Archives for December 2011

Christmas….it brings out the best in us!

Each Christmas I put my camera down to enjoy the day instead of striving for the perfect Christmas photo. Luckily, my friend Andrea was here this Christmas and was all too happy to snap photos of the children and all their Christmas glory.

She is my very best friend and it’s been about a 2 years since we’ve seen one another. I didn’t realize how much I missed her until she was here. My life stays busy with homeschooling, children and such so the moments are rare that I take pause to miss my sweet friend.

Being the loving friend (crazy woman) that she is she brought my children a lovely gift for Christmas…..full of nutrition, vitamins and slap empty of sugar!!

A loving and thoughtful gift to nourish my children’s brains……

What is it??? A giant 300 pound gummie bear!!!

It didn’t take long for all that nutrition to hit their sweet precious brains……you could see the transformation…..

it happened in a snap!

At least she didn’t bring drums and cymbals!!!!

I miss you my sweet friend. (Oh and I had no trouble with all the chocolate she brought me!!!)

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Posted: December 31, 2011 by Julie |Category: Our Family, Our Lives | Tags: Christmas, giant gummie bear

LearningRx Results That Astound…

If you follow my blog at all you know I’m totally sold on the brain training we do at LearningRx. My children are progressing daily in the tasks they are able to preform. One of the most important areas of our lives that cognitive brain training has affected is in the confidence I see in my oldest son. He was diagnosed with ADHD last year. We increased his medicine to the point that we felt he was able to concentrate and focus. But after 14 weeks at LearningRx we are now decreasing his medicine. I believe this is happening because he is learning how to concentrate and focus through his own abilities now, separate from his dependence on the medicine. We’ve already cut his dose once and plan on doing so again next month. It is wonderful to see him blossoming as he gains confidence in his own skills and his own strength. I hope that one day we will be free from the medicine and he will be relying on his own God-given abilities.

This special child of mine was born on Christmas Day. And I have always known God had great things planned for him. LearningRx is opening doors in his mind, building his confidence and strengthening his character. I love to see him going head to head with his trainer now as he is at the stage of trying to beat her at the games they play. He has come so far.

I’ve seen his ability to stay focused and get his school work done at home go through the roof. He is now doing twice as many math problems in a day (20) and memorizing two times the vocabulary words that he was previously. That is 20 per week….spelling and vocabulary. When he asked me why I simply told him he was able to do more than he even can imagine. And the switch has been great. He’s even begun to talk about what high school might be like. He’s never wanted to go to school before but as his confidence builds so does his willingness to try new and different things. Do we still have bad days? Sure. Don’t we all. But overall life is changing for the better at our home and my children are beginning to find joy in learning.

As for my youngest….she is reading up a storm and well into second grade work. At the beginning of LearningRx she was reading at a K5 level. Now she reads the Christmas cards we receive in the mail, the cereal box, the signs on the road, the things I type.

I’m amazed and forever grateful for the changes LearningRx is making in my kids. It’s not tutoring, it’s not school, it’s exercising the brain so that it can hold more information, access more information, process more information and be 10 times smarter than mom!!! (Yikes, that’s kinda scary!)

I thank God for leading us to LearningRx for the road He has set before us!

My goal now is to be able to translate into words what the centers do for children and how to let moms know there is an answer out there. LearningRx opens doors for children that are otherwise closed. I want the world to know!

To read more LearningRx reviews and stories from other parents visit: http://www.learningrx-reviews.com/

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Posted: December 21, 2011 by Julie |Category: LearningRx | Our Family, Our Lives | Tags: cognitive brain training, LearningRX, LearningRx review, LearningRx reviews, test results, tutoring

The Mammoth Turtle

Since moving to Florida we have seen all sorts of wildlife we didn’t see in SC. Yesterday this prehistoric looking giant meandered across our yard on the way to the pond across the street. He was huge.

In SC we are used to the Eastern Box Turtle which is a sweet hand sized little fellow but this guy??

The size of a frisbee and probably 6 inches off the ground.

He wasn’t scared of much as he stared me down a couple times and then went on his was….crossing the street like he owned it.

Even our dog wouldn’t get near him. The turtle probably out weighed our dog by 20 lbs!!!

Later Dude!!!!! PS….after looking him up we decided this is a Florida Chicken Turtle, named after the taste of their meat.

Not that we know or anything!

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Posted: December 15, 2011 by Julie |Category: Homeschooling | Other Happenings | Tags: Florida, Florida Chicken Turtle, turtle

Mornings…

Most mornings my husband takes our second born to school. But this week he’s freezing his butt off in Utah and Omaha so I’ve got the early shift. There are a lot of weeks I’m worn out by the time he gets home but this week I’ve napped in the afternoons before supper and so the mornings have been quite enjoyable. We’ve had rain and clouds for the past 3 days but today the sun is shining and it’s supposed to reach 70 degrees. Have I said I’m beginning to LOVE Florida??

This morning I took my camera, laid down on the side walk and was in awe of the dew on the bushes in the front. I’ve lost my macro photo capability so I shot in RAW and cropped.

Here’s this morning’s treat from God.

And this one…..

Although not quite as in focus as I’d like I love the sky in this one…

Sometimes it is so nice to stop for a second and look at the minute beauty that surrounds us.

Have a blessed day!!!!

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Posted: December 14, 2011 by Julie |Category: Photography and Tips | Tags:

No words…just pictures.

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Posted: December 11, 2011 by Julie |Category: Photography and Tips | Tags:

The Joy of a Jeep

When I met Rocketman in 1994 he had a sweet Jeep. He loved that thing. But even before kids he sold it and we bought a Suburban. (We have a strange car history.) If I remember correctly we sold the Suburban before Child 1 was born.

For years a Jeep has been in my husbands heart. He has endured Custom Vans, Minivans, a couple trucks, and a small SUV. So when we changed jobs a couple years ago I got a computer and he got his Jeep.

While my family was here visiting over Thanksgiving Rocketman took them to the beach. He taught my niece how to drive his beloved Jeep there on the open sand. All this took place while my brother-in-law, my other niece and I were at the Apple store having regretted my decision to purchase another PC years ago. Black Friday at the Apple store and we were still in and out in 15 minutes having spent a load of money. ……..beautiful photos of my new MAC to come!

Here’s the gang who went to the beach……

My sister tried to get one of those photographic moments with Rocketman and his Jeep…

But there was something (one) that kept sneaking into the picture….

She loves her daddy!!!!

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Posted: December 9, 2011 by Julie |Category: Our Family, Our Lives | Tags: beach, family, Jeep

LearningRx – Another benefit

If you read my blog at all you know that I am totally sold on braintraining at LearningRx.

My daughter who is seven just recently performed her first Christmas musical. She only visited the church with a good friend of hers and went to choir maybe a hand full of times. By Sunday night she knew every word to eight different songs and stood on stage for an hour and a half while she performed. I was incredibly proud of her. I can’t imagine standing for that long myself but my girl did it!!!

I really think the work she is doing in Memory Hold at LearningRx is what helped her to remember the songs so quickly. I was amazed.

We are in our 13th week at LearningRx. My daughter is now asking to write in cursive and can read five and six letter words. She sounds them out by herself!! When we started she was struggling with three letter words. I’m so excited with her progress! My youngest son is only on week 5 or 6 and is knocking it out of the ball park. The main area we are working on with him is his processing speed and his memory hold.

I’m so thankful God led us to a place where I feel like I am pouring into my kids tools they will use for a lifetime. And I’m proud of their progress and determination. The best part of all is they are having fun!!!!!

To read more LearningRx reviews and stories from other parents visit: http://www.learningrx-reviews.com/

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Posted: December 6, 2011 by Julie |Category: Homeschooling | LearningRx | Tags: brain training, cognitive brain training, exercising the brain, Learning RX, Learning Rx reviews, LearningRX, LearningRx Jacksonville Florida, LearningRx review, memory hold, processing speed

Adoption Story – Part 9

After my first week at home since my birth mother died I have felt the prayers of the saints around me.

I’ve had a few good weeks of functioning as a somewhat normal mom, wife and human being.

The last couple of days have found me really missing my mom again. Maybe it was having my family here for Thanksgiving that has brought her to the forefront of my mind again or maybe it’s just another season of grief.

In my post (Part Eight) I think I told you about me asking her to send me a telegram from heaven. But I think I’ve forgotten to tell you about the beautiful Magnolia tree that arrived the same day the flower arrangement arrived from my husband’s business associates in Utah.

My mom’s favorite flower was a magnolia blossom. People up north often referred to her as Ms. Magnolia because she was from the south…born and raised in Lexington, NC.

I was stunned when the plant arrived. It was what it took that Saturday to cause me to totally break down. Since the breakdown I’ve smiled when I think about the plant now.

Please believe me when I say this because it is with nothing but love that I do….my mom was a whipper-snapper. She was a pain in the butt. She was stubborn. She was frustrating. She was sarcastic. But she loved with the love of Jesus. I am so much like her in personality. I am all of those things plus a “know it all”. She was too. It was nothing for us to be together and her tell me to shut up or ask, “Who birthed you?”. It was all said in humor and laced with love but she could really be a pain. She was stubborn that way. And I think now of how that relates to that Magnolia tree. They are beautiful, hardy plants that are also messy and a pain in the butt. They drop their leaves and their dead blooms which sit around like large annoying seeds just waiting for you to step on one and break your ankle. The leaves pop when you throw them into a fire. It’s like a mini fireworks sound display. And there I find my mom. Sweet, beautiful, nasty, a pain, full of fireworks and laughing as she looks down at me knowing God will show me and remind me of her over and over again when I plant that annoying but lovely tree.

So as for that telegram. I got it. And I’m still reading it.

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Posted: December 2, 2011 by Julie |Category: God Breathed | My Adoption Story | Tags:

Thanksgiving

Seems like my Host was having some issues and I’ve lost something I thought was already out there in bloggy land.

Oh well…

I wanted to share some Thanksgiving photos with you anyway…

My family (except for my brother who lives in OHIO) came to Florida to visit for the holiday. It was so nice to have everyone here. We had 12 in the house and it was wonderful.

Here is my, my sister and THE BIRD