Sentimental Sunday - "Live the life you have imagined."

" Go confidently in the direction of your dreams.
Live the life you have imagined."
- Henry David Thoreau

I have a small dry erase board on the side of my refrigerator that I scribble "reminders" on. Sometimes those reminders are quotes I come across that stand out to me as a piece of advice I want to apply to my life. This morning I read this quote referenced in this awesome post - "The Freedom to Move" by Loren Christie on the Mom Writer's Literary Magazine Blog. (If you have a few minutes to click on over and read it, it is time well spent.)

I've been thinking a lot lately about the direction of my life and how Pat and I can best mentor and guide our children to develop their talents and reach for their dreams. Abby loves to dance and draw. She talks about being a paleontologist or an archaeologist. (I didn't even know what a paleontologist was at her age!) Noah love anything sports and has a mean golf swing and follow through (as Pat says)...not the norm for his age. He says he wants to be a "superhero astronaut and fly to da moon!" Of course, they are young and their interests are still developing, but as parents, I hope they will always feel that we are behind them, cheering them on, or even better, leading them by example...

It’s not only children who grow. Parents do too. As much as we watch to see what our children do with their lives, they are watching us to see what we do with ours. I can’t tell my children to reach for the sun. All I can do is reach for it, myself.

~ Joyce Maynard

I am reaching! I haven't been able to reach as far during this past year as I would have liked, but I think the prayers that have been answered, the blessings we have been given, and the lessons we've learned (and are still learning) are pointing our family in that direction - to live the life we have imagined.

Needless to say, I am adding this quote to my dry erase board, right below an inspiring quote from Mr. Walt Disney ~

If you can dream it, you can do it.

He definitely ought to know!

Let the GERMS begin!

Abby started school less than two weeks ago, and this past Thursday, she got sick. Runny nose, barking cough, scratchy throat - total bummer. She actually said, "Mom, I don't want to go to school tomorrow. I don't feel good." Poor little thing. Considering how ecstatic she has been about school, I knew she really must have been feeling bad. So I kept her home on Friday...and I have to admit, I was a teensy weensy bit excited that I got to keep her home with me (yes, I am having separation issues) and we'd have a three day weekend, even though she wasn't feeling too well. We pretty much bummed around the house on Friday, drinking lots of water, eating popsicles, and watching Disney channel. (We finally got cable/internet hooked up again. When we first turned it on last week - Abby saw Disney for the first time in three months and exclaimed, "What in the WORLD???")

On Saturday, she seemed to be doing better, so she and I went on a girl's day out to eat lunch at "the noodle place", as Abby calls it (her favorite), and then to get some new school shoes. Pat and Noah headed out to the driving range to hit some golf balls. Noah was stoked! (You should see him hit the golf ball. It's crazy how well he hits for a 3-year-old. Abby's got a pretty darn good swing too. She can hit the ball over the fence in our backyard!) As we were searching for shoes, I noticed my throat was feeling scratchy too....By the time we got back that afternoon, my head was pounding, and I could tell my sinuses were preparing for an attack - ugh! Then a couple hours later, Noah started whining that his throat was hurting. "My froat, Mama. My froat is urding."

I guess it was inevitable, even though I've been having Abby wash her hands when she gets home from school and even introduced the whole singing "Happy Birthday" thing while she suds them up. I was really hoping it was just allergies, but I resigned to the fact that we've all got colds, except for Pat. He's been sleeping on the couch so he won't inhale my germs. (More power to him! I'd much rather be sick than to have to take care of a sick husband. He is worse than the kids. )

I did go ahead and send Abby back to school yesterday. She nose isn't running anymore, and she seemed to be feeling better and didn't want to miss "Purple Day"! I read that after three days and if she hasn't run a fever, then it's okay...still I've been reminding her, if she has to cough, cough into her elbow. If only she had a Germy Wormy...anyone ever use one of these? The site lists favorable reviews.

For now, I'm sticking to the traditional germ-fighting tips (and keeping my fingers crossed!) -

• Teach your children to wash their hands for as long as it takes them to sing the chorus of their favorite song, such as “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” or “ABCs.”

• Use an antibacterial soap with warm water.

• Do not allow children to share drinks.

• Keep sick children at home.

Honestly, I probably would have kept Abby home one more day if I wasn't so paranoid about her accumulating absences. I've already been scolded for bringing her to the car rider entrance one minute late (7:36 am - school doesn't even start until 7:40am), and the principal made us go all the way around to the front of the building to sign in so by that time, she was late. I tell ya, homeschooling sounds better and better to me all the time.

*I linked this post up to Tackle It Tuesday in case there are other moms out there in need of germ tackling tips or might have some to share!

Tuesday's Tribute - Thank you, Writer Mama!

I came across Tuesday's Tribute over at 7 Clown Circus last week and thought it was a great idea 'cause like Angie writes - We each spend a lot of time talking about ourselves and our lives, but we are also fairly GIVING people too...Tuesday's Tribute is a chance to talk about OTHER people, OTHER blogs, OTHER lives.

So without further ado, allow me to introduce you (if you haven't discovered her already) to Christina Katz, mother and author of the book that has motivated me to reach for my dream of becoming a published writer - Writer Mama : How to Raise a Writing Career Alongside Your Kids.

When I first read the title this book (just over a year ago), I knew it was exactly what I had been looking for. Within a few weeks of soaking in all of her great advice, I started a blog, connected with other writers through the Writer Mama website, and submitted a personal essay to a bestselling anthology series. A big jump for me as I had never submitted anything for publication before...and my essay was selected! This book inspired me to go after my childhood dream of being a writer in the midst of raising my children. I still have a ways to go, but it's nice to know there is a support system of Writer Mamas out there cheering each other on.

Christina is actually hosting a back to school giveaway on the Writer Mama blog starting Sept. 1st with all kinds of great writing reference and how-to books as prizes! She also teaches online writing classes and is giving away a scholarship for one of those soon too. (Wouldn't that be awesome?)

Just thought I'd spread the word to other writer hopefuls out there, and send out a big thank you to Christina, the ultimate Writer Mama!

WordFUL Weds - A "SUPER EXCITING" day!

There's been a lot of excitement around here lately! Yes, Abby started school last Monday. She is officially a kindergartner. She jumped out of bed before 6am that first day raring to go. After counting down the days for the last two months, she was beyond ready to get to school that morning.
As for me? My stomach was full of butterflies and a gigantic lump crept into my throat as I held my baby girl's hand and introduced her to her new teacher. It's a humbling experience playing the part of the parent rather than the teacher on the first day of school and handing your first born child over to this person you met five minutes ago. Luckily, there's something comforting about brand new boxes of crayons, freshly sharpened pencils, and seeing that smile on your little girl's face while she's reassuring you, "Don't worry, Mom. I'll come back." And sure enough, she did! :) The first thing she said when she climbed into the car that afternoon, sporting the "School is Cool" headband she made, was that it was a "super exciting day!" When I asked her what she liked best, she immediately replied, "The cafeteria!"

When you are five years old, it can't get much more exciting than that!

For more Wordful Wednesdays, visit the 7 Clown Circus!

Vote for our MOOOO-velous pictures!!!

A few weeks ago, the kids and I ventured over to our local Chick-fil-A to celebrate Cow Appreciation Day. Abby and Noah were all decked out in black and white attire, their homemade signs, and cow ears. (I even got in on the act by safety pinning black felt spots on a white skirt. haha!) They were excited about getting their FREE kid's meal. They love those "chikin" nuggets!
Noah kept his costume on for maybe two minutes.

Abby was so proud of the sign she made!

Abby has been asking me to enter our pictures in the photo contest so we can "maybe win a prize!" (She's so cute.) So if you have a moment, please click here and vote for our picture - CHIKIN's #1 FANS!!! Thanks!!!