Kindergarten is in Full Swing!

LM and one of his buddies from preschool at the back to school picnic.

Since I didn't get a timely "first day of school" post up, let me share those photos and some others regarding Kindergarten this year for our LM. So far, he LOVES it!

Sack races at back to school picnic!

He loves school, is making friends, and loves his teacher and the other teachers at the school. He attends a very small public school, and has only 14 students in his class.

On the first day.

They are learning to write better, read, explore the worlds of science, music, art, yoga, Spanish and more! The school has a chicken coop and a garden, and they are getting to work with those special areas as well.

Because the school is so small, they are clustered by grades, so he does many things with kids in K-2. They also have a "buddy" program where they are paired up with a 7th grader (the school is K-8) and LM has really enjoyed this as well.

Since the start of school, S had the opportunity to be a part of the mystery reader program. He went to class and read LM's current book favorite, Big Mean Mike, to the class. 

They have also participated in harvesting the garden, picking both corn and potatoes. LM's teacher is so great to send along photos of activities as they do them, which is a nice way for us to follow along. The kids dressed up like pirates one day to present their song about the school's guiding principals to the older students. And, they had a big celebration on National Punctuation Day, where they began to learn about punctuation. They have also learned about fire safety and much, much more! This week we will have special senior's day, and right around the corner are Halloween parties and a Veterans Day event. So, Kindergarten is off to a great start!

See you soon.

Mythbusters: Farm Edition

I have just finished up my last farm visit as part of Illinois Farm Families City Moms for 2015. And, I wanted to summarize some of the common myths out there in the media, and used by marketers to make a sale, that were busted for me during this year of visiting farm families all over northern Illinois.

MYTH: "Organic" means "pesticide free"
FACT: "Organic" is a term that is regulated by the USDA and FDA. To use the term organic on your product, you DO have to meet certain guidelines, as outlined here. And, to use pesticides on an organic crop, it has to be an organic pesticide. Organic substances are not all "good for you" - they are just organic, meaning "of, relating to, or derived from living matter." People often think of manure or compost, which are both organic. But arsenic is also organic. The level of pesticide, organic or conventional, is not controlled by these labels, and you cannot really know whether that conventional product has more or less pesticide than the organic. You just know that pesticide that was used fit the organic guidelines. So, just be a savvy consumer and realize what is marketing and what is useful for your family. And wash your fruits and vegetables!

MYTH: There are antibiotics in our meat and milk supply
FACT: While sometimes it is necessary to give an animal an antibiotic to treat an illness, so it does not spread to the rest of the herd, it does not mean those antibiotics are in our food. There are well documented "withdrawal" times for every medicine. Farmers and their veterinarians know these withdrawal times. No animal is milked or sent to harvest until all of that antibiotic has left their system. Additionally, the great majority of antibiotics used on animals are not the same ones being used by humans. What's more, you don't have to even trust the farmer on this! The USDA is on hand all day, every day, at every milk intake plant or harvest facility, testing animals and milk. If the milk or animals are ever found to have broken the rules, the entire load of milk or animals is rejected, the farmer doesn't get paid, and they are put on a watch list. When on that list, they are subject to further scrutiny and testing that costs them more money. Farmers want to follow the rules. Farmers want to make money on milk or animals they have spent money to raise. It's their livelihood. It's that simple.

MYTH: Non-GMO means healthier and safer for your family
FACT: First, it might be useful for you to know why GMO foods were begun in the first place. Along with corn and soybeans, another early successful GMO seeds was for papaya plants, and the seed allowed for an entire crop to be saved from a very invasive virus that, if left alone, would have eradicated them from the planet. You can learn more about that here. Additionally, GMO seeds have increased yield on plants, allowing leaders to feed more people with less land around the globe, where there are increasingly more mouths to feed. GMO seeds require less pesticide use than non-GMO crops. And, in over 40 years of testing, there has not been one test that has indicated there is any change to your food, eating GMO or non-GMO. This is a multi-layered topic, but you should know there is no empirical evidence to support the claim that non-GMO foods are healthier or safer for your family.

This is just the tip of the iceberg of the things I have learned as a City Mom. I am now a more informed consumer for me and my family. I am so very grateful for the opportunity to participate in this program. 

My Big Boy is 5!

 

Just minutes old

Five years ago today, I got my very pregnant body, which had been struggling with blood pressure issues and did not enjoy the Texas summer heat, up and went to eat at IHOP with S and Dad at 4am - and gave birth to this boy at 1:11pm. Oh, how he has changed our lives forever!

 

One year old

He is so smart, interesting, stubborn and active. He lives life in a BIG, physical way. He has so MANY questions about this world of ours, and usually those questions are very interesting, even if I've had my fill of them at that moment. He thinks anyone he meets of any age is a potential friend and wants to hear his life story, and tell him theirs. He loves to imagine and pretend play. 

 

Two years old

He loves having the "right" outfit for every occasion - be it the firehouse, the baseball field, or Easter service. He is such a loving big brother, and sweet boy. He keeps this old mama on her toes, and on good days I keep up with him. 

Three years old

 

Four years old

He will be off to kindergarten soon, which is amazing to me! He might a visual mini-me of his Dad, but has a sentimental inside that is all from his Mom. (poor boy!) He has enriched our lives beyond measure.

 

Five years old!

Last night, when I went in to tell him goodnight, he said, "Mom, what is tomorrow?" I said, "It's your 5th birthday, silly boy!" And he said, "Oh yeah, right!" with a goofy grin from ear to ear. Happy, Happy 5th Birthday to our LM!

All About Mom by LM

A friend posted this series of questions on Facebook the other day and said she wanted other people to ask their kids and post their answers. So, I did. I'm compliant like that. Here are the questions and the answers, given by LM, age 4. I post them with no comment. 

1. What is something mom always says to you? Don’t do it
2. What makes mom happy? Bringing flowers to you
3. What makes mom sad? Not giving flowers to you 
4. How does your mom make you laugh? Tickles my armpits
5. What was your mom like as a child? Short with blonde hair

6. How old is your mom? 41
7. How tall is your mom? 41 feet
8. What is her favorite thing to do? Go do fun stuff with me
9. What does your mom do when you're not around? Read a book
10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? Playing a guitar
11. What is your mom really good at? Entertaining me
12. What is your mom not very good at? Nothing

13. What does your mom do for a job? Play with me and BB
14.What is your mom's favorite food? I don’t know
15.What makes you proud of your mom? When she makes a beautiful painting 
16. If your mom were a character, who would she be? Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz because her skin looks like wood
17. What do you and your mom do together? Go out to the museum 
18. How are you and your mom the same? Same color hair
19. How are you and your mom different? Different color eyes 

20. How do you know your mom loves you? She always shows a sign of it
21. What does your mom like most about your dad? That she gets to see him on the weekends
22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go? Chuck E Cheese 
23. How old was your Mom when you were born? Pretty old!

Technology on the Farm

I enjoyed another day with my fellow City Moms recently, when we had the opportunity to tour the Meyer Saathoff Family farm. The focus of our visit was to learn about planting crops, specifically corn and soybean crops. I am sure there will be blogs that talk more about this process and the information gained therein. But, what I have been completely mesmerized by at this visit, and at our last tour to the pig farrowing farm earlier in the spring, is the amount of technology on the farm.

It is no wonder farmers are spending more time in the classroom, at industry events and networking with others than in previous generations, because to learn and use this technology has changed farming in many ways. It has helped mitigate some of the risk of farming for each family, and allowed for better use of soil, nutrients, fertilizer, seeds and pesticides, and ultimately allowed for larger yields with more targeted work.

For example, soil is tested in all sorts of ways to allow the farmer to have more knowledge and control. They can see what nutrients are lacking in the soil, and choose to fertilize to add only the nutrients needed for an upcoming crop. Or, they can choose to plant certain crops in certain locations that will allow for maximum yield. This testing helps the farmer spend resources only on the fertilizer and nutrients needed, and plan for the most effective crop rotation.

There is also extensive use of GPS, and tablet apps that track water retention in the fields on a real-time basis! And much, much more, but those are for another post. It's amazing how technologically savvy our family farmers have become.

A Friend Update

After my last, sad "woe is me and my boy" post, I thought I better give you an update. I DID talk to his teachers and found out two things that made the whole thing a little less daunting. First, the boy who was taunting LM about not inviting him to his birthday party didn't have a birthday party. Now, I don't know if he just didn't have a friend party - that is my guess as this school doesn't seem like a place where a child's birthday would go unnoticed - but obviously this child was feeling insecure about the fact, and was sharing his insecurity with everyone else. Or, at least, LM.

Also, I learned there are "centers" in their classroom, and each center has a limit to the number of kids who can be there. The teachers thought perhaps this was part of the time when he was insinuating people weren't playing with him. They were just indicating the center was full, so he would need to move to a different one. The teachers had a talk about this with the children - how to best tell someone to move on, and how to tell someone you just arrived so to not be pushed out. LM reiterated the talk to me, and said it was important they covered it for another boy in the class. Ahem. Funny.

The teachers also said LM seems to play with everyone in the class, and seems happy to move from child to child, friendly with everyone. This is similar to his behavior in his class in Dallas, although he did have some special friends. So, it was nice to hear he had not suddenly become a quiet wallflower - ha - anyone of you who know LM know this ain't gonna really ever happen. So I should remember that!

AND, we learned one of the boys who invited him to a party will be in his class NEXT year - his school is a small one, and his preschool is in a slightly different area, where most children will go to a different school next year. But, learning one face will be the same was nice to know. I plan to invite that child over for a playdate in the near future.

What's more, the weather has broken into spring-ish temps, so we've been riding the neighborhood, meeting new neighbors. Everyone has been so nice. LM was able to meet a little girl who will be in his class next year, and learn about another boy who will also be in his class that we hope to meet soon. So, there are kids he can learn to know over the spring and summer.

If that isn't enough, a friend of mine in the mothers of preschoolers group invited him to a playdate with her son and two other boys, one of which will be in his class next year. My friend said LM especially hit it off with his future classmate, and that she really enjoyed having him over. She reported he wasn't exhibiting any anti-social behavior - quite the contrary - he joined right in, was a compromise finder, a problem solver, and very thoughtful to the other children. What a nice thing to hear.

So, isn't this a different picture? I am so glad I spoke with the teachers and we have found some other good leads on special future friends. This warms my heart and calms my worries. Until I think of the next thing to worry about.

See you soon.

Friends

I am a girl who has amazing friends. Some have been around since birth. Since preschool. Since college. Since we met at work. Since I moved to Illinois. But, in that long list of friends, there are some real gems. Seriously, I am a lucky girl. This cannot be overstated.

My boy LM has some great friends too - from school and his cousins - in other cities. Since he joined his little preschool last September, I have been waiting to sense him making real, quality friendships here in Illinois. I quiz him about what went on at school, and listen to the people he spoke about playing with on the playground or when they were doing an activity. Never did a pattern emerge where I got the feeling he was bonding with one or two children closely. So, of course, I kept asking questions.

Lately, though, he has mentioned how one boy he used to talk about as a friend was telling him and his other classmates that he wasn't inviting LM to his birthday party. He asked me why would this child do this to him? He also has said, when I ask who did he play with at school, that he was playing with this child or that child but then they said they didn't want him to play with them anymore, so he'd move on to another until he was told by that child the same thing and so on.

He has been invited to two birthday parties - both were to parties of boys he rarely mentions, so I can only imagine they invited the whole class. It's so nice of him to be invited nonetheless, but both times we have been out of town at the date of the parties. And, both times, I wrote the parents to express his regret, telling them we are new in town and thanking them for including them. Both times we sent gifts to school, and while one is recent so a reply might still come, so far, both times, no return email or thank you note. Normally this would mean nothing, but as I look for something that might mean my boy is making headway in the friend department, this is noticed.

Can I tell you how my heart breaks when he seems so sad? Can I tell you how he says hello to any child we see anywhere, anytime, anyplace, trying to find connection in this new place? Can I tell you how much he wants to play with other children - to be a friend? Can I tell you how much I miss his friends that he knew so well? Can I tell you what a kind, funny, smart, interesting boy he is? Why wouldn't these children find him to be friend material?

In the short term, I am going to speak to the teachers, to see what their perception is, and if perhaps there are some students we could invite over for one on one playdates this spring, or if there are other ways I can talk to LM about this situation. I don't want to swoop in and make it a thing, but I do want to help my boy if I can. I'm sure this won't be the last time my heart will suffer for my boy. Parenting is not for the faint of heart, is it!

In the long term, I know this is certainly a short term problem. I know he will make friends - hopefully this summer in the neighborhood, at camps, at church if we can ever pick one. And in the fall as they begin school together in a new place. He will. But, for now, my heart is breaking for him. Probably more than his heart is breaking about it.

Thank God for friends.

See you soon.