Appreciating the small things

Catching up today on many tasks from the back burners. Just about everything on my list is finished. I have spoken with friends, answered emails, done the laundry, taken time for reading and time for writing, conferenced with John on his daily progress, tidied the house, and so many more small things, including" bossing the boys around" to complete housekeepping tasks. Is that spelled correctly? It looks funny. Even if it's wrong, I like it.

I've recently read The Teacher Who Couldn't Read, by John Corcoran. It is one of the most inspiring and enlightening books I have ever read. Last month I was fortunate to meet John. He touched my heart with his humanity and his message for literacy. You know how some things really reach you and you know you have to do something about it? That's how I feel about helping people to read. We can all improve. That leads to my next topic of excitement. Very soon I will be attending a three day training seminar in the EBLI method of literacy instruction. I've been talking with Nora Chahbazi, the founder and president of EBLI -Evidence Based Literacy Instruction. Nora and I share a similar vision to help others read. Stay tuned for progress.

One of my goals is to get a camera so I can start posting pictures of what we do here and there. Wish I could show you the interesting bug, Audrey and I found the other day. When I find out what it was, I'll add a link. My interest in all things living has been part of me since forever. That interest is renewed these days as I prepare for a nature study that John and I will be doing as part of our new co-op experience. Today, we still need to go outside and just sit and observe for a few minutes, and then come in, or stay out, and record what we saw. We'll be doing that any minute now. It is one of those small things I appreciate so much. More later.

Learning Every Day

I have always loved to learn new things. I am a "show me and I can do it" learner. Some things come easier than others, but I must confess that being a blogger of grammie age, has its limitations. Thank heaven for my sweet, sweet daughter Lisa, who is my blog tutor. We just had a wonderful six day visit. Audrey and I read books, drew with markers, did the same puzzle about a zillion times, took a walk and collected acorns, rocks, and a leaf, played with stickers -she puts them EVERYWHERE, sang funny songs, laughed and tickled, dressed and undressed the dolls, over and over and over, played with bubbles in the bath, and cuddled and rocked at bedtime. Oh the wonder of toddlerhood! What a blessing to see the world and learn through the eyes of my granddaughter - awesome!

My daughter is also constantly teaching me something of value. This time, it was about patience. Lisa has a one month old baby boy in addition to the afore mentioned tiny tornado. Baby Jack is what we used to call a "demanding" baby. He wants his mama, all the time. Lisa does what we mothers do and puts her babies' needs first. It's okay if she doesn't get her shower until the hubs gets home. It's okay if she gets nothing else accomplished on her own "to do" list, those babies are top priority. My precious daughter already knows that these times are treasure. And, she still found time to help me with this blog.

Life is about learning, all the time. I love it!

Audrey and Jack