to heaven with all that money.  (I mean, that can buy 60 tubes at the wave pool!)

Greg got a chocolate malt and a fresh lime.  I got a caramel banana malt.  We declared it every bit as good as Grogg's and Greg said he was beyond pleased with how good all the food was that we had eaten.  He was also surprised with how pretty all the girls from Price were and I was like well duh, look at your wife.

After a full day, we headed home.  We ran into a horrible accident in the canyon, and traffic was stopped for over an hour.  Some people drive like idiots in this canyon, and it seems like there's always an accident.

It's kind of a weird thing visiting home.  The little town felt exactly the same to me, but in the same vein different in every possible way.  I think it lost its edge.  Or maybe I did.  Things that used to bother me- the slowness, the way nothing was ever crowded, the lack of restaurants- were endearing to me now.  I loved how inexpensive everything was, how it took four minutes to drive across town, how a stop light was never more than a fifteen second delay. Everything about my little town seemed sweet and kind to me.

Maybe it's time for us to move to a small town?

First Day of School to prove that I am not a fool

Greg, June, and I are officially back to school.  Summer, what's that?  It's long gone by this point.  Greg and I had meetings Friday, Monday and Tuesday and then Wednesday was the first official day.  June and I got to stay home on Wednesday, but yesterday we were back in action. 

June's jumper is from Carter's.  My dress is from H & M, my booties are from Old Navy.

The day started off at Kinderbeets (the daycare) downstairs at the school where we dropped June off.  I had been kind of nervous about leaving her as she has been especially clingy since we got home from our cruise.  It was funny though, it was like June hadn't forgotten kinderbeets at all in her ten week absence.  She looked around, looked at the day care leaders, and was like "yah, I love this place."  She happily played with the toys, played with the other kids, and sat at the big table with the big girls like a total champ.  I went in to visit her during lunch to make sure everything was okay and it was kind of like, "mom, can you go now?  I'm chilling with my friends."  Sheesh.  They grow up fast, don't they?  (Also she spilled all over her cute back to school jumper within ten minutes and spent the rest of the day wearing a striped boys football onesie.  You win some you lose some.)

In the mean time, I darted off to my classroom to get seating charts ready for first period.  I have no prep period this year.  It really isn't too bad teaching four classes in a row, but the hard part is having everything ready to teach four classes in a row.  First period wandered in... regular eleventh grade English.  I love teaching eleventh grade.  I've told you guys before, but 11th grade is the sweet spot of high school.  They totally know the system, the rules, the school, but they are not so antsy to get out of there as seniors.  And I LOVE teaching American Literature, so juniors are everything I ever hope to get out of my teaching career.  Seriously, give me juniors until the day I diiiiiiiiiiiiie.

First period students were sweet as can be.  I was shocked that 45 minutes into the classroom not one kid had gotten his cell phone out.  Usually I see a phone in the first three minutes.  They seemed immediately comfortable with each other and with me and were so respectful and kind.  We did introductions, went over rules, had a short quiz, and boom the class was over.

Next came second period- AP Literature.  The great thing about AP is you don't have to spend a lot of time going over rules and other first day hoops.  We spent ten minutes going over rules, and then I had them do something that the presenter did at the AP Lit conference I went to this summer.  I had them all share their name and a piece of literature that is important to them in some way.  It was so fun to hear their answers and such a cool way to start the year, with everyone celebrating reading and learning.  Several kids mentioned they don't have big enough book shelves or they can't choose just one book to share.  These kids are speaking my love language, and I love that there is a safe place in the school for them to really revel in their inner book nerd. 

After that we dove right in to Lord of the Flies.  No time to spare!  We started the first ten pages together.  I always love showing the characters in that book, how Golding initially refers to Ralph only as "the fair boy" and Piggy only as "the fat boy" and we talked about his purpose in doing so.  Why are the physical descriptors the first thing the author tells us, even before the names?  It was fun to see kids wrestle with this, and those kids are smart, I tell you.  I had to do hardly any prompting at all before they were saying all the right things, "He's establishing a hierarchy from the beginning" "He wants us to know that the way these boys look will determine what happens to them much more than their names"  "He wants us to see the uneven playing field in the jungle."  YES YES YES.

Second period was over before I knew it had begun and Greg was in my room ready to go to lunch with me.  There is nothing better than sharing a lunch with your husband and I will savor it as long as I can.  We ate and joked with other teachers before running down to say hi to June, but as you already know, she didn't give us the time of day.

Third period was AP Lit again, this time a smaller and somewhat quieter group.  That's okay though, most of the time the quietest ones are saving all their brilliance to surprise you with later.  I was kind of discouraged when a favorite student wasn't in the class even though I knew he had signed up last year.  I asked his friend and she said he had dropped because he was afraid it was going to be too much work.  That made me sad, but it is not uncommon.  I talked to the kids a little bit about the class and the expectations of it.  "This class is definitely work," I told them, "I would be lying to you if I said it was going to be easy all the time.  But I am not afraid of work.  And I hope you aren't either.  All the best things in my life are work.  This job is work, my marriage is work, being a mom is work, taking care of my home and family is work.  But these are the things that bring the most amount of joy in my life, and I know it is worth the work.  This class is work, and it will be worth the work.  On test day you'll look back and think 'Man, that was a lot of work',  but you are going to learn and grow so much because of it, and the things you'll learn in this class will affect the rest of your life.  Don't quit because someone says it's going to be work. Do not be afraid of work!"

And then six kids dropped the class.

I kid I kid. (I hope.)

Fourth period was the last group to fill the seats.  They are regular eleventh grade English so we did the same drill as we did first period.  Lots of boys in the class, and lots of kids who don't speak English as their first language.  Every year I have more and more students who are English Language Learners.  I feel for them because being in a different country and learning a whole new language is so hard and so taxing.  There was also a sweet little foreign exchange student from Taiwan and I missed our sweet Agathe.

And that's a wrap!  First day of school in the books before I had realized it had begun.  Not having a prep is definitely challenging, but there was something I actually liked about it, the day seemed shorter than my days with a prep.  It's always hard for me to start up work again once I've taken a break, so I kind of liked the go go go, now you're done.  Again, the planning and grading will be difficult, but I'll just have to find a system that works for me.

2015-2016 school year, you are hereby commenced!

2015-16 School Year Goals

From earlier this summer- hiking with my sisters in law and their babes.

Hi guys!

I'm back from a long and crazy sponsorship break.  You know when you are watching tv and it's a commercial break?  Sometimes you read my blog and then we have sponsorship breaks.  Six sponsored posts in a row was absolutely nuts, and it is not something I ever ever plan on doing again.  Somewhere in the world there has to be the perfect sponsored posts/ nonsponsored posts balance, right? TELL ME BLOG GODS, IS THERE A BALANCE?

I know that sponsored posts can be really annoying, and I appreciate you for reading and still tuning in.  I explained a little bit the reasoning behind the crazy amounts of multiple sponsored posts in a row on this post and you were all really nice about it in the comments.  You guys are the greatest.  One reader even commented, "You don't have to explain your sponsored posts to us.  It's your blog! Do what you want!"  I think that's really nice of someone to say, but to me I do have to explain my sponsored posts.  It is "my blog", yes, but you are my audience and without my audience I wouldn't be able to devote as much time as I do to this blog.  I definitely wouldn't be able to write five times a week. I wouldn't be eligible for sponsored posts, I wouldn't be able to help my family with the income that those posts generate, and I might not be able to feasibly work just part time at the school.  So while it is "my blog", if you are a faithful reader it is "your blog" too, and I think you deserve an explanation when there are randomly six sponsored posts in a row.  I know that I would want the same courtesy.

That being said we have a bit of a sponsor break for a couple of weeks now which is AWESOME.  That means that I can focus on writing all the stuff I really really love.  That's not to say that I don't love the sponsored posts I write.  I really enjoyed sharing with you guys my tips on getting more out of your fiction reading and I loved the post on books for your babies and toddlers.  Believe it or not, there is real and useful information in sponsored posts!

Today is the first day of school.  I am not there because this year I work B days instead of A days.  I wisened up to the fact last year that B days were where it was at.  All my part time friends were working B days instead of A days, there are more assemblies and activities on B days, and the flowers smell better on B days, too.  Really it's probably all in my head, but when my VP said I could teach B days instead of A days this year, I was all for it.  Long live B days!

I also had to do a bit of fanagling with my lunch.  I was assigned the later lunch, while Greg and all of my buddies were assigned the earlier lunch.  I felt very high school indeed emailing my VP asking him if I could get switched to the earlier lunch so I could eat with my friends.  Maybe those 17 year olds are rubbing off on me more than I think.  In any case, I got my lunch switched with a teacher who preferred the later lunch and now I can continue in marital faculty lunchtime bliss.  All is well!

The end of summer is always kind of disappointing, but the older I get, the more resigned I am to it.  I really do love my job, and after ten weeks off I feel ready to get back in to the teaching action.  Also, summer is just too hot.  This year Utah had a sweltering June- days in a row over 100 degrees and all of a sudden I was just like someone save me from this heat!!!  I was missing our family cabin more than even this summer- our escape to the cool mountains.  (First world problems, I know.)  Maybe if we owned a boat I could love summer forever?  Now that school is back in I am 100% okay with the weather turning cooler.  And let's face it, knowing October is in your immediate future is always a good feeling. Hashtag Halloween. Hashtag pumpkins. Hashtag boots.

This year will feel a bit different at the school than last year.  While I'm still only going in every other day, I'm teaching four classes instead of the three I taught last year.  No prep period.  I think I can handle it, but it wouldn't be the first time in my life I thought I could handle something I couldn't.  The extra money will be helpful, and I guess I figure that as long as I am at the school and paying for daycare I might as well be earning as much money as I can.  I am hoping this doesn't mean that my days at home are overtaken by grading and lesson planning.  It will also feel different because I won't be sneaking away to a coat closet to pump at 9 am, or darting down to daycare at noon to feed.  My little Junie is growing up on me, darn it.

With my first day of school being tomorrow, I've got a few goals I've made.  Last year was kind of adjustment year for me- adjusting to being a mom, adjusting to going part time, adjusting to Greg's new work schedule.  Teaching got put on the back burner and I went on auto pilot mode.  This year I am hoping to step up my game a little bit this year and devote more time, love, and energy to my students.  They deserve it.

SCHOOL GOALS 2015-16

Visiting my alma mater this weekend in Price.

1.  Get to KNOW more of my students.  Ask them about their lives, their jobs, etc.  Stand outside door before class and say hi to students as they enter in.

2.  Have all work graded, put in computer, and back to students within a week.

3.  Be better about being accessible to my students- be in classroom every (B day) morning at 7 am and stay until 3 or 3:30 so they can reach me when they need to.

4.  Make my classroom a place where all students, regardless of religion, gender, sexuality, race, or economic status, feel comfortable and safe.

5.  Have open and honest communication with students so that they feel comfortable coming to me with problems.

Let's do this, school year!

Tomato and Basil Mozzarella Bites

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. 

All opinions are mine alone. #BackYourSnack #CollectiveBias

Tomato and Basil Mozzarella Bites

I'm not the best cook in the world, but I have learned a few tricks to turn my fast and easy frozen snacks into something totally special, fresh, and nutritious.  Adding fresh produce to snacks is key.  It's so easy anyone can do it and you will fool all your guests into thinking you are a pro cook.  And if you have a little creative cooking juice in your body, Farm Rich is hosting a huge contest- you could win $10,000. Chump change, right?  Here's my recipe:

Tomato and Basil Mozzarella Bites

Preparation time: 12- 15 minutes

Ingredients:

Farm Rich Mozzarella Bites

Fresh tomatoes

Fresh Basil

Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinaigrette (optional)

Instructions:

1.  Buy Farm Rich Mozzarella bites at your local Walmart.

2.  Follow cooking instructions on box.  (I cooked mine in the oven- 9-10 minutes at 350 degrees).

3.  While mozzarella bites are cooking, cut up fresh basil and tomatoes.

4.  When mozzarella bites are done, put a small amount of basil on top of bite, topped with half a slice of tomato.

5.  Drizzle olive oil (and Balsamic Vinaigrette if desired) on top.

(I love the balsamic vinaigrette on top- it gives it such a sweet and yummy taste.)

The plate on the right has the balsamic vinaigrette on it, the other two plates have just olive oil.  Both delicious!

As I mentioned earlier, you can create your own snack hack with Farm Rich products and enter to win $10,000.  Here's some info on the contest.

• Contestants MUST use at least one Farm Rich product and one Walmart fresh item, plus any special ingredients (up to 6 ingredients total) you want to include to create snack hacks between 8/1 and 8/23.
• The winner will receive $10,000.
• Enter the contest on the Back Your Snack contest submission page. Create their own snack hack. Get your recipe ready!  (Seriously, nothing in this world would be as awesome as someone from my blog entering this contest and winning $10,000.  Of course, you'd owe me a 10% commission.)  (Kidding.)  (Or am I?)
• Please note that the main focus for judging criteria is quality of recipe and use of require ingredients, not quality of imagery submitted.
• For full contest rules, check out the rule book here.

You can find Farm Rich products in the freezer department at Walmart.  Here is a list of stores where you can find the upcoming demos of the semi- finalists on 9/19 and 9/20, and the finalists on 10/9 and 10/11.

The best books for your one year old (+ an amazing offer)

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. 

All opinions are mine alone. #Back2SchoolStockUp #CollectiveBias

Yesterday we talked about how to help teenagers and adults become better readers; today I want to talk about fostering that love of reading in your children.  You guys notice a theme yet?  It's back to school week, folks, and I want to talk about books!

One thing that has surprised me is how much June already enjoys reading.  I kind of thought it would take a child until two or three years old to really like books, but June loves them already.  She probably doesn't understand a lot of what is being said when we read, but I think reading represents comfort, peace, and safety for her.  June is only one so a lot of books don't do it for her, but we have found a few books that are absolute winners.  Here's what we look for in books for our one year old:

- Something to flip.  June loves to turn the pages, but for some reason it's so much more fun for her to flip and find something behind the flap.  Why does this entertain children for hours?  The world does not know.  June's very favorite for this is Baby Faces. 

- Something to feel.  June loves all the different textures in books.  Any book that allows her to feel a furry bear's belly, a slick rain boot, a glittery rainbow, just does it for her. 

- Something to touch.  Much like flipping, June loves to be touching and "working" the books.  Our favorite for this one is The Robot Book. It has wheels that she can turn, screws that move up down, wheels that she can turn.  June never gets tired of this bad boy.

- Books with baby pictures.  June is obsessed with books that have real life baby faces.  She stares and stares at those little baby pictures.  "Is that me?" she wonders.  "No...  But it looks like me, right?  Who are these other little people?"  It is absolutely adorable.

- Books with animals.  Thanks to little Mavvy, June loves dogs and is generally just fascinated by animals.  The books that have real pictures of animals speak to little June Bug's soul.

- Colorful books.  The more colors the more interesting the book for June.

 - A book that is interesting for mama/ has clever text.  One thing I've learned as I've read books to June is that some baby books are really thin on the plot!  I mean, that's okay for a one year old, but for the 29 year old who is reading the book over and over it is not okay.  If a book says "chocolate" next page "juice" next page "lady bug" you can pretty much guarantee that we will not be reading that book much.  The books that become classics for us are the ones with clever text, cute rhymes, silly little stories.  June might like books, but I'm the one actually doing the reading, so the book needs to entertain me as well.  One of my favorite series is the "Olivia" series.  Seriously cute pictures and adorable little story lines.

What books does your little one love?  I am always on the hunt for great books for our personal little library.

Of course, growing a personal library for your little bug can take a lot of money (Board books are like $15 a pop).  I have a couple of suggestions for you to help with this.

Suggestion #1: Get most of your books at the library.  For every ten books that we read with June, we maybe buy one of them.  Our library lets us check out up to 50 books at a time so we check out a basketful and keep them for three or six weeks until we're ready for a new batch.  The books June loves loves loves, we buy.

Suggestion #2: Get your books for free!  Right now Kellogg's is behind one of the coolest offers to ever see the face of cereal boxes.  When you buy specially marked boxes of Kellogg's products (poptarts, cereal, fruit snacks, granola bars, cheeze-its, etc.) Kellogg's will give away two Scholastic books.  One book is sent to you in your home and one book is donated to a school in need.  So basically you spend $6 for pop tarts and you get pop tarts, a book for you, and a book for a school that needs it.  Has there ever been a better or more generous offer in the history of cereal?  You can build your child's personal library just by eating breakfast. (This is where you can check out what books are available.)

Go to Sam's Club to get this great offer.  Make sure the packaging has the special logo mentioning 1 Box=2 Books.  It looks like this:

Check out this list of Sam's Clubs with demos to find one near you on 8/22/15 and 8/23/15! 

If you are not a member of Sam's Club then click this link and Bring this invitation printed out to the Member Services Desk at your local Sam's Club for a pass to shop for the day. A 10% service fee applies on all non-member purchases when shopping with this One-Day Pass (not applicable in CA, SC or Elmsford, NY). The 10% service fee does not apply if the non-member decides to join the Club at the time of purchase."

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS TO REDEEM THIS OFFER:

-  Buy any one of 13 specially marked Kellogg's products at Sam's Club
-  Go to this site. 
-  Click on "ENTER CODE NOW"
-  Click on "GET STARTED" to redeem without signing into Kellogg's Family Rewards OR click "LOG IN" to redeem through your Kellogg's Family Rewards account
-  After clicking "GET STARTED", complete the blanks to create your user name and password, provide your birth date, read and accept the privacy policy
-  Enter the address where you'd like your book to be mailed
-  Enter the 16 digit code found inside your package
-  On the "Thanks" page, click "redeem page" to go to the book redemption page
-  Click on "ORDER NOW" to browse through the selection of over 80 books
-  Click on the book you'd like to order
-  Click on "Add to Cart"
-  Review your order on the Shopping Cart page
-  Click on "Continue to checkout"
-  Check the point deduction authorization statement
-  Click on "Continue to checkout" again
-  Review your contact info for accuracy
-  Click on "Place my order"
-  You're done! And now your book will arrive in the mail in no more than 8 weeks!

Let me know if you have any questions about redeeming your book and please tell me your little one's favorite book!  I am all ears.

7 Teething Tricks that Work Wonders

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. 

All opinions are mine alone. #TeethingTruths #CollectiveBias 

7 TEETHING TRICKS THAT WORK WONDERS

We were in Mexico the first week of June when I first noticed June's first toothy starting to poke through.  11 months!  And she finally got an old toother.  Turns out when it rains it pours because within the next month June had four teeth coming through at once.  FOUR!  Poor girl was miserable.  Our very pleasant baby was suddenly fussy to the max and we were all struggling with the new adjustment.  Nights were the worst- June could not fall asleep and had trouble staying asleep.  We figured out a few tricks to help our little girl and since then we have all been much happier.  Here's our best tricks- from me to you!

1.  POPSICLES!  It worked for us that June started teething in summer so she has been all about the popsicles.  She gets a popsicle about every day and the coldness on her gums is manna to a baby.  (Popsicle tip:  Always take off clothes.  Those bad boys stain!)

2.  COLD WASHCLOTH  A baby can't eat popsicles all day and all night, but another cold help that we love is a cold washcloth.  Get a washcloth wet, put it in a plastic bag and freeze it.  June loves holding on to her washcloth (It's almost like it's a little blanky for her) and just chomping down on it.  It's seriously adorable.  The fabric of the washcloth massages her little gums while the cold relieves the pain.

3.  GUM MASSAGE  When June is really feeling the pain from teething (at its worse she refuses to nurse and refuses a bottle; it is heartbreaking) I like to give her a little gum massages.  Surprisingly, she doesn't protest at all.  I use my pinky finger and just apply a little bit of pressure to her gums.  She loves it.

4.  TEETHING RING  This one hasn't actually worked for us, but I'm including it on the list because I know a lot of babies love them.  June doesn't quite have the attention to chew on something for long periods of time unless it is food.  But I've seen plenty of other babies relieve their teething pain with the pressure of a soft teething toy.  Maybe our next baby will be into this.

5.  FROZEN FRUIT  Can you tell June likes the cold stuff?  In the afternoons I often give her frozen bananas, frozen strawberries, and frozen blueberries to gnaw on.  It keeps her busy, feeds her, and numbs the pain all at once.  I cut fruit up and store it in little baggies in the freezer so that I have it on hand when June's teeth are bothering her.  (And when they're not bothering her- June loves frozen fruit any night of the week.)

6.  MAKE SLEEP AS ALLURING AS POSSIBLE  When June is really struggling to fall asleep we try to do everything possible to make sleep somewhere she wants to be.  We do a warm bath, put on clean, warm jammies, read her favorite books, hug dolly, and put her down.  Although it doesn't take away the pain of teething, it does give June a sense of comfort, peace and security that I believe helps her to fall asleep and stay asleep.  If we put her down in a rush she is much more likely to be agitated by her teeth.

7.  INFANTS' ADVIL  The nights when June is truly miserable, Infants' Advil has been our life saver.  (Make sure you get the infant variety and not the children's variety- infant is for 6 months to 23 months, children's is for 2-12 years).  The medicine is yummy (ours is grape flavored, June slurps it down) and is just enough to get her peacefully asleep for the night.  This has been our best friend this summer.  

 You can find Infant's Advil at your local Walgreens by the children's medicine.  And right now you can get $1.50 off when you use the coupon found here.

Infants' Advil® is available for infants ages 6 to 23 months old in a non- staining, Dye-Free White Grape liquid.  

Infants' Advil® Concentrated Drops are alcohol-free and come equipped with a syringe for easy dosing. 

Infants' Advil® contains ibuprofen, the medicine pediatricians use most for their own kids' fevers. 

Infants' Advil Offers parents a simple, effective solution to relieve their babies' pain with up to 8- hours of relief in just one dose.

 Any teething tricks I missed?  With only four of her teeth through, I am sure we have many teething woes in our future.  I'd love to hear your tips to making teething a little less miserable.

How to be a Better Fiction Reader

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. 

All opinions are mine alone. #SchoolYearReady #CollectiveBias 

QTiPS:

HOW TO BE A BETTER FICTION READER

Guess what I have learned in my five years of teaching?  Most high schoolers are not very good at paying attention while they read.  I can't tell you the number of times a student has told me that he or she read every page assigned and then got a zero on the quiz.  I think it is harder than ever for kids to concentrate while they read, and I don't really blame them.  We live in a world that has not trained us to do big chunks of reading, that has not trained us to focus.  Pinterest and instagram cater to pictures only, twitter can only be 160 characters max, and facebook will cut off your status if you go too long. Like my college professor used to say, we have no "reading stamina."  There isn't a lot in this world that is helping students learn how to digest big amounts of reading, and consequently kids have a hard time understanding what they read.  In order to help my students focus while they read, I have them do annotations on every novel. (Basically a big word for take notes.)  

At the beginning of the year I have students buy two packs of Post-it® Notes - a 1x1 four pack and a four pack of page markers.  Each four pack must have four different colors- green, orange, blue and pink, to represent four different things we will be looking for.  I have only been doing this system for a year, but it seriously amazed me how much more the students understood and retained from their reading by doing these annotations.  This year I am making it a requirement for all of my AP students to do my annotation system.  I think it is a valuable way for anyone to get more out of their reading, so I will share it with you... whether you use it for your own students, your own personal benefit, or for the benefit of a son or daughter who's in school.  I present to you... QTiPS

Like I mentioned, students buy two different sizes of notes... this is so that they can write more on the bigger Post-it® Notes if needed; the smaller Post-it notes are for quick and easy reference. I then tell them they will be looking QTiPS in their reading- important Quotes, Themes, People, and Symbols.  As they read and they come across any of those four things, they mark it with the corresponding color.  I'll show you some examples of how I do it in class using the first book I'll be reading with my AP class this year and one of my personal favorites, Lord of the Flies.

1.    Identify important Quotes (green):  Students must learn to find quotes that are especially significant, that foreshadow, that reveal character traits, etc.  At first it is hard for students to learn to pick out quotes that are important, but as they go it gets easier and easier.  On our first novel that we all read together I help them and give them lots of clues so that in no time they can find those quotes on their own.  In Lord of the Flies, we marked the quote "He was batty.  He asked for it" toward the end of the novel.  This is referring to a main character who the boys murder.  The quote is important because it shows the full effect of the island on the boys, that they so easily justify their heinous act.

2.  Identify the Themes (blue):  All great literature has a multitude of themes, and the themes manifest themselves over and over throughout the book.  I have students trace the themes as they read.  In Lord of the Flies the desire for power, the inherent evil or good nature of man, and the loss of civility are all huge themes.  I have students take note where the themes occur and reoccur.  This was very interesting to me last year because students would start to find themes within the novel that I had never even noticed.  When the students are teaching me is when I know they're really digging deep.  Those are my proudest teaching moments.

3.  Take notes about the People (pink).  I have students make observations about characters as they go- what characteristics they notice, what the strengths and weaknesses of the characters are, and definitely any time they see a shift in character.  (That's a big one- it usually means the author is up to something!)  The main characters are obviously very important to annotate, but I always tell students to be aware of the power of minor characters.  Piggy, Jack, and Ralph are the main characters in Lord of the Flies who are obviously important but Simon and then later Roger are crucial to the plot, too.  I'm always really proud when students read the clues and can tell early on what "minor characters" will end up having major effects.

4.  Pay attention to possible Symbols (orange).   Lord of the Flies is rife with symbols- the conch, the glasses, the fire, the island.  Symbols are something that students easily miss if they aren't actively looking for them.  Once they understand they symbols and their importance they are really able to analyze and think about the book on a deeper level.

The beauty of this system is that after we are done reading the book, the students have the perfect way to study for their test.  They go over their little Post-it® Notes and then they are good to go for the test day.  And for my AP students it is especially awesome to prepare for the big AP test at the end of the year.  At the end of each novel I have my students take out all their notes according to color and stick them on their notebooks.  They put QUOTES at the top of the page and then put all of their green Post-it® Notes on the following pages, next they put THEMES and that's where are their blue Post-it® Notes go, etc.  That way they have their notes for the whole year.  Also, there are a million and one things I could have students look for when they read, but I find that four is a good amount.  It keeps them busy without overwhelming them.  Any more than four and I think it would be too hard for students to remember what they're looking for, any less and I think they would miss important parts in the book.

I found my Post-it® Notes at Walmart in the Back-to-School seasonal area right at the front of the store.  You can also find the products in the stationary section.