What is it with Boys?

Well. . .today I found a little gem of a poem of sorts. . .free verse. . .what-have-you.  It’s entitled:

Recipe for Growing Boys by Irene Noble

Take one boy, about seven pounds.  Give to a family who loves him very much.  Simmer together with laughter, patience, comfort and a deep sense of responsibility for about three years.  Let season but watch carefully for signs of spoiling.

Mix one part firmness with two parts understanding. Add both at the same time, with mature wisdom.  Let season.  Then mix thoroughly the Golden Rule with some baseball, fishing trips, responsibilities, privacy, picnics, games and a cookie jar.  Shake in some soap, toothpaste, and a comb.

Now very slowly add some good books, some music, a football, a lawn mower and a savings account.  Let season quite awhile.  Then mix liberally with some dreams that make sense and some that don’t; some for fun and some for growth.  Stir in some good conversation about grades, honor, beliefs, love, patriotism, girls, cars and the World Series.  Sprinkle with humor. . .For extra interest, add a few roots such as integrity, fidelity, determination and gentleness.  Mix with an interest in school activities, civic duty and his fellow man.  Pour in some weekend jobs and a goal or two.  Let season.

When you think he’s ready, garnish with faith in tomorrow and gaze with pride. . . 

I really liked it.  And there isn’t a boy theme going on here. . .it just seems like boys are in the water.  And that’s fine with me, ’cause the one I married and the one I gave birth two are my very favorites ever.

Good Books for Boys and the People who Love Them

I am frequently asked to recommend books for kids to read.  I spend a lot of time reading juvenile and young adult literature just so I can recommend them to my own students.  Today I got the request again. . .this time for a boy from 5th-7th grade.  Below is the list I sent verbatim, not edited or cleaned up as I am B-U-S-Y and not yet to summer.  HOWEVER, I have read almost of all these books to my own kids.  The exceptions are FEW.  They are excellent–especially when read aloud or when you read some and the child takes it from there.  Most books don’t REALLY get good until the end of chapter 2/beginning of chapter 3, so get them started, then they will be BEGGING you to read more or asking if they can just read it on their own.  If after three or four chapters they just aren’t that into it–pick another book.  There is no law that says once a book is begun it must be finished.  Ever.  Happy reading!!!

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Here are books that I HIGHLY recommend. All are appropriate depending on what her son enjoys reading. If he’s a reluctant reader, I’d start with House on Hackman’s Hill, Hatchet, or How to Train Your Dragon.

Hatchet (adventure. . .boy surviving plane crash in Alaskan wildnerness)

Someone’s Hiding on Alcatraz Island (boy hides on Alcatraz overnight while gang is after him)

House on Hackman’s Hill (boy and cousin go into an abandoned house to find treasures and get stranded there)

The Cay (set during WWII, EXCELLENT to listen to on cd, because one of the main characters has a thick Caribbean accent that is spelled out in the book. This would be a great one for a trip, because the entire family will enjoy it.  Boy’s dad is in Caribbean to help with fuel for war effort, boy and mom head back to U.S., are torpedoed, boy is rescued by black deck hand and they survive on a tiny Cay which is a small, waterless island. MY FAVORITE BOOK TO TEACHER EVER, EVER, EVER!!!)

How to Train Your Dragon- this series is EXCELLENT. Totally different from the movie, high level humor (some potty humor too. . .it is geared toward boys), and just so, so good. We’ve read them all (I read them aloud to Victoria and Thad both) and can’t WAIT for the next one which is probably the last of the series.

The Penderwicks (this has girl protagonists, HOWEVER, they are very well written and have a boy as one of the main characters. There are three in the series. I’ve read all three of them aloud to the kids, and Thad loves them too.)

Holes- similar to the movie, but still an excellent read.

A Time for Andrew- boy changes places in time with a look alike ghost who is his departed cousin from years back

Ghost Soldier- boy can communicate with a soldier boy from the Civil War who needs help righting a wrong

Tuck Everlasting- the protagonist is a girl, but it deals with if you COULD live forever would you. . .also has boys in it and is beautifully written.

Red Dog- boy is left to protect family while step dad is gone, family is attacked by down and out miners and boy must save them

Where the Red Fern Grows- DUH. . .but if he’s not a reader, this would be one that I would steer away from simply because it’s long and can look intimidating, plus it takes some background knowledge

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Dangerous Book for Boys (excellent multi-tasking book with stuff boys need to know, read, do, etc.but he will want to do some of the activities, so she needs to be prepared.

The Indian in the Cupboard (more widely read than Castle in the Attic. . .)

The Castle in the Attic (similar to Indian in the Cupboard, but the boy–William–actually becomes a person who goes INTO the castle to save the kingdom. I used to do this one with my 5th graders EVERY SPRING.)

The Thief of Always–haven’t ever read or heard of this one, but will read it to the kids this summer. Looks good. I went online to find a list of books, and pretty much all the ones I had on my list were on theirs. . .guess I’m not doing so bad. Ha!)

Bone graphic novels–Victoria and Thad BOTH love these

Calvin and Hobbes- obviously comics, but high level humor and just excellent. . .especially for him to read by himself. Thad will just sit in a chair in the living room and read these sometimes.

Harry Potter series if he’s not read them. WAY BETTER than the movies. These are also great to listen to on cd.

In lieu of an entire post

There is a thunderstorm, and I have to go to work tomorrow.  So the post I have must wait, but I give you this. . .

Two weeks, two days

This year I was blessed to mentor a first year teacher.  It was not in her plan to have her husband transferred in November, and to find out two days after school started that she was pregnant with their first child.  It’s been a busy, busy year for her. Her little boy is due in one month, and she frequently asks for my  insight or knowledge about pregnancy and newborns.  Recently we’ve talked less about the pregnancy and more about labor, delivery, and bringing her son home.  I said to her, “I promise, you will lose three weeks of your life.  Seriously.  You won’t even recognize the passing of time. . .it will just be gone.”

It’s not quite as intense with our chicken babies, obviously, but two weeks, two days in the life of a pullet brings a lot of changes.

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Day One

This morning. . .

 

 

We aren’t attached or anything.

So.  I am trying to take photos of the chickens daily due to the fact that someone is feeding them Miracle Grow.  Remember these little balls of fluff?

This is them today. . . (click photo to see Super Large Chickens Drinking Water)

Their coming home carrier?

This was Saturday.  I could only manage to get nine in, and there was quite a bit of resistance and no shortage of opinions on their part.  (Click photo to see Super Opinionated Chickens Forced to Inhabit a Too Small Box BIG)

And here are my own Chicky-Doodles on the last day of Spring Break.  They are growing fast too.

I am. . .

Did you know that two of THE NEWEST, hottest trending fashion colors this spring are peach and mint green?

I KNOW this because I live with a teenaged girl and I TEACH teenaged girls.  (I so. totally. vow. that one of the 8th graders (I don’t teach but is sort of emo-popular) was walking down the hall the other day with an over-sized, off-the-shoulder, “Choose Life” shirt on.  White shirt.  Black letters.  I ALMOST broke into “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.”)  I find this amazing as those were two of THE NEWEST, hottest trending fashion colors when I was  in high school.  (Probably labeled in the  J. Crew catalog as cantaloupe and celery).   Nothing new under the sun including the season’s color palette.  Victoria loves both of these colors.  A LOT.  So when I found an entire photo collage of a wedding with mint green as the color scheme, I pinned it for her.  We both like to look at pretty things.

We did, in fact, look at it together, and as we drifted into the kitchen (where Tony was located), the  discussion we’d been having about the images continued something like this. . .

Her:  I think that color is a great color, don’t you?

Me:  Yes.  It has always been one of my favorite shades of green.

Her:  What kind of flowers do you think I should have though?

Me:  I don’t know, there are a ton of choices.  Daisies would be really, really pretty–or pink roses–or tulips.

Her:  I just don’t know what to choose.   Do you think the formosa azaleas would be pretty with it?

Me:  They would be GORGEOUS. 

Her:  I want it to be something all the girls will like.

Me:  Oh, there’s plenty of time for that.  My girls were supposed to carry bouquets of babies breath like the ones in the photo, but the florist messed up.  I mean–the flowers were gorgeous, but I had wanted JUST big bouquets of babies breath.  I was ahead of my time.

About this time, her Daddy’s brain clicked with the conversation we were having.

Him:  Um. . .EXACTLY WHAT ARE YOU TWO TALKING ABOUT?!?!?!?!?

This, evidently, struck a nerve.  The same nerve that is struck every time he catches a glimpse of her at a certain angle or in a certain light and is reminded that she doesn’t look like this any more.

These days she’s looking more like this. . .

And there IS  time yet.  We aren’t in any rush.  She isn’t either.  There is time–but I wouldn’t say there is an over abundance of it–of that time stuff.  I REMEMBER being fifteen–I remember it in detail, and that is right where she is headed in four months.  There is still so, so much to accomplish and discuss and do.

BUT–for now–she still does this.

 2013

2010

That same night, I overheard part of a phone conversation with her friend, Jelly (Angelica).  They were discussing names and how Victoria got hers.  She explained that it came from a magazine (and it did–Victoria magazine) AND because we liked it.  Her Daddy particularly liked Lauren as well, so Victoria Lauren it was and is.  I’m not sure what Jelly said next, but Victoria replied with this:

“Yep, I am a city, a province, a waterfall, a lake, a state,  an island, a queen, a day, a style, an era, and a magazine.”

Oh, my sweet baby, girl.  You are all of that and so much more.

Just Here to Help

*Preen, preen, preen. *

I feel pretty, oh so pretty. . .I feel pretty and witty and.  . .

Hey!!!  What is this?

It is part of my pretty, but *pfhbt, pfhbt* it doesn’t *pfhbt, pfhbt* belong here. . .

Um. . .now let me just think about this a bit. . .

HEY.  YOU GOT A LITTLE SOMETHIN’ RIIIIIIIIGHT THERE. 

THERE.  SEE?  I GOT IT.

Thank you so much!!!

JUST HERE TO HELP A SISTER OUT.

HELLO THERE.  JUST GOT THROUGH HELPING ONE OF OUR SISTER FRIENDS OUT.  YEP!  THAT’S ME!  I’M A HELPER!

That is so kind of you.  But, hey!  You got a little somethin’ RIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT there. . .