This Was Fun

Don't know anything about them (possibly Mercy Me doing covers?) but I found this here. I enjoyed it so thought maybe you in the interwebs would as well.

Speech Therapist Update

So the ST evaluated G at her school and as I thought since there is no adverse impact on her grades she will not qualify for speech. But what I wanted was some exercises or info on how to help. All the ST told me was what I already knew and that is nothing is wrong with G's speech. She is at age appropriate speech for now. And G didn't tell her how embarrassed it makes her to say those words so the ST is not up to speed on the emotional side of it. Either the teacher didn't make it clear or she just didn't pick up on it.

I tried again to tell G she has nothing to be ashamed of or worried about that it is normal. She is normal in her speech. I don't think it worked. We are still going to see my mom's friend who is the next level ST just for some helpful hints.

Did You Mean "Girl" or "Gull"?

Please tell me how many of the 6-7 year old you know still have trouble with the "rl" and "l" after a consonant sound (which is the beginning of her name)? G says "gull" for "girl" and "cwove" for "clove" etc. I think it is age appropriate, and the sounds will eventually come. Her speech is not affecting her grades negatively. She still uses big words appropriately. She is a very bright kid who loves math.

She also knows she is not saying the words correctly and now won't say them to anyone. If a story she has to read has a difficult word like "squirrel" she says "s" instead. I mentioned it to her teacher because my mother told me I needed to address it. I personally think it is very cute.

I realize when the sounds come it will mean she is growing up and that makes me a bit sad. I really don't want to change it except that it is affecting her emotionally. The bully in her class told her she talks like a baby which I think exacerbated the issue. She claims she knew in pre-school she wasn't saying the words correctly and "everybody else did."

Here is the thing, speech therapy in school is a no-go because her grades are not hurt by her speech. She also doesn't want to be pulled out of anything for speech because she also realizes how different (her words) she is; she doesn't want to be singled out for this. After the last parent teacher conference, her teacher told the speech therapist at her school to just listen but I don't think she emphasized my understanding that I know G doesn't really need speech therapy. So needless to say, the ST hasn't seen her. I know the ST is very busy trying to get all the kids seen and the year wrapped up (2 months roughly to go, which will fly) plus spring break came along etc. Maybe I am naive but I don't think it would take very long to hear her and know what to recommend.

The ST and I actually go to church together and I have tried to catch her but haven't been able to do so there. I just want G listened to and reassured that she is fine, there is nothing wrong with her sounds but we still can work with her at home. I just don't know how to work with her to make those sounds on my own. So if anyone in the interwebs has worksheets or info on how to work with your child about these sounds please let me know so I can help G not be afraid to say these type words in public.

Oh and we have reached out to another ST at the next school grade who agreed to see her but then ST's baby got sick so it seems we are still just waiting. G asks me if I could say those words when I was 6 but honestly I can't remember neither can my mom. I do remember not being able to say "breakfast" until I was 11 or so. I kept adding an extra "a" sound in the middle of it.

Anyway, if anyone knows how I can help her let me know where to look.

She Did It

G is now an official orange belt in Tae Kwon Do. I am so proud of her. She was the only one to test yesterday because no one else was ready. But that was fine as it was her two instructors, me and her grandparents.

I gave her two matching karate outfits for her bitty twins as a gift for succeeding in her test. I think she was way more happy about the outfits which she played with for over two hours yesterday afternoon while I napped than in actually finishing her test.

Now she is working on her orange belt requirements starting with her memory verse in Philippians 4:7. Orange belt is peace. White belt is love, yellow is joy and orange is peace. This school ties the fruit of the spirit to a belt. That is why I love it so.

Interesting Rant and Funny Response

From NPR's blog. Read the blog and watch the video. I didn't bother to watch the girl's video as it would just make me mad but this response was SO worth saving!

Hello, I Am a Professional Blogger (wanna be)

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Ashworth College for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Had no idea there was a certification for that.  Ashworth College has the certification to make what we all do for fun something worthy to include in a resume.  In 6 months time you could earn a Professional Blogging Career Diploma from Ashworth College.  Can you imagine taking what you do for fun and turning it into a profession?  Isn't that the dream of every entrepreneur-wanna-be like me?   Real entrepreneurs do exactly that, don't they?

Seriously, I love blogging for the record keeping and the other bloggers I "meet."  I love freebies as well, but what if I could do so much more with the credentials behind my name to make blogging not just a hobby? Oh the possibilities are endless.

I have actually made a little bit of money on a few of my posts.  It hasn't been  much but enough sometimes for a week's worth of *bucks lattes.  I have even, when putting the post amounts together, been able to put gas in the SUV a time or two.  I am not yet big enough, however, to demand huge sums for my posts but with this certification, who knows?  That maybe around the next corner, and the dream of self-employment could be the next phase of my life.

I think had I taken a professional course I might would have set the blog up differently and learned more quickly about privacy within the blog, storage of photos and videos etc.  It would have been nice to know something up front as opposed to learning on the fly but on the fly I did learn.  Maybe I will seriously check into this when I have a new computer at home and time to do it and money to pay for it and stop making excuses already!

Surprisingly Good

I had never heard of "sisterchicks" novels before I read this book. I had picked it because I thought initially that it was non-fiction. I was pleasantly surprised at how good the story was, how wonderful the descriptions of the Netherlands were and how natural the characters seemed. Both women had something to come to terms with in their past or near future. God used their friendship to guide each one to a beginning of a change.

Summer discovered the truth about herself that I think any American woman can own as her own, that need to be in control of every situation. God used some out of control situations to make Summer realize she needs to trust Him.

Robin has a broken relationship with her father. She needs to forgive and discovers the strength to work toward that goal.

It was a quick read but very enjoyable. Who knows, you might learn something about yourself in one or both of the characters.

In exchange for this post I received this book free to read. The opinions are 100% my own.

Flowers to Brighten Your Day

The camera on the phone is good but not quite as vibrant as the colors G used to create this very pretty bouquet. I really liked her colors and the dark background makes them pop. I thought I would share them with the interwebs this a.m. Hope you like.

"We Be Big"- A Book Review

I have never heard of these guys before receiving this as a review copy. Basically, this is a story about how God's hand directly and indirectly intervenes in the lives of two men to make them hit radio personalities in the Alabama region.

Rick and Bubba tell their stories of becoming one half of the team in such a way to keep the reader engrossed. It is a sometimes funny and sometimes eye opening (to the back rooms of entertainment) but always entertaining book.

They claim to be just normal guys talking about normal daily things in their lives which keeps people listening and loyal to their brand of radio. One of them point out that when family or friends get together to spend time together the real stories told are what keep the conversations alive and funny, not the programmed stuff or the fake radio voices, which is very true. Bringing real life to radio is what they are all about.

3:16 Day

Today is John 3:16 day:

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him will not perish but will have everlasting life.



Pass it on!

G Is Growing Up, and Other Weekend Ramblings

G is growing up and yet she is still very young (thankfully). She has started helping me brush and comb her hair (only when she is not too tired). She has long below the shoulder length hair that really tangles well especially when she gets stuff like glue or grits in it which she has done in the last week. Anyway she will get the brush and brush it then get the comb to finish it then ask me to make sure all the tangles are out. Mostly, they are out and at night we band it so there are fewer tangles in the morning. Sometimes the glue and or grits will prevent a good non-tangle hair and even though I do wash her hair regularly she tends to forget that she did get something in her hair until too late.

G scored two baskets Saturday in her last Upwards game and assisted with two more baskets not to mention she made several tries that just hit the rim. I even got to see both baskets she made as I wasn't talking to anyone at the time. I was as proud of her for passing the ball and not trying to be the star but really playing as a team as I was for her baskets.

Then we headed to the Chinese market to get some seaweed for sushi rolls (sans meat or veggies, only rice rolls). I love going to the Chinese market. There are so many cool things there and the smells transport me back to China, for the most part. Also, we found a new to us brand of seaweed snack that hopefully will be there when we go back. G ate the whole container in less than 24 hours. Did I mention she loves seaweed snack?

Then we headed to a bowling bday party where G got to bowl on two lanes (several kids just got tired of bowling) for several different games. She got 3 strikes and several spares. None of them on the same game so there wasn't a score. Then we headed to bday boy's house and hung out with his very cool parents and grands. It was really fun. G fell in love with the dad and the electronics to the point that she didn't want to leave. She had fun leaning all over the dad while the dad showed both kids how to play a game on the dsi.

Sunday we headed to my parents for G to look at the clothes for the bitty twins which are less expensive than AG site but still pretty far up there. Her bday is over a month away and she will not stop asking if I am going to get her some specific outfits for the dolls. She is getting a few outfits but the persistent asking is driving me crazy!

Praying for Japan

Amazing devastation. A radio spokesman said it looked like something Hollywood would create for a mass destruction movie. Unbelievable grief, pain, fear surrounding Japan today. Any A-parents on their way to China? If they are flying through Tokyo, they will not get to China for some time. Pray for those families if there are any. We flew through Tokyo in 2005.

Truly awesome devastation and I mean that in the true meaning of terrible, huge, scary, great.

Conversations with G

Last night in the car with the radio on K-Love was interviewing someone who has spent time helping orphans in the world. Even SCC was instructed to speak with this person before he opened Shaohannah's Hope. I didn't hear the name so forgive me but I am sure in the K-Love archives the information is there.

Anyway in the conversation on the radio the words "orphans in China" were spoken and G (I can never tell when she is listening) said, in a real excited voice "China! I was an orphan in China!"

I said, "You are right baby but you are an orphan no more."

She said, "Yea, because you adopted me."

I said, "Yep and did you know that I am adopted too into God's family through Christ?" I had watched the Third Day video earlier and it struck a cord, you know? So I told her that we were adopted into God's family as well. Then the conversation ended as we were headed into the Ash Wednesday service at church.

Oh, Oh, I Am Famous

and I didn't even know it. I was published in the local paper way back in November.

Well, my name was published in the local paper. I didn't see it. Apparently no one I knew saw it either. I just found out about it today even. It was all about my being delinquent in paying my personal state taxes last year that were due in Oct. Oh well, I just forgot.

There was a small remembrance when trying to get my tags for my car that I received the assessment last year. I just didn't bob over and write a check for them. Then I took the tax notice home and laid it down. I suppose it is buried somewhere in the not to be ignored "VERY IMPORTANT PAPER STACK." Am I the only one who is quite able to ignore the "VERY IMPORTANT PAPER STACK"?

Any who, I am all paid up now even for this year. And while there I just renewed my license that was going to expire this year. And that little name blurb in the paper that I didn't see cause I don't get the paper nor did anyone else see it that I know personally? It cost me $1.75. Ridiculous waste of tax payer money! Printed news papers really are the least effective tool of communication in this day of IM and text-ing.

Sloan Swindle Passed Away

The single adoptive moms of two Chinese daughters I mentioned earlier (link in title of this post) passed away this morning. She was released to hospice to die at home. She leaves behind Polly, age 14 and Swan, age 10 (I think) and a male friend who has now lost his whole family (in his own words) as they were not married and he did not adopt the girls with Sloan. I am praying he can still have great influence in the girls lives as he has truly been there since Polly came home (really before for with Sloan). Sloan was in her 50s.

Want a Reason to De-Fund NPR and PBS?

Check out this caught on tape video two NPR execs calling Americans non-intellectual, white middle class gun-toting, racist, racists.

You will have to go to the link because I can't get it to embed here. Very eye opening. Can't decide if the NPR execs are really just stupid or if they are trying to scam this Muslim Brotherhood front group or if they really truly believe what they are saying.

Granted there are a lot of kids shows on PBS but even those shows should take a cue from Nick Jr. and Qubo which are also good kids shows mostly (Nick Jr. is a little too earth loving for me) but are not funded by federal tax dollars. The problem is that the adult shows on PBS and NPR are over the top leftist, marxist, liberal ideologies that are being spewed out on all of us. Let's just stop it.

Ending Winter Doldrums with a New Outdoor Room for Spring

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Pier 1 for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Spring is finally coming, though you wouldn't know it here today.  Pier 1 has a great new look to bring your outdoors out of the winter doldrums with new bright colored cushions for your lovely new outdoor wicker furniture.  Imagine spending the morning uninterrupted, sipping coffee in your very own outdoor swingasan chair listening to the birds sing while planning your day.  Well, maybe that is just my perfect imagination.  But you could be sipping lemonade poured from your very own ceramic frog pitcher for under $20 (he really is a cutie).

The new arrivals for spring at Pier 1 are spectacular, and who doesn't desire a back yard that is worthy to be called an additional room?  Well, maybe that too is just my own desire from watching too much HGTV.  But a lot of the beautiful pieces can be used indoors as well as outdoors. I am thinking of the wonderful mosaic topped tables like the Taza Round Outdoor Table.

Check out Pier 1 up for a special in-store offer for the weekend of March 18 - 20.   With the official day of Spring being March 20, there are plenty of on-line specials to get started re-decorating your outdoor living space.

Sign up for the Pier 1 Outdoor newsletter and design to your hearts content.   Check out their catalog on-line while browsing their website for spectacular savings on

Pier 1 Tweetups coming up are:

Orlando: March 9th, 2011
Dallas: March 22nd
Atlanta: April 5th
NYC: April 20th

This way you can keep up with the latest news and offerings from Pier 1. 

Remember This?

Friend's daughter diagnosed with cancer? Well, her treatment is over and she is back in school. She had been home schooled due to her treatment but her cancer for now is gone.

And here she is: She has become a celebrity of sorts. She does have a wonderful voice and apparently loves to be on stage. The family is trying to return to normal if normal is possible after a child has been diagnosed with cancer.

I felt it was fair of me to update the blog since I brought it up in 2008.

Some Encouragement for Today

I found this on a blog of a family who is in need of some encouragement. Their 5 year old daughter (turned 5 in the hospital) was diagnosed with cancer. If you think about it, pray for the family and maybe leave some encouraging comments to them.

The Teeth...

They keep on coming out. The next to the permanent tooth coming in on top was pulled by her grandad today. She would mess with it until it bled which grossed me out personally speaking which made the tooth loose enough for a strong stomached grandad to pull. So the toothfairy makes a visit tonight and we still have one other loose tooth on the bottom that G will now turn her attentions to.

"Walgreens Brand Health & Wellness Products" vs. Acne

This is a compensated post written by me on behalf of Walgreens. All opinions are 100% mine.

I received a sample (large bottle actually) of the "Walgreens Brand Oil-Free Acne Wash" to review to make readers aware of the Walgreens Brand Health & Wellness Products.

In all fairness to everyone I must disclose how terrible my acne is and has always been (started in 4th grade). I can find things to clear me up but the effect never lasts long and I am back on the search for something different. I have used lotions and potions and mixtures both bought and homemade to no great help. I have taken the oral meds and the Rx topical stuff to no long lasting avail.

I will say I haven't been using this long because I just received it last week, but so far so good. What I will say is that I have noticed the good clean smell it has and the clean feeling I have hours after washing my face even under makeup. It has seemed to clear up faster (than what I currently use) the monthly acne caused by the female hormonal surge. I haven't discovered or felt any side effects either which is very nice.

And with every purchase of the Walgreens Brand Health & Wellness Products you can support preventative and wellness services in local communities. From the Walgreens website: "Beginning February 1, 2011 through January 31, 2012, 1¢ from the purchase of every Walgreens Brand Health & Wellness Product, up to $3 million annually, will support bringing preventive wellness services to local communities through the Walgreens Way to Well Fund™.

So try some of the other Walgreens Brand Health & Wellness Products and serve your community.

Seriously Disgusted

A woman at work asked a Chinese woman who has been in the US for 10 years if women in China go through the "change." Then as if that wasn't bad enough two other dolts stood around to explain to the Chinese woman what the first idiot meant by "change" and waited for an answer.

My head never sped around so fast. I tried to confront but the first dolt said she was kidding and the other two kept insisting they didn't ask the question in the first place. I didn't know people didn't realize that women from China were just that: WOMEN who happen to live in China and are Chinese not aliens from another planet.

Gah! I explained to my neighbor who heard the exchange why I was so bothered by that comment and the reason is G. She is going to face that sort of ignorance all of her life. Honestly, that is like asking if a person of another color bleeds red. HELLO!!! Ding dongs!

Finally Settled

G came home Tuesday telling me that the boy causing trouble is going to have his daddy come to talk to teacher about G calling him names. He basically threatened her. She did not tell the teacher. So Tuesday night while G was at basketball practice I text-ed the teacher to tell her that the child hasn't stopped and that G felt that she was the one in trouble. I told her that every time I mentioned talking to the teacher G would burst into tears. Ms. teach text-ed me back and said, "I told her she wasn't in trouble." I let G read all the texts when she came home. The teacher thanked me and then called me yesterday to tell me the outcome.

It seems the boy had a child near him who did cheat off of him so he decided everyone must be cheating on him with G as the nearest target. Explaining that G didn't need to cheat didn't help. The girl who cheated now takes a test alone away from anyone else. So now the boy has been moved down the table away from G. He sits across from another boy which G noticed he doesn't every bother the boys. Also, the teacher was unable to get in touch with the parents due to disconnected or changed phone numbers.

The other thing was that Ms. teacher said G wasn't his only target but she was the closest and in more constant contact which made me feel much better. So really his problem (which I knew it always was his problem) is immaturity and fear of others cheating like the one girl did. Ms. teacher didn't like the threatening part at all. I think G now feels like she can tell Ms. teacher when something like this happens and not get in trouble.

Did You Ever Want to Ask God a Question?

This book may not have all the answers but there are quite a few of the more important one. I will admit that even though Alton Gansky uses answers based in the Bible I still had a bit of trouble with the book. In the back of my mind the word "presumption" popped up quite a bit.

I had to keep telling myself it is a book meant to help people and the author was not trying to be presumptuous. This is a good tool to use in a situation with an open minded non-believer as a jumping off point. This would be a good tool to use in a small group Bible study to strengthen believers' world view. This would be a great tool for a college bound student to help strengthen his/her belief system.

Worth reading and giving away as a friendly gift.

I received a copy in exchange for my review. My opinions are 100% my own.

For All of You Wondering

I plan on meeting with the teacher very soon it just can't be with G around or with her knowing about it. She will be devastated because she thinks she got in trouble. So I am holding off for a specific time for a reason. Plus I need to build my case apparently a lot more by the information G gives me in a round about way. By the way the little boy is still messing with G but she doesn't tell me straight out. So whatever the teacher did or did not do is not working. I know she is a child and it is my responsibility to take care of her and protect her. I am def. working on it.