Well, it's Sunday night. The latest possible moment the Weather.com guys say is safe to get what you need before Sandy hits (although from what I've seen, North Carolina is already taking a beating and it's really not supposed to hit here until tomorrow evening, but I digress). Do you have what you need? Do you think it will meet all the hype? As you know, I'm in western PA. We're right on the cusp of the track of Sandy. According to Weather.com, we're also in the "likely" area for power outages. I haven't lived here long enough to ascertain if I should really be worried or not, but erring on the side of caution, I bought some water and shelf stable foods, made sure we had batteries for our lantern and busted out our candle stash (and I must say, if the power does go out, our house is going to smell really nice!). I've also got a load of warm clothes in the wash with a couple of blankets to follow. We're as ready as we're going to be, I guess.
Do you remember back in 2003 when a power surge hit a New York power grid and caused that huge blackout across the Northeast? Yeah, my husband and I lived in Detroit at the time and my mother-in-law and brother-in-law were in town for the weekend. We were actually having an early dinner at the mall when everything went dark. We couldn't prepare for that blackout, but we somehow made it through. Lots of PB&Js. And I think we went 27 hours without power.
Being unprepared for no power is not something I want to do again. So when I hear it's "likely" we'll loose power, yes, I'm going to get a few things, especially now that we have kids. Even when my husband, raised from 6 weeks old in the Tidewater area of Virginia, says everyone is worrying over nothing, that it will fizzle, that nothing is going to happen, I would rather be one of those who goes to the store to stock up on things than get caught with nothing. I picked him and our son up from their soccer game yesterday, and my husband opens the trunk to find a 3 gallon pack of water and he looks at me with this look of "Um...what the heck is that for?" and I told him that I "pre-panicked" to beat the crowd. Go me.
Stay safe, stay warm and stay dry. I'll talk with you after the storm!
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Reading, writing, math and....Pokemon?
Those who know my family, know our son is a huge fan of Pokemon. Trust me when I say, I was less than thrilled when his triplet cousins introduced him to Pokemon, and it didn't help that McDonald's was running their Pokemon promotion at the same time (and we were traveling quite a bit, which meant that he had opportunity to collect said promotion). Why was I so opposed to this fad (that seems to be a recurring fad since the early 1990s)? Honestly, I don't know, but for some reason it rubbed me the wrong way. Maybe I thought he was too young (5 1/2), maybe I didn't want it overshadowing the highly educational value (in my mind) of the dinosaurs he loved, studied, researched, and fascinated me with facts about. Whatever the reason, I was bummed as he became more and more excited about every card and action figure he collected. I'd like to point out that he would buy his cards with his own money from his allowance. Then along comes his father, who had played the Pokemon card game with his younger brother years ago, and teaches our son how to play the actual card game. This is where I began to have a change of heart about Pokemon.
As my husband taught our son the game, he encouraged him to add up his own "hit points", or damage, (done by 10s), and to use adding up and subtraction to determine how many more "hit points" his Pokemon could take before being "phased" (knocked out of the game). Huh. Pokemon requires the players to use math? As they were playing, we also encouraged our son to read his Pokemon cards to find out what moves his current character could do, or what abilities they had, etc. He also wanted to sound out the various names of the different characters (and let me tell you, quite a few are a mouthful!). Hmmm...reading too?
As he learned more about the Pokemon, he wanted to get books and more cards (enter Christmas, Easter and birthday presents, all other times, he buys them himself - hmm...more math! Saving and spending!) and even started writing his own Pokemon stories and making his own Pokemon cards (complete with made up names, abilities, hit points and character drawings). Writing!
Like he has done with his dinosaur facts, he has, seemingly without much effort, memorized facts, moves, character descriptions and types. Ask him any question and he will either have an answer or will find one. He is excited about meeting with other friends of his who are either already into Pokemon or just learning (and he will "train" them in Pokemon battle techniques) to trade cards, or just talk shop. Memory and socialization!
Yes, there is also a tv show. Again, when we found out they showed reruns on Boomerang and new episodes on Cartoon Network, I was ecstatic (#sarcasm). However, it is one of the most positive cartoon shows I have ever seen. They promote teamwork, positive attitude, hard work, dedication, persistence, perseverance and kindness toward others. Yes, it can be pretty predictable, but I'd rather he watch this cartoon than some of the other, um, junk (for lack of a nicer word) they put out there for kids. While we no longer have cable tv, he can still get his Pokemon cartoon fix through Netflix or Pokemon.com. It's a great reward for a job well done at school, or for just a break from our crazy, busy lives.
To recap, Pokemon has encouraged the following positive qualities, characteristics, values, skills:
Math, reading, writing, socialization, teamwork, positivity, perseverance, dedication, and kindness, just to name a few. Someone tell me what's wrong with any of those things?
While I LOVE the dinosaurs (he's still very much into them and continues to read and learn about them - yea!), I'm glad he's also enjoying Pokemon, for all the reasons listed above. So, if you're on the fence about your kiddo getting into Pokemon, I understand, I was there once. All it took to convert me was finding the educational value out of the fun he was having.
As my husband taught our son the game, he encouraged him to add up his own "hit points", or damage, (done by 10s), and to use adding up and subtraction to determine how many more "hit points" his Pokemon could take before being "phased" (knocked out of the game). Huh. Pokemon requires the players to use math? As they were playing, we also encouraged our son to read his Pokemon cards to find out what moves his current character could do, or what abilities they had, etc. He also wanted to sound out the various names of the different characters (and let me tell you, quite a few are a mouthful!). Hmmm...reading too?
As he learned more about the Pokemon, he wanted to get books and more cards (enter Christmas, Easter and birthday presents, all other times, he buys them himself - hmm...more math! Saving and spending!) and even started writing his own Pokemon stories and making his own Pokemon cards (complete with made up names, abilities, hit points and character drawings). Writing!
Like he has done with his dinosaur facts, he has, seemingly without much effort, memorized facts, moves, character descriptions and types. Ask him any question and he will either have an answer or will find one. He is excited about meeting with other friends of his who are either already into Pokemon or just learning (and he will "train" them in Pokemon battle techniques) to trade cards, or just talk shop. Memory and socialization!
Yes, there is also a tv show. Again, when we found out they showed reruns on Boomerang and new episodes on Cartoon Network, I was ecstatic (#sarcasm). However, it is one of the most positive cartoon shows I have ever seen. They promote teamwork, positive attitude, hard work, dedication, persistence, perseverance and kindness toward others. Yes, it can be pretty predictable, but I'd rather he watch this cartoon than some of the other, um, junk (for lack of a nicer word) they put out there for kids. While we no longer have cable tv, he can still get his Pokemon cartoon fix through Netflix or Pokemon.com. It's a great reward for a job well done at school, or for just a break from our crazy, busy lives.
To recap, Pokemon has encouraged the following positive qualities, characteristics, values, skills:
Math, reading, writing, socialization, teamwork, positivity, perseverance, dedication, and kindness, just to name a few. Someone tell me what's wrong with any of those things?
While I LOVE the dinosaurs (he's still very much into them and continues to read and learn about them - yea!), I'm glad he's also enjoying Pokemon, for all the reasons listed above. So, if you're on the fence about your kiddo getting into Pokemon, I understand, I was there once. All it took to convert me was finding the educational value out of the fun he was having.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
City Girl Goes Camping!
Yes! She can camp! Our son's cub scout council holds a family camp two times a year so the families can come and experience what the scouts do during the council's summer camps (tour the various play structures, buildings and the siblings can also shoot BBs, bow and arrow, and this year - slingshots!). Scout packs are also encouraged to camp over the weekend with the pack's families. Last year, our pack didn't camp and it was a good thing too because it was cold, wet and miserable. We went for the main event Saturday camp day, 2 month old daughter in Snugglie and all (we kept each other nice and toasty!), and still had fun, but camping would have been miserable. BUT, this year, the weather couldn't have been more perfect!
When we got there Saturday morning, it was 27 degrees. Okay, that's not the perfect weather part. Yes, it was freezing, but once we got moving, and the sun started doing it's job, it was pretty nice! First the mittens came off, then the hoods and hats, and finally, around 2:00, we were pretty much in long sleeves and sweatshirts, kids running around the campsite playing football and soccer. After a morning of "Down on the Farm" themed activities (petting farm animals, horse rides, bee hive, snake and dog training exhibits), the kids were ready to ready to go do some BB/archery/slingshot shooting. Our walk through the woods to get to the shooting range was beautiful. I don't know about where you live, but here in PA, the trees have been brilliant this fall! Bright oranges, canary yellows, fire reds and all the colors in those hue's ranges are represented as far as the eyes can see. After the much enjoyed shooting range and scavenger hunt, we enjoyed a traditional hot dog dinner, s'mores and camp songs at the campfire! Even after the sun went down, we were still in just jackets.
(Picture from our campsite, taken by one of the other moms)
I'm not sure how I thought the baby would sleep. I think I thought she might sleep well because it was just a schosh chilly (and I bundled her as best as I could), but I think the breeze blowing the tent covering, and the fact that she wasn't in her own bed, probably led to her not sleeping her best. But, she did do well and didn't wake anyone, but me, up with her occasional fussing. While I may have been sleep weary come morning, I was glad no one else heard her.
In the morning, the men made breakfast! All the dads hung out around the camp stoves, made coffee and cooked bacon, sausage, eggs, and potatoes and onions. It was delicious! More than I hoped or planned for - these guys know how to camp!
All in all, a fun and fantastic weekend! People were housed (tented?), organized and fed and there was only one hiccup: my darling husband left the hot dogs in the fridge at home and had to run to a local store for more. For someone who hasn't camped since she was in 5th grade, I'm pretty proud of my first camping excursion with our kids! A couple of families are already wanting to do a winter camping trip! I don't know if Little Miss would be up for that (or Mommy!), but we'll see. For now, I'll bask in the glow of this past weekend's enjoyable camping trip!
When we got there Saturday morning, it was 27 degrees. Okay, that's not the perfect weather part. Yes, it was freezing, but once we got moving, and the sun started doing it's job, it was pretty nice! First the mittens came off, then the hoods and hats, and finally, around 2:00, we were pretty much in long sleeves and sweatshirts, kids running around the campsite playing football and soccer. After a morning of "Down on the Farm" themed activities (petting farm animals, horse rides, bee hive, snake and dog training exhibits), the kids were ready to ready to go do some BB/archery/slingshot shooting. Our walk through the woods to get to the shooting range was beautiful. I don't know about where you live, but here in PA, the trees have been brilliant this fall! Bright oranges, canary yellows, fire reds and all the colors in those hue's ranges are represented as far as the eyes can see. After the much enjoyed shooting range and scavenger hunt, we enjoyed a traditional hot dog dinner, s'mores and camp songs at the campfire! Even after the sun went down, we were still in just jackets.
(Picture from our campsite, taken by one of the other moms)
I'm not sure how I thought the baby would sleep. I think I thought she might sleep well because it was just a schosh chilly (and I bundled her as best as I could), but I think the breeze blowing the tent covering, and the fact that she wasn't in her own bed, probably led to her not sleeping her best. But, she did do well and didn't wake anyone, but me, up with her occasional fussing. While I may have been sleep weary come morning, I was glad no one else heard her.
In the morning, the men made breakfast! All the dads hung out around the camp stoves, made coffee and cooked bacon, sausage, eggs, and potatoes and onions. It was delicious! More than I hoped or planned for - these guys know how to camp!
All in all, a fun and fantastic weekend! People were housed (tented?), organized and fed and there was only one hiccup: my darling husband left the hot dogs in the fridge at home and had to run to a local store for more. For someone who hasn't camped since she was in 5th grade, I'm pretty proud of my first camping excursion with our kids! A couple of families are already wanting to do a winter camping trip! I don't know if Little Miss would be up for that (or Mommy!), but we'll see. For now, I'll bask in the glow of this past weekend's enjoyable camping trip!
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