Two Books for Tuesday!

I've decided to try something new.... Two Book Tuesday. Each Tuesday I will strive to share two favorite books, one for adults and one for kids. We are big readers in our house. Each day the kids are reading their own books, Hubby and I are reading our own books, and then each night we all get in our jammies and have a reading time. We read aloud from a book we are all interested in. This is my favorite time of day.
With out further delay, on to the books!

One for Grown-ups!
In His Majesty's Service Three Novels of Temeraire by Naomi Novik

I am just eating up this book! It is huge because it includes the first three books in this series, plus a short story as well. Captain William Laurence is serving in the British Navy during the Napoleonic Wars. Here is where the history takes a twist. In this reality, dragons are a integral part of the war. Manned by aviators who bond with a dragon for life. Laurence quite accidentally bonds with such a beast and names him Temeraire. Together they must leave the Navy to join the Aerial Corps, an all together different culture than the Navy.
The relationship between Laurence and Temeraire is amazing, they are comrades and best friends and so much more. Novik has created the most amazing characters in the dragons. Add to that the attention to detail to history (other than the dragons), military and social culture and it is truly engrossing. If you enjoy historical fiction, fantasy and a combination check it out.


And One for our Kiddos!
The Mouse Hunter by Alex Milway

This is a delightfully adventurous trilogy perfect for a child who can comfortably read a chapter book or sit through the reading of one. In this fanciful world people are obsessed with mice. These are not the mundane vermin of our world. No, in this world there are countless varieties of mice in every shape and size. Rich and privileged individuals collect mice as pets. Others use mice as domesticated help. Children are trained and employed as Mouse Keepers. This is the profession of our heroine, Emiline. Emiline sets out on an adventure of a life time encountering mythical, rare and simply unbelievable ice.
We recently gave the first two books to a good friend of our son and she read them both in a few days time and then began rereading the first one again. The children in the school and neighborhood that have read the book have a mouse hunting team and go on adventures to find mice in the woods.
The last of the trilogy is only available in the UK but we have ordered it! I can't wait to see the look on their faces!

Shhhhhhh! It's a secret!

I've been thinking about secrets alot lately. Why do we have them? Keep them? Tell them?

We've been exploring this theme at church as we prepare to welcome a new minister and confront any old history that the church has swept under the rug. It prompted me to think about family and personal secrets (not that any of mine are big).

In modern society we might keep pregnancies a secret, marital problems, health issues or parenting difficulties. Why? Family and community support are often the biggest pieces of our success in life and yet many people shy away from it. Is it pride? Are we trying to "keep up appearances" for the neighbors?

Recently, I was sitting with an acquaintance and let down my guard enough to tell her "a secret." She replied quite positively that she and her family had encountered something similar. I was floored. We continued to talk and share information. It felt so good!

No, I don't want to walk around divulging every little thing about my life. But I do think maybe we need to open up and let our guards down a bit more often.

And NO, you nosy pokes aren't going to find out my secret du jour......at last not yet.

I'm Hooked: May the Force be with you!

In an attempt to join forces with my geeky husband, I present my latest amigurumi creations:Princess Leia, Chewbacca, and Yoda. Come see them a lots of other new patterns at the Reston Market tomorrow!

A (belated) Mother's Day Poem

I love my children for their differences.

My 9 year old, Isaac is all analysis. How does it work? Why does it work?

Leah, 7 years old, is synthesis through and through! She is the artist and poet.

This morning Leah presented me with a belated Mother's Day gift, an acrostic poem using the word MOTHER.

My love lies on you!
Of All that I know I wouldn't be here!
The thing that we love to do can be done with you!
Here the robins sing to the others!
Eggs are what I'll make on your birthday!
Run with me on Mother's Day!

I'm not sure I "get it" entirely, but I sure do love it and her!

No, Really.....

I have always had a problem getting to bed. Not to sleep mind you. No, my head hits the pillow and I am off to dream land.
I have a habit of being distracted, or lured away by the TV, laundry, computer, crochet projects and of course my favorite books. And so I announce " I am going to bed" to my husband and then proceed to do anything but. So a few minutes later I say "I should really go to bed" and then I don't. Finally I end with " OK! I am really going now! No, really!"
That is exactly the way it has been with this blog. I sit down to write and the kids need help with homework, the cats need to be fed, or the dishes need to be washed. I get distracted and make excuses not to write and yes, someday I will explore this with a licensed professional.
So what is the solution? With sleep, my body will eventually take over and complain loudly that I am not making it a priority. My blog, not so much with the complaining. I must make writing a priority!
And so here we go again! No, really!

Sending Love in a Lunch Bag!

It just feels like I don't get enough time or energy to really tell my kids all the important stuff. We try and there are certain rituals we have that help the family connect as often as possible. One ritual that I have always cherished is sending a little extra love in a child's lunch box!

My mom used to tape stickers to my sandwich or thermos with little notes of encouragement or just love! I have continued that ritual with my kids. I am always looking for cute and unique ways to send a note. Here are a few tricks and products I have found to help me with my mommy job.

• I like to send notes I keep small note cards and thin line sharpies in the kitchen by the lunch supplies so I can quickly jot down a note. I have found awesome small note cards at Michael's in the $1 bins! Some even in the shape of crayons or with the kids individual initials on them!
• During one trip to Michael's I discovered Lunch Box Love cards by Say Please. These little notes have positive messages like "I love spending time with you!" on one side and fun facts like "Your heart beats about 101,000 times a day!" on the other side! With my Sharpie I add "To my sweetie" and "Love, Mommy!" or a little reminder about talent show practice.
• A big favorite has been Lunchology Lunch Bags. Personally I used to groan when my mom sent me with a brown paper bag, especially when I wanted the oh-so-cool Princess Leia Lunch box! But these solve the brown bag boredom in a cool way. Each bag is full of puzzles, fun facts or positive messages. The kids have definitely expressed their love for the bags on rainy and cold days when the school keeps them inside for recess. The puzzles or coloring pictures give them something different to do and are popular with their friends.
• Of course a big way to show love for my kiddos is to make food they want and will eat, not to mention is healthy and helps them keep up their energy throughout the school day. My daughter loves hard boiled eggs (sometimes I draw hearts or faces on the shell) and my son prefers things he can assemble instead of sandwiches. Paying attention to what healthy foods they like and will eat helps them have a positive day at school.

None of these little tricks and treats are hard or take alot of time or effort, trust me I would never put in too much time or effort! But they work well for this family. A honest disclaimer here, too: I do have my kids buy the school lunches at least once a week. The food has gotten alot better!

Blog reboot!

Its like looking in the closet for a pair of shoes and finding a box full of stuff!
So yes I have been a negligent blogger, and I am sorry. But a goal for 2010 (not a resolution...that word is jinxed!) is to do more writing. Some to share my passions, some to vent my frustrations and some just for fun. So keep me honest and on track, comment, facebook, tweet and retweet and spread the word.