XiaolinMama

Gymnastics foam pit

Kiley at gymnastics

She's Geeky

Here at She's Geeky conference- am floored by the talent of these women.

Am proud to be part of a group that shouts from the roof tops that they are geeky. Love them!

Being part of this group makes me wish I actually knew how to code.

A 4th graders thoughts for President Obama

Here is my son's homework assignment...even kids feel the impact of the economy and have directions for Mr. Obama.
******

January 22, 2009

The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Barack Obama,

    How are you doing in the White House? I am doing fine. Are you going to change a lot of things? What does your bedroom look like? I hope you are having a good time being president.

Are you going to raise prices on things like toys? I think if you are going to raise the prices you should raise them a maximum of one dollar. I think it is better not to raise prices too high because it is hard to get an allowance because of the economy. I also think we could get two toys instead of one if the prices did not go up too much.

Good luck being the President of the United States.

Sincerely,

Caden
4th Grade

Is it Possible to Overpraise Your Kids? Nah!

More parenting videos on JuiceBoxJungle

A friend of mine recently launched a site, Juice Box Jungle, that you simply MUST check out.   Basically, they provide these hip videos about issues that resonate with normal parents.  When I talk about normal parents, I mean the kind of parents who sometimes forget to make their kids eat 5 servings of vegetables/fruit a day, cheer too loudly at soccer games and sometimes ignore their children while we finish a blog post.  Hmmm..  yes, I am referring to me.  I appreciate that they are irreverent, provide some food for thought and don't have any commercials!

The featured video this week is about overpraising.  A topic close to my heart  - yes, that is me raising my hand as guilty as charged.  With my first born, I praised everything he did - his art, his singing and his stellar athletic prowess.  I cheered when he ate anything green.  Like the video pointed out - he had a full shelf of trophies by the time he was 5.  He skipped kindergarten because he could read.  How could he NOT think he was da bomb!  LOL.  He is a great kid.  

Do I agree with the video in thinking that we should worry about overpraising?  Well yes and no.  I obviously didn't want my kid thinking he can walk on water and do no wrong.  How obnoxious would that have been and where would that leave me when I actually  needed to discipline him for drawing on the wall? As a parent of a young child, I had to learn to praise the fine color choice in art work, rather than complimenting his fine rendition of a "dinosaur".  (He was clearly no Michelangelo.)

But on the other hand, at nine years old, my son is clear about what he is good at and not.  He is not under the delusion that he walks on water.  He gets it straight from his teachers, coaches, team mates, friends and me.   He is well aware of his limitations.  I know that sounds depressing - but I believe it helps him figure out what he needs to improve on - whether it is long division or kicking with his left foot.

He is well aware of the things he wants to try in the world - football, snowboarding and video game world championship.  I am proud that I am raising a boy who is confident enough to think that there is no reason NOT to try.  I think that while part of my job as a parent is to love him as much as I can, protect him from harm and feed him(even if he eats me out of house and home). It is also my job to be as honest as possible, provide boundaries and rules and praise them to the point of embarrassment.  Afterall, I AM writing this blog to document all his embarassing moments for posterity's sake.  In the long run, I think a little praise does wonders.

At citymama's celebrating with the MOMocrats

Perfect afternoon tea party

Life has been a whirlwind- when is it not? Today was the rare day that we did not need to be running to keep up or catch up.

So we picked up my 5YO's BFF, walked to the park and had the perfect tea party- fruit punch, PBJ sandwichesn corn nuts and tangerines. Ecclectic, I know. Acquired taste for sure.

The girls basked in the sun, ran around the fountain, looked at bugs, climbed a tree and walked through the roses- ugh!

I struggled to remember the last time we did this. Peaceful. Quiet. No place to be. Thoughtful. Simple.

Afternoons like this is why I love life in California.