Taking it to the Library

After picking up Kiliegh from school, Vada, Kiliegh and I went to the library to get a couple of books. Some of the photo's on the worksheets that we are doing in class this week are unfamiliar to Vada, like the Statue of Liberty or the Liberty Bell. I thought if I got some books associated with those photos and we read about them she would be able to have something to link them to in her memory.

We found three books, they were geared towards children older than Vada and not quite what I was looking for because they weren't like the Patricia Pringy books but they were perfect in the aspect that they focused specifically on three of the major photo's on the worksheets that we have and they are also three important American monuments.

We were lucky to find three books by the same author, we found one on the Statue of Liberty, one on the Liberty Bell and one on the White House.

We also were lucky enough to find the yummy little cafe just outside of the Library where we sat for a little over an hour sipping, snacking, reading and enjoying each other's company.

After the library we all went to a local pet store to check out the fish. Kiliegh just got a Beta fish at her dad's house and wanted me to see what it looks like and was too excited to wait until we dropped her off. We were passing time until Jasmine got out of cheerleading practice so I figured this would be a fun was to pass some time.

There were all kinds of Beta's. Dont ask why I didnt take a picture of them, the whole reason we went there! We actually spent most of our time looking at the ferrets and watching them play! They are pretty cute! Every time I see them I think of that older movie, Kindergarten Cop, with Arnold big muscles in it... "It's not a tumor". 

During the first three weeks of school I had let my girls ride their bikes to school. I thought it was good for them. Kiliegh's school is very close and Jasmine's is not so much but she is almost fourteen and I figured that she had a cell and it wouldn't kill her, so again, why not. Well, on a Friday during Vada's Kindermusik class, I had missed two calls. I had put my cell on silent, like I always do for those short forty-five minutes of our time. I got into our van after buckling up Vada and turned my ringer back on and checked to see that I had missed those two calls. The most recent call was from Kiliegh's stepmother, who never really calls, but shoots me a text message if she needs something, so I just listened to her voice mail, it began with "Please tell me it wasn't Jasmine...". That was all I heard because I then hung up from the voice mail and called her directly. See, her and I are on a pretty friendly basis, she had got an automated message from the school district (this was where my second missed call had come from) that said something in regards to two different girls that morning from two local Jr. High Schools had basically escaped an attempted abduction from two different men, one who was captured and one who was still on the loose.

Long story short, this all had nothing to do with either of my daughters other than one of the schools happen to be where one of my daughters were enrolled. I had actually drove my Jr. High student, Jasmine to school that morning and watched Kiliegh, ride her bike onto the school property that morning as well. I knew, without calling to check, that both of my girls were safe.
After hearing this news, I knew that I would pick up Kiliegh from school that afternoon and my husband and I have decided that the girls are no longer going to riding their bikes to school.
It's a sad world that we live in and while our world was violent and scary years and years ago, it seems that in so many ways it is getting worse.

Im starting to teach Vada about "stranger danger". It'll be a long process, I can tell. Vada is shy around some people but in general she is so young an trusting that danger doesn't come into her sweet mind. The Berentain Bears has a book about strangers that I like for children her age and we have read it a couple of time since the school incident. 

More for Kiliegh than for Jasmine (my eldest) we watched this Stranger Safety DVD from The Safe Side. It is geared more towards younger children or preteens than it is older teenagers but when you can watch television during the school week anything will do, so this kept Jasmine's attention as well as Kiliegh's who thought it was pretty funny.

On many levels the internet makes me SO paranoid. I would like to shield my children from it. Restrict them entirely from using it and in general get rid of most of their electronics but now I am just going to the extreme! I have talked with them about internet safety numerous times. I have explained the importance of it. While searching for the Stranger Safety DVD (above) I found that the same makes made this Internet Safety DVD as well. So I also ordered this one as well. 

Vada is officially (today, 9-8-13) on seven days of no accidents in underwear! We have been celebrating like crazy! I looked for books to read to her about potty training but I have done things so differently with her that no book is quite right, so I haven't been able to get any. 

I have however been able to find a couple of really great books on teeth brushing for her. Brushing Vada's teeth has always been a struggle. I have always done it but not without a fight. I thought that maybe if I could find a couple of her favorite characters in books brushing their teeth, then she may have an easier with the whole teeth brushing process. So far, it has helped a lot!

The best find is the Sesame Street book, which is one of Vada's favorite shows and it is a pop up book as well.

We get to count the monster's teeth. 

We even get to brush one of the monster's teeth as well. Vada loves doing this! This is a book that we don't leave laying around because of its easy to rip out pieces but it is a book that we read on a nightly bases and one that I swear by if your child loves the Sesame Street monsters and needs a little help with brushing their teeth. 

Being in underwear, with no accidents and brushing teeth are both part of Vada's goals for our and she is well on her way!