Just shy of ten years ago right now, I was busy getting ready for my wedding day. All of the months of preparations, stresses, and dreams were about to result in our magical day. I was going to marry my Long Island Love. That was the nickname that I had for TechyDad before we were married and long before we had our boys.
In April, I had a bridal shower that my aunts had for me. It was a day of laughing, smiling, fun games, and great food with family and friends.
The beautiful hat I was wearing above was the traditional craft made by the Jersey Girls. They did an amazing job and I know where that hat is to this day. Some friends and family were not able to be there that day. They were saving time to come to our wedding just a few months later. Of course, I have photos with my friends that were there with me.
It was also a day of family. I was sad because several grandparents were no longer able to be with us. Now, ten years later my Papa S and TechyDad’s Grandma (far right), are loved ones we have lost. Here are our grandparents on that special day.
It is so hard to believe that it has been ten years. Ten years since I became a teacher, was getting ready to become a wife, looking forward to a honeymoon in Walt Disney World, and making memories like the ones above that make me smile to this day.
Thank you to everyone that was there for the wonderful day that put me at ease during a stressful pre-wedding time. I love you all.
P.S. There were a lot of other photos taken, but some were not digital and the scans were not the best. If any family wants to see them, just let me know.
As a child, I have many memories of going to camp during the summer. I went to a JCC camp, Girl Scout Camp, a local nature/crafting camp, and some others over the years. These days, the options of camps are even more extensive if you know where to look. Summer vacation in our area does not begin until the end of June. I have been so busy with other items, that I have not secured camp for the boys yet. I know; I need to get cracking on that.
While reading Picnic at Camp Shalom, a new book out from Kar-Ben Publishing, it made me think back on my camp experiences. I remember being in a summer play that was a spoof of The Wizard of Oz with a Purim theme. I dressed up and recall singing “Follow the Hamantaschen Road” with my friends. I need to dig around to find the photos to show my boys as I investigate camps for them.
More about Picnic at Camp Shalom:
When Carly makes fun of Sara’s last name at mail call, her bunkmate at Camp Shalom thinks she’s just being mean and refuses to be consoled. Little does Sara know that Carly had a reason for her outburst. When their mutual love of music brings harmony to Shabbat dinner as well as to their friendship, Carly finally gets the chance to reveal her secret.
Here is a trailer from the author about the book:
Picnic at Camp Shalom – Written by Jacqueline Jules – Illustrated by Deborah Melmon - Kar-Ben Publishing – March 2011 – ISBN 978-0-7613-6662-1 – $7.95 (paperback) – Ages 5-9
What I Thought:
Summer camp is a milestone that most children will eventually participate in. Making new friends and getting to know them is part of the excitement of the experience. Of course, when you do not know someone well, you could easily hurt their feelings. Jacqueline Jules shows us how Carly makes an honest mistake that results in Sara pulling away from her new friend. We watch as Carly learns from her mistake and explains to Sara that she is sorry for upsetting her. The beautiful illustrations from Deborah Melmon take us into the world of Camp Shalom and let us go on the flag hunt and join in Shabbat dinner with the campers. Traditions of summers at camp, being Jewish, and making new friends are strong themes in the book.
As a teacher and parent, I really like another aspect of Picnic at Camp Shalom. Children often act in an impulsive fashion. Without even thinking, they can say words that sting and hurt their friends and others in their lives. This book would be great to use with children to show them why it is so important to stop and think before saying something too quickly. Take time to discuss what happened to Carly as a result of what she said to Sara. How could she have done things differently? What would you do if you were in that situation? Do you think your feeling would be hurt if someone did that to you? As you can see there are a lot of questions you could generate from this. I can not wait to share this book with my almost eight year old son. Lots of lessons to be learned from it.
What have you read recently? Please be sure to link up to your Book Posts, and/or leave a comment below. Include something you read on your own, with a child or someone else. Tuesday Tales are all about spreading the love for books.
Disclosure: I received this book complimentary of Kar-Ben Publishing in order to facilitate this review. No other compensation was given. The opinions expressed in the review are my own. One widget within the review is for my Amazon Affiliate where I will receive a percentage of money for the sale of the books should you opt to buy the book mentioned.
Once again, there are a bounty of blogging conferences coming up. Whether you are going to TypeACon (may cry since I will not be there in a few short weeks), BlogHer, SheStreams, or another in the months ahead if this is your first experience going to one it can be nerve wracking.
In February 2010, I was heading to Disney Social Media Moms for my first conference experience. I did not know what to expect since it was the first ever at Disney, but looked to my peers for some advice. In August, I went to BlogHer 2010 in New York City. This conference scared me a lot more. It was a much larger scale, many more people, and SO many things going on all at once. I have now been to three conference, and have this bit of advice for you:
BE YOURSELF!
The weeks before a conference people will be stressing over a myriad of things. These are a few items I worried about and my thoughts.
Clothes to wear for sessions and parties –> Take it from me, it is important to be comfortable in a professional way. No need to be too dressy if you will not be happy. People dress in jeans, others will wear cocktail dresses to some of the parties. Do what works best for you.
Techy gadgets to bring –> Take items that you are comfortable working with. Some people will work only on their iPad, others will have laptops, cameras, Flip Cameras, and then some. Only you know what you will use and want to have on hand for live blogging, or networking while there.
Business cards and what to put on them –> Give as much or as little information as you are comfortable with. Your name, blog name, Website address, FB/Twitter pages, phone number, e-mail address are all great starts. I also put my photo on mine. Along with my Angel logo, I have a small photo of myself. This helps people to put a face to my blog after chatting.
Making a schedule –> Do not stress over this. There is so much going on. Have a general plan, do not over book yourself, and go with the flow. As a Type A personality this is tough for me, but I learned the hard way at BlogHer that you can not be in three places at one time.
What sessions should you go to?! –> Only you know what your goals are. If there are a lot of choices at the same time, go to what is best for your future. Sure, your friends may be going to another location, but you will learn the most in a place where you need to be.
My biggest mistake time and time again – not taking enough photos at conferences with my friends. Each time I promise I will do better, and I forget. Do not make this mistake. Pull out your camera and capture these memories. They are well worth the moment to pause and pose.
If you are getting ready for a blogging conference, Tiny Prints would like you to know that they have business cards that you can customize. Their business card selection allow you to add photos, logos and design accents to a variety of formats.
When you go to your first, or subsequent conference enjoy the time, network, learn, have fun, and like I said be yourself! If you have been to a conference – what advice do you have? If you have never been an have any question, please feel free to leave them below.
Disclosure: I wrote this post as part of a Global Influence campaign for Tiny Prints. By sharing this information with my readers, I will receive 50 free business cards to thank me for my participation. No other compensation has been given.
Yesterday, at about noon, I sat getting some work done and finishing my lunch. Suddenly, a call came on my phone. It was a familiar number, but I was not completely sure who it was. The minute I heard the voice my heart stopped. The call that I had feared since you went to nursery school had come. The secretary said that you had fainted while out on the playground. It was a cool day and I knew you had not fainted.
I do not remember much from the time I left the house and got to your school. I was shaking and it seemed to take forever to get to you. When I arrived, you were still on the playground. Emergency vehicles crowded the parking lot as I ran over to you. You were hardly moving, up on a stretcher. I put my hand out to you and you were freezing cold. Your body was oh so white with a bit of a blue tinge to it. By now, it had been confirmed – you had your fifth febrile seizure.
The emergency personal and teachers from school were amazing. They knew exactly what was going on. They were able to tell your history, and explain what had happened. Minutes before your febrile seizure, you were running, laughing, and playing with no sign of being ill. When I asked you who I was, you responded with a very weak “Mama” that made me feel better. We rode to the hospital in the ambulance and you seemed to be worse to me. I had to remind myself that the hour after a febrile seizure is always worse. Although I should be a pro at this, it never gets easy and I always forget.
To make a long story short, Nana met us in the ER, quickly followed by Papa and Daddy. They took your temperature about 30 minutes after they had called me. At that time it was 103.8! Your color was coming back and your skin went from cold to burning up. We got you some medicine and waited to see doctors. Three doctors came in over the time we were in the ER and they asked you what hurt and you never complained about anything. They listened to me about hidden ear infections. You were not a fan of them digging in your ears, but thank goodness they did. You had a raging double ear infection. Never did you complain. The doctors seemed to be concerned that it was your fifth febrile seizure and that twenty months had gone by since your last one. I had told them it was at least fifteen months, but the reality was your last one was right before Halloween 2009.
After a few hours, we were told we could go home. We were armed with instructions on what to do. I stopped at school to pick up my car and your things. One of the other teachers was still there that had seen everything, so I learned more about what happened before and during the event that rocked our little world. Then, I picked up your medicine and made a call to your teacher. She had called worried about you and asked me to give you a hug. By the evening, everyone had checked in on you and we thanked them all. They were truly amazing in a horrible situation and I will never be able to thank them enough.
Now, I just hope that you keep down your medicine and things get to be boring for a little while.
I think we could all use a little quiet and calm time after Friday. Feel better my little guy.
Love,
Mommy
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People always think that the only trips I went on as a child were to Walt Disney World. The truth is that we did a lot more than that. We used to drive up and down the east coast to fun destinations. My mother always made sure that each trip had at least one education component. We went to places like:
Fort McHenry – National Anthem written there
Monticello – Estate of Thomas Jefferson
Colonial Williamsburg
Washington DC
Mount Vernon – George Washington’s estate
Philadelphia, PA – To see the Liberty Bell among other items
Memories of touring different states, cities, and historic areas were amazing. When I learned about them in school, they meant so much more to me. This is something I would love to do with our boys.
The other day NHL had a connect at home activity to do. Apparently, a story in their reading book had something to do about traveling in the United States. One of the items for home was to read The Scrambled States of America. We had already read that with NHL. For Chanukah, one year, he received that book by Laurie Keller, along with a puzzle. I recalled that I had purchased the follow up book from Scholastic and decided it would be a great substitution.
About The Scrambled States of America Talent Show:
From Laurie Keller’s website:
THOSE WACKY SCRAMBLED STATES ARE AT IT AGAIN! This time they’ve come together for a spectacular show featuring their many goofball talents. But just when Indiana (the director) is about to call SHOWTIME!, Georgia gets a bad case of stage fright. Will the show go on or will it be curtains?
In this sequel to The Scrambled States of America, young readers will get another dose of madcap adventure and silly antics while learning interesting facts about the states and geography.
The Scrambled States of America Talent Show – Written and Illustrated by Laurie Keller – First Scholastic printing 2009 (released in 2008 by Henry Holt and Co.) – ISBN 978-0-545-22108-5 – Ages 9-12 – 40 pages
Not only are there the two scrambled states books, there is also a puzzle w/book (we have this), Scrambled States of America Board Game, Card Game, and even a Scrambled States of America DVD. Here’s a preview of the DVD that I found:
What We Thought:
NHL loved this book. He laughed and learned with every page that we turned. The details within the text and chatter of the states is amazing. Even if you had not read the original Scrambled States of America you could easily pick this up and read it. Yes, it is a picture book and this is an amazing example of the power of this genre of books even with older children. The illustrations and facts that are packed into them will keep these items in your child’s head. Almost a week after reading the story, NHL keeps talking about going to see the Liberty Bell in Pennsylvania and laughing about Georgia’s state fright.
Here is a view inside the book:
Laurie Keller’s illustrations keep readers moving and wanting to learn more. If we had time, I can imagine sitting down to start a mini-research project on items that were intriguing to him.
As a parent and teacher, I adore this book. United States history, geography, and state facts are learned in an entertaining fashion. When Georgia goes to see Dr. Globe, he runs some tests. The x-ray shows her cities, and them they zoom out a bit to see counties. I could see this book being used as an introduction to items to include in a state report or more. I highly recommend this to use within a classroom setting, while homeschooling, or just as a fun book for a family read aloud. Laurie Keller even has a page on her website to use with this book. This includes a matching sheet, meet your state, unscramble storyline, word find, and teacher’s guide.
I know that we will be gifting this book for kids that we know in the future. No doubt we will also be reading other books by Laurie Keller this summer.
What have you read recently? Please be sure to link up to your Book Posts, and/or leave a comment below. Include something you read on your own, with a child or someone else. Tuesday Tales are all about spreading the love for books.
Disclosure: I purchased this book from a Scholastic Book order form that my son had sent home a while back. One widget within the review is for my Amazon Affiliate where I will receive a percentage of money for the sale of the books should you opt to buy the book mentioned.
