Happy Halloween!

FLYing update

I'm in stasis. I haven't moved forward, I haven't moved back. I suppose this is a relatively GOOD thing, it just isn't getting things done. I have a hard time being motivated to do things when I'm at the school during the day, coming home to help kids get dinner and homework done. Hard habits to break. Hopefully I'll improve next week. I'm not currently scheduled to work, so I want to work on the ceiling in my den.

I am still managing to shine my sink and to swish & swipe in my bathroom. I always lay out my clothes and get dressed to the shoes. I do manage to do a 5 minute 'clean your flat surfaces' but that seems a never ending battle (probably always will be). I just haven't managed to keep with the goals set daily. I'm still working on it, though.

Random Picture

As seen by my phone.. Oliver thinking about pouncing..

My kids

I have to announce that I'm very proud of my kids. My daughter thought for certain she was going to make a C or worse in math. Given what I'd seen of her grades, I had to agree. As it was both she AND my son came up with A/B Honor Roll. Yea! My son missed Principal's Honor Roll by 1% in spelling, he got an 89. All other grades were A's. Regardless, they did very well and I had to share.

My daughter's camping 'trip'

My daughter wanted to go camping with my son and I over the weekend, but it was a parent/son only trip, so she stayed home. She had her own solution to the 'problem' and camped in the entertainment room. Note: the tent is on top of our futon. I'm sure it made for more comfortable sleeping arrangements than what my son and I had.

Camping with a Troop

My den was invited to go camping with a local troop this weekend. The troop planned on doing a portion of their space exploration merit badge during the afternoon, then heading out to a local corn maze that evening after dinner. The boys had a lot of fun participating. They got to make 'rockets' out of plastic drink bottles, cardboard and duct tape. Oh, the magic and power of duct tape. Then they were able to launch them to see how their creations did. My son's didn't last the first couple of launchings, not that he really minded. He just launched the bottle without the 'rocket' part.

This picture is listening to the actual 'how to' and such portion of the merit badge. You can see that my son is thrilled to have me out there taking pictures.

This one is launching his home made 'rocket'. They are powered by air pressure. Just a bit of water, then pumped full of air and released.

No pictures from the corn maze, but they did have a lot of fun. I held the record for getting through the maze and finding all the 'hidden' spots you're supposed to find the fastest (only one wrong turn). The boys may actually go WITH me next time instead of doing it on their own. Not that it really slowed them down any, they still had a blast.

Bracing Myself

I'm taking my son camping tomorrow, so I'm bracing myself today. My husband should be bracing himself as well, he'll have our daughter to himself. It's Cubs camping with a Troop out in Gainesville. Weather report says it'll rain today, with 20% chance Saturday morning. I can handle that, provided they're right.

I hope everyone else has a good weekend too.

School Uniforms

When I heard the my kids' school was going to uniforms, I was on board with that. I thought it was a great idea, especially since I knew what the kids had been wearing. What I saw at the beginning of the year was that a majority of the kids showed up in uniform, with only a few hold outs. Now, those hold outs were new students or kids who hadn't heard about the uniform before school began. As the year has progressed and the students have learned that there is no penalty for NOT wearing their uniforms, I'm seeing increasingly more students NOT wearing their uniform. Now, my opinion is if you're going to have a dress code (and especially a uniform) you need to enforce it. It doesn't help when the kids overhear teachers saying that they don't like the uniforms because they can't tell the students apart easily. Well DUH! That's the point. I understand we're at a Title I school. This should be taken into consideration with a uniform allowance or whatever is necessary to help out the other students. What my point is is that either the school needs to rethink it's rules, or it needs to enforce what it has. Just my 2 cents.

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My son proving to himself that he can still do 100 sit-ups without stopping.

Review: Vaseline Sheer Infusion

I was given a trial of 2 of the new Vaseline Sheer Infusion lotions, Botanical Blend and Mineral Renewal. I tend to have really dry skin, especially during the winter. I have to constantly use lotion of some sort or I walk around with chalky white flaky skin. So when the opportunity came up, I took it. The next little bit is from the company and explains the product itself.

The Background

New Vaseline® Sheer Infusion™ with Stratys-3™ body lotion is a breakthrough in moisturizing technology that delivers superior moisture** across all skin’s layers of skin.*

Stratys-3™, the most powerful, patented moisturizing complex on the market,**combines three ingredients that infuse and suspend moisture across the skin’s top, core and deep down layers.* This results in unprecedented hydration leading to better, more healthy moisturized skin and an unmatched silky skin feel. Clinical studies show that more hydration leads to improved skin softness, smoothness and quicker elimination of dry skin.

Stratys-3

Most body lotions on the market today use glycerin as the primary humectant to attract and hold moisture. Glycerin is effective at penetrating the skin’s core, but because it sinks down into skin, it can leave the outermost surface layer, where moisture is needed most on a day-to-day basis, vulnerable to water loss resulting in dry unhealthy skin. Furthermore, as lotions increase glycerin levels to improve performance, they can leave skin feeling sticky. Stratys-3 offers a better solution for delivering optimal hydration to all skin’s surface layers than the current industry standard, glycerin. Each ingredient in the Stratys-3 complex was selected for its unique ability to work optimally at a specific layer of skin so when combined into a lotion, it can effectively care for the top, core and deep down layers of surface skin. “We recognized the limitations of glycerin several years ago and set out on a mission to identify a better way to moisturize skin’s many layers while not sacrificing the sensory benefits of a lotion,” says Greg Nole, Unilever Research and Development. “We were very excited to discover Glycerol Quat, a revolutionary humectant that uniquely moisturizes in a way that overcomes the restrictions of glycerin. GQ has more moisturizing power than glycerin, so it delivers the same performance at lower levels, resulting in a better skin feel.”

The Review

Overall, the product works very well. It took me a little while to figure out that the moisturizer doesn't 'sink in' and feels odd when applied. I guess expectations can be hard to break. Normally when I apply a moisturizer or lotion, it sinks in quite quickly and makes my skin feel soft for a while. With this one, it seems a lot of it sinks in quickly, leaving a (for lack of a better word) residue behind. This must be the Glycol Quot (GQ) that the background refers to. The first time I applied it, I thought it had left half of the moisturizer behind and I expected it to either rub off when I got dressed or to be sticky. It didn't appear to do either. The lotion lasted longer than most and did a very nice job. The feeling took a little for me to get used to, but isn't bad.

What I really like (other than the results) is the scent. Very light but very pleasant. I like lotions to have some scent, I'm not big on the scentless ones. This one wasn't overbearing and left just enough behind to make me happy without it seeming like perfume. (I don't wear perfume as a rule.)

So would I recommend it? Yes. I'll even supply the link for you to find coupons and more information so you can judge for yourself. You can go to: http://www.vaselinesheerinfusion.com/ to get information and a $1.50 off coupon.

Amateur Radio

I took my son and another cub scout out to Jamboree on the Air Saturday. They were able to see a HAM radio operator attempt to make contact with other operators. Unfortunately, we were out there for an hour but didn't get to talk to anyone since reception was bad.

Marshmallow Fun Company giveaway

The Marshmallow Fun Company has some really cool toys and The Experimental Mommy is giving away one of them. A quick tip for marshmallow toys, powder your marshmallows with flour.. it keeps them from getting quite so sticky and clogging the toy. In the meantime, if you'd like to win one of these, check out Experimental Mommy.

Family Party: 30 Great Games Outdoor Fun (Wii)

I'm always on the lookout for new and cool things for my kids. Momstart (a mom-run blog) reviewed Family Party - 30 Great Games Outdoor Fun for the Wii and it looks awesome. She's also hosting a giveaway, so I recommend checking it out.

Get Squished!

I know we're all hearing about it this month, but I had to put my two cents in. I got squished for my 40th birthday. My gift to me. What'd you give to yourself lately?

It's the Little Steps

I'm still working toward selling the house, but lately it doesn't seem I'm making any progress. I have to keep reminding myself that it's the little steps that will add up to the big result. I'm slowly reorganizing, decluttering and cleaning the house. I'm still VERY baby steps in the FLY program, but it's helping me declutter while I clean. I'll be the first to admit that I'm not a good house keeper. I don't like to dust, I'll vacuum/mop when I have to. I avoid the bathrooms.

A friend says my life is too scheduled. I don't think it has enough. If I don't MAKE myself do things, they likely won't happen. I know that as much as I push my family to help, it's a rare occasion that it actually happens. Either they get distracted (kids) or forgetful (hubby), their chores end up being mine again and so I feel I'm falling behind.

Yet, as I look at all the jobs individually that I've done, I know I'm making progress. It's just hard NOT to look at the big picture and see how much still has to be done, rather than looking at the little stuff I already HAVE done.

So, off I go to manage yet another small 'fire' in the house, hopefully to put it out permanently. If I can put the small ones out, the big ones will be easier to tackle.

Purex 3-in-1 Sheets

I decided to give these a whirl. Given my children's propensity for leaving clothes everywhere, I've given up trying to keep up with what is clean and what is dirty. As a result, my kids have to at the minimum sort it for me and bring it down stairs so that I can wash it. This doesn't happen very often (or very well), so I've simplified it again for myself. I've taught them how to separate whites from colors (and to be cautious of reds). Now I've gotten the Purex sheets. They can load their laundry into the wash, add a sheet and go. It goes from washer to dryer, so nothing more for my kids to remember other than to hit 'start' before they leave. Now, if only I can get them to put them AWAY when they're done..

I like Purex as well as my son and my husband tend to be sensitive to a lot of other cleaners. Purex is one of the few we can use without a reaction. So, simplicity for my kids, maybe some laundry relief for me. I like this idea.

Hexbug Nano Giveaway

Robyn's Online World is giving away a couple of these really cool micro robots. You can check out more videos of them on YouTube, but this is the one she has.

It looks really fun and I'm sure the cats would love it too.

Yoga Giveaway

I love yoga, but don't do it often or enough. I found Maria's Space doing a cool new system called Yoga 2 Go. If you do yoga (or even if you don't) I recommend checking it out.

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Blog Design

I haven't played with my blog design in a long time, so I decided it was past time to do so. After several attempts, I've (at least for now) settled on this one. I tried the one Warner Brothers gave me for Fringe (my fav show), but it was impossible to read. I've also fixed the buttons that were supposed to be on the side that were deleted during the process (apologies to those whose buttons they are).

Now on to the next thing to keep me occupied for a while..

For my youngest niece..

Happy Happy Happy Happy Happy Happy Happy Happy

Firefly Phone GloPhone

Thanks to Kelloggs and Publix, I got one of these for free (well, I did have to buy Kelloggs products AT Publix, but that wasn't a huge hardship). I've set it up for my kids to use as emergency contacts only. They'll share it, but only one should have it at a time. It'll make ME feel better knowing they can get in touch with me if they need to. It also helps me to know that I can get in touch with them just to check in if I feel the need. So, call it Mom's Security Blanket.

It's nice that it's inexpensive and I can control it (for now). When my kids are older (teens), they'll have phones they can control more closely. For now, it's not necessary. The Firefly lets me program in multiple phone numbers (anyone I think they should be able to reach in case it's needed), up to 50. My phone and my husband's phone are accessible with just a single button. Emergency can be contacted with it's own button as well. There's a delay before it actually dials either Emergency or Mom/Dad to prevent accidental dialing. Though with backpacks, a book sitting on it might be an issue.

Today is the first day my kids will get a chance to take it for a spin. My son will be out with a buddy today, I'll be elsewhere. So, they'll both have a way to call home and I'll relax (at least a litte) about it.

FLYing progress

Just thought I'd update that for the most part I'm still following the plans. I've been working on my control journal. I've gotten to Day 8 of the journal baby steps, which I think is good. I'll admit, my kitchen sink looks a lot better. The master bathroom is looking better too. October is declutter month, which I haven't been as good about working on as I should. I hope to do better on that later this week. I should be on day 10 of baby steps, but I haven't done it yet. I'm 'maintaining' at day 9. I promise to do better.

More Zhu Zhu!

This is going to be THE toy of the year, I have to say. Just based on contests for these guys alone. Penelope's Oasis is giving one of these guys away. You can find the info here.

Rant: DeKalb police

I don't know if anyone else has noticed, but as I'm going home up 85, I've noticed that there are several cops (on Wednesday of last week, I counted *9* police cars) hanging out on the side of the entry ramp to 85 from Shallowford. One has a radar and the others are lined up to take off after the speeders. Is DeKalb so short on money or so heavy on police that this is such a good idea for such a small area? Or is it just that bad of a strip of 85 that it needs it? I wish I could have taken a picture, but my phone was in my purse and I was driving alone.

I'm simpliFLYing

OK, so I'm frustrated with the gremlins and everything else. So, I'm restarting a program that I know works and that hopefully I'll get into the habit of STAYING with this time. It's a great program, one that hopefully will help me defeat the gremlins, or at least train them to behave better. It's called "FLY" or "Finally Loving Yourself" and the Fly Lady is a great person to help you out. I started on Tuesday of last week and today for my morning schedule set myself up to get up 30 minutes early to exercise. Later today I hit the "hot spots" part of baby steps. These for me are the kitchen table (things accumulate as you walk in), the corner of the kitchen counter (things get dropped as you go by) and the dining room (where things to to be put elsewhere or gotten rid of). So, I'm off to FLY after my dentist's appointment this morning.

Quick Update

Robert's CT scan came back as 'normal'. We'll figure out what's next this week.

Zhu Zhu Pets

Are you detecting a theme here? My kids really want these. Simple Reviews (another blog) and Zhu Zhu are giving away these cool toys.

CT Scan

Wish us luck. My son goes in today for a CT scan to see if there's anything wrong. He's had random vomiting (usually in the morning) with headaches, so we're trying to find out what's up.

Got a couple of photos of my son while he was 'on the table'.. crazy mom..

Challenge Science

My daughter took the CogAT test last week. She came home Monday and posted this sign on our bulletin board.

I think she might be excited..