This will be my last post on I Need SuperNanny. Why? Because I've come to a realization that my children were not the problem, it was my attitude towards them. Recently, we've pulled both Jack-Jack and Dash out of their private schools and I am homeschooling them. What a surprisingly wonderful experience this has been!
Our schedules are often so busy that we don't have time in the evenings to sit down for dinner and talk about issues that may be bothering us, or just to talk about our day. What had been missing was that I didn't really understand what was going on especially with Dash. Now that we are together every day, life is calmer and more joyful.
We take walks, play games together, eat meals together and are really getting to know each other. I am finding that I love being around my children! Dash and Jack-Jack have amazing senses of humor and are wildly creative and imaginative. I think I am learning as much or more than they are. . . now if I could only convince Violet to homeschool!
Thank you to my followers for taking this journey through parenting with me. I am blogging about homeschooling at www.theopendooracademy.org.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
I CAN go out in Public with my Kids!
I can't believe it has been a month and a half since my last post. So much has been going that if I had to devise a superpower for myself it would be the ability to add more hours to my day, or an extra day in the week!
Dash left his private school last month, and is now attending a cyber charter school, complete with its own challenges--namely, requiring complete organization (NOT Dash's strong suit). But, he is adjusting to the schedule and academically he is excelling.
I realize now that the behavioral problems we'd been having with Dash were related to the stress, anxiety, and bullying he was experiencing at school. He would come home angry and upset and take those emotions out on his siblings. Lately, things have been calmer and more peaceful. No, not totally peaceful, but five minutes is better than none, right?
In fact, on Monday I took all three kids--YES, all three at the same time--to a local arboretum for a day out. We had a great time, and I actually enjoyed spending time with them instead of thinking that I had made a mistake bringing them out together in public!
Dash left his private school last month, and is now attending a cyber charter school, complete with its own challenges--namely, requiring complete organization (NOT Dash's strong suit). But, he is adjusting to the schedule and academically he is excelling.
I realize now that the behavioral problems we'd been having with Dash were related to the stress, anxiety, and bullying he was experiencing at school. He would come home angry and upset and take those emotions out on his siblings. Lately, things have been calmer and more peaceful. No, not totally peaceful, but five minutes is better than none, right?
In fact, on Monday I took all three kids--YES, all three at the same time--to a local arboretum for a day out. We had a great time, and I actually enjoyed spending time with them instead of thinking that I had made a mistake bringing them out together in public!
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Change is Good, Right?
The last few weeks have been filled with lots of changes in our household. I am hoping that they will all end up being positive changes for us.
Violet has decided to leave the gymnastics training center where she's trained for the past five years and is moving to a gymnastics program closer to home with less practice time and less meet requirements.
Dash is fed up with the K-12 private school he has attended since kindergarten. We are now in the process of enrolling him in another school for at least the next two years. He might return to the private school for Upper School, if he chooses to do so.
Violet has decided to leave the gymnastics training center where she's trained for the past five years and is moving to a gymnastics program closer to home with less practice time and less meet requirements.
Dash is fed up with the K-12 private school he has attended since kindergarten. We are now in the process of enrolling him in another school for at least the next two years. He might return to the private school for Upper School, if he chooses to do so.
Monday, August 23, 2010
City Survivalist Mom. . . Obsessed with Keeping my Kids Safe
I have a secret confession. . . I've become obsessed over the past few years with stockpiling emergency supplies in case there is ever a catastrophe in my city. I don't live in the rural mid-west, so growing livestock and a self-sustaining garden are out of the question. Instead, I've accumulated so many canned goods that my pantry is overflowing and I've had to clear out space in my walk-in closet for storage bins.
Mr. Incredible smirks and shakes his head, and I am sure Dash and Jack-Jack think I'm nuts too! However, I did feel validated when I read that September is National Preparedness Month. Besides, even though there are times I do want to wring their necks, I love my children with every fiber of my being and will do everything in my power to make sure they are safe. So, this blog is for all the parents out there to get us all more focused on planning for emergencies!
Can Your Family Survive a Catastrophe?
FEMA has declared that September is National Preparedness Month, and encourages all citizens to plan now for emergencies. The time to start planning for an emergency is not in the middle of one. They have a website devoted to helping families, citizens, and businesses with emergency planning. Go to www.ready.gov for more info.
Let me just say that I am NOT a fatalist or pessimist, but I do believe in preparing for emergencies and possible catastrophes. Admittedly, I don’t read the Bible often (shhh. . . don’t tell my mother), but I do agree with what is written in Proverbs 22:3, “A prudent person foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.” Since I don’t consider myself a simpleton, I have been talking to the kids about devising a family emergency plan and a home emergency kit.
89 Cents Could Save Your Life
FEMA guidelines suggest that everyone should prepare a 72-hour survival kit that includes one gallon of water per day per person. It is possible to survive for days, even weeks, without food, but a person can only survive for about 3 days without water. Water is the most important purchase you can make for your emergency kit.
So, last week Violet and I went to our local grocery store and stocked up on 89-cents gallons on water. Not a bad investment for an item that could be the difference between life and death!
My "Must-Have" Item: A Hand-Cranked Emergency Radio
No family should be without access to communications during an emergency or disaster, and Amazon.com sells a selection of hand-cranked and/or battery-operated radios. I ordered a CC Observer wind-up emergency radio by C.Crane from Amazon.com for my family. I chose it because the ratings were great, and the radio was affordable ($40)—and I am not disappointed!
The AM/FM radio includes Weather band, and there’s an LED flashlight on the side of the radio. It runs off of the built-in rechargeable batteries or 3 "AA" alkaline batteries (not included) if preferred. Of course, if you don't have alkaline batteries around, just wind-up the radio and keep it running as long as you need. It can even be used to charge a cell phone.
If and when your power goes out, having a way of receiving information is vitally important, so check out a selection of emergency radios on the right. All radios are available at Amazon.com.
A Freebie for All
A few years ago, after Hurricane Katrina, natural disaster planning was on the forefront of my mind, and I located a list of items to have on hand—items that would be the first to disappear, during a disaster. I believe that everyone should review this list as a starting point for their emergency kits,so check out this link. http://www.thepowerhour.com/news/items_disappearfirst.htm
Okay, that’s enough of my Public Service Announcement . . . but seriously, your life and the lives of your children are too precious to be left to chance (or to expecting the government to come to your rescue), so please, please, please begin preparing now. And, let’s hope we’ll never have to use our emergency kits.
***SPOILER ALERT*** September's giveaway will be related to this blog post, so start planning your emergency kits today to be able to get in on the giveaway!
Mr. Incredible smirks and shakes his head, and I am sure Dash and Jack-Jack think I'm nuts too! However, I did feel validated when I read that September is National Preparedness Month. Besides, even though there are times I do want to wring their necks, I love my children with every fiber of my being and will do everything in my power to make sure they are safe. So, this blog is for all the parents out there to get us all more focused on planning for emergencies!
Can Your Family Survive a Catastrophe?
FEMA has declared that September is National Preparedness Month, and encourages all citizens to plan now for emergencies. The time to start planning for an emergency is not in the middle of one. They have a website devoted to helping families, citizens, and businesses with emergency planning. Go to www.ready.gov for more info.
Let me just say that I am NOT a fatalist or pessimist, but I do believe in preparing for emergencies and possible catastrophes. Admittedly, I don’t read the Bible often (shhh. . . don’t tell my mother), but I do agree with what is written in Proverbs 22:3, “A prudent person foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.” Since I don’t consider myself a simpleton, I have been talking to the kids about devising a family emergency plan and a home emergency kit.
89 Cents Could Save Your Life
FEMA guidelines suggest that everyone should prepare a 72-hour survival kit that includes one gallon of water per day per person. It is possible to survive for days, even weeks, without food, but a person can only survive for about 3 days without water. Water is the most important purchase you can make for your emergency kit. So, last week Violet and I went to our local grocery store and stocked up on 89-cents gallons on water. Not a bad investment for an item that could be the difference between life and death!
My "Must-Have" Item: A Hand-Cranked Emergency Radio
No family should be without access to communications during an emergency or disaster, and Amazon.com sells a selection of hand-cranked and/or battery-operated radios. I ordered a CC Observer wind-up emergency radio by C.Crane from Amazon.com for my family. I chose it because the ratings were great, and the radio was affordable ($40)—and I am not disappointed!
The AM/FM radio includes Weather band, and there’s an LED flashlight on the side of the radio. It runs off of the built-in rechargeable batteries or 3 "AA" alkaline batteries (not included) if preferred. Of course, if you don't have alkaline batteries around, just wind-up the radio and keep it running as long as you need. It can even be used to charge a cell phone.
If and when your power goes out, having a way of receiving information is vitally important, so check out a selection of emergency radios on the right. All radios are available at Amazon.com.
A Freebie for All
A few years ago, after Hurricane Katrina, natural disaster planning was on the forefront of my mind, and I located a list of items to have on hand—items that would be the first to disappear, during a disaster. I believe that everyone should review this list as a starting point for their emergency kits,so check out this link. http://www.thepowerhour.com/news/items_disappearfirst.htm
Okay, that’s enough of my Public Service Announcement . . . but seriously, your life and the lives of your children are too precious to be left to chance (or to expecting the government to come to your rescue), so please, please, please begin preparing now. And, let’s hope we’ll never have to use our emergency kits.
***SPOILER ALERT*** September's giveaway will be related to this blog post, so start planning your emergency kits today to be able to get in on the giveaway!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
School Bullying . . . Are Schools Doing Enough?
With a new school season just around the corner, school issues have been on my mind lately. AS with all parents, I wish my children to have a successful school year. Perusing the Supernanny.com website, I found an interesting article by the Supernanny team on school bullying which suggests that only a quarter of all parents in the United States feels that their child(ren)'s school do enough to prevent bullying. I've included excerpts from the article below:
Is your child safe from school bullies?
Key to a child’s successful education is an environment in which he or she can learn safely – but according to a report released today by the C S Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health, only 26% of parents would give their child’s high school an A for preventing bullying and school violence, and 38% of parents would give their child’s elementary or junior high an A.
“Children who are victims of bullying can have serious health effects, including physical injuries and emotional problems such as depression, low self-esteem, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts and actions,” says Matthew Davis, MD, director of the poll and associate professor of pediatrics and internal medicine at the U-M Medical School. “Unfortunately, in the United States, we’ve seen some tragedies in the past few years regarding episodes of school violence that have gotten a lot of media coverage and upset many parents.”
In the US, an estimated 160,000 children miss school every day out of fear of attack or intimidation by other students, according to the National Education Association. Since 1992, there have been 250 violent deaths in schools, and bullying has been a factor in many school shootings.
“What this poll shows is that parents are still very concerned about bullying in their schools,” says Davis. “About three-quarters of states nationwide have implemented bullying prevention laws that are designed to encourage, and in some cases force schools to present and deliver bullying prevention curriculum to students – but based on these findings, it doesn’t appear that those curricula or programs are working effectively.”
The poll asked 1,087 parents across the US in May 2009 to assign their child’s school an A through F grade in five categories: overall safety, building security, bullying and school violence prevention, keeping students safe during a school-wide emergency, and keeping parents informed in the event of a school-wide emergency.
What Parents Can Do
Parents who have concerns about bullying in their child’s school can get involved in a few ways. Davis suggests parents become active in local safe school and safe community programs where bullying and violence prevention programs already exist.
In the few states where bullying prevention programs do not exist, Davis suggests parents get involved in the legislative process by advocating for bullying programs to be put in place using other states as examples. “But right at home, there’s a way for parents to make a difference too,” he says. “Parents can listen to their kids who are their eyes and ears in the schools, especially about issues of bullying. It can be really hard for children to bring up the topic of bullying so parents may need to ask directly about it and make home a safe place to talk about this important problem.”
Is your child safe from school bullies?
“Children who are victims of bullying can have serious health effects, including physical injuries and emotional problems such as depression, low self-esteem, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts and actions,” says Matthew Davis, MD, director of the poll and associate professor of pediatrics and internal medicine at the U-M Medical School. “Unfortunately, in the United States, we’ve seen some tragedies in the past few years regarding episodes of school violence that have gotten a lot of media coverage and upset many parents.”
In the US, an estimated 160,000 children miss school every day out of fear of attack or intimidation by other students, according to the National Education Association. Since 1992, there have been 250 violent deaths in schools, and bullying has been a factor in many school shootings.
“What this poll shows is that parents are still very concerned about bullying in their schools,” says Davis. “About three-quarters of states nationwide have implemented bullying prevention laws that are designed to encourage, and in some cases force schools to present and deliver bullying prevention curriculum to students – but based on these findings, it doesn’t appear that those curricula or programs are working effectively.”
The poll asked 1,087 parents across the US in May 2009 to assign their child’s school an A through F grade in five categories: overall safety, building security, bullying and school violence prevention, keeping students safe during a school-wide emergency, and keeping parents informed in the event of a school-wide emergency.
What Parents Can Do
Parents who have concerns about bullying in their child’s school can get involved in a few ways. Davis suggests parents become active in local safe school and safe community programs where bullying and violence prevention programs already exist.
In the few states where bullying prevention programs do not exist, Davis suggests parents get involved in the legislative process by advocating for bullying programs to be put in place using other states as examples. “But right at home, there’s a way for parents to make a difference too,” he says. “Parents can listen to their kids who are their eyes and ears in the schools, especially about issues of bullying. It can be really hard for children to bring up the topic of bullying so parents may need to ask directly about it and make home a safe place to talk about this important problem.”
Monday, August 16, 2010
Contest has ended...Are You The Winner?
The Back-to-School Giveaway has now ended, and Mami2JCN is this month's winner. Congratulations and Happy Shopping!
If you didn't win the Gap gift card, don't despair, you can still score discounted gift cards at Plastic Jungle.
Also, other exciting giveaways are being planned, so stay tuned! And thanks to all who entered this month's giveaway.
If you didn't win the Gap gift card, don't despair, you can still score discounted gift cards at Plastic Jungle.
Also, other exciting giveaways are being planned, so stay tuned! And thanks to all who entered this month's giveaway.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Back-To-School Gap Card Giveaway
Contest Has Ended- The Winner is: Mami2JCN- Congratulations!
This month, one lucky blog reader will receive a $25 GapKids gift card to help take a bite out of back-to-school shopping!
Gap is one of my family's favorite stores. The kids like it because clothes are stylish and Dash can always find yet another hoodie to add to his collection!. I like Gap because I can find something for everyone in my family from Jack-Jack's size 7 slim jeans to my not-so-slim (!) jeans, and the prices aren't outrageous. The gift card can be used at any Gap, GapKids, babyGap, GapBody, Gap Outlet location, or gap.com, and there is no expiration date.
With three kids to outfit, I'm always on the lookout for deals on Back-to-School clothes, supplies, and accessories. I found one of the best ways to maximize my spending dollars is by purchasing sale items using gift cards I've purchased at a discount through Plastic Jungle.
Pay as low as $70 for a $100 gift card at your favorite retailer! - PlasticJungle.com - Buy, sell and trade gift cards.
Not only can you buy gift cards at a discount, but if you've received gift cards that you will never use, or you'd rather have the cash, Plastic Jungle will purchase them from you!
How to Enter: The contest is open to U.S. residents only and ends at midnight on August 15, 2010.
1. Become a follower of this blog and leave a comment indicating that you are now a "follower." - 1 entry
2. Go to Plastic Jungle at the link above, browse through the site, then return to this blog and comment on how much you can save on your favorite gift card.- 1 entry
Giveaway Rules:
This month, one lucky blog reader will receive a $25 GapKids gift card to help take a bite out of back-to-school shopping!
Gap is one of my family's favorite stores. The kids like it because clothes are stylish and Dash can always find yet another hoodie to add to his collection!. I like Gap because I can find something for everyone in my family from Jack-Jack's size 7 slim jeans to my not-so-slim (!) jeans, and the prices aren't outrageous. The gift card can be used at any Gap, GapKids, babyGap, GapBody, Gap Outlet location, or gap.com, and there is no expiration date.
With three kids to outfit, I'm always on the lookout for deals on Back-to-School clothes, supplies, and accessories. I found one of the best ways to maximize my spending dollars is by purchasing sale items using gift cards I've purchased at a discount through Plastic Jungle.
Pay as low as $70 for a $100 gift card at your favorite retailer! - PlasticJungle.com - Buy, sell and trade gift cards.
Not only can you buy gift cards at a discount, but if you've received gift cards that you will never use, or you'd rather have the cash, Plastic Jungle will purchase them from you!
How to Enter: The contest is open to U.S. residents only and ends at midnight on August 15, 2010.
1. Become a follower of this blog and leave a comment indicating that you are now a "follower." - 1 entry
2. Go to Plastic Jungle at the link above, browse through the site, then return to this blog and comment on how much you can save on your favorite gift card.- 1 entry
Giveaway Rules:
- Winners will be contacted by e-mail and will have 72 hours to respond to the prize notification.
- All winners will be drawn using Random.org
- Giveaway open to residents of the continental United States only
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