He’s introverted, likes to get things right, leaves messes everywhere he goes and loves his best friend Seth. He would come and snuggle with me when he was smaller…sneaking into my bedroom and into my bed in the wee hours of the morning. He’d lay so still I wouldn’t even know he was there.
He’s my third born and I love him to pieces!! Ten this past year, he’s growing just a little too fast for mom.
Love you buddy.
Taken from LearningRx National Edition 2009:
Italics are mine.
Our doctor diagnosed my son as ADHD and prescribed medication to control behavior. My heart breaks at the thought (as did mine). Do I really have to drug my child?
Probably not. In a society where a large percentage of students significantly under-perform, seemingly easy solutions are a temptation. “Should I medicate my child?” is a question on the mind of parents nationwide and is most often asked by parents of children tagged ADD/ADHD. There is a growing field of cognitive brain training researchers investigating alternatives to drugs for ADHD. In almost every case, learning skills testing reveals that these children have “cognitive deficits, specifically in working memory.” Weak cognitive skills often mean they can’t pay attention long enough for good academic performance.
Researchers have explored methods to train the brain and impact weak learning skills. In one case, a number of ADHD students underwent 5 weeks of specific stills training and afterwards, 60% no longer fit the label. These results point to the possibility of overcoming lifelong learning hindrances in an extremely short period of time with the right mental skills training. Why wouldn’t everyone do it? The investment in cognitive skills training is “not easy for a time-crunched society and far more laborious than popping a pill.” Althought maybe not as easy as taking a pill, the benefits of overcoming skill weakness and building advanced learning ability are worth the short-term effort. Which is exactly what our family is doing and seeing significant results after a 24 week program!
(Response compiled from Gunjan Sinha, an award winning freelance science and medical journalist. Specific citations are derived from Training the Brain: Cognitive Therapy as an Alternative to ADHD Drugs, Scientific American. July 2005)
To read more LearningRx reviews and stories from other parents visit: http://www.learningrx-reviews.com/
Today at LearningRx my two youngest switched trainers. I am anxious to see how they feel after today. Baby girl loved her former trainer Renee.
She was fantastic! They have broken through so many walls together. Now she is training with Natalie….she is a sweetie. I believe that after she gets to know Natalie she will do great with her. She passed a new level today! It is so amazing to see the children breaking through the cognitive walls we didn’t even know were there. My heart is to bring this type of training into the workplace, increase productivity, show homeschool moms there is another answer besides medicine and psychiatrists.
In the last ten minutes of baby girl’s training today I was able to play Brainy Cards with her. I found one match to her four!! And she is seven!!!
Ok, donations??????
To read more LearningRx reviews and stories from other parents visit: http://www.learningrx-reviews.com/
Today I was taking my second born to school and I watched the sun rising over our section of Jacksonville, Florida.
The Christian radio was playing some song I can’t even remember now and tears filled my eyes. I thought to myself….”Why is it so hard to believe that He is real, alive and wants to love us?”
All the other philosophies just don’t make any sense when compared to an awesome creator, a loving Father, and someone who wants nothing more than to have a relationship with you. It’s not a religion. It’s a relationship….no special Sunday clothes, no “I have to be good enough”. Why can’t we let go and let Him have the chance to change us?? What is it about the human nature that wants to be in control of everything in life instead of trusting in a higher, loving Father?
I guess because I have let go and given my life to Him I know how sweet surrender can be. I know that today is all I have. Tomorrow has it’s own worries. Most of all I know that I know that I know He has my very best interests at heart. I don’t have to figure things out or worry about tomorrow. I can trust Him in the good and in the bad. I can cry out to him when I’m lonely and in pain. I can praise Him that my lot in life is just that….it’s mine. He never gives me more than I can bear even though there are days I feel that way. I can tell myself, “Remember Julie, He loves you.”
Who wouldn’t believe? Why wouldn’t someone choose that relationship above all others?
He’s grown so much in the last 2 years. When he first came to us he lived in such a small home. We were proud to provide him a larger house, food and water.
He’s been such an easy one to care for.
Then 2 nights ago he showed us he was ready for something bigger…….a condo maybe? The apartment was getting cramped. Oh how proud I was!!!! I had raised a functioning “child”.
Look at him. Doesn’t he look happy???
Hermie has changed into Herm-Anita!!!!!!
The next morning when we awoke we were saddened by his choice to return to the safety of his apartment.
Poor baby. His first night in the condo must have scared him.
But we are chearing him on……go Hermie…..you can do it. It’s a big scary world but you have a big God who made you.
Honestly I was a little saddened…..sniff, sniff. My baby wasn’t ready….where did I go wrong???
(this post in loving still alive memory of Andrea)
Katie at Lemon Cherry Blogs is the one who designed by blog.
Didn’t she do a great job??? She is so helpful and a wonderful person to work with. Are you looking for a new look for your blog for 2012? Give Katie at buzz. Here are the ways you can contact her:
Katie Lane email: dreamupsstudios@gmail.com or web: http://dreamupstudios.com or blog: dreamupstudios.com/blog
Let me know if you end up working with her and love her as much as I do!!!!!
WORD!
I recently received a newsletter from LearningRx with this great link that is similar to the attention arrows I had you practicing earlier.
Check it out and let me know how you do.
and here is an excellent example of what we do at LearningRx.
Check it out!!! The director at this LearningRx tells what we do better than I can and you get to see children at work!!
To read more LearningRx reviews and stories from other parents visit: http://www.learningrx-reviews.com/
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!!!)
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/
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!
What others have said: