I love to watch you swim!

I recently read this blog post:
http://www.handsfreemama.com/2012/04/16/six-words-you-should-say-today/

It was a bit eye opening for me.  I realized that I am that mom.  Full of constructive advice (criticism), everything a teachable moment, how to be better, stronger, faster.  But did I say those 6 words "I love to watch you play."?  No, I didn't.  I certainly thought it. I kvelled with pride as I watched them cut through the water doing their best.  But I didn't tell them.  I felt I should let them know how they could do better next time.  Seriously, what was wrong with me?

For the last swim practice of Spring Training I went in to watch for a few minutes.  Parents are not normally allowed on deck to watch (I get that, who wants a bunch of parents watching you do your job) but it was the last one so I took a peek.  Afterwards as each of my children emerged from the locker room I told them "I love to watch you swim."  I can't say I noticed any straightening of the shoulders, the pressure is off moment but what I have noticed in the past few days is a difference in our relationships.  It seems everyone is a little more willing to spend time with me.  "Want to come to the market with me?" I get a yes when in the past it would have been no.

I still feel an urge to "help"  all the time but I am working on controlling myself.

Happy 13th Birthday Little Miss M!

Today it is official.  I am the mom of 2 teenagers.  My baby girl is 13 (in case you were wondering-today's birthday breakfast is chocolate pudding pie).  She is ready to move into the next chapter of her life and I want her to be my baby.  I know, she will always be my baby, but her moving to the next chapter means I have to move to the next chapter.  I am not ready.  Ready or not, here it comes.

So much has been going on this past month.  Little Miss was called to the Torah as a Bat Mitzvah.  She chanted her Haftorah beautifully and read Torah as if she had been doing it all her life.  She also led most of the service.  The Cantor had a nice break.  She was amazing and I am filled with pride and joy over her accomplishments.

A large part of the last month was spent in preparation.  Planning the party, making sure she practiced, making sure Mister B practiced his Torah portion, getting the dress, getting my dress, making sure Mister B and hubby had suits that fit, following up on response cards from people who neglected to respond, and so on.  Needless to say-school light. Summer school this year.

As my daughter enters this next phase of growing up I can't help but wonder what the future will bring.  There is the obvious-make up, more intense school work, clothes.  Then there is the more subtle-boys.  Continuing to instill in her a strong sense of self so she can always remain true to who she is and not go changing just to make some boy happy.

I see a bumpy road ahead.  Or perhaps I should say hilly.  A ride that will be filled with twists and turns and ups and downs.  One that will move super fast at times and other times slow down.  Hopefully, there will be pleasant valleys full of joy and laughter and few dark woods.  Will I be able to think of some more cliches to describe this journey? 

Happy 13th Birthday!

Walkway Over The Hudson

Took a field trip today to The Walkway Over The Hudson (http://www.walkway.org).  It is an old train trestle that was converted into a pedestrian bridge.  Chock full of history and a beautiful walk.

The views were stunning.  We learned a little about the history of trains in the area.  This used to be the only bridge connecting across the Hudson.  The bridge was used to transport troops, supplies, coal, etc. but the interstate severely diminished use of the trestle.  In 1974 there was a large fire and the property was sold to a private owner.  Eventually the funds were raised to convert the trestle into a pedestrian bridge that opened a few years ago.

The weather was great and the walk is a bit over 1 mile in each direction.  After our walk we enjoyed a picnic lunch.

It was an enjoyable day.

April is almost over! Oh my!

I am sorry that I have been so neglectful of my blog.  We are counting down the weeks until Little Miss M's Bat Mitzvah and buried under all the last details.  Lessons with the Cantor, practice your Torah and Haftorah, and don't forget to practice your speech, dress fittings, finalizing the menu, suits, ties, centerpieces, place cards, candle lighting, oh my!  And somewhere in all of this there is some schoolwork getting done.

The swim season ended-The club team they swim on-another undefeated season.  The high school team was undefeated until the last meet.  Still a great year for them, too.  Now they are both enjoying Spring Training.  Need to stay in shape for summer swim team.  Plus, Mister B is taking the American Red Cross Lifeguard Certification class.  My baby is going to be a lifeguard this summer.   My baby will be responsible for other peoples safety!  I know he can do it and he is looking forward to earning his own spending money.  But, sometimes I look at my boy and think "What a derp."  He is so smart in so many ways and so clueless in others.

Today we are heading out to see the movie 42 with our discussion group.  It is the wrap up to our stereotype unit.  We spent a few weeks talking about stereotypes and assumptions. We talked about stereotypes about homeschoolers, schoolers, religious groups, athletes, ethnic groups, and anything else we could think of.  We listed different stereotypes we had heard about different groups or people and ones we experienced personally. The following meeting we listened to a poem and listened to a song.  Then asked the group what they thought they were talking about.  They were about love.  At the end after they assumed that the lovers were heterosexual we enlightened them that they were written for same sex loves.  The lesson here was even though you are aware of stereotypes it is still very easy to make assumptions that are incorrect.  We thought a wrap up with the Jackie Robinson story would be fitting.

They continue to enjoy philosophy.  Lots of ethics and figuring out what is truth.

Music class ended early this year because the teacher is having another baby soon.  They miss music but what are you going to do.

All I will say about math is that I now know how to convert slope intercept to standard line equation.  As I wondered back in 9th grade, I still don't know when this will ever be used in my daily life.  And Mister B can do this, too. Little Miss is mastering probability.  I like that one.

Happy Wednesday!

Happy Birthday!

Mister B is 15!

This year he wanted pie for his birthday breakfast!

My baby boy!  He is 15 today.  15!  I am the mom of a 15 year old.  How can this be?  I am still just a kid myself.  What was that line from Steel Magnolias....Time marches on and one day you realize it is marching right across your face.  Or something like that.

In a few short months Little Miss M will officially be a teenager.  I won't have any kids.  Just teenagers.  Maybe I should run for the hills now while i have the chance.

Parenting a teen is so very different from parenting a child.  They are starting to spread their wings to fly.  You are trying to remember what it felt like to be so sure you knew everything and be ready for anything but those fond memories struggle with the responsibility of wanting to protect them and keep them safe from everything and anything.

Eee Gad! It is almost the Ides of March!

Tomorrow morning I will wake up the mom of a 15 year old.  15!  Where has the time gone?  Since I am only 27 myself it is quite the miracle that my first born is going to be so old.

As I was mildly freaking out over the fact that my baby boy will be 15 tomorrow I also realized that the school year is more over then beginning.  More panic!  I have not done all I wanted to do.  I won't get done all I want to do.  What am I doing?

We have been spending some extra time on linear equations this week.  Mister B is having some difficulty with converting slope intercept to standard line and vice versa.  I can honestly say I had absolutely no idea how to do this.  Algebra was really not my forte.  My algebra teacher was The Dean of Detention, an Ex-Marine, and coach of the wrestling team and he gave the impression that if you were not on his team or really smart he wanted nothing to do with you.  He was scary and when you told him you didn't understand he would come over to your desk.  Point at your paper and say "You do this, this, and this.  Understand?"  "Yeah, sure" you would say even though you had no clue.  Lets just say I had a lot of math tutors in my day and I still only squeaked by with barely passing grades. But now, thanks to the internet and www.kahnacademy.org, and some other math resources I found online I have mastered this skill.  And more importantly, Mister B has started mastering this skill. 

Little Miss M has quickly mastered median, mean, and mode and is now starting a unit on probability. 

In Biology we took a step back and now Mister B has a better grasp on the material.  Little Miss M is working on a sky journal and is learning about the stars.

History and English are moving along nicely as is Spanish for Mister B.

I can not wait to see what tomorrow brings....

I am mom to a Letterman!

Here he is, Mister B with his First Varsity Letter.  So proud of him.  After the hoops I jumped through to get my homeschooler on the high school team I feel pretty darn good.  All his hard work swimming for two teams has certainly paid off.  Freshman and a Letterman, so very cool!