Nap Time 2012

From our home to yours

NAPPY NEW YEAR

Top Ten Things I Wish I Would Have Said in 2011

...but that I only THOUGHT ten minutes or ten hours later...probably losing HOURS of sleep...

1. I took my daughter and several of her friends out to an event across the state. At the last moment, I was asked by a person I know to include one of their children in our visit. I gladly agreed to take this child with us. Let me preface this with a bit of information, this child has frequently been heard to call my children "weird". As in "they're sooo weird." But I took this child anyway. We made this long trip in order to meet more homeschoolers and to, hopefully, forge some new friendships.  But what do I hear??????? This child is at this cool event telling all of the kids there that...you guessed it, my kids are "WEIRD".  I DID say, "Wow, you accept my courtesy and kindness, you are friendly with us the entire way out there, and they you sabotage our ability to make friendships with that group of kids by calling us names...  I honestly think you owe us an apology." What I wish I would have said:  WHY YOU LITTLE SHIT!
2. We did some home decorating this year, as you might know if you are friends with my husband. My husband did some gorgeous woodwork and decorating in our bathroom. So, it's time to order the tile. In my odd KAREN way of "figurin'", I said that we needed X amount of the main color of wall tile. The two math geniuses (my husband and the designer) look at me with this withering LOOK as thought to say "Poor you, you just don't get it..." So we used their figures and ordered Y amount of tile. You guessed it...I WAS RIGHT. The tile we received was not the correct design we were hoping for and it was too late to correct it. I totally regret not standing up for myself with the math whizzes, and insisting on ordering X amount of tile. What I wish I would have said:  ORDER MORE YELLOW TILE!
3. When I was asked to do some extra work for a group that we participate it, I said "sure". What I wish I would have said:  NO, Sorry.
4. When someone invited them self over to our home, we said "Sure!" What I wish I would have said:  LEAVE YOUR DOG AT HOME.
5.  When a friend made sport of me on Facebook, I wish I would have said, 'Ha ha ha, funny." Instead what I said was something like:  Why are you so mean, you need to think of my feelings for once because you have hurt them.  Please refrain from commenting on my posts if you can't be nice.  Seriously, kindness is so important in friendship and you have not exhibited kindness today.  Blah, Blah, Blah...You have hurt me and made my friends think you are an ass.  Next time, please keep your comments to your self.  I'm not kidding. Have I ever talked to you like that?  No, because I wouldn't hurt you in that way Not everyone is fond of your sense of humor and I am among that group.  Please refrain from commenting on my posts if you can't be nice.  Seriously, kindness is so important in friendship and you have not exhibited kindness today.  Why are you so mean, you need to think of my feelings for once because you have hurt them.  Blah, blah, blah.  And, what's more,  you are not being nice.  No you're not!  Please refrain from commenting on my posts if you can't be nice. You have hurt me and made my friends think you are an ass.  Next time, please keep your comments to your self.  Blah, blah, blah.  Please refrain from commenting on my posts if you can't be nice.  Seriously, kindness is so important in friendship and you have not exhibited kindness today.  You have hurt me and made my friends think you are an ass.  Next time, please keep your comments to your self.  I'm not kidding. Have I ever talked to you like that?  No, because I wouldn't hurt you in that way I'm not kidding. Why are you so mean, you need to think of my feelings for once because you have hurt them.  Please refrain from commenting on my posts if you can't be nice. Blah, blah, blah.  Have I ever talked to you like that?  No, because I wouldn't hurt you in that way.  Never.  I feel upset and don't know how to handle it.   I'm angry and hurt and blah blah blah.Please refrain from commenting on my posts if you can't be nice.  Seriously, kindness is so important in friendship and you have not exhibited kindness today.  You have hurt me and made my friends think you are an ass.  Next time, please keep your comments to your self.  I'm not kidding. Have I ever talked to you like that?  No, because I wouldn't hurt you in that way I'm not kidding. Why are you so mean, you need to think of my feelings for once because you have hurt them.  Please refrain from commenting on my posts if you can't be nice. Have I ever talked to you like that?  No, because I wouldn't hurt you in that way.  Never.  I feel upset and don't know how to handle it.   I'm angry and hurt and blah blah blah.
6.  When Jerry asked me to go camping with him, to a week-long star party (an astronomy event), I said, "SURE, Honey." What I wish I would have said:  HELL NO!  IT'S COLD!!!!! Go and enjoy yourself!
7.  I can't think of anymore!!!!!!  LOL  If I come up with more I will update!

  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

2011 was NICE for our family. The kids are busy and happy. Jer and I are busy and happy. And all are healthy. We've had some events that have caused us to reconsider our lifestyle and we have found that we are quite happy with our current lifestyle and we wouldn't change it...unless we could go to Australia!

Jerry had an opportunity at work, an opportunity that , sadly, did not fully materialize, to work in Brisbane Queensland in Australia for a year. We were thrilled with the idea and had made some very nice connections with some very nice people in the general Brisbane/Ipswich area. Sadly, the entire plan didn't work out and so we are staying in St. Louis. But a part of each of us is disappointed to miss out on such an awesome opportunity.

Sign.  Maybe someday...

Wishing you and yours a wonderful NEW YEAR.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Welcome 2012! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Yule Love It

 

It was good.

Yuletide Gymnastics

The celebrating was festive, the tree was sparkly, and the holiday was totally secular.
I only had one person ask me how secular people celebrate Christmas, and it wasn't "WHY" do we.
To begin with, our tree is smashing.  Our tree is sparkly and more sparkly.  It is quite pretty.  Several evenings, as the end of the night, I have just sat with the house lights out looking at our tree with the kids.
I should mention a few of our holiday family traditions.

Onto the tree, each person puts an object or two that is NOT an ornament, but fairly well blends into the tree.  We've had many eating utensils, pieces of jewelry, computer parts, flowers, bows, etc.  This year, the best piece, in my opinion, is my daughter's teeth mold from the orthodontist!  It is joined together by a ribbon and hung front and center.  If you didn't know it was a snaggle-tooth "before" ortho mold, you would just assume it is was another ornament.

We play several fun family games on the day that we have copied, created, or changed from other forms.  I don't "hide the pickle", I hide teh beautiful glass bird ornament.  It's SOOOO pretty.  We spend at least three hours playing a variety of games we have created.  Listen, from the youngest to the oldest, we all love this time together more than the gift-opening part of the day!

And today, the coolest of the cool.  My stepson, Tim, and Jerry have been building a secret contraption for the last few days together.  In the garage, in the basement, outside.
The first light of the NET CANNON just happened...HUGE HUGE SUCCESS!
One rule for the net cannon:  No firing it at Bonobo!
Bonobo says:  AW!!!!!

And now, each day is lengthening, the nights are getting shorter, and we are headed into the dark of winter.
Let's hope this winter is a good one!

Yule Laugh

 

 www.atheistholidaycards.com
 http://www.zazzle.com/atheist+holiday+cards

Those are some of the websites the carry several different holiday cards for the skeptic in you.  From the completely irreverent (and who doesn't love that?) to the simple expression of holiday joy, these few cards represent something important to me.  They say that it's spreading.

Atheists, generally, at this time of year, put their heads down and listen to the fingernails down the chalkboard.  We take it on the chin.  We watch with incredulity as another year of mythology blossoms to a ridiculous level.  We CRAVE to shout out to the roof tops "IT'S A SCAM!!!"  We watch as the malls fill up as Christians settle in for a long line at the cashier as they spread the love of their Lord's birthday.  We smirk and think "Seriously?"

But there are enough of us and enough momentum that we are able to support the holiday marketers out there who have our needs in mind.  Others who will gladly put the federal STAMP to the envelope and send out our true wishes to our family and friends at this time of year.  Seasons Greetings, Evolve Already.

Here are a few of the designs available from these two websites:

So, if you are STILL looking for the perfect card this year, the card that sweetly sends pagan greetings or the card that sends scathing evolving suggestions, check out these websites.  They are just what you've been looking for.

 And, by the way, in honor of Secular Thursday, I saved the best one for last:

Yule Cry

According a Huffington Post from today:  Nearly half of America's public schools didn't meet federal achievement standards this year, marking the largest failure rate since the much-criticized No Child Left Behind Law took effect a decade ago, according to a national report released Thursday.

No Child Left Behind cost the nation in the billions of dollars.  The train wreck that is No Child Left Behind is doing exactly what it is intended to avoid.  It is leaving children behind.  Entire school districts worth of children behind.  It is not capable of providing the opportunities that it was hoping to provide.

I don't claim to be an authority of the education system, and we are all aware that many factors effect the efficacy of this type of policy making, but it is still so painfully obvious that failures in the school districts of our country, in my very own city, are, in part, impacted by the No Child Left Behind Fiasco.  At face value it was marketed at a way to preserve and bolster poorly-performing schools.  In reality, schools closed, leaving families in educational failure situations.

In the meantime, I was at a holiday party this weekend for my husband's employer.  While speaking to a very nice woman who works as a teacher in a Montessori school, when she discovered that we homeschool, she leaped to the "socialization" argument, straight to the "you can't teach high school" argument, followed that up with the, "children being isolated" argument, and hit  her homer with the "taking good kids out of the school systems" argument.
Seriously?

And I sat right there, in holiday splendor, as she quietly and with certainty made her statements.
I should not have to deal with that every time I go out.
I stood there wishing that Rayven was there.
And I drank my soft drink and let her quietly rant.

According to The Atlantic this week, Study of the Day: Home-Schooled Children Score Higher on Tests.   

I fear for the children in this generation.  Global Warming, underfunded schools, poor access to health care for all families.  But I also have a certainty in my heart that these are the very kids who are going to grow up wiser, more capable, and able to make decisions with a world view.

I DO have faith...In the children!

LINK 182, Worthy Reads

I have decided to hand over the keyboard to a few good blog posts I have read lately.

Who knows how we get to some blogs!  Shopping online for good socks to wear with blue jeans (STILL need some) and I find myself on someone's blog.  Looking at the headline news and, eventually, I'll be reading a blog somewhere in the world.  Drinking a cup of hot tea and a blog spontaneously opens up on my PC...

Anyway, who knows how it happens.  But when you find something worth reading, you wanna pass it along.
So, in the spirit of lending my good paperbacks to a friend, here are a few links to a few blogs that have had my attention lately.

If you read anything you enjoy, leave a comment.  Bloggers love that!
I hope you enjoy this Secular Thursday Offering!


http://www.thinkatheist.com/profiles/blogs/confessions-of-an-atheist
This blogger is an atheist homeschooler who created a homeschooling co op and has found the politics of "secular" difficult to stand by.  It's thought-provoking and most of us can relate to the struggle.

http://ourfreerangelife.blogspot.com/2011/08/im-coming-out.html
This blogger is "coming out" as an atheist in the great state of Creation Museum, AHEM, I mean Kentucky.

http://www.raising3thinkers.com/2011/10/one-little-spark.html
Here is another blog I click onto from time to time.  She is a mom with some little ones and she seems to be exposing them to some great activities so that she is, truly, raising freethinkers.

http://backwoodsmom.danoah.com/2011/12/the-shield-of-confidence/
This blog is one I shared on Facebook recently.  This blogger writes posts that never cease to touch me.  I'm sure, were we ever to meet, we'd be good friends!

http://dysfunctionalhomeschooler.blogspot.com/2011/12/conversations-with-kids.html
This blogger, a friend of mine, managed to capture the sweetness of being a mother...those million small moments that stop us in our tracks...

http://thespectrumofbeing.blogspot.com/2011/12/thoughtless-thursday-pa-has-date-rape.html
And, if you are looking for a THINKING freethinker, look no further.  This blogger is one I go back to again and again for thought-provoking posts.

O Tannenbaum

Do you put up a tree? When?

We put up a tree. The past many years we've gotten away with putting it up about mid December and removing it the day or so after Christmas. This year the kids are insisting, "We're putting up the tree this week and it's not coming down until after Christmas!"

Jer and I are like, "Excellent! Have fun!"

The truth is, Elizabeth is taking the "Bah Humbug" out of it for me. She's making me enjoy the holiday again!  She loves the holiday lights, the shopping, the sparkling, and all of the Jingle Bell rocking going on.  She loves the Christmas music and plays it all of the time.

She took the time to help me with the holiday cards, even providing the hot chocolate! She started thinking about things that her brother would like as gifts and she took the time to write them down and give the list to me.  She asks to go "look at the lights" many nights a week.  And she listens to the "All Holiday Music All of the Time" radio station. 

To see this normally "glass-is-half-empty" child become bright and rosy-cheeked, and full of good cheer, to see her thinking of others and what would please them, to see her feeling happy and delighted day after day...it is making me like the holiday as well!  She is what is making MY holiday full of good cheer!

I hope you have some small ones in your home to help you remember to ENJOY the season of long, cold nights and brief, bright days!