Dinner tonight

Love love love them. Interesting daily meal ideas.

Go and check them out and fall in love.

I saw this recipe and thought I would make it for dinner, minus the beans and lamb chops. I will be doing pork and broccoli. I can't eat anything that is a baby. My own personal preference - to each his own.

I just found out that they have an app. I will be checking that sucker out soon.

Take care & happy cooking!

"All of your dreams can come true if you have the courage to pursue them." -  ºoº Walt Disney ºoº  

 Garlicky Lamb Chops Posted By Audrey On June 22, 2011 @ 5:00 am In Meat,Menu | No Comments

	Garlicky Lamb Chops Served with Cherry Tomatoes & White Beans
	Serves 4 Prep time: 10 minutes Total time: 15 minutes

Fast and fresh, these garlicky chops and lush tomatoes make a surprisingly elegant weeknight meal. The beans are yummy too!
Shopping List

• 1 pint cherry tomatoes
  
• 1 lemon
  
• 1 bunch rosemary
  
• 1 bunch basil
  
• 1 red bell pepper
  
• 1 shallot
  
• 1 bag salad greens of your choice
  
• 4 lamb chops, 6 to 7 oz. each
  
• 2 (15 oz.) cans cannellini beans
  
• 1 loaf crusty bread
  Pantry Items
  
• Black pepper, freshly ground
  
• Dijon mustard
  
• Extra-virgin olive oil
  
• Garlic
  
• Red wine vinegar
  
• Sea salt or kosher salt
  Suggestions
  
• Wine: A rich red, such as a Chianti
  
• Dessert: Rhubarb Compote
  Game Plan:
  
• When you walk in the door
  • Get out Pantry Items
    
  • Get out Tools
    
  • Assemble the ingredients
    
  • Go ahead and set the table now, because this is a fast one!
• Prep
  • Wash and cut the cherry tomatoes in half.
    
  • Squeeze 2 tbsps. juice from the lemon through your fingers.
    
  • Pluck 1 tbsp. leaves from the rosemary.
    
  • Wash and pat dry the basil, pluck ½ cup leaves.
    
  • Peal and dice 2 cloves garlic.
    
  • Trim and dice the bell pepper.
    
  • Peel and finely dice the shallot.
    
  • Wash and spin the lettuce dry if necessary. Tear the leaves into small pieces if necessary.
    
  • Drain and rinse the beans.
• Start Cooking
  • Put the beans, the garlic, and the bell pepper in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir, season with salt and pepper and cover.
    
  • While the beans are warming up, make the salad dressing. Put 1 tbsp. vinegar, a large pinch of salt, and 1 tsp. mustard in a large bowl. Whisk in the shallot, then slowly whisk in 1/4 cup olive oil. Taste for seasoning.
    
  • Coarsely chop the 1 tbsp. rosemary. Put a bowl over it so all the flavor doesn't escape into the air.
    
  • It's time to cook the lamb chops – heat 2 tbsps. olive oil in the skillet over medium-high heat.
    
  • When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the lamb chops, season with salt and pepper, and brown on one side, which will take about 3 minutes. Turn the chops, season them again and brown them on the other side, another 2 minutes. You might have to do this in batches. If the oil starts to smoke, turn down the heat to medium. If the chops seem dry, add a bit more oil.
    
  • Add the cherry tomatoes to the pan, and stir them down among the chops. Sprinkle the rosemary over the top, then add the lemon juice. Stir everything around, scraping up any browned bits from the pan, and continue cooking until the chops are the way you like them – another 3 to 4 minutes and they'll be nice and rare; a few minutes more and they'll be medium. Don't over cook them!!
    
  • While the lamb chops are finishing up, coarsely chop the basil and stir into the beans, along with 2 to 3 tbsp. olive oil. Season generously with salt and pepper, taste 'em and adjust, then put them in a bowl.
    
  • Take the chops out of the pan and put them on a platter, then scrape the tomatoes out of the pan and onto the chops, along with any juices. If you want to decorate the platter, lay a branch of rosemary on top of the chops.
    
  • Whisk the vinaigrette once, add the lettuce, and toss, toss, toss. Everything is ready! Take it all to the table – hey, don't forget the wine and bread.
  Wow that was fast; let's eat!

Article printed from NoTakeOut: http://www.notakeout.com

URL to article: http://www.notakeout.com/garlicky-lamb-chops/ mistake in delivery.

8 Ways Not to Cheat on a Diet

8 Ways Not to Cheat on a Diet

5 Reasons You’re Always Starving

5 Reasons You’re Always Starving

Top 10 Strategies for Weight loss

Top 10 Strategies for Success

Use These Ideas to Meet Your Goals
  -- By Mike Kramer, Staff Writer

1.  Start Small
Quite possibly the biggest mistake people make is pushing the accelerator too soon. You can't lose 20 pounds in a week. But you can lose one. Taking small bites and chewing slowly have as much to do with goal achievement as they do with your mom's dinner table scolding.

 
2.  Get It On Paper
Whether setting your first goals, tracking daily progress, or sharing your deepest thoughts with a journal, writing things down crystallizes your ideas, exposes underlying fears, and paints an accurate picture of real life.

 
3.  Focus On Everyday Habits
The building blocks of a healthy lifestyle are forged in the smallest of actions you take every day and every week. Healthy choices can become as natural as brushing your teeth or locking the front door. Build one habit, one action at a time.

 

4.  Always See Your Goal
Goals need attention. They need to be seen and heard and thought of often if they ever hope to come true. So surround yourself with as many reminders as possible.
 

5.  Be Consistent
Imagine a plane taking off. In the beginning, a lot of energy is spent to simply get moving down the runway. But as speed and momentum take over, the plane is pulled forward and up into the sky, faster and further by the second. Consistent action, no matter how small, has more power than you ever imagined.
 

6.  Never Stop Learning
A healthy lifestyle is a process—a journey more than a destination. You can always learn more about nutrition, fitness, and even yourself that can help you be just a little bit better tomorrow.

 
7.  Come Out of Seclusion
Has anyone ever achieved anything of real value all alone? Probably not many. Most receive some form of help from other people. Support, information, a sense of shared experience, encouragement, advice, and a well-timed pep talk are all invaluable as you set off on your adventure.
 

8.  Allow For Setbacks
Accept the fact right now that you will make mistakes, andthat it can be a positive thing. We are usually harder on ourselves that we are on anyone else we know. Be your own #1 fan. That means being supportive (instead of critical) when you stumble, and enjoying your wins (rather than ignoring your accomplishments) when you succeed.

 
9.  Trust Your Plan
You'll have up weeks and down weeks, and frustrating weeks that make no sense at all. The tools and strategies you're learning will help you build a plan that makes a healthier lifestyle almost inevitable. If you consistently make the right choices and build healthy habits, weight loss is literally just a matter of time.

 
10.  Have Fun!!!
Who says getting healthy has to be a chore, a burden to be endured or suffered through? Probably a very unhappy person, that's who. This is an exciting adventure of self-discovery and building a meaningful life. Enjoy the ride!

Sent from my iMickey! 8(; - )
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Lego's and Arcade games

We have a blog forward. Reading blogs and sharing with you. Yeah!  Love Lego's and Arcade games. Esp. this blog. She cracks me up. 

Technabob Daily Update:

LEGO Darth Vader's Super Star Destroyer Executor Landing This Fall Posted: 18 Jun 2011 04:50 AM PDT Yesterday, a reader pointed out that the LEGO Death Star I mentioned had been available for a while. That was true, but it was pretty hard to find. Nevertheless, LEGO is planning on releasing Darth Vader's super star destroyer Executor this September. The Executor was definitely my favorite star destroyer in the original trilogy. I loved the music that went along with it as Darth Vader oversaw his command. LEGO and Star Wars fans will rejoice when this will be released in a few months. The Executor will measure 50 inches in length – making it the longest LEGO kit you can buy – and will be made up of 3,152 LEGO bricks. The ship will weigh 8 lbs, and features a removable command bridge that will fit a LEGO Darth Vader and a few other minifigs. Just like the LEGO Death Star, expect to pay $400 (USD) for this baby. At over 4-feet in length, this is going to be a huge build, which should be fun for LEGO and Star Wars fans. LEGO minifigs included in this kit are Darth Vader, IG-88, Bossk and more. [CNet via Ubergizmo]

Retro Heart Handcrafts Tiny Arcade Games With a Big Heart Posted: 17 Jun 2011 08:14 PM PDT If you've ever wanted to fill a room in your house with classic arcade games, but didn't have the space (or the cash), here's the next best thing. These tiny arcade games and pinball machines take up way less space, and cost way less than the real deal. Made over in the UK by Steven C. Gauntley of Retro Heart, these miniature machines are each handcrafted from wood with custom vinyl graphics, and sheets of acetate for the "glass" tops of the pinball tables and fronts for some of the video games. In all, he's made over 100 different machines, and continues to add to the collection. Check out a bunch of my favorites in the gallery below: I was always a pushover for Paperboy and Burgertime, but I have to say that the pinball tables are really great too – gotta love The Simpsons. Each machine is built in a limited-edition, at 1/12th scale. To put that in perspective, both the pinball machines and arcade cabinets stand about 6 inches tall. It's just too bad you can't actually play any of these. But then again, my fingers aren't that small. The arcade cabinets sell for £14.99 to £19.99 (~$24 to $32 USD) each, and the pinball machines go for £24.99 (~$40 USD) a piece, while the extremely special Star Wars cockpit sells for £39.99 (~$65 USD). Steven also offers a substantial discount for orders of 10 arcade cabinets or 5 pinball machines. Plus, if you're looking for that special machine you just couldn't get enough of, Steve will do custom orders too. Ready to build out your miniature dream arcade? Just head on over to Retro Heart and get started.

LEGO Star Wars Death Star Kit: Over 3,800 Pieces!Posted: 17 Jun 2011 06:35 AM PDT Yes, you read that right. This is an authentic recreation from LEGO of the Death Star from Star Wars. This means that you can go to a store and buy this kit, which includes over 3,800 pieces, and start building your own Death Star. This LEGO Death Star comes with 24 minifigs, including 6 which are exclusive to this set. This Death Star measures 16 inches tall by 16½ inches wide, and inside you'll find many of the classic Empire rooms, from the Imperial conference chamber to the TIE Advanced hanger bay. There's even a trash compactor, complete with Dianoga, the trash compactor monster. Bet you didn't know that he had a name. Despite all the pieces, this is one build that shouldn't be too hard to put together, as you'll have some nice photos an instructions to go along with it. The LEGO Death Star kit isn't cheap though – it sells for $399.99 (USD) over at LEGO's online shop and Amazon. [via GeekAlerts]

Super Mario Bento Boxes Make Mouths Happy - Technabob

Super Mario Bento Boxes Make Mouths Happy - Technabob

Star Wars Commercials Mock Windows 7 Ads - Technabob

Star Wars Commercials Mock Windows 7 Ads - Technabob

Just finished....

The Dirty Dozen & Clean 15

Of course, I like 10 of these items.

Produce with the highest pesticide levels (per the Environmental Working Group):

1. Peaches
2. Apples
3. Bell Peppers
4. Celery
5. Nectarines
6. Strawberries
7. Cherries
8. Kale
9. Lettuce
10. Imported Grapes
11. Carrots
12. Pears

The Clean 15:

1. Onions
2. Avocado
3. Corn
4. Pineapple
5. Mangoes
6. Asparagus
7. Sweet Peas
8. Kiwifruit
9. Cabbage
10. Eggplant
11. Papaya
12. Watermelon
13. Broccoli
14. Tomatoes
15. Sweet Potatoes

We are trying to grow a few of these in our teeny tiny garden. We water them and the bugs come to eat the moist leaves. We are still trying and praying for rain.

Source: American Baby Magazine May 2010

Facebook tracks your Web surfing

5/28/2011

Facebook is an online powerhouse. Many sites rely on the site to promote their content. That's why many sites add a Facebook "Like" button beside stories. You can click the button to share the story with your family and friends.

Unfortunately, this convenience comes at a price. Facebook's "Like" button is known as a smart widget. Facebook can use it to track your online movements as you go from site to site.

Widgets are little programs embedded in websites or computer desktops. They're used to add a specific function. For example, a weather widget will tell you the weather. There are stock market widgets, calendar widgets and so forth.

On websites, widgets typically link to other sites. For instance, most sites have a sharing widget. This lets you easily share interesting content with friends. I even have one on my site. It's a red bar at the top of the screen. Don't worry, though, it isn't tracking you.

Facebook, Twitter and Google decided to go a step further, however. They created "smart" widgets. It's like in those movies where they make a gun-toting robot "smart." It just sounds like a bad idea.

The most common smart widget is Facebook's "Like" button. It's a faster form of sharing content with your Facebook friends. However, Facebook created another website widget as well.

You've seen this one around, I'm sure. It tells you which of your friends visited or liked an article. That's so you know your friends have been to the same page. It's the "social" part of social networking.

Plus, it sounds harmless enough. There's just one problem. To know who your friends are, Facebook has to know who is visiting the site. It also has to know what site you're on.

So, Facebook has to be tracking you and the pages you visit. Twitter and Google have similar systems. It's just how the widgets have to work. 

How widespread is this? Well, some analysts did a test. Of the top 1,000 popular websites, more than 300 sites reported to Facebook. More than 200 reported to Google and 200 to Twitter.

Of course, these sites say they don't use this data. Data is made anonymous so they can't pull your browsing history, for instance. Facebook claims it deletes the data within 90 days and Google within two weeks.

Facebook also says that no data is given to advertisers. That is, unless you actually click a "Like" button. However, it doesn't give out all your browsing data. That's something, I guess.

It doesn't mean the companies couldn't change their policies in the future. They could easily build up a record of your Web surfing. It would be invaluable to advertisers to know all about your life. So, what can you do about it?

Well, first of all, you can log out of Facebook. Facebook can keep you logged in for a month. Closing your browser doesn't log you out of Facebook. To log out of Facebook, you have to actually click Account>>Log Out. The same goes for your Google Account. That will keep them from tracking you.

Facebook also lets you turn off personalization. This is what communicates personal information to widgets. If it's off, Facebook doesn't really need to track you.

You can turn off the personalization in your Facebook account settings. Go to Account>>Privacy Settings. Then at the bottom under Applications and Websites, click Edit Your Settings.

Go to Instant Personalization and click Edit Settings. Here you can turn off Instant Personalization. This also keeps third-party sites from getting your private account information.

Note that third-party sites can still access any information you have set to Public. Learn how to set your privacy settings to avoid this.

Finally, you can block smart widgets directly. But you will need to be running either Firefox or Chrome. Some of these techniques also work for Safari.

For Firefox, Chrome and Safari, you can download theDisconnect extension. This was actually developed by a former Google engineer. It is designed specifically to block social network communication with third-party sites. It catches Facebook, Google, Yahoo!, Twitter and more.

However, sometimes you want communication to occur. You might want to watch a Facebook-hosted video, for example. Fortunately, Disconnect adds an icon to your browser. It lets you manage blocked widgets for every site.

There are other extensions you can try as well. There's the Facebook Blocker extension for Firefox, Chrome and Safari. It will block Facebook content on third-party Websites.

In Chrome, you can also use WidgetBlock. This will disable all social widgets on Websites. That includes Facebook, Twitter, Google Buzz and many others.

Sent from my iMickey! 8(; - )
⁰●⁰. ⁰●⁰.⁰●⁰.⁰●⁰.⁰●⁰.⁰●⁰.⁰●⁰.⁰●⁰.⁰●⁰           

The ultimate manicure for gamer brides! | Offbeat Bride

The ultimate manicure for gamer brides! | Offbeat Bride

I really would like to have them. Thank you. lol

Don't Steal from Your Kids by Giving Them

You know it really does suck to be a parent sometimes. <sigh>

Children nowadays tend to have the gimme gimme disease or entitlement wart.

I hope I have not raised my children to have those afflictions.

I am very proud of my kids and while I think they have mild forms of these diseases, we really try to keep them in check.

Just ask them, they will tell you that they do not get everything they want. Life is hard isn't it. Wah!

 

Good luck raising your kiddo's. I am still waiting for the manual on that topic.

 

ºoº D

 

Don't Steal from Your Kids by Giving Them
too Much!
Weekly Tip from the Love and Logic^® Experts

Dear Friend,

 

I know a loving mom who does just about everything to make sure her kids are happy every second of the day. If there isn't the type of food they like in the fridge, she runs to the store to buy it. Whenever the newest electronic device comes out, she makes sure they're the first to own it.

 

Of course, she refrains from requiring any chores out of them, because she knows they work hard at school. Besides, it upsets them when she asks them to help.

 

Unfortunately, and unintentionally, mom is stealing from her children. They are two of the most miserable human beings on earth. They walk around; actually they sit around most of the time, with scowls on their faces. Because mom has stolen their self-esteem and gotten them hooked on stuff, nothing seems to bring happiness or contentment. Everything is "stupid" or "boring."

 

When we train our kids to believe that getting stuff is the key to happiness, might we be stealing their lifelong joy and sense of fulfillment? In our book, From Innocence to Entitlement, we teach that true contentment comes from earning things rather than being showered with them.

 

To protect your children from this type of insidious theft, experiment with the following:

• The next time your child wants something, ask, "How do you think you might earn that?"
  
  
• Instead of taking on the problem of affording the item, say, "You may have that as soon as you can afford it."
  
  
• Give them some ideas about how they might earn the required cash, and give yourself a pat on the back for not giving in.
  
  
• Notice how proud they are when they earn things through good old-fashioned perspiration.

Thanks for reading! Our goal is to help as many families as possible. If this is a benefit, forward it to a friend.

 

Jim Fay

 

©2011 Love and Logic Institute, Inc. All copyright infringement laws apply. Permission granted for forwarding and/or for a single photocopy or electronic reproduction of one email tip only. Please do not alter or modify. For more information, call the Love and Logic Institute, Inc. at 800-338-4065.

 

 

---

"All of your dreams can come true if you have the courage to pursue them." -  ºoº Walt Disney ºoº  

 

Marshmallows (Blog:She Scribes)

Scouring the blogs for info for you, so you don't have to.

 

This is another must have for those S'more lovers out there. She even has 3 bags to giveaway.

YUM YUM!
 

Kraft Jet Puffed StackerMallows – A 'Smores Lovers Dream! (Giveaway)

Posted: 24 May 2011 09:02 AM PDT

Tweet

 

Who doesn't love a 'smore? It has something for everyone…ooey, gooey marshmallow, sweet & crunchy graham cracker and luscious chocolate. Mmm… I could go for one right now.

I think everyone knows how to make a 'smore. If not it's super easy to do. You take a graham cracker, top it with a marshmallow and some chocolate, and then add another graham cracker on top.

When you are making 'smores around the campfire it's part of the experience to get sticky and covered in marshmallow and chocolate. For the perfect 'smore you need to have a warmed marshmallow to mash between the graham crackers and chocolate.

Making 'smores at home using the microwave is not the same as a campfire. Marshmallows tend to blow up when they are "nuked" in the microwave, where as campfire marshmallows simply get brown and soft.

Trying to mash a bit marshmallow between two graham crackers not only is messy but often causes the graham crackers to crack and break, making even more of a mess.

Kraft came up with the perfect solution – Kraft Jet Puffed StackerMallows. StackerMallows are flat and rectangular shaped, perfect for on top of a graham cracker. It's as if they were made especially with graham crackers in mind.

I could not wait to make a 'smore when I received a package of the StackerMallows. Since I didn't have a Hershey bar handy I used the next best thing – Hershey's Kisses.

FYI… StackerMallows blow up in the microwave just like regular marshmallows. If you have Kisses on top the roll off as the marshmallow plumps up. It's best to warm up the kisses to the side, and then put them on top of the marshmallow before topping it off with another graham cracker.

The StackerMallows taste exactly like regular Kraft Jet Puffed Marshmallows, only their shape is different.

I can't wait to try one of these out in a cup of hot cocoa. Because of it's shape you can even dip the marshmallow in the hot chocolate too.

I'm trying to think of other cookies I can sandwich one of the StackerMallows in between. It doesn't even have to be melted.  

Look for Kraft Jet Puffed StackerMallows on a store shelf near you.

 

I have three bags of Kraft Jet Puffed StackerMallows I can give away to three winners (one bag per winner).

To enter simply comment on what you would you do with the StackerMallows? Would you use them in a recipe or eat them right out of the bag?

For extra entries you can do any or all of the following. Please leave a separate comment for each that you have done. Extra entries are optional.

- Subscribe to She Scribes and/or Connect with Google Friend Connect. Both options are found on the right side bar.

- "Like" She Scribes on Facebook, www.Facebook.com/SheScribes.

- "Like" Kraft on Facebook, www.Facebook.com/KraftFoods.

- Follow She Scribes on Twitter (www.Twitter.com/She_Scribes) and tweet about this review/giveaway. Be sure to include @She_Scribes in the tweet so I may see it too. This is limited to three tweets per day.

- Follow Kraft on Twitter, www.Twitter.com/KraftFoods.

- Share this review/giveaway with others (Facebook, Digg, Technorati…). Be sure to tell me what you did and provide a name and/or e-mail so I can verify.

This giveaway is open to US residents only and will end on June 1, 2011 at 11:59 PM (EST). The winners will be chosen at random using a random number generator from all eligible entries. The winners will be notified via e-mail and will have three days to reply with a name and mailing address (no PO Box) or a new winner will be chosen in their place.

Other great giveaways can be found on the right side bar under "Win It".

Kimberly

*I received a free product sample in order to do this review. There was no compensation. The opininons expressed are my own.

Daily word

I've been receiving these in perfect time after crying out for help. It's like he is listening. Which, he always is.  The scripture can put into words what I can not verbalize. 

Sent from my iMickey! 8(; - )
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Begin forwarded message:

A righteous man may have many troubles,
but the LORD  delivers him from them all;
  ( Psalms 34:19 *NIV )

  We all face troubling times in our lives. Times that we
wish that we could escape from troubles like the pain of
sorrow, grief or failure to just name a few.  Even perhaps
the small daily frustrations that constantly bother us as well.

  When you find yourself experiencing problems like that
remember that; The LORD  is close to the broken-
hearted and saves those who are crushed in
spirit. ( Psalms 34:18 )  For after all; The eyes of
the LORD  are on the righteous and his ears
are attentive to their cry; (Psalms 34:15 )  
For when; The righteous cry out, and the LORD
hears them; He delivers them from all their
troubles.                         ( Psalms 34:17 )

 Now you may be thinking, how does that apply to me for
I do not feel very righteous.   Well through Jesus Christ we
become righteous, for it is written; God made Him who had
no sin to be sins for us, so that in Him we might
become the righteousness of God.  Therefore
if we repent of our sins they are cleansed from "The Book of
Life," and we become  righteous once again!

So, remember the Words of our Savior Jesus
Christ; "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust
in God; trust also in Me. and let GOD deliver
you from all of your troubles! Amen. ( John 14:1 )

All My Love & Prayers,
      Pastor Allen

Photo by: Will Merydith

Letting Them Fall

May 25, 2011

by Erin Beth Liles of "Coloring Outside the Lines"

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When we arrived at the skating rink that April day, I was excited. "This is going to be fun!" I said, full of memories of myself gliding around the neighborhood on my skates. I was eager to teach my daughter Maya, then seven, how to skate the way I had as a kid. It turned out to be much harder than I thought – mostly for me.

We laced up our skates and headed toward the rink, our faces taking on the rainbow hue of the lights. As Maya wobbled out onto the slick surface, I, mother, giver of assistance, was ready to help. "We'll do it together," I said. "I'll help you." But when I tried to hold her hand, she wobbled even more. When I skated next to her, she skated into my feet. "Let me go mom, I got this," she said as she precariously inched forward. My stomach took a sick turn as I watched her skate out onto what looked like a speedway full of race cars. The other skaters zoomed around the rink-drivers in the Indy 500. I panicked. "Hold onto the wall," I instructed, hoping I could at least help her by telling her what to do. But she didn't want to be told what to do. She wanted to do it herself. Without me.

I took a lap around the rink and came back to skate just a bit ahead of her. I watched helplessly as she fell. She fell skating near the wall, in the middle, from one end of the rink to the other. Each time I tried to help her she shooed me away like I was a fly. And each time she fell, I heard a faint crack. Of course I was terrified that it was bones I heard breaking, but then I realized that it was the sound of my heart breaking, just a little, with each of her falls. And in that moment, I was going against the most important rule of motherhood I knew. You protect your children. You keep them safe. I was letting her fall. But after about an hour, she was cruising along and singing to the music, sweaty and bruised, but happy. I saw that she was proud. I saw how confident she was. "Look mom!" she shouted. "I'm doing it!"

In the days following our trip to the roller rink, I thought a lot about the idea of letting my child fall. After all, I often tell her, "It's ok to make mistakes because you always learn from them." But I was beginning to wonder, how often do I let her make mistakes? How often do I just do things for her because it's hard to watch her fall?

A few weeks ago, I let Maya (now eight) walk to the mailbox, less than half a block away. When it was taking longer than expected, I went to see what the hold-up was. She had jammed the key so that it was bent and wouldn't fit in the keyhole. "Wait right here," I said, "I'll go get the spare key." When I returned, Maya said, "Some lady asked me if I was ok." A streak of fear flashed through me. Did this stranger think I was putting my child at risk by letting her walk down the street on her own? With visions of Child Protective Services showing up at my door, we walked the short distance home – me second-guessing my decision to let my child engage in an independent activity – my child, well, she was quite happy.

In her blog, "Free-range Kids," Lenore Skenanzy has created a movement that encourages parents to let children take just such risks. She writes, "A Free-Range Kid is a kid who gets treated as a smart, young, capable individual, not an invalid who needs constant attention and help." However, knowing when to help and when not to, is not always so easy. Most of us remember our childhoods as having a fair amount of freedom and independence, unlike today's children, whose lives are much more contained and protected. With access to 24-hour news and all its horrifying stories about injuries and abductions, we modern parents worry more than parents did in past generations. Maybe it was this fear that made watching her fall so difficult. Maybe it was what made that well-meaning stranger worry about my child. But my child was telling me she needed me to let her go a little, to let her fall, so that she could learn how to get up on her own. I needed to listen. I needed to give her some room to grow, away from the tightened gaze of parental eyes.

As Skenanzy says, "Children, like chickens, deserve a life outside the cage. The overprotected life is stunting and stifling…" It's not easy. Fear is a powerful motivator. But sometimes, when we decide it's right, we have to look that fear in the eyes and tell it to get lost, so that our children can find themselves. And so, on that day at the roller rink, I chose to open the cage. And now, Maya knows the joy of gliding around the neighborhood in her own pair of spiffy new skates.

Oh, she still falls down, and not just on her skates. Only now, I don't feel like I've fallen down as a parent when she does.

Erin Beth Liles is a stay at home mom and freelance writer.

http://www.mamapedia.com/voices/letting-them-fall

Sent from my iMickey! 8(; - )
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STORE-M's MATRYOSHKA NESTING CONTAINERS

STORE-M's MATRYOSHKA NESTING CONTAINERS

Adorable. Another must have. ARGH!

Urban Dictionary

Freakin' hilarious.

RETRO GAME CONTROLLER iPHONE 4G COVER / RE-COVER

RETRO GAME CONTROLLER iPHONE 4G COVER / RE-COVER

Very cool and different. Love it.

Finished reading...

So very sad. Prayers to the families of these little girls.

Happy Saturday

Oh my. These had me cracking up. 

Enjoy,

D

           

Begin forwarded message:

The righteous man leads a blameless life;
blessed are his children after him. 

( Proverbs 20:7 *NIV )
   we will again take a look at what children say, and see the World
through the eyes of a six year old.  After all, Children's children
are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride
of their children.                   ( Proverbs 17:6 )

   Now the following was sent to me by one of our subscribers,
and it teaches us the following lesson,

 DON'T EVER TRY TO ARGUE WITH CHILDREN...

1) A little girl was talking to her teacher about whales. The teacher
said it was physically impossible for a whale to swallow a human
because even though it was a very large mammal its throat was very
small.  The little girl stated that Jonah was swallowed by a whale.
Irritated, the teacher reiterated that a whale could not swallow a
human; it was physically impossible.
The little girl said, "When I get to Heaven I will ask Jonah".
The teacher asked,  "What if Jonah went to hell?"
The little girl replied, "Then you ask him".

2) A Kindergarten teacher was observing her classroom of children
while they drew.  She would occasionally walk around to see each
child's work.  As she got to one little girl who was working diligently,
she asked what the drawing was?  The girl replied, "I'm drawing
God."  The teacher paused and said, "But no one knows what God
looks like."  Without missing a beat, or looking up from her drawing,
the girl replied, "They will in a minute."

3) A Sunday school teacher was discussing the Ten Commandments
with her five and six year olds.  After explaining the commandment to
"honor" thy Father and thy Mother," she asked, "is there a
commandment that teaches us how to treat our brothers and sisters?"
Without hesitating one little boy (the oldest in his family) answered,
"Thou shall not kill."

4) One day a little girl was sitting and watching her mother do the
dishes at the kitchen sink.  She suddenly noticed that her mother had
several strands of white hair sticking out in contrast on her brunette
head.  She looked at her mother and inquisitively asked, "Why are
some of your hairs white, Mom?"  Her mother replied, "Well, every
time that you do something wrong and make me cry or unhappy, one
of my hairs turns white."  The little girl thought about this revelation
for a while and then said, "Momma, how come ALL of grandma's hairs
are white then?"

5) The children had all been photographed, and the teacher was
trying to persuade them each to buy a copy of the group picture.
"Just think how nice it will be to look at it when you are all grown up
and say, 'There's Jennifer; she's a lawyer,' or 'That's Michael. He's
a doctor.'"  A small voice at the back of the room rang out, "And
there's the teacher, She's dead."

I hope that you enjoyed these as much as I!
Have a great weekend!  Amen

All My Love & Prayers,
      Pastor Allen

Currently reading...

Blogroll - Toy With Me

OMG - I love this blog and had to share her post for today.
 

 

Truly funny stuff. 

 Enjoy!

 

Toy With Me

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I Have No Intention of Getting Knocked Up! Posted: 17 May 2011 06:37 AM PDT PRELUDE TO THE DELUDE: This is my post Mother's Day article about babies and shiz. The Fairytale goes: Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, wed the beautiful Catherine and turned her into a Duchess and they lived happily ever after. The End. Finally they were able to chill out at Buckingham Palace and do whatever it is do indoors, which is where they probably spend a lot of time hiding out from paparazzi.  RANDOM THOUGHT: I wonder if they call each other "babe" in the privacy of their own castle space. Imagine Kate saying to Prince Will, "Hey babe, could you please pass the strawberry jam?" Kind of messes with the ideology of aristocratic convention when you infuse modern day slang. Meh, more than likely there won't be any time for talking since the Duke may be a little too busy buttering the Duchess's scone, if ya know what I mean. Not just because they're newlyweds, but because GET THIS: Will has nine months to zap Kate's royal egg and produce an heir for the second-in-line to the throne if he plans to uphold 200 years of tradition. Apparently the British kingdom is paranoid about a break in the line to succession so they expect immediate results (COURTESY Yahoo News). Wow. That's a lot of FUCKING pressure. And if you look at history, every time someone messes with tradition or royal rule, bad things happen. Like someone gets beheaded or there's a curse over the land, hence the plague and the potato famine. If Kate doesn't have that baby within eighteen months, in modern day language that probably means the death of Facebook or Google. Or the internet altogether. My God, how will we communicate without the internet?! My generation is not used to talking. This is the type and text era. Say WHAT?!  FOLLOWED BY: Fuck Me. Into procreation. Superstition and sarcasm aside, I mean that's what people do, right? They fall in love, get married and have a BABY. It's a completely normal natural process. Unless…you're me. You see, I have these baby fears. ALL the time. And it's not just one fear — it's every zygotic, embryonic, fetal fear imaginable locked inside the darkest enclave of the part of my mind that controls my uterus. The truth is babies scare me more than (insert worst fear). For instance, I'm afraid I'm going to fall pregnant to the wrong guy at the wrong time and then he'll leave me for a supermodel. Oh wait. That actually happened to Bridget Moynahan with Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen. See. It's not just in my head. OR: I'm scared that I'll finally be ready to have a baby and it won't happen. Like my fallopian tubes will fail or my ovaries will be like, "Sorry. We're out of commission. When we were willing to participate you couldn't get your shit together and find some sperm. We're over it."  Nooo, please grant me a child. I need to prove my mother wrong! Or in Kate Middleton's case, the monarchy (and possibly the internet, if my prediction proves correct) is at stake. SIDE NOTE: Don't underestimate the value of your vagina. It's the gateway to the future. You could be giving birth to the next King…or Copernicus (I was trying to be original there and not say Einstein)…or worst case scenario – Hitler (there's no point in trying to be original if you're looking for a bad guy). I suppose that's where abortion comes in handy. Ooh Crude. But really, it's hard to be nice when it comes to Hitler. MOVING ON… And of course then there are the logistics of pushing a small human out of your holy shrine. It's not the head that freaks me out, but the shoulders. I gotta be honest guys, I am not looking forward to that kind of pain. Or the permanent damage to my body. MESSAGE TO FUTURE CHILD: If you're leaving me with stretch marks, then I am imposing my Smurf obsession on you. Don't worry, Smurfs are Awesome! Mama will be sipping her cocktail while you drink your milk. What? I'll have to make up for not drinking for over a year  – nine months plus breast feeding stage. I have no idea how I'm going to get through that.  But maybe it'll be okay because I'll have a bigger goal to focus on, as in GIVING LIFE. Hey check it: I made a person. Try to compare your highest non human forming accomplishment to that. You can't. Mothers rock! It still weirds me out that sex leads to baby making. I understand the science, but it's a bit of a contradiction, particularly if you associate sex with fun. As the equation goes: Sexual freedom plus fertility equals a little bundle of responsibility, which brings me to my next fear: What if I'm an irresponsible mother? Or I just suck at motherhood. Or I get bored and decide I don't want to do it full-time, like that writer – Rahna Reiko Rizzuto, who converted to part time mom after she realized motherhood wasn't her thing (chronicled in her memoir – Hiroshima in the Morning). I don't want to be a deserter. I want to be a good mom – selfless, loving and not obsessed with beige (I still plan on being trendy). If motherhood comes my way, I hope I'm like Keri Russell. Babies totally suit her. If you think the girl can't get any cuter, hand her a baby and you'll see. Or just rent 'We Were Soldiers.' She also suits being pregnant. Think of her in 'Waitress.' She's like my ultimate baby mama inspiration. Visually, that is. For now I have no intention of getting knocked up, even if I meet the perfect baby daddy tomorrow. This is where contraceptives come in handy. Besides, I have to fulfill my pre-baby travel fantasy of going to Turkey, Morocco, Egypt and Greece. After that I suppose we'll see, but hopefully the whole baby thing (if and when it happens) will be a pleasant surprise and not my greatest fear coming to life. As for the Duchess, well I guess we'll find out if she meets the baby deadline through the tabloids…or if the internet suddenly stops working. Post from: Toy With Me

The "Mickey Hidden Message" Engraved Women's Three Band Ring

The "Mickey Hidden Message" Engraved Women's Three Band Ring

Mothers Day

My breakfast....Yum!

So adorable...