American Idol Finale

This stay at home family was NOT at home during the American Idol Finale in which David Cook was crowned the Season 7 Idol. So you probably know what that means if you also depended on your DVR to catch the show...they ran over time and the end did not record! For the life of me I cannot figure out how they had TWO hours to get through the show and still ran out of time! Well, like most Americans, my next thought was, "someone will put it on YouTube!" (Isn't that the American way?) And so they did! If you missed the final reaction and final song, here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HByINm6Bgbs

Personally, I was SURE that David Archuleta was going to win, simply because teen girls have much more dialing energy than we old folk. That said, this old folk thought that David Archuleta SHOULD have won. Nevertheless, I can't wait to buy his first CD for my children and I to listen to. Finally- a nice, clean cut young man for young boys to listen to! My children are singing in choir and have just started piano. They both are very musically inclined and it is nice to show them a teen who has put in the hard work necessary to get noticed- and give goosebumps. I'm excited to watch Archuleta's career.

Don't get me wrong, David Cook is equally talented and deserving of the title (obviously, since he won!) But I think my problem is that I grew up listening to the "David Cook rock" sound. He has a great voice, nice presence, but I'm ready to move onto something different, maybe. He's not hardly as cute as Archuleta, either! I can definitely see why the young girls are going crazy over him. Poor kid!

Socialization- Again

This is such a frequent argument to homeschooling that I will share any articles I come across on it. Here is one from Dr. Laura: http://www.drlaurablog.com/2008/05/22/home-schooling-does-not-hamper-socialization/

The Perfect Birthday Present for Children

It just so happened that my son's birthday came just a few days after the Pinewood Derby. For the second year in a row, he was upset because he didn't get a trophy. That's when it dawned on me. Why CAN'T he have a trophy? Why does he have to win the Pinewood Derby to experience the joy that a trophy would bring him? It isn't just any ol' trophy. This trophy is special!

It is made by hand by a good friend of ours and it looks really nice. So I decided to have one custom made for Thomas' seventh birthday. Here it is:

I wanted the trophy to remind him what a great year he had and all the things he is good at. The last two lines that you can't see very well read "Soccer Player" and "Bible Verse Memorizer." The plate has his name and the date. We do a "birthday table" where we put out presents and balloons, and the trophy sat there waiting for Thomas to wake up. When he finaly came down, his eyes just lit up when he saw the trophy. He was so happy! If you would like to give a custom made trophy to your child for any occasion, just contact Troy at Classic Woods. The trophy is made from wood and acrylic (not glass) so it would be easy to ship!

Pinewood Derby 2008

This year Thomas built a "Bat Mobile" for his Pinewood Derby car and it was a pretty cool looking car if I do say so myself! He found the design online and then his dad used that as an example and made his own version. He did when the award for "Coolest Car" or something like that. All the other boys told him before the voting was even over that he would win. I know he secretly wants to have the fastest car, but for two years in a row he has won for design, so I guess that will have to do for now! I don't have a close-up of his car, but here are some pictures. The second one is Anna and Thomas, when they raced their cars against each other in the Wildcard Races.

Star Wars 7th Birthday

Wow, I can't believe I'm this far behind! Thomas' birthday was April 22, but I didn't want to miss the opportunity to share about his birthday- even if it's a bit late! The days leading up to his birthday, Thomas had no idea what I had been going through to get the ONE thing he asked for: a Darth Vader costume. I had ordered it online in plenty of time, but they sent the large size instead of the medium. They corrected- or so I thought- and AGAIN sent a large! As I was dealing with this, he was SURE that I hadn't bought one for him and was obsessive about how he was going to buy one with his birthday money, etc. He would not let it drop! I just sort of laughed at him when he wasn't looking. In the mean time, yet another costume was sent, but it got here after his birthday. Not only did I get my money back, I have THREE Darth Vader costumes! Here is the birthday boy-

Cute, huh? The costume is huge on him, and I'm hoping that he remains a Darth Vader fan until he outgrows them all!

I'd also like to share a couple of things that might give you a good idea for your child's birthday, no matter what theme they choose. First, the cake. I didn't want to spend $25 on a custom cake, so I got a bright idea (if I DO say so myself!) Thomas has plenty of Star Wars Legos and enough "men" to decorate any size cake. So that's what we did! He also had a Lego set with a soccer ball, so I made it look like the Star Wars characters were not battling it out with light sabers, but playing a good ol' game of soccer!

We had the cups, plates, balloons, and of course Darth Vader masks, but my favorite is the cake, of course! It did take me a while to get the frosting out of the little holes at the bottom of their feet, but it was still worth it! A few days after Thomas' birthday, we went to Build-A-Bear when my sister came into town, so hopefully I will have some more birthday pictures to share when she sends me some. In all it was a great birthday, and I'm still in shock that I have a seven year-old!

"Stay At Home Mom" a Misnomer

Whoever called us "stay at home moms" was obviously not one herself. I don't know what the deal is, but I spend more time at music, soccer, MyGym, AWANA, and driving to these places than I do at home. And my kids are only 5 and 7! We were so run down from all of these events, that both of the kids got colds. Thomas got better, Anna got worse. It got so bad that she needed an antibiotic to clear it up and eye drops for pink eye. During this same time, she caught molluscum (a skin virus) which only happens when children's immune systems are shot.

I started wondering if we were doing too much. While I want to allow them to try different things and expose them to varied experiences, I need to recognize our limits. I want them to have time to relax and hang out, or play with the neighbors as well.

I've got so many things to blog about, but with all the running around (and the recovery...) I haven't had the time. So hopefully soon this "Stay at Home Mom" (who is leaving in a few hours for Dallas, TX) will have some time to rest, relax, and blog like a mad woman in a few days.

If you are a stay at home mom, STAY HOME TODAY!!