A Penny Saved...

In the last 6 weeks, we have begun giving Elijah an allowance. I always knew it would be a good learning experience for him, but it was the need for me to have some simplicity that drove me to implement it this summer. I got tired of having to decide the answer to "Can I have a toy?" "Can I have some candy?" every time we went to ANY store. I needed a more consistent way to answer that question rather than falling back on whatever mood I was in at the moment.

We give Elijah $5 a week - 1 to give at church, 1 to save indefinitely, and 3 to spend on candy, toys, etc. It has really helped me out when he asks for little stuff; now I just say, "sure, you can buy that with your money," or "No, you don't have any money until Friday." And it's great for him, too, to learn money's value, do simple math, and even have some delayed gratification.

I was extremely proud of him this week when he got his eye on something. It was a cute little stuffed Halloween ghost (he LOVES stuffed animals) at the grocery store. We were there on Tuesday afternoon, and he thought it was so cool! He said he wanted to get it, but I reminded him he had already spent his money for the week, and that he would get $3 to spend on Friday. He would still need $2 more to buy the ghost. I told him he could save his money until the following Friday, or he could help me around the house, and I'd give him money for it. At only a quarter a chore, he would have to work pretty hard over the space of a few days to get all 8.

He can also earn money by reading. He can sound out words very well for a 4-year-old, but I think it intimidates him a bit, because it takes a lot of effort. So we have a deal that for every 5 words he reads to me - ANY words (including on billboards or box labels) - I will give him a quarter. It has worked well to motivate him and to help him feel some more success. With more practice, he is getting better all the time and is even started to get a few sight words down! It is exciting!

So Elijah, with his big heart and great attitude, decided to go for it. The first night he set a goal of earning 3 quarters from reading. He stuck with it, even though he got tired of it near the end, and he reached his goal! It was so exciting.

For the next couple days, he helped me around the house, doing little chores like taking out the bathroom trash, helping me mop, dusting, or moving his stuffed animals onto his bed so I could vacuum.

And this afternoon, he earned his eighth quarter by reading 5 words in his National Geographic Kids magazine. We jumped up and down and squealed after he read that fifth word!! It was so exciting to see him set his mind to something and then work hard to achieve it. What a great feeling as a parent to watch your child succeed and learn valuable lessons in the process!

As soon as he woke up from his nap, we hopped in the car and went to United. Elijah is now a very proud owner of a cute little stuffed ghost.

I asked him this evening, "How did if feel to buy the thing you had been working so hard for?" His eyes got big and a smile spread across his face as he said, "Definitely good!" And I think he was excited, because he already has plans for what he is going to buy next!

Isn't he great?

New Beginnings

With the end of summer comes the beginning of fall. Fall is my favorite season! I love the feeling of excitement in the air as the weather cools, and I love the thrill of new opportunities with new beginnings!

Something went crazy with the way I uploaded the pictures, and I didn't want to take the time to redo it, so I'm sorry about the weird formatting.

Kate had a wonderful first birthday! We enjoyed our little party. We all ate at El Fenix for dinner, and then we came back to our house for some cake and presents. It was so sweet celebrating the beginning of her second year and watching her enjoy all the wonderful gifts she received! We are so thankful for Kate.

Her cousin Gage helped her blow out the candles on her farm-themed cake. She really enjoyed the thumbprint cookies, and didn't want anything much to do with the cake while the thumbprints were around!

One of my favorite presents she got was a baby doll. It was amazing to watch her instantly pick it up and start hugging and kissing it! It was like an instinct. Since then, "Day-dee" (as she calls it) has become one of her favorite toys. She loves to take Day-dee's hat off and put it back on, take it for a ride in her push walker, and pretend to feed it with a spoon and bowl. It is so much fun to play dolls with her!

Elijah has begun another school year, this time at Stepping Stones. He goes Tuesday and Thursday mornings to Teacher Sherri's house (Annalee's mom), and he has felt right at home there! I have had many moms tell me that Stepping Stones was such a wonderful place for their children, and I am so thankful they recommended it to me. Sherri only takes 8 students, so the kids get lots of personal attention. She focuses on giving them lots of experiences and developing the kids' social skills. I was particularly touched by the fact that Sherri sent home a parent questionnaire, asking us to write about our child's interests, strengths, and character issues we are working on. She puts so much thought into helping her students grow as a person, in addition to academic learning. Sherri, I know you read this blog, so I will say a thank you to you again! Both Elijah and I couldn't be more excited!

We will have to begin watching out for peanuts - We were surprised to find out that Kate is allergic! While eating her second peanut butter and jelly sandwich, she started rubbing her eyes. I thought she was tired, so I took her out of her high chair. Then I noticed her whole face had broken out into red splotches. She got very swollen, and even the whites of her eyes turned red! I felt sorry for her - I know she was itching or burning, because she kept rubbing her face. She acted fine other than that, though, and the bumps went away about 30 minutes later.

At her checkup a few days later, I asked Dr. Wiley about it, and he said that we should definitely consider it a true allergy. I told him that a family member had suggested that I wait a few days and try her on peanut butter again to see if it was a true allergy. Dr. Wiley's reaction surprised me - he just looked up at me and smiled, and he said, "You can do that, but if you do, be sure and do it in the morning in case you need to get to the E.R. quickly." I thought, okay! I guess this is serious. He said that a nut allergy tends to be progressive, and each time your body is exposed to it, the reaction will be worse. And it's one that she may not grow out of. So... we will look out for peanut oil, peanuts, and maybe even peas and soy beans. It will be a new way of thinking for me! I'm glad it is something we can avoid without too much trouble.

Elijah began taking gymnastics! He goes once a week to Beamers Gymnastics. They have about 15 students in their class, boys and girls from ages 2 to 4, but there are three coaches. They divide the kids into groups and rotate through different stations. He is forever jumping and flipping at home, so I'm excited to put some of that energy into constructive learning and fun! He has enjoyed being on the trampoline, balance beam, and uneven bars. At home he practices straddle jumps, back bends, and is even working on cartwheels, headstands and handstands!

I hope your family's fall is full of exciting new beginnings, as well!

Causing a Scene

If there's anything I enjoy, it's good, clean fun. When you put that together with originality, a positive purpose, and a large scale, I feel delighted!

This week I stumbled upon a website called improveverywhere.com. It has instantly become one of my new favorites! The site chronicles the journeys of Charlie Todd, a teacher at an Improv School in New York City. For 8 years, he, his friends, colleagues, and often hundreds of strangers he calls "undercover agents," have planned and carried out over 70 "missions" in public places. These missions are each different, with the purpose being the same: break out of the mundane, and spread some laughter.

Their missions started off small, when Charlie pretended to be the singer Ben Folds at a bar. He carried it on for several hours, and by the end of the evening, he was surrounded by girls and had people asking him for autographs. As an actor new to the city, he discovered he could create my own theatre rather than waiting around for someone to give me stage time. He typed it up and put it on the web, and Improv Everywhere was born. They have grown into a large entity, sometimes using up to 800 agents! The scope of some of the missions is truly amazing.

While some of the missions might be considered in somewhat poor taste, they are harmless and hilarious. Some of my favorites include:

• Frozen Grand Central
  
• Human Mirror


• Best Game Ever


• The mp3 Experiment IV


• No Shirts


• Food Court Musical


• Cell Phone Symphony
  
  I feel inspired every time I read one of their missions. It is so easy to go through the motions of life; I was happy to be reminded to "Look Up More!"