Discipline Problems and Fun Stuff!

Yesterday was a little more hectic since Scarlett was not in the best mood.

She ended up really acting out by the end of the day and I had to deal with this. She is now grounded from her Kindle Fire until the end of the month which is about three more weeks.  

Today was much better! She got a significant amount of work done and even studied her spelling words for her test I'll be giving her tomorrow! 

During my lunch hour, I finished uploading our latest video to our YouTube channel. We have been doing toy reviews for a few months, and we have a lot of fun with it. Our channel is called  "The Monster Mane," and one of my amazing friends, Dan Williams designed our logo for us! He is a graphic designer, entertainer, super hero costume designer...you name it and lives in Orlando, FL. 

We began doing the toy reviews because Scarlett follows a few YouTube channels and loves it. She asked me if we could start doing it too because she thought it would be fun. I have to tell you, it really is!

Here is our latest video. Thanks for reading and watching! 

Life Lessons and Gratitude = Peace of Mind

I have often said that I feel that I am a much better parent with my daughter Scarlett, and the mistakes I made with the boys are not being made with her.

Don’t get me wrong, when my boys were little, I was so patient, and did everything for them. However by the time I got separated and divorced from my ex-husband, I allowed the daily stress to direct a lot of my decisions and wasn’t nearly as patient. In hindsight, instead of trying to work so much to make ends meet, I should have figured out some way to spend more time with them. That is one of my regrets. However, at the time, I felt that I was doing what was best for them.

The simple things are easier for me now. The phrase, “Do everything for your children” is pretty much second nature. Perhaps it is dealing with a lot that life has dealt; heartaches, financial issues, you name it…that stuff either makes or breaks you. I have had my moments where breaking points were just around the corner, but always overcame them somehow.

Taking things day by day is still a skill that I aim to perfect, but I feel that I am closer now than ever. I am actually strangely fulfilled. I don’t own my home, but I have a decent place to live. I’m not in a relationship with a significant other, but I have a very significant relationship with my children and myself. I am by no means wealthy, but my children and I are healthy. I have opportunities to sing, dance and act in performances, and this has always been one of my biggest passions. I am not reporting as much right now, but I have my blog, so I am still able to write.

Hopefully the previous paragraph was not too sickly sweet, but oh well. I suppose you don’t have to read it. ;-) Yes, I am also grateful for my smart ass way of thinking and somewhat dry sense of humor. 

And…on that note:

I guess all any of us can do is try our best with the life we have and be thankful every day for our blessings and abilities.

1st Day of Homeschooling!!

Scarlett's first day of homeschooling went very well! As excited as I was to begin, I have to say I was a little nervous.

After she ate her breakfast, she plunged right into her curriculum that I decided to start out with. 

While I was still trying to decide if I would be able to home school her, I decided to research several types of curriculum. There is a lot of information out there, but some of the curriculum was way out of my budget. I was beginning to think that I wouldn't be able to do this. 

I found a site titled Time4Learning. They had demos that she was able to try before Christmas break and she loved it.  At only $19.95 a month, I thought this was a steal. I asked around to see if anyone had heard of this curriculum.  A few of my friends who home school as well as the umbrella school I currently have her enrolled in confirmed that this is a very popular curriculum, and some children do very well with it. 

So far so good! Scarlett spent almost the entire part of her school day engaged and happy to learn. She finished several pages in her handwriting book in addition to her online studies. 

I know this is a quick re-cap of our first day, but so far so good! 

The Home School Decision

When I was still married the thought of homeschooling my children was always at the back of my mind. I never thought that I had enough patience or would do a good job.

Now that my oldest is out of high school, I have decided to home school my youngest child, my daughter, age 9. She has been asking me to home school her for the past two years but  I kept thinking to myself, "How on earth will I be able to accomplish this now as a single parent when I didn't even think that I could do it while still married?"

While I still don't have the exact answer to that question, I am going into this with the confidence that I have made the right decision. I don't expect to have all of the answers or to do everything with perfection, but I know that I love my daughter and want the best for her. 

As I noticed her lack of enthusiasm for reading and school as a whole, it made it easier for me to make this decision. She is only in the third grade and was beginning to have a lack of desire to go to school. Elementary school is the time when children should be learning the basics and enjoy the learning process. It shouldn't be a stressful experience. However, it was nice to have the support of her teacher on her last day of public school before Christmas break. She said that she thinks Scarlett will do very well since she seems to thrive in a "one on one" teaching environment. 

I recently took a job working from home. The hours are decent, and what lacks in pay, I save in gas money. This will definitely help with the transition of this new adventure.

Tomorrow is the first full day that I begin homeschooling Scarlett. Wish me luck and I will keep you posted on how things go!

14 Day Gratitude Challenge! Day 1

I subscribe to a daily email newsletter titled "Personal Excellence," and although I have to confess I don't always read it, I decided to participate in this particular challenge. 

A dear friend of mine died a few days ago, and she was one of the most loving people you could ever know. Her motto was "Love, Joy, Peace and Understanding." During her life celebration last night I couldn't help but think that there are so many things to be grateful for and I found this challenge in my inbox this morning. Seeing this as a sign, here goes. 

Day number one of the challenge is to list ten things you are grateful for. 

I am grateful for: 

1) The health and well being of my three beautiful children. (Che, Logan and Scarlett)

2) My health and well being. 

3) The fact that I have a warm bed to sleep in. (Someone once said to me that things may not be perfect, but she would notice if she didn't have sheets on her bed tomorrow.) 

4) Healthy food and drinking water

5) My freedom

6) The fact that I am able to continue my education no matter what stage of life I may be in. :-)

7) My vehicle to get from point A to point B

8) The fact that I was able to travel and study in Costa Rica twice in one year and bring my daughter along. 

9) That I can see the gorgeous sky and hear the wonders of nature. Yes, I do think about this! ;-)

10)My singing voice. 

Wow! I could go on and on. Okay, I'm not wealthy, and I don't have that "perfect" relationship that everyone talks about in those fabulous romantic comedies, but I am pretty well adjusted! My life is in a continuous stage of progression, and that is another thing to be grateful about!

Adiós Costa Rica....

As I was taking my last walk to the pier and ATM, I began reflecting on the events of the past three weeks in Puntarenas, Costa Rica.

There was so much activity and new experiences that I feel as if I've been here for five weeks instead of three. That is a good thing.  I visited four beaches in my time here, went horseback riding in the mountains, rode a jet ski in the ocean of Costa Rica, snorkeled, zip-lined and made some new friends. All in all, I would say I had a very eventful trip. 

The one regret I have is that I am not coming away from this speaking nearly as much Spanish as I initially hoped. For me, it is going to take more time, but I know that when I actually "get it" it will be amazing and I will wonder why it was ever so hard. I can say that I understand a lot more when I listen, and my Spanglish is pretty darn good.

It finally hit me that I was actually leaving when my madre tica (host mom) gave me a departing gift of leather sandals and a T-Shirt with words "Costa Rica Pura Vida" accompanied by a heart-felt card. I got tears in my eyes at this gesture because yes, I will miss the family that welcomed me with open arms so willingly from the beginning. 

My madre tica is a warm and kind lady, and when I visit Costa Rica again, I will be paying her a visit. That is if I am not living with her again. That would be amazing, but circumstances may not happen that way. 

While walking, the streets didn't seem as busy for some reason and I welcomed this opportunity to relish every little thing about this city. The aromas both good and bad, and the people who greet you with a short "buenas" or "buenos" were among the things I was soaking up today. 

The smoothie shop where I spent so much time was closed unfortunately. There is something about a smoothie made with the freshest fruit available that makes it taste so much better. I have never had smoothies this good in the states. I became friends with the owner, and we shared photos of our families. He helped me with Spanish, and that was always a plus here! I wanted to tell him goodbye, but as I said, it was closed today. That is the good thing about Facebook!

Next door to the smoothie shop is "Casa de Helado" and they served one of my most purchased items in Costa Rica. The Granizado Con Leche Condensada y Pinito. (The Churchill) This is a drink that is shaved ice, syrup, pinito (which basically tastes like Carnation instant creamer) and condensed milk on the top. Sounds strange, but it is AMAZING! I couldn't get enough of those, and it will be missed. 

Iguanas/geckos just randomly walk in the street and on the sidewalks in several different sizes. I will miss that as well. Every time I saw one out in the open like that I was so fascinated. 

My body seemed to adjust to the lack of air-conditioning in the hot tropical weather, but I would say that is one thing I won't miss so much. Of course I say that until I return to the winter weather in Nashville! 

I will miss this country and so many things about it, but I miss my children more. It will be so nice to hug them! I will be back...the next time with mi hija in tow. 

Costa Rica, ¡hasta luego!

Honor Your Soul

Sometimes at night I drink tea to try to relax before turning in. I enjoy the Yogi brand teas as they have a decent flavor that I usually don't need to doctor up with sugar, etc. The thing I like the most about them though are the sayings on the ends of the strings of each tea-bag. 

Tonight my tea had one of those sayings that could not have come at a better time. "Appreciate yourself and honor your soul." Wow! What a powerful statement...honor your soul. This made me think back to yesterday and part of today. 

Yesterday was one of those days, and I assume we have all had them. You know the ones that make you want to throw your hands up and just forget everything. Lost keys, empty gas tank, arguments, stress, whatever!

I have been striving for awhile to maintain a positive outlook on virtually everything, and not feed into negativity. However I still falter at this, and yesterday it seemed like nothing would go right. I said the thing that you should never say. Actually I may have shouted it along with a couple of colorful words. "I hate my life!" 

Even as I said it and felt the anger swell even more, I knew that this was not going to help things. In fact, that kind of attitude usually only tends to escalate a situation from bad to worse almost like a domino effect. I even said to myself almost immediately after the fact that I don't hate my life, I just don't love everything that happens. 

By this time it was pouring rain, getting harder to see, and I realized that a semi-truck was very close and almost hit me in the back on the highway going about 70 m.p.h. or so. I got this image in my mind of cars flying, my car getting smashed against the side, you name it. My mind could have been a scene out of "Final Destination" for about five seconds. 

This jolted me back to reality and I started thinking about my kids and how much I love them, difficulties and all. Then I started thinking about the friends in my life who are the closest to me, and just began going down the list of things to be grateful for. 

The ability to continue my education was high on the list after the basics that I have taken for granted such as eye-sight, food and warmth on a cold night. 

I was talking to a friend a couple of weeks ago about the negativity that some people seem to hold on to for whatever reason. She brought up a good point and basically said that we should all think about what tomorrow would be like if we didn't have what we have today. She added that if she didn't have sheets on her bed tomorrow, she would notice. Amen to that! 

Things aren't perfect by any means, but I think if I continue on my path of trying to maintain a positive outlook, they will eventually be pretty darn close. Perfection is all perception anyway right?