Book recommendation for Moms of sons

If you're looking for a nice and easy, light-hearted read...check out this book: How Do You Tuck In a Superhero. It is written by Rachel Balducci, a Catholic Mom of 5 boys (and one baby girl. She also writes for Faith & Family and she is a fantastic author. She celebrates the mystery and humor of raising sons through all the ages and stages. If you have one, two or ten boys, you will appreciate this one! (cue Reading Rainbow music. Dude, I always wanted to be one of those kids who got to review books!)

Fave children's books July 2009

Dominic's picks:


Little Rabbit series - Harry Horse
(most favorite being Little Rabbit's New Baby)

Mama, Do You Love Me? - Barbara M. Joosse

The Story of Ferdinand - Munro Leaf

Follow the Line - Laura Ljungkvist

A Quiet Night In - Jill Murphy

The Windy Day - Brian Karas

Don't Make Me Laugh - James Stevenson

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs - Judi Barrett

Henry's Show and Tell - Nancy Carlson



Milo's picks:

Wheels on the Bus

Animal Sounds

Fave Reads for Jan 2009

Fox in Socks - Dr. Seuss (great rhymes!)
Go to Sleep Groundhog - Judy Cox (right in time for Groundhog Day)
The Zoo at Night - Martha Robinson
The Doorbell Rang - Pat Hutchins (good counting book)
How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World - Marjorie Priceman
Pretend Soup (and other recipes) - Molly Katzen (we got the idea for chocolate banana and chocolate strawberry smoothies from this book!)
Every Friday - Dan Yaccarino (great story for a Dad and son)
Bats at the Beach- Brian Lies
Nathan's Balloon Adventure - Lulu Delacre
Smash! Crash! Jon Scieszka

I've been looking around for a preschool-friendly book about the solar system, since Dominic is really interested in the planets. If anyone comes across one, please let me know, and any favorite books you've been reading lately!

Fave reads for Christmas (2008)

Here is what we've been enjoying this month so far, I thought I'd share! We really love Leo Lionni, he's definitely the author of the month around here!


The Christmas Star - Marcus Pfister
B is for Bethlehem - Isabel Wilner
St. Nicholas: The Real Story of the Christmas Legend - Julie Stiegemeyer
The Little Drummer Boy - Ezra Jack Keats
The 12 Days of Christmas - Jan Brett
On The Night You Were Born - Nancy Tillman
Frederick - Leo Lionni
Inch By Inch - Leo Lionni
Matthew's Dream - Leo Lionni
Castles, Caves and Honeycombs - Linda Ashman
Christmas Around the World- Emily Kelley

Not too far off

Me: Guess what day it is?
Dominic: It's Friday.
Me: That's right! So then what is tomorrow?
Dominic: (with his big eyes all aglow) CHRISTMAS!!!!
Me: You're pretty close actually....it's SATURDAY!

Fall 2008 favorite books

Stone Soup















Little Panda - Joanne Ryder
Giving Thanks - Jonathan London
One little, two little, three little pilgrims - B.G. Hennessy
Dot the Fire Dog - Lisa Desimini
The Kissing Hand- Audrey Penn
Stone Soup - Anne McGovern
Castles, Caves and Honeycombs- Linda Ashman
The Bee Tree- Patricia Polacco
Knuffle Bunny 2 - Mo Willems


We checked out a different version of Stone Soup from the library, but here is a link to the original fable. It's a wonderful tale and very fitting for the season of giving and sharing, and it offers a nice analogy for what we're experiencing as a nation right now.

A few favorite books this summer

I thought I'd share some of our summer favorites here. Dominic loves the author Moe Willems, almost every book we check out that is authored by him, Dominic adores. He also loves the "Froggy" series, and "Franklin", and "Max and Ruby" have been his characters of choice these days. We like the Peter Sis books because they have some interactivity to them, like flaps, pull outs, windows etc.

Duck and Goose - excellent tale about sharing
I will surprise my friend - silly story about (you guessed it) surprising someone
Knuffle bunny - story about a "lovey" toy that gets lost at the laundromat
The Squiggle- a tale about a red string that can turn into ANYthing with your imagination
Madlenka - not much narrative, but lovely illustrations... all about a little girl who wants to tell the world that her tooth is loose.
Froggy Eats Out - story about a frog who needs to show good table manners with his parents at a fancy restaurant
Franklin is afraid of the thunderstorm - appropriate for the summer thunderstorms we've been having
Franklin Goes to School - a nice story about Franklin's first day
A Color of His Own - story about a chameleon who is looking for his identity

The Golden Door - movie recommendation

My friend Catharine recommended this movie to us, and I'm so glad she did - it was the perfect movie to watch on the weekend of Independence Day. It's the story of an Italian family who leaves everything behind to pursue the new world, like most of our ancestors did. It's a very moving film, mainly because I picture my own great-grandparents coming from Germany and going through this same journey, all in hopes of a better life. I'm so thankful to be part of a nation (which despite some faults), is still known for its goodness, generosity, and the promise of freedom all over the world. Our country is the land of opportunity and the "golden door" for so many people. I think it makes God so very happy, as any parent, when we share with our brothers and sisters.

http://www.goldendoor-movie.com/

So You Think You Can Dance

I think I will always recall this show with fondness as it got me through a nightly 2 week fussy period with a newborn! I love this show so much, that I tape it each week and watch it in segments a second time over (usually because I only get to see it in chunks). I've always appreciated dance as an art form, but I've learned so much more just by watching this show, which makes me love it so much more. I've taken ballroom dance classes in college, but I've never had a place to practice, and it's sad how much I have forgotten! Bronius also took dance classes at some point, and we really try to seize any opportunity we can to dance (which usually ends up being in our living room after the kids go to sleep!)Anyway, just wanted to tell you how inspiring I find this show - I can not believe how "into" it I am, but it's so fun to watch the dancers try out new genres and styles (and outfits) each week! My bet's on Katie or Chelsea for the girl finalist, and Will or Joshua for the guy finalist...time will tell!

Favorite Films

Bronius and I are pretty picky about films...aside from the ones that EVERYONE agrees are "good" or "classic", we really enjoy foreign and independent movies (done well!) and documentary/historical movies. Bronius, of course, prefers action films above all, as most guys do. And I prefer romantic comedies, dramas and period pieces, like many women do. ;) All this being said, we're both psyched about seeing the new Indiana Jones! So it's a little of this, and a little of that around here. Like most parents, we don't have time to watch movies, so when we see them, we like to make it count. They either have to inspire us, make us think and grow, make us laugh till we cry, or just cry. :) (Okay okay, I do most of the crying!)

These are some films that we've watched this past year on rental that I would recommend, and that Bronius actually watched with me and enjoyed! I'll preface this by saying that I was raised on Masterpiece Theatre and I am the only dork in my family that still enjoys it other than my parents, who still faithfully watch it Sunday nights. One day I'll tell you guys more about my exciting life and how I used to sit between them on their bed and we'd watch it all together when I would visit on the weekends from college.

Jane Eyre - my very very very favorite novel by Charlotte Bronte, brought to life by Ruth Wilson and Toby Stephenson
Miss Potter - the story of Beatrix Potter
Becoming Jane - mostly fictional depiction of Jane Austen's life
Once - an indy film about two musicians, innocent and lovely, from Scotland
The Prestige - seriously AWESOME movie about rival magicians. I promise, I don't just love this movie because of Christian Bale!
Dan in Real Life - we are beloved Steve Carrell fans (although not when he is being lude) I am also a fan of Bill Murray, Jim Carrey and Adam Sandler - but like them even better in the dramatic films they have branched out in recently!
Bella - lovely Catholic film which examines the sanctity of life
P.S. I love you - sadly, there is inappropriate content and language which peppers this movie, which is completely unnecessary because it could be so perfect with out it. I found it very touching nonetheless. Maybe it hit me at a hormonal moment... :)


And here are some of my all time favorites:

Foreign:
Amelie, Life is Beautiful

Comedies:
Groundhog Day, Napoleon Dynamite, Princess Bride, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, The Party, Duck Soup, 2 Weeks Notice, Miss Congeniality

Musicals:
Sound of Music, My Fair Lady, Hello Dolly


Romantic Comedies/Dramas:
Spanglish, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Lakehouse, Green Card, Steel Magnolias, Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Ever After, Moonstruck

Literary:
Little Women
Little Princess
Daniel Deronda
Jane Eyre
Pride and Prejudice

Psychological:
Matchstick Men, The Cell, The Matrix, Fight Club (all very yuckiness aside)

Documentary:
Hotel Rwanda

Our fave books for May 2008

We're spending a great deal of time with books this month, and probably all summer long too. :) These Joy Cowley books are treasures around here!!! They have kindled a new love of bugs and reptiles (even for me!) I want her to make more of these! The Mo Willems books are HILARIOUS! And Dominic has finally come around to liking the Thomas the Train books. If you have some to share, please please do!

















Chameleon, Chameleon - Joy Cowley
The Red Eyed Tree Frog - Joy Cowley
Go train, Go - Awdry
Don't let the pigeon stay up late! - Mo Williams
Jamberry - Bruce Degan
I spy a lion: animals in art - Micklethwait, Lucy
I spy a freight train: transportation in art - Micklethwait, Lucy
The Ark - Arthur Giesert

The very hungry bookworm

I loved reading as a child, and grew into the kind of teenager that would spend rainy Saturday afternoons in seclusion in my room reading novels and writing my own stories. Needless to say, I'm pretty sure I'd be crushed beyond repair if my own children did not also love to read. It has taken 2 years to foster an independent love and interest of reading in Dominic...but it has been well worth it!

We make weekly and bi-weekly trips to the library, and I try to research books beforehand and put them on hold (since every parent knows that browsing is not a compatible activity with a toddler). We change out the books from week to week around here, and favorites get renewed to the last possible day. :)

These have been some of Dominic's favorites from the last 2 months, those that were not gifts we have found at the library.

Harold and the Purple Crayon (which hasn't actually provoked the suggested behavior we imagined it would!!!)
So Sleepy Story
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus
The Poky Little Puppy
Little Bear (any of the stories)
Winnie the Pooh original treasury (he really likes all the characters and their quirks!)
The Tale of Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny (we quote these books daily)
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Each Peach Pear Plum
Cordouroy's Button
Where is the Green Sheep?
I Stink! (A story about a garbage truck)
Little Pea
Mother Goose Treasury
Eric Carle of course is always popular.
And I'd be remiss if I forgot to mention the Curious George Treasury. I have gotten more mileage out of the book than I did my '92 Saturn!

If you have book recommendations, please share with me! I am of the opinion that one can never read too many!!!! :)

Mama book recommendation - What Your Doctor May Not Tell You about Children's Vaccinations

This book came recommended to me by several Mamas, and I ordered it from amazon.com and I can not put it down. I'm not the personality who gets swept up in mass panic about things - but this was definitely one topic I felt needed some closer examination on my part. I still fully believe in the importance of immunizations and intend to immunize our children, but I'm thankful I got hold of this book before making any major decisions with baby 2. This book is written by an M.D. who was tired of not being able to explain to parents why their healthy babies were showing symptoms of long-term negative side effects (and occasionally, conditions and diseases such as autism and multiple sclerosis) - 9 months after receiving vaccinations. She took it upon herself to do extensive research and write this book, to inform parents about their options in choosing vaccinations. I'm sure that if it's not one thing, it'll be another thing - but I at least feel better about being informed and doing my best with what I am learning. With all my friends having babies and being preggers, I thought it was a good time to share!

Book series recommendation - Baby Loves Jazz

The first time I felt Dominic move in my tummy was when I played the piece "Our Love is Here to Stay" by Billie Holiday. So I always imagined that he inherited my love of jazz music :) Today I found a book called "Duck Ellington Swings through the Zoo," and it came with a cd. I started to read the story and played the cd for Dominic simultaneously, and he was dancing all around the living room, taking breaks only to turn to the next page when it was time. There is a whole series of these books which feature different music genres and artists. If you're looking for a way to spice up story time, I highly recommend this series!

http://www.babylovesmusic.com/ (for kids ages 0-99...it's not limited to babies at all!)

Values in work

For my career counseling class, we're learning that one aspect of counseling is helping clients to find, or hone in on, the career which is the best fit for them. As an exercise we were asked to take this test online to assess our own values in the workplace. It was affirming for me to see my top three results were 1) counseling 2) religious education and 3) education. While I'm not sure at which point on my life time-line I'm going to resume some part-time work, I found this to be very insightful!
I think even if one intends not to work outside the home that this can offer some new perspectives of what we value and what our strengths are in our daily workplace.... at home or in an office, every woman is a working woman :) I'm including the link if anyone is interested to check it out!

http://www.usd.edu/trio/tut/time/workinv.html

Review of "The Human Experience"

Bronius and I just got back from "The Human Experience" and it moved our hearts beyond words! The entire activity center was PACKED, in spite of the T-storms tonight! Everyone came in with squeaking shoes. :) I was so psyched to see so many people respond so well to a film like this...I attempted to jump start several film festivals of a similar nature at St. Mary's, and never received a wall-to-wall response like this! It was a beautiful message to experience, especially during Lent, to reflect upon the dignity of human life, God's greatest gift to us, what it means to live your life for others, and how other people across the world with seemingly NOTHING to live for, have happiness that can not be measured.... because of their steadfast faith.

The producer and one of the characters were present and did a Q&A session, and explained that even though they are a Catholic organization, they were trying not to make this a "God" movie because they wanted the message to get out to everyone - but all their experiences in visiting with people pointed to faith in God, and how they felt the entire meaning of life was faith! So neat to see how they allowed the Holy Spirit to pilot the direction of the film! Throughout the whole movie I was thinking what a thoroughly pro-life message this movie held, and in the Q&A session the director mentioned that a pro-life film was their purpose - but they wished to expand the message beyond what people typically associate with "pro-life." I was ecstatic about that, because too often I feel like people completely forget about all the other issues in our world today that are all equally part of the "pro-life" spectrum. I think that's why this movie was so effective and real and touching - it just covered the entire human experience.

I always imagined our family doing mission trips (fully realizing that what we would give is nothing in comparison to what we would come home with) and I really pray that will be possible for us in the future. In the meantime, I am definitely living vicariously through those who are touching the face of God in places I can only dream about!

Thanks for reading! Lighter posts to follow, I promise ;) Everyone knows I can only be on my soapbox for so long before clowning around again ;)

Middle of the night movie review

After waking up from a very disappointing dream about frantically searching for a favorite ice cream flavor in a familiar store that had completely rearranged their freezer section (how sad is that?) I woke up and am unable to get back to sleep! Before I go get my book in hopes of lulling myself to sleep, I wanted to mention this GREAT movie B and I watched tonight on t.v. It was called "The Prizewinner of Defiance, Ohio" starring Julianne Moore. Has anyone seen it? It's a true story about a resourceful mother of 10 children who leans on her sparkling wit and her way with words to enter into multiple contests to keep her struggling family afloat. It's funny, heartwarming and so artistically done! Here is a website that goes into more detail about the real story - but RENT it if you can (all mommies should!) It is airing on Encore this month, so you may be able to see it on t.v.

www.theprizewinner.com/ (still trying to debug the issue of not being able to include live links....)

Khania and Aaron

With misty eyes from my driveway I just waved off one of my oldest and best friends in the whole wide world. Khania and I met in elementary school in South Florida and after both of our families moved to different neighborhoods in our hometown, we ended up living in the same neighborhood in high school, which brought us even closer as friends (until I moved to Texas senior year, which of course devastated a great deal of the population of my high school, especially me). Khania is an architect and artist in NYC, and she came to visit us with her wonderful boyfriend Aaron who is also an architect and artist in NYC. He is visiting the area for a high school reunion, so it was a stroke of luck that we were able to see them this month!!! :) We had a wonderful time introducing them to Mexican food, kolaches, country drives and other Central Texas wonders. Here are some pictures of our time together. We will miss these lovely friends so incredibly much until we see them again!


Aaron & Khania








Khania & I





Khania, Me & Dominic




Khania & D on a train





Dominic painting




Aaron painting




Dr. Dominic!




Khania in the rocket