All Stories
Magic HourMagic Hour by Kristin Hannah
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was about a psychiatrist (Julia) who was called by her police of chief sister (Ellie) to come back to their hometown to help with a serious case involving a little girl. The little girl came out of the local woods with a wolf cub, acting like an animal, climbing up a tree and staying still for long periods of time. She girl could not talk and acted more like an animal than a human.

The story is about Julia and Ellie trying to find out who this little girl is and what happened to her to have been living in the woods like an animal for years.  Of course along the way both Julia and Ellie encounter men who could possibly change their lives as well.

I did not look to see what this book was about before I read it and although the story line is sad, it was a good story.  Very touching.

View all my reviews

Book Review: Magic Hour by Kristin Hannah

Magic HourMagic Hour by Kristin Hannah
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was about a psychiatrist (Julia) who was called by her police of chief sister (Ellie) to come back to their hometown to help with a serious case involving a little girl. The little girl came out of the local woods with a wolf cub, acting like an animal, climbing up a tree and staying still for long periods of time. She girl could not talk and acted more like an animal than a human.

The story is about Julia and Ellie trying to find out who this little girl is and what happened to her to have been living in the woods like an animal for years.  Of course along the way both Julia and Ellie encounter men who could possibly change their lives as well.

I did not look to see what this book was about before I read it and although the story line is sad, it was a good story.  Very touching.

View all my reviews

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Posted at 5:33 PM  |  by Lisa E.
I have been meaning to write a post about SparkPeople for awhile now.  I guess I have put it off for a number of reasons, but the top reason is probably because there is a multitude of things to tell you about this wonderful site.  (No, I am NOT being paid to talk about SP, I am just a satisfied user of this amazing site.)

Sparkpeople is a site with an abundance of tools to help you get healthy and stay healthy.
It is a weight loss and support system, a site chalk full of tools to help you succeed on your journey to getting healthy.  The best part about this site is that it is completely FREE!  

I'm not going to type out the history of the site, but rather give you a few links to look at to learn about what its all about.  (Please read these AFTER you've finished reading my post or you may never return to finish reading my post~ LOL!)

The site has a place to record your fitness activities, a weight tracker, food tracker, meal planner, your very own SparkPage where you can blog, earn trophies and recieve SparkGoodies from friends, Spin the Spark Wheel daily to win Sparkpoints, Spark Videos to workout to, articles, message boards, team boards, challenges and so much more!  You do not have to jump in to all this at once.  It is very overwhelming and that is why I think it took me so long to start using this site fully.  But have an open mind about it and start slowly.  The point is to START!  (And if you are like me, you may have to re-start again, and maybe again!)

~My History With SparkPeople~

I discovered SparkPeople in October 2007.  This was a year after Kaye was born.  I joined the site with my 'throwaway' email because I didn't know if I would receive junk mail from them or what not.  In hindsight this was not a good idea because I do not check my 'throwaway' email (what I mean by that is the email address I use to sign up for newsletters, contests, free products, etc.) daily, if even regularly.  Hence, I was not very successful until I realized I needed to connect with the site; I needed to be reminded that I should be an active participant there in order to have success. 
Another mistake I made was making my Spark Page private.  In the beginning I did not want to share anything about how I was feeling or my struggles.  I am a private person and did not want it all 'hanging out' there on the internet.  Then I realized how much I was missing out on because I wasn't making connections with people on the site.  I was sheltering myself when I really needed to be making friends with members who had the same struggles I had.  So, I made my page public and decided that if I were to post photos of myself I would just blur out my face (still self concious about being to personal online).
I created a team for Mommies and was the team leader.  The team wasn't too active and that discouraged me.  I eventually left that group and took over the Pushing 40 Team when I was 38 years old.  This group was inactive because the team leader had moved on, but I got it somewhat moving again.  Getting involved really helped me want to spend time on the site.  I met a great woman on this team from Israel and she is probably one of my biggest supporters.  (Thank You Sam for checking in on me even when I go AWOL from the site at times!)  Life's little challenges sometimes get in my way, but because I know there are Spark friends looking for me and wanting me to succeed, it makes me want to come back to the site and continue my journey to get healthy!

Sam and I took over the 40 and Fabulous Team together last year and are still trying to get more active participants there, but we aren't giving up on it.
Another thing that helped me get exercising were team challenges.  In March 2011 I completed the 28-Day BootCamp WorkOut Challenge and in May 2011 I completed the Spring Into Shape BootCamp Challenge.  These two challenges aided me in dropping 10 pounds last year!  More successful than I had been in a long time!  I joined the BLC17 Team (Biggest Loser Challenge) in the Fall, but this was a mistake in hindsight because Fall is my most stressful time of year.  Our entire family celebrates their birthday at this time of year, so I have to start birthday party planning, gift shopping, throwing parties (this past Fall Kaye had a surprise party) and then before I know it Christmas shopping (Em's birthday is about a week and a half before Christmas).  So I did not participate as fully as I should have in this challenge and my downward spiral began again.  Unfortunately, I gained the 10 pounds I lost back because of too much stress and my lack of motivation to continue exercising and healthy eating habits.  I was determined to bounce back in 2012, so in January 2012 I completed the January JumpStart Challenge.  Then, by the middle of February and into March bad luck got in my way with the brachial neuralgia in shoulder, then Kaye's broken arm, Em's cholesterol bloodwork coming back high, my abcessed tooth needing to be pulled, etc.  So I have been AWOL from SP for too long now.
That is all about to change.  I joined up with the BLC19 and it kicks off this Wednesday 4/25/12.
Sign up with Sparkpeople here. Then go to this team to see if you can get in on the BLC this round. (No one may join the competitive portion of the challenge after Midnight on 04/25/12-or when teams have been filled - whichever comes first).  This team challenge is VERY well organized and each team has like 30 members on it.  If you cannot get in on the challenge this time, try one of the other site challenges here.  There are a ton!

There is also a support group on Facebook that I belong to called SparkPeople Connections.
It's just a place for those browsing around FaceBook to go and check in with their FB friends who are also on SP.

I hope you will check out the links I've provided in this post (I know, there are a lot) and decide to join me on this journey to get fit and healthy.  Now is the time.  You will have more energy and feel better about yourself.  Feel free to add me as a SparkFriend as well. 
 Get Sparked and Get Healthy once and for all!
 

SparkPeople~Start Your Healthy Journey Here!

I have been meaning to write a post about SparkPeople for awhile now.  I guess I have put it off for a number of reasons, but the top reason is probably because there is a multitude of things to tell you about this wonderful site.  (No, I am NOT being paid to talk about SP, I am just a satisfied user of this amazing site.)

Sparkpeople is a site with an abundance of tools to help you get healthy and stay healthy.
It is a weight loss and support system, a site chalk full of tools to help you succeed on your journey to getting healthy.  The best part about this site is that it is completely FREE!  

I'm not going to type out the history of the site, but rather give you a few links to look at to learn about what its all about.  (Please read these AFTER you've finished reading my post or you may never return to finish reading my post~ LOL!)

The site has a place to record your fitness activities, a weight tracker, food tracker, meal planner, your very own SparkPage where you can blog, earn trophies and recieve SparkGoodies from friends, Spin the Spark Wheel daily to win Sparkpoints, Spark Videos to workout to, articles, message boards, team boards, challenges and so much more!  You do not have to jump in to all this at once.  It is very overwhelming and that is why I think it took me so long to start using this site fully.  But have an open mind about it and start slowly.  The point is to START!  (And if you are like me, you may have to re-start again, and maybe again!)

~My History With SparkPeople~

I discovered SparkPeople in October 2007.  This was a year after Kaye was born.  I joined the site with my 'throwaway' email because I didn't know if I would receive junk mail from them or what not.  In hindsight this was not a good idea because I do not check my 'throwaway' email (what I mean by that is the email address I use to sign up for newsletters, contests, free products, etc.) daily, if even regularly.  Hence, I was not very successful until I realized I needed to connect with the site; I needed to be reminded that I should be an active participant there in order to have success. 
Another mistake I made was making my Spark Page private.  In the beginning I did not want to share anything about how I was feeling or my struggles.  I am a private person and did not want it all 'hanging out' there on the internet.  Then I realized how much I was missing out on because I wasn't making connections with people on the site.  I was sheltering myself when I really needed to be making friends with members who had the same struggles I had.  So, I made my page public and decided that if I were to post photos of myself I would just blur out my face (still self concious about being to personal online).
I created a team for Mommies and was the team leader.  The team wasn't too active and that discouraged me.  I eventually left that group and took over the Pushing 40 Team when I was 38 years old.  This group was inactive because the team leader had moved on, but I got it somewhat moving again.  Getting involved really helped me want to spend time on the site.  I met a great woman on this team from Israel and she is probably one of my biggest supporters.  (Thank You Sam for checking in on me even when I go AWOL from the site at times!)  Life's little challenges sometimes get in my way, but because I know there are Spark friends looking for me and wanting me to succeed, it makes me want to come back to the site and continue my journey to get healthy!

Sam and I took over the 40 and Fabulous Team together last year and are still trying to get more active participants there, but we aren't giving up on it.
Another thing that helped me get exercising were team challenges.  In March 2011 I completed the 28-Day BootCamp WorkOut Challenge and in May 2011 I completed the Spring Into Shape BootCamp Challenge.  These two challenges aided me in dropping 10 pounds last year!  More successful than I had been in a long time!  I joined the BLC17 Team (Biggest Loser Challenge) in the Fall, but this was a mistake in hindsight because Fall is my most stressful time of year.  Our entire family celebrates their birthday at this time of year, so I have to start birthday party planning, gift shopping, throwing parties (this past Fall Kaye had a surprise party) and then before I know it Christmas shopping (Em's birthday is about a week and a half before Christmas).  So I did not participate as fully as I should have in this challenge and my downward spiral began again.  Unfortunately, I gained the 10 pounds I lost back because of too much stress and my lack of motivation to continue exercising and healthy eating habits.  I was determined to bounce back in 2012, so in January 2012 I completed the January JumpStart Challenge.  Then, by the middle of February and into March bad luck got in my way with the brachial neuralgia in shoulder, then Kaye's broken arm, Em's cholesterol bloodwork coming back high, my abcessed tooth needing to be pulled, etc.  So I have been AWOL from SP for too long now.
That is all about to change.  I joined up with the BLC19 and it kicks off this Wednesday 4/25/12.
Sign up with Sparkpeople here. Then go to this team to see if you can get in on the BLC this round. (No one may join the competitive portion of the challenge after Midnight on 04/25/12-or when teams have been filled - whichever comes first).  This team challenge is VERY well organized and each team has like 30 members on it.  If you cannot get in on the challenge this time, try one of the other site challenges here.  There are a ton!

There is also a support group on Facebook that I belong to called SparkPeople Connections.
It's just a place for those browsing around FaceBook to go and check in with their FB friends who are also on SP.

I hope you will check out the links I've provided in this post (I know, there are a lot) and decide to join me on this journey to get fit and healthy.  Now is the time.  You will have more energy and feel better about yourself.  Feel free to add me as a SparkFriend as well. 
 Get Sparked and Get Healthy once and for all!
 

3 comments
Posted at 11:20 AM  |  by Lisa E.

3 comments :


to All Around The Circle!
  If you are visiting from the 
please see my welcome post HERE to learn more about me & my blog.

It's Day 7 of the UBP12 and I started off the party by visiting a good chunk of the 'daily life' category of blogs.  I am still nowhere near checking them all out, let alone all the other categories!  I'm sure I will be hopping by many of the listed blogs wwwaaaaayyyyy after the UBP has ended!

I have been quite busy over the past 3 days, hence the lack of posting around here.

Monday 4/16/12
  On Monday Kaye and I did some shopping.  The first stop was Home Depot to check out the flowers.  I bought three primrose 'Orion' plants there.  Then, we went to Wal Mart and bought some flower seeds and some summer nightgowns for Em.  Third stop was the jewelry store to get my mangled wedding & engagement rings fixed, along with a chain that broke the second time I wore.
Here is a photo of my rings before:

And here they are after:
They're not perfect, but at least I can get my pudgy fingers in there now!
After the jewlers visit, we stopped in to Giant, the local grocery store chain here for a few items.
When we come out of the store I can't even load my items in the back of my van because some huge truck double parked 2 parking spots and was practically up against the back of my van.  I was NOT happy to say the least.  The rest of Monday was pretty much shot because I had to help Em practice her biography report and study for a math quiz.  Not to mention Monday's weather was like 87 degrees and miserable!  Em and I actually went to our fixed basement at midnight because it was too hot for us to sleep comfortable upstairs.  Oh, and I did attend about 30 minutes of the UBP Twitter party as well as the live organization broadcast.  Fun!

Tuesday 4/17/12
Tuesday was 10 degrees cooler, so I decided to dig up my flower beds in the back yard and separate some of the plants that are sprouting up.  That took about 2 hours.  I did not plant my new plants or the seeds.  Em's biography report was at 3pm and Kaye had to tag along because my parents are both sick with some kinds of cold/sleepiness/scratchy throat thing, so my Mom could not watch Kaye.  I was so proud of Em!  She did not seem nervous during her report and did a wonderful job with incorporating the props into her speech.  She also did well on looking up from her note cards and making eye contact.  I took two photos of her, but they both turned out blurry.
Em as Leonardo da Vinci

(Side Note:  Em was an 'artist' for Halloween this past year, so we just added the mustache for the biography report.  She would have wore black jeans, but it was 77 degrees here on Tuesday, so I did not worry to much about 'completing' the outfit.)

All 3rd graders here must do a biography report (no entertainers allowed), take notes from their book, use note cards, have props and dress as their person.  They must follow an evaluation form that the teacher uses to grade the report. 

Evaluation Form:

____1. The speaker spoke in a loud, clear voice.
____2. The speaker made eye contact with the audience.
____3. The speaker was enthusiastic.
____4. The speaker showed knowledge of the subject.
____5. The speaker used complete sentences without "pause sounds" (such as "you know" and "uh").
____6. The speaker spoke with expression.
____7. The speaker's use of props was effective.

8. The best part of the speech was_______.
9. A skill the speaker could improve is________.

The teacher said that the students will get the evaluation form and their grade back at the end of the school year.  I am quite taken aback at what these 3rd graders are expected to do nowadays.  When I was in 2nd grade I remember having to go in front of the class with the book I read and talking about it.  I was always so nervous and shy and never did well with speaking in front of the class.  I do not remember ever doing an elaborate report in front of the class like this!  My daughter did not show any jitters or signs of being nervous and it truly impressed me!

Wednesday 4/18/12
I was planning on planting the flowers and the seeds that I bought on Monday, but the weather was cloudy and damp (64 degrees~Yes, we are having some wacky weather).  Not to mention that I was sneezy and my nose was itchy & runny (hence Wordless Wednesday's photo.)
So I decided to tackle some housework.  I changed sheets, did 2 loads of laundry and a comforter, straightened up my roll top desk area, put said laundry away, vacuumed and basically keep trying to find places for items that are where they don't belong!  Em stayed after school with her Brownie troop to do some 'beautification' of the school grounds.  (basically weeding the flower beds and picking up trash on the school grounds.)   Wednesday night was spent helping Em study for her math chapter test and then watching American Idol.

So now it's Thursday and I am hoping to have another productive day.  
Wishing everyone a great day as well!

B-U-S-Y


to All Around The Circle!
  If you are visiting from the 
please see my welcome post HERE to learn more about me & my blog.

It's Day 7 of the UBP12 and I started off the party by visiting a good chunk of the 'daily life' category of blogs.  I am still nowhere near checking them all out, let alone all the other categories!  I'm sure I will be hopping by many of the listed blogs wwwaaaaayyyyy after the UBP has ended!

I have been quite busy over the past 3 days, hence the lack of posting around here.

Monday 4/16/12
  On Monday Kaye and I did some shopping.  The first stop was Home Depot to check out the flowers.  I bought three primrose 'Orion' plants there.  Then, we went to Wal Mart and bought some flower seeds and some summer nightgowns for Em.  Third stop was the jewelry store to get my mangled wedding & engagement rings fixed, along with a chain that broke the second time I wore.
Here is a photo of my rings before:

And here they are after:
They're not perfect, but at least I can get my pudgy fingers in there now!
After the jewlers visit, we stopped in to Giant, the local grocery store chain here for a few items.
When we come out of the store I can't even load my items in the back of my van because some huge truck double parked 2 parking spots and was practically up against the back of my van.  I was NOT happy to say the least.  The rest of Monday was pretty much shot because I had to help Em practice her biography report and study for a math quiz.  Not to mention Monday's weather was like 87 degrees and miserable!  Em and I actually went to our fixed basement at midnight because it was too hot for us to sleep comfortable upstairs.  Oh, and I did attend about 30 minutes of the UBP Twitter party as well as the live organization broadcast.  Fun!

Tuesday 4/17/12
Tuesday was 10 degrees cooler, so I decided to dig up my flower beds in the back yard and separate some of the plants that are sprouting up.  That took about 2 hours.  I did not plant my new plants or the seeds.  Em's biography report was at 3pm and Kaye had to tag along because my parents are both sick with some kinds of cold/sleepiness/scratchy throat thing, so my Mom could not watch Kaye.  I was so proud of Em!  She did not seem nervous during her report and did a wonderful job with incorporating the props into her speech.  She also did well on looking up from her note cards and making eye contact.  I took two photos of her, but they both turned out blurry.
Em as Leonardo da Vinci

(Side Note:  Em was an 'artist' for Halloween this past year, so we just added the mustache for the biography report.  She would have wore black jeans, but it was 77 degrees here on Tuesday, so I did not worry to much about 'completing' the outfit.)

All 3rd graders here must do a biography report (no entertainers allowed), take notes from their book, use note cards, have props and dress as their person.  They must follow an evaluation form that the teacher uses to grade the report. 

Evaluation Form:

____1. The speaker spoke in a loud, clear voice.
____2. The speaker made eye contact with the audience.
____3. The speaker was enthusiastic.
____4. The speaker showed knowledge of the subject.
____5. The speaker used complete sentences without "pause sounds" (such as "you know" and "uh").
____6. The speaker spoke with expression.
____7. The speaker's use of props was effective.

8. The best part of the speech was_______.
9. A skill the speaker could improve is________.

The teacher said that the students will get the evaluation form and their grade back at the end of the school year.  I am quite taken aback at what these 3rd graders are expected to do nowadays.  When I was in 2nd grade I remember having to go in front of the class with the book I read and talking about it.  I was always so nervous and shy and never did well with speaking in front of the class.  I do not remember ever doing an elaborate report in front of the class like this!  My daughter did not show any jitters or signs of being nervous and it truly impressed me!

Wednesday 4/18/12
I was planning on planting the flowers and the seeds that I bought on Monday, but the weather was cloudy and damp (64 degrees~Yes, we are having some wacky weather).  Not to mention that I was sneezy and my nose was itchy & runny (hence Wordless Wednesday's photo.)
So I decided to tackle some housework.  I changed sheets, did 2 loads of laundry and a comforter, straightened up my roll top desk area, put said laundry away, vacuumed and basically keep trying to find places for items that are where they don't belong!  Em stayed after school with her Brownie troop to do some 'beautification' of the school grounds.  (basically weeding the flower beds and picking up trash on the school grounds.)   Wednesday night was spent helping Em study for her math chapter test and then watching American Idol.

So now it's Thursday and I am hoping to have another productive day.  
Wishing everyone a great day as well!

1 comment
Posted at 5:00 AM  |  by Lisa E.

1 comments :

to All Around The Circle!
If you are visiting from the 
please see my welcome post HERE to learn more about me & my blog.
to all of the bloggers who have stopped by and left comments for me, followed me and wished me well with my laptop issues.  I am happy to say that my husband's co-worker saved 90% of what was on the laptop, re-installed Windows 7 and I've almost got all the programs re-loaded.

It has been quite a busy weekend around here.  First though, let me update you on some of the things that I posted about Thursday (4/12/12).
  Em got her multiplication assessment test back on Friday and she passed with only 1 wrong!  I am so, so proud of her!
  Kaye got her cast off on Thursday and now has a brace that she must wear to protect her arm for the next 2 and a half weeks. 
 My husband purchased a charcoal grill this weekend (even though we already have a propane grill, he wanted charcoal for roasting marshmallows and certain things I guess.)



I decided to make rice krispie treats because I have no lunch snacks for Em's lunch tomorrow and I have been wanting to get rid of these colored & mini white marshmallows for awhile (we're trying to eat healthier around here~Ha!)
 
Well, as you can see by photo #3 they were a lumpy mess!  So, melted 5 large marshmallows in the microwave, and mixed in the rest of the rice krispies that would not stick to the original marshmallows (the leftovers are what you see in the photo with the blue pot.) So as you can see, the 2nd batch of marshmallow just kind of gelled on  top of the original mix.  Oh, well, they're at least edible.  I've never had this much trouble making rice krispie treats before; guess I won't be making them for some time to come!

I've been having a BLAST visiting so many cool blogs over the past 3 days, but tomorrow I'm not sure I will get much blog hopping in (I'll try though).  I hope to be back again tomorrow, but if not, I will definitely try to post on Tuesday!  

Blog-Hopping Weekend!

to All Around The Circle!
If you are visiting from the 
please see my welcome post HERE to learn more about me & my blog.
to all of the bloggers who have stopped by and left comments for me, followed me and wished me well with my laptop issues.  I am happy to say that my husband's co-worker saved 90% of what was on the laptop, re-installed Windows 7 and I've almost got all the programs re-loaded.

It has been quite a busy weekend around here.  First though, let me update you on some of the things that I posted about Thursday (4/12/12).
  Em got her multiplication assessment test back on Friday and she passed with only 1 wrong!  I am so, so proud of her!
  Kaye got her cast off on Thursday and now has a brace that she must wear to protect her arm for the next 2 and a half weeks. 
 My husband purchased a charcoal grill this weekend (even though we already have a propane grill, he wanted charcoal for roasting marshmallows and certain things I guess.)



I decided to make rice krispie treats because I have no lunch snacks for Em's lunch tomorrow and I have been wanting to get rid of these colored & mini white marshmallows for awhile (we're trying to eat healthier around here~Ha!)
 
Well, as you can see by photo #3 they were a lumpy mess!  So, melted 5 large marshmallows in the microwave, and mixed in the rest of the rice krispies that would not stick to the original marshmallows (the leftovers are what you see in the photo with the blue pot.) So as you can see, the 2nd batch of marshmallow just kind of gelled on  top of the original mix.  Oh, well, they're at least edible.  I've never had this much trouble making rice krispie treats before; guess I won't be making them for some time to come!

I've been having a BLAST visiting so many cool blogs over the past 3 days, but tomorrow I'm not sure I will get much blog hopping in (I'll try though).  I hope to be back again tomorrow, but if not, I will definitely try to post on Tuesday!  

2 comments
Posted at 9:28 PM  |  by Lisa E.

2 comments :

Welcome Ultimate Blog Party Hoppers!
If this is your first stop at my blog, please visit my welcome post here!

So I stayed up until 12:30am EST last night just so I could get my site links entered for the UBP!  
I did not want to get out of bed this morning, but had to get Em off to school and there is tons of housework to be done around here today, so had to get myself 'movin.

I've done one load of wash and hung it outside already and cleaned up the breakfast dishes.  There is more laundry and straightening to do, but all I really want to do is hop around the blogs in the UBP!  That will have to wait until this afternoon though.

Kaye got her cast off yesterday and now has a temporary holder for her arm.  It is  plastic molded and has three velcro straps to hold her arm in place.  It's a bit big, but they are supposed to be bringing a pediatric brace for her today.  She will have the brace on for two and a half weeks and then I am guessing she will need to go to some sort of physical therapy.

Em is hoping to get her multiplication assessment back in school today.  She has a quiz in social studies today, she has to present a biography report in class Tuesday where she dresses up as the person and includes props in her report, as well as a math chapter test on Tuesday.  I feel like the teachers are cramming a lot in before it gets too close to the end of the school year, but she is handling everything well.  It's still hard for me to believe that my first baby will be entering 4th grade this Fall!

As for me, I had a glass of wine last night (Arbor Mist~Exotic Fruits~Yum!) while I watched two Tivo'ed episodes of Desperate Housewives.  I am finally caught up and hope to actually watch the series finale when it airs.  How about American Idol last night?  Jessica Sanchez as the contestant voted off?  Really?  I have been a fan of hers from the beginning, but the past two weeks I haven't liked her song choices and I've been getting a bit bored of her.  Maybe that is why she was at the bottom, but I still don't think she deserved to be the one booted off, and that is why the judges were in awe and saved her.

The weather here in Eastern PA is supposed to be beautiful this weekend.  Today it's supposed to be 65 , in the low 70's this weekend and by Tuesday  it's going to be 85! (those temps are all degrees Fahrenheit by the way.)  I haven't done any gardening and am looking forward to beautifying the flower beds.  What I am not looking forward to is my allergies when the pollen starts to drop.  I'm trying to be proactive by taking the allergy medication, nose spray and continuing my allergy shots weekly to combat this time of year.  I'm hoping it's not as bad as it's expected to be.

Well, I've spent more time online than I wanted to, so it's off to the house cleaning and doing some fun outdoorsy things with Kaye.

Have a great day Everyone!

Friday Mish~Mosh

Welcome Ultimate Blog Party Hoppers!
If this is your first stop at my blog, please visit my welcome post here!

So I stayed up until 12:30am EST last night just so I could get my site links entered for the UBP!  
I did not want to get out of bed this morning, but had to get Em off to school and there is tons of housework to be done around here today, so had to get myself 'movin.

I've done one load of wash and hung it outside already and cleaned up the breakfast dishes.  There is more laundry and straightening to do, but all I really want to do is hop around the blogs in the UBP!  That will have to wait until this afternoon though.

Kaye got her cast off yesterday and now has a temporary holder for her arm.  It is  plastic molded and has three velcro straps to hold her arm in place.  It's a bit big, but they are supposed to be bringing a pediatric brace for her today.  She will have the brace on for two and a half weeks and then I am guessing she will need to go to some sort of physical therapy.

Em is hoping to get her multiplication assessment back in school today.  She has a quiz in social studies today, she has to present a biography report in class Tuesday where she dresses up as the person and includes props in her report, as well as a math chapter test on Tuesday.  I feel like the teachers are cramming a lot in before it gets too close to the end of the school year, but she is handling everything well.  It's still hard for me to believe that my first baby will be entering 4th grade this Fall!

As for me, I had a glass of wine last night (Arbor Mist~Exotic Fruits~Yum!) while I watched two Tivo'ed episodes of Desperate Housewives.  I am finally caught up and hope to actually watch the series finale when it airs.  How about American Idol last night?  Jessica Sanchez as the contestant voted off?  Really?  I have been a fan of hers from the beginning, but the past two weeks I haven't liked her song choices and I've been getting a bit bored of her.  Maybe that is why she was at the bottom, but I still don't think she deserved to be the one booted off, and that is why the judges were in awe and saved her.

The weather here in Eastern PA is supposed to be beautiful this weekend.  Today it's supposed to be 65 , in the low 70's this weekend and by Tuesday  it's going to be 85! (those temps are all degrees Fahrenheit by the way.)  I haven't done any gardening and am looking forward to beautifying the flower beds.  What I am not looking forward to is my allergies when the pollen starts to drop.  I'm trying to be proactive by taking the allergy medication, nose spray and continuing my allergy shots weekly to combat this time of year.  I'm hoping it's not as bad as it's expected to be.

Well, I've spent more time online than I wanted to, so it's off to the house cleaning and doing some fun outdoorsy things with Kaye.

Have a great day Everyone!

2 comments
Posted at 11:44 AM  |  by Lisa E.

2 comments :

Blogaholic Designs”=


Hello Ultimate Blog Party Hoppers!
Ultimate Blog Party 2012
** Welcome to All Around The Circle!**

I'm Elle, a semi-new blog host who is sometimes a bit busy to post blog entries because of all the running around this circle that I call my life!
This is my 2nd year participating in the Ultimate Blog Party @ 5 Minutes For Mom and I am so excited to get started blog hopping!
My blog was born when I decided to start sharing daily life triumphs, struggles, information I find online and just plain old 'Mom' things.  I do not use my family's in-real-life names, but the stories and photos I share here are 100% pure us! 


I have two daughters, Em (age 9) and Kaye (age 5).  My husband Jay and I have been together since September 1995 and married since September 1998.  Ups and downs and all arounds here, but we are doing the best we can on this life journey.


Most recently I have dealt with a breakdown of my laptop and I'm in the process of recovering and backing up a lot of files.  Last month (March) was a definite struggle for me, and I'm glad April is here!  I'm looking forward to hopping around during the blog party and finding new friends.  Finding the time to get lost on the computer is always the challenge for me. 


Here are a couple of my site badges for you to display on your site.  Feel free to leave your button badge link in the comments section of this post so I can create a badge exchange for all my new blog friends!
All Around The Circle: A SAHM Going Round The Circle Daily





All Around The Circle: A SAHM Going Round The Circle Daily






Below are some clickable icons for other locations you can follow me at online!  Also, listed along the bottom right column, you can choose to follow me by Google Connect, NetWorkedBlogs, and BlogFrog.  At the end of each post you can also choose to share or save posts to your favorite bookmark location as well.  Wishing everyone a great time at the "UBP" and I hope you all come back to see me again soon!



Follow Me on PinterestBlogaholic Designs”=Blogaholic Designs”=

Welcome Ultimate Blog Party Hoppers!

Blogaholic Designs”=


Hello Ultimate Blog Party Hoppers!
Ultimate Blog Party 2012
** Welcome to All Around The Circle!**

I'm Elle, a semi-new blog host who is sometimes a bit busy to post blog entries because of all the running around this circle that I call my life!
This is my 2nd year participating in the Ultimate Blog Party @ 5 Minutes For Mom and I am so excited to get started blog hopping!
My blog was born when I decided to start sharing daily life triumphs, struggles, information I find online and just plain old 'Mom' things.  I do not use my family's in-real-life names, but the stories and photos I share here are 100% pure us! 


I have two daughters, Em (age 9) and Kaye (age 5).  My husband Jay and I have been together since September 1995 and married since September 1998.  Ups and downs and all arounds here, but we are doing the best we can on this life journey.


Most recently I have dealt with a breakdown of my laptop and I'm in the process of recovering and backing up a lot of files.  Last month (March) was a definite struggle for me, and I'm glad April is here!  I'm looking forward to hopping around during the blog party and finding new friends.  Finding the time to get lost on the computer is always the challenge for me. 


Here are a couple of my site badges for you to display on your site.  Feel free to leave your button badge link in the comments section of this post so I can create a badge exchange for all my new blog friends!
All Around The Circle: A SAHM Going Round The Circle Daily





All Around The Circle: A SAHM Going Round The Circle Daily






Below are some clickable icons for other locations you can follow me at online!  Also, listed along the bottom right column, you can choose to follow me by Google Connect, NetWorkedBlogs, and BlogFrog.  At the end of each post you can also choose to share or save posts to your favorite bookmark location as well.  Wishing everyone a great time at the "UBP" and I hope you all come back to see me again soon!



Follow Me on PinterestBlogaholic Designs”=Blogaholic Designs”=

13 comments
Posted at 12:18 AM  |  by Lisa E.

13 comments :

Every year starting in 1st grade the children in our school district must pass an assessment test in math in order to move onto the next grade.  In 1st grade they must master addition, 2nd grade subtraction, 3rd grade multiplication, 4th grade division.  I'm not sure what 5th graders must do.  When I went to school I do not remember doing this, but maybe we did?

Em is in 3rd grade and the first assessment test is tomorrow.  They give you 100 multiplication problems and you must get 90 correct in order to pass.  You have 7 minutes to take the test  If you get 90 correct the first time you take the test, you do not have to keep taking the assessment.  If you do not pass the test, you must take the test once a week until you pass it.  Then the following grade at the end of the year the students must re-take the test and pass it within 5 minutes before they can move on to the next lessons.

That said, a few weeks ago Em came home with this packet of  these pages of 100 Charts w/Skip Counting Circles.  Basically the students are memorizing the answers.  For example  the multiples of 7 are: 7,14,21,28,35,42,49,56,63,70,77 etc.  so they would highlight those numbers on the 100 chart and at the bottom of the page there are circles and they would fill in those circles with the multiples of that particular number.
So, last night we began studying for the test because she forgot to bring the packet home over Easter break.  I wanted to study with her using flash cards, but she insisted she needed the packet.  When I ask her what 7x6 is it takes her longer than it should for her to tell me the answer.  When I went to school we memorized the problem and answer.  I was having a difficult time studying with her because she is getting frustrated.  I was wondering what the assessment test will look like, because the quiz they had last week they just had the students write down the answers to each fact family.  The assessment tests in the previous grades were different problems mixed up on a sheet, so I am sure that is what tomorrow's test will be like. I think the way multiplication was presented is confusing her a bit  when I ask her the problems point blank since they haven't learned that way. Em says the test tomorrow is a  7 minute test, so it must be the problems mixed on the page like previous years.

So, today after school I ask her how math class was and she says  "Guess what Mom? We studied our math facts at the end of class using flash cards and I knew all the answers! Mrs. Haas said I must have been studying!"  Oh Lord, why do I listen to this child!  I guess they just introduce multiplication by using the 100 Charts with the skip counting circles, but don't expect them to study them that way (like Em thought, but she would not listen to me!)

This article explains more about the importance of using skip counting before mastering memorizing the multipliction facts:

The Importance of Memorizing the Times Tables

"Allow them to discover the patterns in the numbers by exploring a 100s chart, skip-counting tables and the times table chart. This is the time that they can discover multiplication strategies. However, there eventually comes a time when we need to highlight the importance of rapid recall. Students need to know that they should recall the answer instantaneously. Demonstrate the speed of this by having them quiz you and by practicing together."

I made up flash cards for Em and also printed out this nifty little multiplication table and laminated it for her:

×123456789101112
1123456789101112
224681012141618202224
3369121518212427303336
44812162024283236404448
551015202530354045505560
661218243036424854606672
771421283542495663707784
881624324048566472808896
9918273645546372819099108
10102030405060708090100110120
11112233445566778899110121132
121224364860728496108120132144

Courtesy of MathsIsFun.com


Hopefully Em passes the test tomorrow, but even if she does, we will continue to study the multiplication facts because kids lose so much of what they learned during the school year during the summer.



3rd Grade Multiplication Assessment

Every year starting in 1st grade the children in our school district must pass an assessment test in math in order to move onto the next grade.  In 1st grade they must master addition, 2nd grade subtraction, 3rd grade multiplication, 4th grade division.  I'm not sure what 5th graders must do.  When I went to school I do not remember doing this, but maybe we did?

Em is in 3rd grade and the first assessment test is tomorrow.  They give you 100 multiplication problems and you must get 90 correct in order to pass.  You have 7 minutes to take the test  If you get 90 correct the first time you take the test, you do not have to keep taking the assessment.  If you do not pass the test, you must take the test once a week until you pass it.  Then the following grade at the end of the year the students must re-take the test and pass it within 5 minutes before they can move on to the next lessons.

That said, a few weeks ago Em came home with this packet of  these pages of 100 Charts w/Skip Counting Circles.  Basically the students are memorizing the answers.  For example  the multiples of 7 are: 7,14,21,28,35,42,49,56,63,70,77 etc.  so they would highlight those numbers on the 100 chart and at the bottom of the page there are circles and they would fill in those circles with the multiples of that particular number.
So, last night we began studying for the test because she forgot to bring the packet home over Easter break.  I wanted to study with her using flash cards, but she insisted she needed the packet.  When I ask her what 7x6 is it takes her longer than it should for her to tell me the answer.  When I went to school we memorized the problem and answer.  I was having a difficult time studying with her because she is getting frustrated.  I was wondering what the assessment test will look like, because the quiz they had last week they just had the students write down the answers to each fact family.  The assessment tests in the previous grades were different problems mixed up on a sheet, so I am sure that is what tomorrow's test will be like. I think the way multiplication was presented is confusing her a bit  when I ask her the problems point blank since they haven't learned that way. Em says the test tomorrow is a  7 minute test, so it must be the problems mixed on the page like previous years.

So, today after school I ask her how math class was and she says  "Guess what Mom? We studied our math facts at the end of class using flash cards and I knew all the answers! Mrs. Haas said I must have been studying!"  Oh Lord, why do I listen to this child!  I guess they just introduce multiplication by using the 100 Charts with the skip counting circles, but don't expect them to study them that way (like Em thought, but she would not listen to me!)

This article explains more about the importance of using skip counting before mastering memorizing the multipliction facts:

The Importance of Memorizing the Times Tables

"Allow them to discover the patterns in the numbers by exploring a 100s chart, skip-counting tables and the times table chart. This is the time that they can discover multiplication strategies. However, there eventually comes a time when we need to highlight the importance of rapid recall. Students need to know that they should recall the answer instantaneously. Demonstrate the speed of this by having them quiz you and by practicing together."

I made up flash cards for Em and also printed out this nifty little multiplication table and laminated it for her:

×123456789101112
1123456789101112
224681012141618202224
3369121518212427303336
44812162024283236404448
551015202530354045505560
661218243036424854606672
771421283542495663707784
881624324048566472808896
9918273645546372819099108
10102030405060708090100110120
11112233445566778899110121132
121224364860728496108120132144

Courtesy of MathsIsFun.com


Hopefully Em passes the test tomorrow, but even if she does, we will continue to study the multiplication facts because kids lose so much of what they learned during the school year during the summer.



No comments
Posted at 8:32 PM  |  by Lisa E.
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