Tuesday, August 30, 2011

First Day of School

 Today is the first day of Brady's Senior year. I can't believe it is his last year in public school. 

Again this year, Brady is a Link Crew leader for the incoming Freshman. They wear these t-shirts the first day of school. It is a symbol for the freshman to identify these mentors when they need help. Below is a description of our schools link crew. 
 As a leader he will be given the responsibility of managing and instructing a small group of 8 - 10 Freshman on Orientation Day; these are done in effort for the Leaders and Freshman to get to know each other better as well as allow the Leaders the opportunity to pass on some valuable information about being successful in high school.

In addition to orientation day and the events related to that, they will also be called upon to support Freshmen throughout the year in a variety of ways including calling their Freshman group to check in, connecting with them during the school day, attending a variety of social events specifically designed for Freshmen and Link Leaders as well as being available as a mentor for the Freshmen should the situation arise.

Brady was able to change his schedule after registration. He had to drop newspaper this year. I hope they will be able to get by without him (He was the Business Manger). However, he was able to get into a French II class. He will also be taking choir all year. His scheduled classes with 4 AP classes and 2 math classes:

AP Micro Economics
American Government
 French II
AP Statistics
 AP English
AP Calculus
 Seminary
 A Capella Choir
Last year Brady had 2 regular binders for his classes. One for "A" days and one for "B" days. His binders were getting pretty shabby looking near the end of the year and being held together with duct tape. So, I purchased new binders for him which he didn't use. I found out he didn't "like" the binders because they were 2 toned (one color in the inside and another on the outside). 

I told him he had to use those binders this year because I wasn't going to purchase new ones when we had perfectly good ones available. I told him to get some scrap book paper and decorate them. (When they were finished he said it was his idea - LOL!). 

His creativity kicked in and he made some awesome binders. He spent all day on them Saturday and a little bit on Sunday. (I blocked out his last name).  
 These cartoons are from a YouTube video about a Survivor Man (or makes fun of the Survivor Man). I need to find the video and link it - it's pretty funny.

He copied each frame and wrote the dialogue for one of the binders (above). 
On this binder, he just put random pictures. He was very pleased with his designs. He was really happy and loved them. I'm glad we didn't have to spend more money on other binders and he was able to make do with what we had. They are very unique and he is proud of what he came up with. I hope they will make him smile each day. 

If he gets tired of these pictures he can change it out and make it fresh. I love that he is very creative and enjoys doing fun things like this. 
Just a reminder:

DON'T FORGET 
to give your children a "back to school Priesthood Blessing". 

Our home teacher Brother Newby stopped by Sunday and gave Brady a wonderful back to school blessing. I know there is power in these blessings and we wouldn't dare start school without one. I'm thankful for the Priesthood and Brother Newby. Now Brady is ready for school and will be able to conquer his Senior year with honor.
One more exciting news!!!!!
Sunday morning Brady was called into our Stake Presidency's office and issued a calling to serve on the Seminary Council this year. 

The council will be in charge of seminary activities throughout the year, help with the teachers and put their arms around and encourage those students that need it. 

I am happy that he has the opportunity to serve and be associated with a group of great kids. Brady is a great, spiritual young man, with an "I want to be good" attitude. I am thankful for his willingness to be an example for what is good and help others along the path. 

After School Do's and Don'ts

After School Dos and Don’ts

Don’t
—Raid the kitchen for junk food.
—Leave your backpack, books, etc., in the middle of the floor, on the kitchen table, or anywhere else they don’t belong.
—Immediately turn on the TV and veg.
—Procrastinate your homework, chores, or anything else that has to get done.
—Take out your frustrations on your little sister, dog, or any other innocent being.
—Lock yourself in your room for the rest of the night. Give yourself a break now and then—socialize with your family.
—Monopolize the telephone with two-hour calls to friends. **

Do
—Take a few minutes to relax and collect your thoughts.
—Thank Heavenly Father for a good, safe day.
—Do any jobs or chores you’re responsible for.
—Do your homework early, so you can have more free time later and not worry.
—Read the newspaper.
—Take some time to talk to your family when they ask you about your day.
—Get some exercise.
—Go the extra mile by doing some laundry, starting dinner, or doing something nice for someone.
—Reward yourself once you get everything done and have some spare time left. Read something fun, spend time with friends, work on a hobby, or do anything else that floats your boat.


(I'm totally embarrassed that I didn't "link" this article that I found in the New Era or give it's credit to who wrote it. Now I can't find it and can't link it - Yikes! Sorry about that. But the article DID come from the New Era). 


** OR spend the evening texting .... call your friends and talk out loud and not with your fingers : (. Or better yet .. get together and talk in real life! (I hate constant texting if you can't tell). LOL!

Monday, August 29, 2011

Motivational Monday: "10 Ways to Get More Out of School"

Jack Weyland, “Ten Ways to Get More Out of School,” New Era, Sep 1992, 16

Tired of the same old routine day after day? Need a jump-start for your enthusiasm? Try these tips.

1. Find out how much an education can be worth to you. “I’m not going to college or trade school after high school. I just want to get a job and start earning money.” Have you ever heard anyone say that? Does it make sense moneywise to get additional training after high school? Let’s find out:

Lifetime Earnings (USA)
High School Dropout $515,589
High School Graduate $889,156
2 Years of College $1,294,454
4 Years of College $1,890,360
(Business Week Magazine, Sept. 19, 1988)

Of course, there are no guarantees. It is possible for a college graduate to earn very little, while some people with little or no school become wealthy. But, on the average, it pays to get some kind of training after high school, either in college or at a trade school. The additional learning will also enrich your life in ways that can’t be measured in a bank balance.
2. Don’t be afraid of math or science. Math and science are only scary when you don’t get it. Once you understand the ideas, it’s easy.

3. Take some difficult classes. The secret about a difficult class is that it often ends up like belonging to a small club. The teacher may love the subject material so much that he or she will do everything possible to help you like it too. And if you’ll come to class and work a little every day on the course, the teacher will help you get through it.
4. If you enjoy a class, tell the teacher. Teachers are strange people—they love to teach. They don’t get paid nearly what they deserve. They work long hours; they volunteer for extracurricular activities; they spend their evenings grading papers or working on new ideas for classes.

Here’s how you do it. When you’re leaving class, you say, “That was really good what you said about (fill in the blank). I never thought about that before. It was interesting.”

That’s it. That’s all it takes.

Why bother? Because grown-ups hardly ever get compliments. Some adults go their entire lives never having anyone tell them they’re doing okay. They need it. And you need it too.
5. Organize a study group. What makes you think you have to do homework alone? After you’re through with your schooling and get a job, rarely will people pay you to work alone. People in companies work together solving problems.

Look around one of your classes and pick out a couple of people you’d feel comfortable working with. Go up to them and say, “I’m thinking of starting a study group for this class. I thought we could get together to do homework and study for tests. You think you might be interested in something like that?”

Studies have shown that students who work together get better grades, enjoy school more, learn to communicate, and feel better about themselves. So why not give it a try?
6. Get involved in extracurricular activities. If your school is going to put on a play, why not get involved in it? During all those hours of rehearsal, you’ll get to be good friends with others in the cast and crew. And then there’s opening night, and everyone’s nervous, but somehow you get through it. And the second night things go even better. On the last night there’s a cast party, and you get to eat pizza and tease each other and hug everyone who’s worked on the production. It’s a nice break from class.

What about sports? Maybe you’re a natural athlete and you’d go out for a team sport anyway. But even if you’re not, why not try out for one of the high school teams? Think about a sport that not many people go out for. Also, since you’re only in this for fun, you might as well pick a sport that has both boys and girls in it.

It will be more fun if you’re not too concerned about making the team. You’ll meet some new people, you’ll get to wear the school sweats, and you’ll find out how talented some people are at sports.

7. Don’t get hung up on grades. The world isn’t going to end if you get a grade less than you were hoping for. Do your best, try to learn the material, enjoy picking up new information, do the homework assigned, read the pages you’re asked to, ask questions in class, study for the tests, learn smart ways to take exams, but then, after all that, relax.
8. Ask three questions a day. The seed for the theory of relativity was planted when Albert Einstein was 16 years old. He asked himself the questions, “What would happen if a person tried to imprison a ray of light?” We don’t know how many before him had asked a similar question. We only know about the one individual who wrestled with the problem long enough to find an answer.

It was not Einstein’s brilliance in mathematics that insured his success. It was his courage to question what others had taken for granted.

When you were a child, you were curious about everything. In the process of growing up, try not to lose that sense of wonder. If we’re not careful, we’ll shrug away our own questions by thinking, “Why do I need to know that anyway?”
9. Take time for seminary. Spending part of a school day in a seminary class will make the rest of your school day seem more worthwhile. When you go to seminary, answer at least one question a day. That’s just so the teacher will know you’re alive.

It’s great to learn school subjects, but it’s also good to put in time every day learning the scriptures.
10. Pray about school. Heavenly Father is interested in you and your activities in school. He loves you and he wants you to be happy. Tell him what’s going on and ask him for help. If you’re having a test and you’re worried you might forget something you’ve studied, ask him to help you. (Don’t ask him to read the book for you though.)

What makes life worth living? Having new experiences, discovering and developing your talents, making new friends, learning something you never knew before, finding out how much Heavenly Father loves you, and realizing that you can bless the lives of others. School is a great place to learn many of these things.

Friday, August 26, 2011

Hunger Across America

I find it shocking to see how many people in America are hungry and cannot provide for their families. I read the following article from Boise Weekly magazine and it makes me sad. Especially in a time of harvest season. Did they plant a garden this summer to preserve food for the winter? I can't imagine not having food in my pantry to feed my children.

Also with the hurricane predicted to hit the East coast and the damages that are estimated - WOW! This storm will effect millions of people - who will be in need of support. How many more times can the US sustain these types of disasters with the debt we now hold? Soon WE will be the only ones  to be able to look to ourselves to feed our children (no more food stamps).

Please start working on your food storage. Preserve what you can for the upcoming storms of life.


Study: Nearly One in Four Idaho Children Food Insecure

Posted by George Prentice on Thu, Aug 25, 2011 at 5:17 PM

Too many children still go to bed hungry in Idaho. That's the conclusion of the latest study tracking food insecurity in the United States.

According to Map the Meal Gap 2009, 23.4 percent of children in Idaho are food insecure. Simply put, 95,150 or nearly one in four children are at risk of hunger. The number represents a 43 percent increase from the last study of Idaho childhood food insecurity. In Ada County, it is 20.9 percent or 20,150 kids. In Canyon County, it is 28.3 percent or 15,760 kids. Valley County had the highest rate of food insecurity for children: 33.4 percent.

A study released in March found that 15.8 percent or 206,000 Idahoans of all ages were food insecure.

A house is food insecure if there isn't access, at all times, to enough food for an active, healthy life for all household members.
In closing, I just want to share these warnings from our prophets of this dispensation that I've been collecting. My hope is that you will be motivated to do something today to prepare for tomorrow.

For you will see a day when you will want it [food storage]; and it will be when we shall feel the effects of famine, and when the United States have not any food.” Heber C. Kimball, May 31, 1857, Journal of Discourses 4:330:

“With regard to grain, I will say, if you do not lay it up and keep it, you will be sorry in a day to come; for you will see hard times, trying times, plagues, and famines, and bloodshed. Be advised and provide in time, and while you have the opportunity.” (Heber C. Kimball August 28, 1859 Journal of Discourses 7:234)

“Lay up your stores, and take your silks and fine things, and exchange them for grain and such things as you need, and the time will come when we will be obliged to depend upon our own resources; for the time is not far distant when the curtain will be dropped between us and the United States….

“The day will come when the people of the United States will come lugging their bundles under their arms, coming to us for bread to eat. Every prophet has spoken of this from the early ages of the world.”

“There will be millions on millions that will come much in the same way, only they will not have handcarts, for they will take their bundles under their arms, and their children on their backs, and under their arms, and flee; and Zion’s people will have to send out relief to them, for they will come when the judgments come on the nations.” (Heber C. Kimball Journal of Discourses 4:106)

Elder M. Russell Nelson, April 2010 General Conference:
Anciently, the Lord blessed Father Abraham with a promise to make his posterity a chosen people.  References to this covenant occur throughout the scriptures. Included were promises that the Son of God would come through Abraham’s lineage, that certain lands would be inherited, that nations and kindreds of the earth would be blessed through his seed, and more. 2 While some aspects of that covenant have already been fulfilled, the Book of Mormon teaches that this Abrahamic covenant will be fulfilled only in these latter days! It also emphasizes that we are among the covenant people of the Lord.Ours is the privilege to participate personally in the fulfillment of these promises. What an exciting time to live!” (referencing LDS Conference 2006, The Gathering of Scattered Israel)

“The time will come that gold will hold no comparison in value to a bushel of wheat.” (President Brigham Young, Discourses of Brigham Young, p.298.)

The revelation to store food may be as essential to our temporal salvation today as boarding the ark was to the people in the days of Noah.” (Ezra Taft Benson, October Conference, 1973)

Heber C. Kimball warned the Saints that famines are likely to strike the Saints first, and unless they are prepared, they will suffer the consequences when the grocery stores and warehouses are stripped of their contents and food cannot be found anywhere:

“When the famines begin upon the earth, we shall be very apt to feel them first. If judgments must need begin at the house of God, and if the righteous scarcely are saved, how will it be with the wicked? Am I looking for famines? Yes, the most terrible and severe that have ever come upon the nations of the earth.”

Brigham Young stated: “Famine will spread over the nations, and nation will rise up against nation, kingdom against kingdom, and states against states, in our own country and in foreign lands; and they will destroy each other, caring not for the blood and lives of their neighbors, of their families, or for their own lives.”

Elder Featherstone had this to say at an April General Conference in 1976:
Now what about those who would plunder and break in and take that which we have stored for our families’ needs? Don’t give this one more idle thought. There is a God in heaven whom we have obeyed. Do you suppose he would abandon those who have kept his commandments? He said, “If ye are prepared, ye need not fear.” (D&C 38:30.) Prepare, O men of Zion, and fear not. Let Zion put on her beautiful garments. Let us put on the full armor of God. Let us be pure in heart, love mercy, be just, and stand in holy places

May you find peace and unquestionable wisdom in the words of the prophets and the promptings of the Spirit in these latter days.

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Primary 3 Lesson 34

Primary 3 Manual
Lesson 34

Journal Page:
Page 2 from the same link above:
Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings and He will direct thee for good.


Primary 3 Lesson 33

Primary 3 Manual
Lesson 33
The Sacrament Reminds Us of Our Covenants

Journal Page -- (While looking for clip art, I came across a book mark clip art I had saved from Visitingteaching.net. I thought it was the perfect picture to add.


Saturday, August 20, 2011

The Joy of Brady's Driving

It is wonderful that Brady is Driving.

I think I am getting old and tired after all these years of juggling my busy schedule to drive my children to their activities. Counting Jason, I've been driving them around for 21 years. I'm tired. 

This month, Brady has been able to drive himself to all the many activities he is involved with. I am LOVING it!

I didn't have to change my schedule to get him registered for his Senior year. He did it on his own. 
He did call me with his frustration on his schedule because he didn't get all the classes he wanted. 
Unfortunately he did not get French II because it was only available during his AP classes. From what we understand, colleges like 2 consecutive years of a foreign language. Brady has a year of Spanish and a year of French. He switched to French because he didn't care for the Spanish teacher. Now, he will not have 2 years of one language. I told him not to fret about it, because with his grades, it shouldn't matter that much. At least I hope that shouldn't be a reason he will NOT get into college. 

Brady HAS sold his life to school this year. He has 4 AP classes. Did I mention that his report card GPA from last year was 4.14?? He is such a brilliant student! One disappointment though - he didn't take the college course exam on the AP classes he took last year. When I asked about it, he said it was $80 and nobody passes it - he didn't even tell me the test was happening until it was over. I was mad - that is the purpose of  AP classes - to get college credit. This year he WILL take those tests!

This year the fees are bigger because we have to pay extra for sports. For each sport your child is involved with you have to pay $110 for the first 2 sports . . . . AND you have to pay $75 for band and choir. Since Brady didn't get into French II his alternate class was Choir - another $75 .... 

I still feel like paying these fees is better then another tax hike (which the voters voted down). I am in support of NOT raising more taxes - it is NEVER enough! Let the children fund their own extra activities by doing fund raisers. That is what we had to do - car washes and such. It made me laugh that there was a news story on our local TV station about kids having to earn money the old fashion way - car washes. 

I worked from 16 years on and paid for my own drill team, flag team, pep club, all other activities and uniforms by myself. What's wrong with doing that? I don't like TAX INCREASES. (I'll get off my soap box)
It's been heaven that Brady can drive himself to Cross Country practice each morning and each evening. During the past few years, I've had to go to work late and work like mad to get off work in time to drive him to the afternoon practice. Now I don't have to stress about that either. When I get off work, I get to stay home!!! 

It IS a different world when you are a single mom and having the full responsibility of everything. I'm not complaining because I have managed to do it. But I am relishing in the joy of NOT having to do it this year.

It's pure JOY!

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

GIVE IT ALL YOU'VE GOT - Cindy's 3 Month Update


When Cindy was asked about the approaching 3 month mark, she said that she was going forward. Progress is not measured inch by inch, but by the smallest, tiniest bits. She looks at where she's come from and what she has accomplished.

When she started therapy, she was able to bend her leg 80 degrees. On Monday the 8th, she bent her leg at 115 degrees. Cindy consistently bends at 110 degrees. A normal bend is 140-145 degrees. If she can get a bend of 120 degrees, she will be able to do stairs normally and no one will ever have to know what happened. Her therapists are amazed and very happy with her progress. The next benchmark will come when she can put weight on her leg. They are hoping that August 25th will be the day that Dr. Crane gives the 'ok'.

Since therapy is so much of her life right now, Zoey Michelle thought that it would be great to document a typically therapy day for everyone to see.

Her therapy begins with an ultrasound massage.

Electrodes next. All of these next exercises are timed on a timer for 5 minutes.


Electrode leg lifts with ankle weights. Oh joy!!!

Electrode leg lifts with weight and ball. This is getting better by the minute!!!

Electrode leg extensions.


Still smiling

Next ...... from what Zoey Michelle could tell, this part looked the most painful. It is called scraping.

Here is some information on scraping. The theory behind scraping is to scrape the muscle or tendon so hard that it turns bright red --- actually re-injuring your injury. Scraping has been used in Chinese medicine for thousands of years and was called Gua Sha. In layman's terms, the blood's congested, so you want to move the congested blood out and bring fresh blood in. This also breaks up scar tissue that is trying to build up. Localized and controlled injury can actually bring more healing to the sight.

These are the tools that they use to do the scraping.

Shea butter is apply and the bigger tool is used first.

Second tool.

By the end of this, Kelly (Cindy's husband) and Zoey Michelle were both wondering what it feels like and how it would feel on their legs and such.

Wall slides with a pillowcase.

Too easy this time, so let's make it more challenging.

Next, it is on to Gold's Gym where Superior Therapy takes all of their clients to use these wonderful machines.

First up here is the bike. Interestingly, the rotation of the biking movement is one of the most critical and is used a lot in leg injuries. At this point, things were not going as well as it had the previous week. 10 minutes here.

10 minutes on the rowing machine, though we stayed longer.

Doing a measurement of the degree of bend.

Next to the Max Vibe machine that vibrates back and forth. This is her heaven. She kneels and then tries to sit on the bench behind her.

Then Rego, a tech, helps to bring her leg straight while vibrating.

Next, it's back downstairs to do 2 different hip abductor machines.


(Cindy's husband Kelly in the back ground - encouraging her on)

With weight on this machine, it is wrapped around her leg. She brings it forward, and then back to standing position.

Calf curl on the machine. Concentration.

Leg extension machine.

Using this machine to lock back into place. Very painful.

Trying to get a final measurement for the day.

Electrodes again!

From Cindy's view point. This is a super-duper ice wrap on her leg to help with swelling.

She says that you can never do enough ... but it's all she can do! I say, "Give it all you've got!" Then you can have no regrets in the future. Cindy is incredibly strong and one of the bravest woman that I've known. I am proud to call her my sister!

Her team of therapists:
Bart, Cindy, Rego, and Mike


Cindy still can't walk and is non-weight baring on her leg until 6 months (or another 3 months since she is 3 months down). This journey has been very hard on her. She has been able to drive a little and she is working a couple of days a week taking phone calls for the doctor she works for. She is normally his nurse, but can't do that job until she can walk around.


Since she is non-weight baring .... she has a difficult time cooking. If she does spend time in the kitchen, her leg turns purple and she pays for it. She can't clean her house.

Cindy is a person who does everything for everyone. This is the biggest challenge for her to let other's do for her. It kind of makes her depressed and she feels like a burden. This may be the "trial" part of this injury ... letting others serve her. It's really hard for her not to be out in the yard working in her flower beds or garden, which she takes a lot of pride in.

Thankfully our mom and her daughters are there to help do the things she needs done and support her. She has been very blessed through this accident .... but the healing process takes time and it is hard to be patient and endure the pain of therapy and recovery.

We love you Cindy and pray that you'll have the perseverance and strength to recover from this injury. We pray that your leg will heal and you'll be walking again soon. Love you!


(Thanks Michelle for letting me add this to my blog - I love you!)

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