on my way....ahhhh

I'M ON MY WAY TO THIS VERY PLACE....OH, SO NICE

Sometimes you just need a little R and R.  I'm going to get some!  I love nothing more (except my family) than to be in the warmth of the sun.  It revitalizes me.  I thank the Lord all the time for the opportunities and blessings that enable us to visit such amazing little islands.

I love being among different cultures.  The food, people and land...it all astounds me.  When we visited New Zealand I just could not get over how green it was and how friendly and relaxed the people were.  The food wasn't my favorite...pretty bland, BUT the fish and chips were divine!   Hawaii is terrific too!  I love Maui, but have a special place in my heart for Kona.  I would be SO thin and fit if I lived in Hawaii...all I would eat is papaya stuffed with cottage cheese and macadamia nuts, and it's flat...so I wouldn't mind jogging everyday ;]

However, next week I'll be in the Carribean with my most awesome husband and some of our friends and family.  This will be our 14th cruise, so I've lost track of all the islands I've seen...but, what I do know is that my hub's and I love Trunk Bay.  Yep, that's the picture above...and if you've been there, you know what I'm talking about!  Admittedly, it's not my most favorite beach (as far as how the sun hits the sand - how's that for spoiled???) but it has a feeling of fresh warm air, tranquility and the snorkling is fantastic!  It just holds a dear place in our hearts :]  So, needless to say...I'm Stoked!  Rest and Relaxation - HERE I COME!

Wishing you peace...even if there's snow instead of sunshine ;]
lisajp

ps - a cruise is a great time (and my ONLY time) to read a very good book!  I plan on reading Heaven Is Real, and finishing Literacy Beginnings.  Hmmm, I must be getting old?  I really need Dan Brown to come out with a new book to take me on another Robert Langdon adventure :]

being silly...it's a good thing

These 4 girls are an inspiration!  3 out of 4 of them have some sort of anxiety disorder.  My daughter is in the red and the rest of these cuties are her best friends.  My Sadie struggles with generalized anxiety and physical tremors.  The other 2 struggle with similar anxiety issues.  These 4 friends rally together to support whoever it is (that day) who is having 'issues'.  I've never seen girls, at this age, so genuinly care for one another.  There's no drama...only care and understanding.  Even the one who does not struggle with any anxiety is always there to hold a hand or walk her friend to the counseling center when needed.

These girls have become pretty famous in their High School Counseling Center.  The school psychologist has told me a few times how incredible it is, for kids at this age, to support one another so intensly.  These girls have single handedly created an area in the counseling center where all kids with anxiety, depression and social disorders can go to breathe calmly and relax.  As a parent, I am inspired by the efforts these girls have made in behalf of all their classmates who may struggle with one nervous issue or another.

These girls are on a pretty fast track, right now, to getting their anxiety under control.  One is meeting with a neurologist, another is working intensely with her family and my Sadie has seen a doctor and is now teaching herself to 'self talk' herself into feeling better.  They are all very happy girls and will not let these crazy disorders take them down or each other down!  Sometimes just BEING SILLY helps us to get through :]

"Drag your thoughts away from your troubles...by the ears, by the heals, or any other way you can manage it."     -Mark Twain

more than just a paper chain :]

I wanted to make an advent calendar for my preschoolers.  In checking out all the different kinds I could make...I finally ended up just going with the simple paper chain idea.  I thought it was the simplest concept, but kind of boring.  So, I added a little something to it.

I typed up a list of 25 little projects the kids could do everyday.  I cut those ideas into strips and glued them onto each link of the chain.  The activities are simple and most don't cost any money (if they do - it's not more than $1).  Each activity is something that involves a family member or stimulates the senses.  Some examples: "Eat some peppermint ice cream smothered with chocolate sauce" or "Watch a christmas movie, in your p.j.'s with your brother or sister" or "Bundle up, go outside and look at some christmas lights."  They are all things 3 and 4 year olds can do with just a little help or even by themselves.  The fun part is the family can be involved.  There's even a link that tells the children to hug their mom, and one that tells them to mail their grandma a christmas picture.  I also made sure there were a couple of 'service' activities, like...take your neighbor a christmas treat.  Anyway, it seemed to me like it might be a simple but active way to enjoy the advent calendar tradition.

Christmas is so much fun to celebrate.  I hope you will find some new and exciting ways to celebrate your holiday season!

Happy, Happy Holiday!
Miss Lisa :]

sometimes we just need to reflect...

When life SMACKS you in the face, it can be difficult to do anything but pitty your situation.  There seems to be nothing to move you forward and you can't seem to see the end of the tunnel?  Well, I've had an anxiety filled 2 weeks and I sort of slipped into this way of thinking (the "poor me!" thing).  I was wandering around, picking up random clutter in my home and I came upon a short story I wrote about a year ago.  It was tucked into the pages of one of my many notebooks.  It caused me to reflect.  Suddenly it didn't seem to matter that my oldest daughter has been in 2 car accidents in the last 2 weeks, and because of one of the accidents we now need to fix 2 of our neighbors brick/rock mailboxes!  The list goes on...but I'll spare you, because that's not exactly what this post is about ;]
Anyway...back to the story I found in my notebook.  Here is what it said...

"I remember the first crafty gift I made was for a gruff and wiry old man named Jack.  He worked in my grandpas tire shop.  I was 6 years old and my gift was made from the lid of a mason jar and some random, happy, colorful pictures I cut out of my grandmas Better Homes and Gardens Magazine.  I glued as many pictures as I could to the inside of that lid, walked out into the busy shop and gave my old, rough friend his 'made with love' creation. I will always remember his genuine laugh, putting me up on his knee and with his arm around my shoulder he gave me a gentle squeeze of thanks."

I love this story.  I forgot that I even wrote it down.  I feel like maybe we need to think of the way we did things when we were little and our minds were open.  It's always refreshing to get a few of those cob webs out of the corners of our brain :]

Happy Reflecting!
lisajp :]

some favorite music...

I was driving on the freeway this afternoon just contemplating how I could make things even better next week for my little preschoolers?  For some wacky reason, I began doubting my abilities and became kind of sad!  Then that just made me mad!  So a combobulation (word? idk?) of feelings came flooding in.  I thought...gosh, where did the peace go that I seemed to be enjoying just a minute ago???  Just at that moment, one of my favorite songs by my very favorite band started playing on my iphone.  I instantly became happy and all my doubts and crazy thoughts of failure were gone.  Here are the words to the song...

Secret Crowds - Angels and Airwaves:
If I had my own world...
I'd fill it with wealth and desire, A glorious past to admire
And voices of kids out walking dogs, birds, planes, trees, cleanest cars

If I had my own world, I'd love it for all that's inside it
There'd be no more wars, death or riots
There'd be no more police, packed parking lots, guns, bombs sounding off

If I had my own world, I'd build you an empire
From here to the far lands, to spread love like violence.

Let me feel you, carry you higher.  Watch your words spread hope like fire.
Secret Crowds rise up and gather.  Hear your voices, sing back louder!

If I had my own world, I'd show you the life that's in side it.
The way that it glows when you find it.
The way it survives with it's families, friends or it's enemies.

Let's make this a new world, I swear you can go if you want to
I know that you have that within you.
Inventing the first clean and usable, God's greatest miracle!

....Then it just goes on to repeat some of it's verses.  My Iphone was on shuffle.  I'm in no way saying this was a miracle, or sign from above, but it was just what I needed at just that very moment.  Anyone who knows me understands that I would almost go overboard to make a sad person happy, a hurt person feel better, someone who is troubled feel loved.  It all makes me sound like an amazing person...yah, no.  It's actually a pain in the back side most of the time :]  It just makes one worry more than one needs!  So just the idea of being able to create a perfect world, especially for children who don't live in one, or family members who you love so much, or even just the homeless guy you saw on the side of the road...it inspired me, now I'm happy!  The power of music...it's magic sometimes ;]

Wishing everyone a random, great, music moment...
Miss Lisa :]

p.s. - yes, I was rocking the air guitar, drums and lead vocals in my car....and why wouldn't I?  I'm SO multi-talented when I'm in my car :D

Recess Monkey!

Maybe everyone knows them...but I didn't until about an hour ago.  RECESS MONKEY!  I love them, my girls love them and they sing the most fantasticly funny childrens music :]  I am adding their music to my preschool playlists!  If you don't know them, listen...it's sure to bring a smile to your face!

Marshmellow Farm by Recess Monkey

Enjoy!

Nothing inspires a bit of fun better than a little laughter :]

thunderstorm anxiety...

August in Utah tends to be a little stormy.  I absolutly LOVE thunderstorms!  However, not a whole lot of children do...it's just super scary!  Sometimes there's just no convincing a child that everything is going to be ok during a loud thunderstorm. I've had several chances to be with children during some pretty big storms...and there is NO one explanation that works for every child.  However, I have found some great books that might help children understand and actually appreciate why we have to have these enormous storms.

I love science books, they answer so many of our wonders!  These two books: Flash, Crash, Rumble and Roll and Tornado Alert come from the "Let's Read and Find Out Science Series."

Both books are written by Franklyn M. Branley.  These books provide great explanations about what a storm is and why it's so loud and what creates a crazy tornado!  Great books for both explanation and answers to questions :]

This beautiful picture book has very little text.  What makes it so special is the artwork!  Each oil painting shows clouds at different times of the day and in different seasons.  A very relaxing book to browse through when the clouds outside seem a bit frightning.  Fantastic book for children who struggle with retention...great for visual learning!
Composed by Thomas Locker

I love this book and have featured it in my own book club and play groups a few times.  It is written by Tim Lichtenheld.  This book will take you through many adventures with a very small cloud.  The story will help children to understand why we need a little rain from time to time.  To find activities to go along with this book visit my little book club page!

Not all books come with pages and hard bound covers!  Some are found right here on the internet!  Keith E. Rennison has a great audio series called "Zooch the Pooch" and one story in the series is called Thunderstorms & Shrunks.  It's a cute adventure story about a dog who meets a skunk and then finds that his house is floating away in all the water from a storm...but not to worry, his Dad saves him!  He has many other adventures with ZOOCH that are downloadable and fun!

I really hope you have an opportunity to share these books with your children, especially if they have worries about the weather.  Although these books may not take away the anxiety of storms, hopefully they will answer questions about why they happen :]

Thanks for stopping in...
Miss Lisa