The Puzzler

Ian is going to be my puzzle buddy. I am grooming him, because I secretly enjoy jigsaw puzzles myself. Despite my prodding, I believe that Ian just truly enjoys puzzles for himself, which in the grand plan, is even better.

This afternoon, I had to make a stop at the teacher store for things and brought the boys with me. We love the teacher store because it has wonderful wooden puzzles and toys. To Ian's delight, we found a new 48 piece outer space jigsaw puzzle. He carried it with great anticipation around the store. "Mommy, I am a puzzler. I just love puzzles."

On the way to the car, he said, "Mommy, do you know why you are special?" I was thinking that it was because I just bought him a puzzle that he wanted, but he surprised me. "Mommy, you are special because you are so good at puzzles. You just know how to do puzzles. And so do I!"

Now, earlier this week, Tom, by Ian's request, was timing how long it took Ian to complete a 48 piece puzzle. (5 minutes, 27 seconds-eerie that it was twice in a row with the exact same time)

It's hard not to project on him and declare him a puzzle buddy, since he really doesn't know what he would be in for. You see, I can work on puzzles all day-start to finish-to the exclusion of everything else around me. Which is why I haven't done a puzzle since last summer in New York, when I had plenty of people to watch my children so I could work ceaselessly. It's truly obsessive! But, that's what makes me so special, as my son so eloquently stated!

Plus the one thing I love is that puzzles can spark some really great conversation if you happen to be working with a puzzle buddy. And I have to say that I love Ian's puzzle conversations now and I am so looking forward to future conversations too.

And completely off subject....Ian now has an alarm clock. He is actually excited about it-we went to Target and got one for him tonight. Ian has the great Murphy trait of sleeping late and we are finding that the back-to-work-and-daycare routine is stressful for him. After a highly dramatic morning, I suggested an alarm clock for Ian, where he could wake up without us badgering him. He found it to be a great idea and we set it up and tested it out.

We'll see come morning if the alarm clock works or not.

Ian asked me if I wanted the Disney pink castle clock at Target because I don't have it. I told him that while it was very girly, that Mommy already had an alarm clock.

Its name is Connor.

Favorite Meme

Favorite Meme...

My bloggy pal mamichelle had this on her post and I love answering these. Feel free to post your own!
Sport: Baseball (to watch) Yoga (a sport-probably not, but I like it!)
Game: Cranium with Mike and Terri, Slapjack with Ian, Hearts with the Murphy clan
Color: Black and I'll add Red as not to sound too morbid.
Movie: Princess Bride
Broadway play I have seen: Don't know that I have seen a play
Broadway Musical I have seen: Les Miserable eons ago
Song: I Will
American city I have visited: New York City
Foreign city I have visited: Quito, Ecuador
Book: To Kill a Mockingbird
Children’s Book: Good Night, Gorilla, and Nothing Ever Happens On My Block
Classic television show: Friends (it's a classic, right?)
Recent television show: Arrested Development (hermano) and Colbert
Actor: ?
Actress: ?
Perfume: Not a perfume fan-I do like lavender essential oil
Food: NY Pizza
Dessert: Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream
Chain Restaurant: Pei Wei
Local Restaurant: Caruso's (Italian) and Mango's (Mexican)
Car: I love my Pontiac Vibe-I did see a cute Vespa scooter today, not sure that I can pull that off!
Condiment: Jalapeno Mustard
Kitchen Appliance: My new Juicer-which will be used again tonight!
Home Appliance: iPod player? Portable DVD? Laptop? Love them all!
Beauty Product: My new Lather sweet almond facial moisturizer-LOVE it! I also love my Physician Formula SPF bronzer. Also my eyelash curler. The older I get, the more beauty products on my list!
Piece of clothing: My new Gap wide leg pants. Surprisingly, I don't have a pair in black yet!
HGTV Show: I don't watch, but I would if my kids didn't talk over the shows or angle to watch Backyardigans or Diego.
Food Network show: None. I basically allow my friend Cindy to watch and tell me about good recipes.
Author: Amy Tan
Male Songwriter: Duke Ellington, Lennon/McCartney
Female Songwriter: Nancy Wilson (rock, not jazz)
Holiday: Fourth of July
Ballet I have seen: Nutcracker
Disney character: My friend Tina will cringe, but not a Disney fan.
Flower: Sweet Pea
Alcoholic drink: sangria
Non-Alcoholic drink: homemade juice-if I perfect it
Magazine: Sunset and Alpaca
Animated movie: Cars!
Television network miniseries: I don't watch
Season: Fall in the East and Winter in the West
Male vocalist: Marc Anthony (salsa)
Female vocalist: Ella Fitzgerald
Day of the week: Friday and Sunday
Household Chore: laundry or organizing
Ice Cream: Mint Chocolate Chip (Haagen Das or Ben/Jerry!)
Candy: Plain old special dark chocolate chips (mixing with raisins and almonds for trail mix!)
Artist: Diego Rivera

It Was Fun While It Lasted

Well, the official end of summer is happening tonight. Thomas heads back to work to sit through eight-hour meetings at his school. (not kidding-his school has some insane stamina for meetings)
The boys will return to daycare this week and begin preschool next week.

We usually have Sunday night laments, but the End of Summer lament is usually a little sadder. But, how lucky can you be to spend an entire summer together? It's really not bad in the grand scheme of things.

Today, on my first day of teaching, I was arriving as kids were being dropped off at school. I got out of my car after parking on the street (parking lot was full of kindergarten parents-I'll be one next year!) and saw a little boy with a huge backpack, weeping and running full speed for the neighborhood behind the school. I didn't have my badge on but I walked behind him for a bit to see where he was going. The principal came up and went on to follow him. Poor little guy.

That was followed by getting all of the students into the classroom and about 5 minutes after everyone was in class, the fire alarm went off. You never have a drill on Day One, so either it was a fire or someone pulled the alarm. And yes, a little child in the front office pulled the alarm. Off to a wonderful start at that school! Wow!

My classes were very good-one is almost all Spanish-speaking, multi-age level. It bothers me on some levels that Arizona is going to this 4 hour intensive English format and basically segregating this population of students from the rest of the strong English speakers. The peer relationships that the second language kids develop with the stronger English speakers really strengthen their skills, in my opinion. I am really disappointed that this is happening, even though I understand the need to speak English and have a common learning language. But separating these kids feels wrong to me. Regular teachers might disagree as I am sure it makes it easier to teach in their classrooms. Arizona needs to use some of their education dollars to buy a clue.

And while I am on the education rant, Arizona is also working to take away school choice and voucher systems. Parents here in AZ enjoy the fact that they can really pick any school they want for their kid. And it certainly seems to a great thing. Ultimately, in my opinion, having worked in both no choice and choice areas, that this is one thing that parents should not have the choice in. I am in the minority here and I know as a working mother, it is impossible to figure out your schedule if you are stuck in your neighborhood school and work far away. However, since the voucher system means that schools see students as dollar signs and not as students, the teachers are forced to do all kinds of crazy things like promote students who should be retained, fundraise for classroom supplies, make parents happy so that the students don't switch schools. Districts make education a business-some have customer service as their mission. Parents bring their kids to the excelling schools and the lower income or failing schools lose money for operations, lose money to get better teachers and the fight to get back on track leaves a lot of administrators and teachers overworked and always underpaid. I have never seen so many administrators and teachers job-hop (I include myself here now) to find a decent job where you aren't treated horrendously by parents or hounded by administrators. It is ridiculous. If we didn't have vouchers, it might mean that the low income kids would get decent teachers. Maybe we would get visual arts back in districts (yep, several districts here without art-including mine) and maybe we could stop having teachers working a million hours on trying to get extra money by doing extra work or a million classes. Maybe teachers would be happier and Arizona could be a real education state. My kids will go to their neighborhood school-whether it's here or if we move. Letting parents decide is great until it runs amuck. I commend whoever it is trying to get rid of vouchers. Do it and do it now. It doesn't work. Exceptions would only be special education, in my opinion, and not because my son will be SPED, but because they can tailor SPED programs to fit population needs. Of course, then everyone will angle for special education....

Growing up in NY, I lived in a middle to low income area and I went to school with all kinds of kids. Doctor kids, dentist kids, trailer park kids like me, middle income kids and it was completely fine. We didn't have the choice to go to a different school in the district. You went where you went. Sometimes I love the no-nonsense of New York.

Well, now that I decide to go on a tangent, I should probably get some rest. I'll probably be waking Tom up in the morning and pushing him out the door. Poor guy!

Birthday Bliss

Friday was my 3* th birthday-the first time that I have EVER had to work on my birthday, which I know, I know-many folks work on their birthdays, but having a summer birthday and being a teacher, I just missed that. However, my co-worker made my day by remarking that he was very surprised at how old I actually am, thinking I was only 30 or 31. Brownie points for him.

I spent much of the morning in meetings and fixing my schedule, but following that, I called home and found that Tom needed glue for "something" and sounded quite busy. I decided to hop over and get a pedicure before coming home.

Upon arriving at home my lovely boys had some presents and had purchased the traditional birthday cake. Ian presented me with a gorgeous handcrafted necklace made from his preschool camp beads. He informed me all week that "Mommy, you like girly stuff. I am going to make you a girly necklace and it will be sooo girly." Here it is and I love it. Later this evening at the bookstore, the cashier complimented my necklace and its creator, who beamed when she exclaimed how colorful it was.

Tom got me a juicer machine, which I was researching all week. I didn't consider that he would buy me a juicer-I was planning to use some of my gift money, but he did. Actually, we went and got a different one today instead, but we also have a ton of fruits and veggies to juice, so I am very excited about that. Thanks, PUP!

My pedicure-blue for going back to work, but happy flowers to keep positive! Actually, Annika and Trevor created a super cute lollipop tree in a hand-painted planter, along with a lovely shade of indigo nail polish, so I cannot wait to use that too! Thank you, Wines family!

Here I am with my loot, along with several Target gift cards (apparently everyone knows that I am a Target fan) and my Starbucks passionfruit iced tea treat.

The boys enjoyed the Monsters Etc bag-now I know what to get them for their birthdays...

The delicious ice cream cake! We even opted to eat ice cream cake before dinner-the boys were delighted with that idea.

En route to the NY pizza dinner, the boys conked out. A long day of birthday shopping, present making and ice cream cake indulgence.

One of our favorite pizza stops in Chandler, AZ. The owner is from Long Island and the pizza is excellent. So excellent that the four of us finished an entire pie.

We tried to get Connor to look up, but he ignores everything once his food is in front of him.

We stopped at Borders where the boys enjoy climbing the story steps and Ian immediately picked out the Star Wars poster.


Thank you to everyone who made my day so special. In addition to all of this, I received some of the most beautiful cards. One from my dad which was really special to me-Dad, I am really proud for you and thank you for giving me some new insight and information. I loved it and love you. Also, thank you for the birthday money too. One of my best friends, Shannon gave me a card that said she would pick me for a sister if she could. One of the greatest compliments in the world and knowing that neither of us actually has a sister-it makes it very special. I would pick her a million times over. Thanks, Shan! Plus bonus pictures of her gorgeous children-already on the fridge for us to see every day.

My mom sent a Target gift card and a very cute and funny card. Thanks, Mom! Also, Terri and Michael sent me a Target card (I LOVE TARGET, that must be apparent, huh?) and a very cute card. Thank you! I'll let you know what birthday goody I find there. I promised my mom it wouldn't be for the boys either.

And thank you to Tom for all of the birthday fun and especially the blog post. That was the sweetest and I feel so loved and happy.

You guys make turning 3* so much fun! Thank you!!

(p/s) this is about my quota for the year of pictures of myself. Seriously.

Introducing......

the moment we have been waiting for.....my husband Thomas' blog! He has a wealth of great stories and anyone who knows him, knows that his blog is aptly named.

AND as a wonderful bonus, he wrote about a very special person for his first entry! I wasn't planning on blogging this occasion, but he did it for me. I couldn't ask for a better gift!

I am tired, but we'll fill in the details of today's events tomorrow. After a nice big glass of JUICE!
(thank you T!)

Lego My Lego

Ian has been enjoying Lego sets "with directions!" this summer. He started with some small Star Wars spaceships and quickly moved up to some of the larger Lego sets. Here he works with Uncle Chris and Grandma Sheila on a new Lego creature.

One of the best quotes of the summer: "Uncle Chris, you're a frickin' genius!" Followed later by "I think I'd like a frickin' hot dog for lunch." (apparently someone must say frickin' in our house)

And here is boy genius with his K'nex. Grandma Sheila got him to build a vehicle over spaceships and blasters. He definitely has symmetrical design principles down. Unfortunately, he is stuck now with his mother (me!) who doesn't have any spatial intelligence and cannot put Legos together correctly. Lucky for me that Tom has boxes of old Legos and has been slowly bringing a well-timed new project out for Ian every other week or so.

At Target, Ian found a very cool Lego spaceship on clearance and spent some of his money to buy it. He spent a solid two and a half hours putting the entire ship together, with a bit of guidance from Tom and sticker assistance from me. Any four-year-old who can sit for over two hours on a project simply amazes me. That's my little visual-spatial son!

It is again a bittersweet week as I finally went back to work (sorry all non-teachers) this week for meetings. My actual schedule is (so far) nicely timed and I am mostly teaching Kindergarten and Special Education classes, along with some 3rd grade and maybe 2nd grade.

Tomorrow, we meet with the preschool/daycare to see if they will accept Connor all day and enroll Ian. If all works out, they will be attending this new school four days a week all day. They will get to be home with Tom for one day and possibly go to their old daycare on some Fridays. This new preschool has some wonderful things for the boys. Our OT went with us to check out the facility for Connor and liked it a lot. I'll post some photos tomorrow if we are able to sign in.

Other than that, it's off to work for me (meetings!) and getting schedules finalized and lesson planning done. Hard to believe the summer ends in July. But the up side is that I got so much time with my boys . All three of them.

A Show of Protest

Autism Groups Plan Protest Of Savage In NYC

Conservative Radio Jock Ignites Firestorm After Calling Autistic Children 'Brats,' 'Morons' On Syndicated Show

NEW YORK (CBS) ― Conservative radio host Michael Savage will have his hands full on Monday.

In response to his controversial comments about children with autism, Autism United and angry parents will hold a major protest outside WOR Radio studios in Manhattan on Monday afternoon, CBS station WCBS-TV in New York City has learned.

They will be calling for the firing of the radio jock and asking for a boycott by parents of children with autism of all stations carrying his signal. Savage outraged the autism community recently by saying 99 percent of children suffering with autism are "brats" and "morons" on his national syndicated radio show.

Media Matters for America on Sunday condemned Savage for his comments.

"What Michael Savage said was foolish, mean-spirited, and hurtful," said J. Jioni Palmer, spokesman for Media Matters. "It's unfortunate he would use his radio program to make fun of and belittle these kids. Instead of ridicule and cheap shots, the children suffering from autism and asthma and their families need support and compassion."

During the July 16 edition of his show, Savage claimed that autism is "[a] fraud, a racket. ... I'll tell you what autism is. In 99 percent of the cases, it's a brat who hasn't been told to cut the act out. That's what autism is. What do you mean they scream and they're silent? They don't have a father around to tell them, 'Don't act like a moron. You'll get nowhere in life. Stop acting like a putz. Straighten up. Act like a man. Don't sit there crying and screaming, idiot.' "

Talk Radio Network, which syndicates The Savage Nation, claims that Savage is heard on more than 350 radio stations. The Savage Nation reaches at least 8.25 million listeners each week, according to Talkers Magazine, making it one of the most listened-to talk radio shows in the nation, behind only The Rush Limbaugh Show and The Sean Hannity Show.

Over 2 million children and adults have autism. One out of every 150 children is diagnosed with autism today.


-Sure, everyone has a right to their opinion and are free to say what they wish. When someone this uneducated about autism spouts off and tries to make a mockery of my son's disability and my parenting skills, it seems like we have a right to a rebuttal. I wish I could attend tomorrow, but I will be following. Feels hard to let this one roll off.

Thanks to Mom for giving me the heads-up on this protest-I immediately went online to check out the scoop. And also thanks to Bobbie at Almost There for also linking the original statement by Savage. Those interested in what he actually said, scroll down a few posts.

Preschoolers Say the Best Things!

"I'm a figgerer. I figure out stuff. My favorite thing to do is look and be a thinker and when I think something is right, it's right!"

Ian while solving a jigsaw puzzle.

A Show of Ignorance

Thanks to Aunt Kathie for sending this my way. My opinion on blowhard talk radio host: An idiot, a ratings whore. Believe me, I can see a brat right over the airwaves and perhaps it is he who should be told to cut out the act, stop acting like a putz. Moron. -L

Action Alert

--

4,500+ Appearances and counting

Sign the petition and make your voice heard.

--

--

Dear Friend,

On July 16, the No. 3 syndicated radio talk show host in the country, Michael Savage, made the following statement on autism:

"Now, you want me to tell you my opinion on autism? ... A fraud, a racket."

Savage went on to say:

Now, the illness du jour is autism. You know what autism is? I'll tell you what autism is. In 99 percent of the cases, it's a brat who hasn't been told to cut the act out. That's what autism is.

What do you mean they scream and they're silent? They don't have a father around to tell them, "Don't act like a moron. You'll get nowhere in life. Stop acting like a putz. Straighten up. Act like a man. Don't20sit there crying and screaming, idiot."

Autism -- everybody has an illness. If I behaved like a fool, my father called me a fool. And he said to me, "Don't behave like a fool." The worst thing he said -- "Don't behave like a fool. Don't be anybody's dummy. Don't sound like an idiot. Don't act like a girl. Don't cry." That's what I was raised with. That's what you should raise your children with. Stop with the sensitivity training. You're turning your son into a girl, and you're turning your nation into a nation of losers and beaten men. That's why we have the politicians we have.

During the same broadcast, Savage also attacked those in "the minority community" who suffer from asthma. He stated: "[W]hy was there an asthma epidemic amongst minority children? Because I'll tell you why: The children got extra welfare if they were disabled, and they got extra help in school. It was a money racket. Everyone went in and was told [fake cough], 'When the nurse looks at you, you go [fake cough], "I don't know, the dust got me." ' See, everyone had asthma from the minority community."

Michael Savage's mean-spirited comments are disgusting and are an affront to basic decency.

Find your local Savage Station, log into our calling tool and tell your Savage station manager what you think of Savage's tirade.

The Savage Nation reaches at lea st 8.25 million listeners each week, according to Talkers Magazine, making it one of the most listened-to talk radio shows in the nation, behind only The Rush Limbaugh Show and The Sean Hannity Show.

Your voice is critical in holding Savage accountable for his comments. I hope you take the time to call and tell those running the station exactly what you think of Michael Savage.

Find your local Savage Station, log into our calling tool and tell your Savage station manager what you think of Savage's tirade.

Thank you,

Erin Hofteig
Director, New Media
Media Matters for America

Under the (Warm) Weather

My blog has been a bit dried up this summer and I hope I will be able to get back into the groove of writing regularly once school begins. Oh, did I mention school begins on MONDAY?!?! My school district is year-round, but coming from the East Coast (and the rest of the nation, really) where school begins when it should, after Labor Day, my poor brain cannot wrap itself around returning to work in July.

After a delightful evening at the Desert Botanical Gardens with Aunt Ginny on Thursday (a flashlight tour of the gardens with informational stops about some of my favorite topics: Toads, Snakes, Scorpions, Spiders as well as interesting desert plant and tree information. Actually, I think Aunt Ginny might have been more afraid of the snakes, spiders, etc. than I. ) Ian handled the evening well (his question about frogs: "Do frogs swim?") until the end of the night when we could have used him and his body to light our path from his glowing skin. It was over 110 degrees that day and he felt entirely too warm, but we thought he was drinking plenty of water.

At home, we discovered he had a 102 temperature. He woke up the next morning with "buggies in my throat" and so we got him in to Dr. Mike that morning. Turns out he had strep, so we started antibiotics and some Advil to bring down the fever. Later that morning, he assisted in changing the bedsheets and proceeded to try jumping on Connor's bed. He played Legos and appeared to feel much better.

Cut to 5:30am when he arrives in our bedroom crying. Normally we are mean parents and don't allow our children to sleep in our bed. I relented and he had a drink and fell asleep well. At 8:00am, the return visit of his drink was unpleasant. He barfed several times in the morning and wept about "the buggies in his tummy" and how he didn't want to be sick anymore. He finally fell asleep on the couch for about three hours and woke up feeling more chipper and ready to play. He worked on a pirate puzzle for an hour and then spent the evening with Daddy working on Legos.

Poor kid. No fun being sick. I will say that I spent all day yesterday washing our regular laundry. Today I spent much of the day rewashing sheets, pillows, the couch covers, blankets, their clothes (oh, yes, Connor wet his bed today too...might as well get it all in) and went to the store for more bleach.

All I hope is that tomorrow will be a barf-free, laundry-free day on my last day of summer freedom.

Que Chevere!

Es un buen tipo mi viejo
Que anda solo y esperando
Tiene la tristeza larga
De tanto venir andando

Yo lo miro de desde lejos
Pero somos tan distintos
Es que creció con el siglo
Con tranvía y vino tinto
Viejo, mi querido viejo
Ahora ya caminas lento
Como perdonando el viento
Yo soy tu sangre mi viejo
Soy tu silencio y tu tiempo.

El tiene los ojos buenos y una figura pesada
La edad se le vino encima
Sin carnaval
Ni comparsa
Yo tengo los años nuevos
Mi padre los años viejos
El dolor lo lleva dentro
Y tiene historias sin tiempo

Viejo, mi querido viejo
Ahora ya caminas lento
Como perdonando el viento
Yo soy tu sangre mi viejo
Soy tu silencio y tu tiempo
Yo soy tu sangre mi viejo.

Feliz Cumpleanos a mi padre, que enviamos mucho carino en este dia muy feliz. Aunque estamos bien lejos, siempre te recuerdo and siempre te extrano. Hay aqui unos fotografias que llevo en corazon estes momentos tan especial. Que tengas un dia muy relajado y bonito y muchos abrazos y carinos de tus nietos y todos nosotros.

Cookie Monster!

Sorry to be MIA for awhile! Since school is starting Monday for me, we are trying to get quite a bit done and recouping from our vacation was tough too! So, I promise a few posts about our trip and we'll start with a fun one!

While Mommy and Daddy had the night off, Grandma Sheila and Ian made delicious chocolate chip cookies!

Grandma Sheila brought her own special chocolate chips all the way from Yew Nork. Let's just say that those cookies did not last long with all twelve of us snacking on them over the remaining days.
The finished project-wow, I am feeling kind of snacky now.

Last night, I asked Ian what he would like for dinner. He goes into the refrigerator, spies the M&M's minis bag and announces he would enjoy some M&M cookies for dinner. Wouldn't we all? We made the batter and let it chill in the fridge while we ate a less exciting but actual dinner. We baked them after dinner and had a cookies and milk treat when they were ready. Ian even got to take two for his preschool camp snack.

But the cutest was Ian telling me how his Grandma Sheila's cookies are "THE BEST" and "I LOVE making cookies because she is the coolest." There you go, Grandma Sheila-hope we made your day. :)

For Terri

Friday Feast One Hundred Ninety Six

Appetizer

When was the last time you had your hair cut/trimmed?

About three weeks ago, prior to vacation.

Soup

Name one thing you miss about being a child.

Feeling how long the day seemed. The days, weeks and months seem to pass so quickly now.

Salad

Pick one: butter, margarine, olive oil.

Olive oil, followed closely by butter, although I usually keep margarine in the house.

Main Course

If you could learn another language, which one would you pick, and why?

Well, I need to practice my Spanish quite a bit, but I also mentioned this weekend that it would be interesting to learn an Asian language, perhaps Mandarin, to explore a language that I don't know anything about.

Dessert

Finish this sentence: In 5 years I expect to be…

Working full time (of course), have two kids in school full time and hopefully be more involved in non-profit and/or writing. At any rate, to have a different career path in action. Maybe living in a different area too. Who really knows!