August Book Reviews

I felt like I didn't read as much this month, but I suppose I could be wrong. I guess cause parenting books just don't feel like real reading ...

Lovely Bones - I enjoyed this book - a creative take on a murder. The narrative dies near the beginning of the book and then follows the lives of her friends and families from heaven. But, I did not like the ending - it seemed out of character to the rest of the book. Some sexuality. Overall, 3.5 / 4, mostly because I loved the POV. Very fresh.

Positive Discipline - I am having a really hard time getting through this book on discipline. Maybe I've just been reading too many lately? I like the idea that most discipline methods per-se do not work long term and that encourage of positive behavior is best. But I find the book, a little too deep in psychological theory and much more geared towards teachers than parents, IMO. Probably would be more interesting to me if my kid was a bit older. Also, I found the birth order affecting personality a little too heavily treated for me. I don't know if I read enough to rate it, but so far 2/4.

Identical Strangers: A Memoir of Twins Separated and Reunited - The fact that they separated twins out for adoption and then did studies on them afterwards without informing the parents or twins is a bit appalling. Even more so, when it is strongly implied that they chose twins with parents with a strong history of psychological disorders (schizophrenia, for example) and did not share those case-histories, is also very very troubling. Very eugenistic to me (is that a word?). That, to me, was the most fascinating part of the story, but was somewhat sparse because all the studies are closed for like the next 50-100 years. I found the sisters themselves kind of obnoxious and tired of reading their thoughts (so needy ... so aloof - what a pair) by halfway through. 2/4.

Last Child in the Woods - Saving Our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder - My cousin recommended this book and it promptly went on my reading list. I enjoyed the book, though some chapters were definitely less interesting to me (some of the urban planning for example). I also thought that some of the psych theory he used was a little over the top (attachment theory to analyze our relationship with nature), but it definitely gave me things to think about. I especially loved how it made me tune in to how I feel about nature - the kind of quiet, sacredness you feel when you are alone in nature. I definitely want Andrew to experience that. I feel very lucky that Ann Arbor, especially where we live seems just bursting with nature. And Andrew is lucky enough to spend HOURS and hours outside each day. 3 / 4.

Parenting Children with Love and Logic - I really expected to enjoy this book. From what I'd heard about it, it really seemed to be the almost standard reference on children and discipline. And I really liked the idea of logical consequences. But I have to say - I did not like this book AT ALL. While I agreed with the ideas, I hated reading the book. I found the authors to be narcisstic (along the lines of "wow - my kid has a PhD and made all these great choices because I taught him so well), pedantic, and totally over-the-top. I found their application of logical consequences to be extreme and definitely not age-appropriate in some instances (living a 10 year old downtown alone (a new foster child no-less) for HOURS by themselves because they weren't on time?) and quite often uncaring and obnoxious. They irritated me just by reading what they wrote. And I actually agreed with their principles. Perhaps most telling they commented about how so many people mis-applied their principles and they said you had to apply their program "perfectly". Hmmm ... But, to some extent, I like the idea of logical conquences and want to utilize it some, but hopefully with a bit more compassion and logic. 1.5/4


Some kids books I have really enjoyed:
One child, one seed: A South African counting book
You and Me together: Moms, Dads, and kids around the world

My Best Birthday Ever (Perhaps)

I had a great birthday this year!!!!

The week before my birthday I tried to fit in some freebies - Baskin Robbins (Free scoop) and Coldstone (free creation) and Old Country Buffet (free buffet dinner). Then, on Sunday evening, I made my own cake (my favorite part of my birthday!) and invited friends over to share the cake. It was SO fun just sitting around and talking to friends and eating WAY too much cake!

Monday morning we were still asleep (Andrew kind of had a rough night) when the Funai Family called to wish me a happy birthday. I was lucky to be able to talk to Hiroko & Tetsuo, but also Kiyo & Hiroko who were in Japan. Then, the festivities began. Andrew and I went to Zingerman's Deli to get 6 free bagels. But, thought I, what would make a birthday EVEN better but another 6 bagels and some cheese to go with it! So, we went to Zingerman's Bakery (6 more free bagels + I bought a candy bar) and then to the Creamery.

Now, we need to back track. Many many many moons ago (like March, maybe), I decided I wanted to make cheese. And I came up with the perfect plan. I put a cheesemaking book on hold. And I decided that when my parents asked me what I wanted to get for my birthday, I would ask for a cheesemaking kit from online. But then, the book didn't come in until a week or two ago. And when I read it, Katsu told me how much he didn't want me to make cheese at home - too stinky, messy, and expensive. And my parents visited US so it seemed silly for them to buy me a present online. Plus, they got me a great ice cream maker which I am using to make fabulous blueberry frozen yogurt (with blueberries we picked ourselves). So, my dreams of being a cheesemaker where put on hold.

Or so I thought. Because when I went into the Creamery and was looking around to decide on which cheese to get (I decided on a soft garlic and chives cheese - pretty good!). And then I saw the EXACT cheesemaking kit I had wanted - I didn't even know they sold it in stores. Luckily, my Crookston grandparents had just sent me some birthday money (THANKS!). So, I bought the kit and after telling the cashier it was my birthday, ended up with some free gelato, too.

Then, after Andrew went to the babysitter and I got some work down at school in the afternoon. Then, my visiting teachers came over with cupcakes (some yummy) and a European candy bar (also so yummy) at the same time my friend came over with a giftcard for Borders (yeah!). And then Katsu gave me a second birthday present (present #1 was the trip to "Paradise") - a travel guide to China!!! Yeah - I'm sure we won't go for many years, but I am already excited!!!!!!!! Then, my friend babysat so Katsu and I could go to Real Seafood, Co for dinner. (It seemed a bit ominious at first with the firetrucks and ambulances and a worker being taken out with a hand/arm injury) Delicious!!!!!!!!

My birth-"day" ended up this week by buying a fabulous travel book for my birthday and then making my first batch of mozzarella cheese this morning. Another life goal completed - I am a CHEESEMAKER.

What better way to enjoy my birthday but by my favorite things - friends, chocolate, cheese, making things, free things, and travel!!!

Fisher Price House Party - the Toys have ARRIVED

The toys came today in anticipation of next week's House Party. I still can't believe how much Fisher Price sent us. So, I spent all afternoon putting together toys. First, Andrew wanted to "help" with the screwdrivers. But as soon as the "Rollin' Around the Zoo" was put together, he didn't want to play with anything else. Here's a look at the goods - can you believe this was all free?!?

A Freebie I forgot!

For all you Michiganders, this is a great one. If you open a 529 for your resident child (under the age of 5, I think) and put in $$, they will give your child some free $$ for college. Basically, if you put in $$ (up to $600), they will put in 1/3 of what you put in. So, last year, we put in $600 initially and they gave us a free $200. Plus, Michigan's plan is one of the better ones anyways and you get some state tax benefits, too. Definitely recommend this.

www.misaves.org

Freebie Queen

In honor of my birthday today and due to request, I am giving a present to my readers (all 5 of you). For those of you who don't know, I am a FREEBIE QUEEN!!! I love love love love love free things. And I always have. And I swear I must have a nose for these sorts of things. And they need to be free, not just a good deal. I am not a deal diva - I am, I repeat, the Freebie Queen. So here it goes ... my recommendations.

I put this blog on my reader - they list a VERY comprehensive list of all the free samples and I can easily click and sign up for the free ones I want. Most of the good ones are from Walmart or shampoo or deodorant companies or the like. We have gotten a few really good full size samples - like a jar of FABULOUS spaghetti sauce.

This blog lists "freebates" - or things that are free after rebate. A newer link for me, I still don't utilize this one as well. Right now, I mostly just do the free things at Rite Aid (enter receipts online and request a check at the end of the month - score!).

I also recommend signing up for your local freecycle board - people post all the free things they are getting rid of on here and you can get them.

Also, sign up for each and any rewards program or membership program. Usually they will send you free money occassionally to shop at their store. (We just got $15 at DSW Shoe Warehouse and we get free $10 at JCPennys every couple months).

Now for some more obscure free things.

If you fill out surveys at this site, you can build up points. Most of the rewards stink, but a couple of the rewards are great. If you use $15 worth of points, you get free $15 at Borders (free books, CDs or movies!). Not too much work and totally worth it.

I used to fill our surveys for this site, though the compensation isn't as good as it used to be ($3/survey vs $5 previously). But this isn't too bad at all if you are in the <25 age bracket, you can get lots of surveys. But once I turned 25, this money pool dried up!

If you enjoy viral marketing, I have a few websites for you. (In a nutshell, viral marketing means a company gives you free things to try and gets you to recommend them to your friends, often with samples for them or coupons). This one is pretty intense - you have to write up all your experiences and I am not too interested in most of the products and haven't done it in awhile, but I did get like a whole case of candybars and an entire turkey breast to try before. Pretty neat.

This site is pretty fun. Same idea, but you host parties to promote products. I just got selected to do a Fisher Price party. Basically, I invite friends over and Fisher Price is sending me free toys for everyone to try plus free toys for the gift bags and coupons for everyone. It's not like a Tupperware party because you don't sell anything. You basically just expose everyone to the brand. I am excited about the party. And I figure they are sending us at least $300 worth of product!!! SCORE. They have ALL kinds of parties, so check it out.

Back to easy free things, this site you watch commericals for like 10 minutes and then you get free magazines (or I got a free Sears gift card for $5 this week). Easy and fun.

I have done mystery shopping (back in Boston) but it wasn't really for me, but you can definitely get free things from it.

People give away an insane amount of things on their blogs, no catches. This is ideal for when you're sick or stuck in bed and don't mind spending a lot of time making comments on other people's blogs. We got the world's cutest shoes for Andrew for free this way (everyone remember those). I am NO expert on those but I like the baby giveaways here
and she also has a related web site where she complies all kinds of giveaways. It seems like a few times a year people go crazy and there are 100s of giveaways at a time. Of course, you could do it the hard way and actually write a blog like this and get enough customers and then have them send you all this stuff for free to promote.

Speaking of webpages, I recommend this blog which alerts you to all kinds of these sort of things and really gets into the programs at Rite Aid, CVS, Walgreens, and anything free.

Also, filling out surveys on webpages is always a good way. I got a free book (100 Temples hardbound) from DeseretBook a couple years ago for filling out a survey. We even got a free DVD from Lifetime before. Be on the lookout (or follow a blog or two who has better eyes than you).

Universities are hot-houses for free things. Before we had Andrew we did everything, but we still try to fit some in. In the next 2 weeks, we have like 4 BBQs. My department does a picnic each year and last time we won a free hotel stay! Lots of departments have seminars with free food each week (at UofM, the Chinese society, the Math one, GEECS (Girls in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, so clever), and basically everything on earth). Seriously, college students could eat for free any day of the year. Plus, orientations are full of free things. Our graduate school often has free breakfasts and for some reasons always has free toothbrushes. Score! Many institute programs are in on it too, giving a Friday forum with free food for example.

Libraries are a great source for free movies (at least ours is) and we have never rented a movie here since.

Our favorite way to do events for free is USHERING. In fact, we just went to our usher orientation meeting (there's still a few left if you are interested for this year) for the University Musical Society. Get there an hour early, help people to their seats, and see world class acts for free - Yo Yo Ma, the Royal Shakespeare Company (with Patrick Stewart, no less), dance companies, plays, etc. We did this in Boston too for the Blue Man Group. There are similar programs in lots of cities and you can't beat the free price tag.

Well, that's all the things I can think of off the top of my head, but I'm sure there are more. So enjoy!!! And email me or post below if you have any other great ideas!!!

Weekend in Paradise (or was it Hell) Part III

After the Falls, we drove another 100 miles or more to go see the Painted Rocks National Lakeshore. The rocks there are all kinds of beautiful colors with interesting formations out on Lake Superior. But the only real way to see it is by boat. So, we bought tickets to the cruise. We wanted to go see another waterfall, but ran out of time. I have to say the Munising was just about the prettiest little town ever, right on the Lakeshore. It kind of reminded me of Marseille if you take out all the buildings and grew trees and turned the water a darker blue. Boarding the cruise:


Unfortunately, five minutes after getting on the cruise (note, a 2.5 hour cruise), Andrew started coughing and wheezing and then throwing up. He threw up off and on the entire cruise. We changed his clothes once, getting him down to a jacket and diaper, but soon even that was dirty and I (Amanda) just sat in dirty clothes the whole time. Fun! But in between cleaning and caring for the little boy, we took some nice pictures of the beautiful lake.









We couldn't bear to drive the entire 400 miles home when the cruise ended at 5, and after trekking to the store to buy snacks (for us) and Pedialyte (for Andrew which he refused to drink and cried at the sight of it because it wasn't water). He slept most of the way to Gaylord, but still threw up more, where we stopped for a hotel again. On Monday, after some more throwing up, we finally made it back to Ann Arbor. And today, we finally made to the doctor and got Andrew probably diagnosed with asthma. Anyways, now, we have to give him medicine through a nebulizer 3x a day until he gets better. For those of you who don't know, it looks like this:

For those of you who know Andrew, you can guess how well that is going. And, even better, the medicine is a stimulant!!! Fun times in our house.

So, now you decide - was it Paradise or Hell?

Weekend in Paradise (or was it Hell) part II

After Mackinac City, we drove to our little motel in Sault Ste. Marie. Not seeing anything promising for dinner, we decided to drive the extra half mile downtown to find somewhere more interesting. Unfortunately, Sault Ste. Marie seems about as happening as the rest of Michigan -- i.e., not very much. It was almost a mini Detroit with many of the shops right on the Main Street out of business. Sigh ... It sounded much better online. But we headed straight over to see the Soo Locks. Thank heavens, because otherwise we would have missed all the ships passing through and had to come back past Andrew's bedtime. Though still not worth a visit to this city, perhaps, the Locks were really cool and the largest ones in the world. The ship going through was sure HUGE!!!



Sadly, we could not find any local, family friendly fare, so we ate at Applebees - which was nice enough. Andrew decided to only eat the fried breading off half a mozarrella stick (he seriously picked it all off and refused to eat the cheese). Oh, well. More Olympics, more sleep.

Sunday morning, we were off again, this time, in a thick fog on our drive to Paradise. Andrew slept pretty much the whole morning, which was good, because his cold and coughing were getting pretty bad. We tried to take the scenic route, and ended up on detour and were back on the highway (this seemed to be the story of our trip anyways - tons of detours!). As we drove, we decided to skip the Shipwreck Museum and the Blueberry Festival in Paradise, so we had time to see everything else and still get home at a decent time. If only we knew our plans would be derailed ...

So, we drove through lovely (very very small) Paradise and stopped 10 minutes away at the Tahquamenon Falls State Park (rhymes with phenomenon). Andrew was thrilled to see that he had woken up right next to the waterfalls. He is a huge fan of waterfalls and wanted to see it all. They were beautiful. Unfortunately, Andrew's coughing and wheezing starting to get a lot worse.

The Lower Falls:




The Upper Falls:





This was really a great park. Everything felt very pristine and wilderness-y. Of course, seeing that the UP was pretty much an entire peninsula of forests, that's not too hard.

Stay tuned for the rest of our adventure.

A Weekend in Paradise (or was it hell ... hmmm)

I am starting to feel a little Dante-esque this summer - a weekend in Hell and now it was our turn for the weekend in Paradise. I guess we skipped Purgatorio for now.

We left Friday afternoon after a frantic search for the cat who was outside and nowhere to be found (we didn't find him until our return on Monday). We drove and drove with some crazy gas detour and lots of construction and made it to Gaylord, Michigan, but decided to skip the Call of the Wild Museum and just veg in the hotel room. We spent much of the drive discussing the morning's pediatrician visit (Andrew has not gained a single ounce in 5 months!!! That is 1/3 of his life!!! The doctor was only mildly concerned). After some Olympics watching, it was time for sleep.

Saturday morning we drove the hour to Mackinaw City and took the ferry to Mackinac Island.


We immediately rented bikes and rode around the island for a couple hours. After a brief detour to see this cool rock formation

before Andrew promptly fell asleep, which was a little awkward at best. We stopped several times to try to adjust him with no avail. Everyone who passed us by laughed and laughed. But we didn't get any pictures of it, but here Andrew is in the bike.


We stopped by a playground and played for a little bit.

Then, we dropped off our bikes and had some yummy burgers.
After playing in the grass

we walked down the streets, admired the horses

bought some fudge

and then walked down to the beach.
After playing near the water (we didn't really want Andrew to get in since he's been sick for the last two weeks)
,
we played with puzzles and read some stories in the public library.
Then, we decided to go on a hike and Katsu was kind enough to carry Andrew the WHOLE way. We hiked to Skull Cave (which was very disappointing)

and climbed up over 100 steps to the peak of the island for a gorgeous view

.
Andrew woke up at the end of our hike, so we did some last minute shopping and then took the ferry back.

I enjoyed Mackinac Island. There were more crowds then I was expecting, but out biking and hiking, it wasn't too bad. I liked the quiet of the no-cars thing, but the people out on their jet skis were pretty loud :-(. I don't understand people who have to ruin the "quiet" of nature with loud expensive toys. And the fudge and food was very yummy. Lots of fun, kind of expensive, kind of crowded, and very beautiful.

Stay tuned for the rest of our trip ....

Andrew is 15 months old!!!

Andrew has really grown up a lot this month, too! I can't believe how different he is from even three months ago.

Andrew is walking and running everywhere. He still trips, but otherwise is pretty sturdy. He loves to climb up hills, though he usually needs to hold my hand if it's too steep. He loves to go on walks and even went on a small hike with his grandparents in the Leslie Science Center. Andrew loves being outside. We go on at least one stroller walk a day. Plus, he is outside probably 3-5 hours a day beside that. He is always grabbing his shoes and bringing them over to you so we can go outside. He likes to go on the porch (and screams when we won't let him) and throw his chalk over the side of the railing. He chased the cat throw the porch railing once and fell about a foot done - he cried but wasn't really injured and wanted to be out again within a few minutes!

After being outside, Andrew's favorite thing is playing with his trucks. As Grandpa said, he would love to be a parking lot attendant. He lines them all up and then moves them to another location. He likes playing with his other toys too and reading books. He especially likes playing hide-n-seek or when I chase him and cuddling. He loves playing with the cat Joe - he likes to play strings and balls with him, and also likes to sit on him (which surprisingly the cat tolerates). He is just starting to learn to draw with crayons and chalk (which he likes, but I have to watch him so carefully - he already drew on the fridge). He also loves to sit in the little chair we got him and just take a rest.

Andrew is a little screamer. He screams whenever he wants something, especially when he is in a contained place - his highchair (he screams through 75% of mealtimes), his car seat, his stroller when we're not outside, church, etc. I am hoping it is just a stage, because it is sure obnoxious and gives me a huge headache.

Speaking of mealtimes, Andrew is increasingly picky, as is typical of his age. He could live on white rice, green peas, and goldfish crackers - well, he does live on those actually. We can't say the word fish or Andrew will run to the cupboard and say "This, this, this" or "That, that, that" until he gets some. He generally likes vegetables (he enjoyed cucumbers and eggplant this month) and some fruit - he ate blueberries when we went picking, but mostly loves strawberries. He eats dry cereals and crackers, esp for snacks. And a tiny bit of yogurt or cheese, but no milk and no drinks but water. And except for some salmon, no meat. He most especially loves to throw his food on the floor - we would have a HUGE mess if we didn't have the tarp under the high chair.

Andrew is talking up a storm - if only we understood what he said! He does have a lot more words - most especially "this" and "that" which are his favorites. He definately seems to comprehend a good part of what we say which is great. I am not as sure about how much Japanese he comprehends - we really have to be more consistent on that.

Andrew still loves music and dancing and FINALLY learned to clap - I was wondering if he would ever do it. He loves to clap now and does it until we do it too. He also is started to fold his arms for a couple seconds when we pray, which is really cute. He seems to like prayers and reading scripture stories.

Andrew still loves all things that move. Most especially cars, trucks, planes, trains, dogs, cats, bugs, and other children. He points all of them out and gets very excited.

Andrew is starting to imitate us and loves to try to help. He wants to play with water when we are doing dishes, wants to stir things in pots when I cook, and wants to walk around with his walker when I am vacuuming. It makes things a little slower, but it's really fun and I am enjoying it while it lasts.

Andrew has a new babysitter who watches him 3 hrs a day, 3 days a week in the afternoon while I work. They spend the entire time outside and he really enjoys it, I think. But he is still a bit teary during separations from me. But whenever he sees us, he gets very excited.

Andrew is starting to sleep through the night about half the time, even when he is sick, which we are very happy about. Now, if we could just wean him ...

For fun things, we took a trip to the Arboreteum, the Botanical Gardens, blueberry picking, and to the Detroit Institute of Arts with Grandma and Grandpa. And of course, grandparents visiting was very fun.

Generally, Andrew is a very happy fellow (when he is not screaming) and gives us lots of hugs and kisses and smiles. This has been a fun month.