Quick Take Friday

1. This week I tuned in for the Dancing With The Stars season premiere. I was torn if I really wanted to watch, since there wasn't really anyone on there I knew or really wanted to see. However, I was also lured there by the fact that two new additions would be announced during the show, due to Jewel and Nancy O'Dell being out of the picture due to injuries. It's a lot of fun to watch the first episode of the season because, well, let's face it, some of the 'Stars' really don't have a dancing bone in their body! I enjoy watching the grace and beauty of the dance, but admittedly, I could do without some of those really scant outfits! I was rather disappointed in a few things and bothered while I watched (with my 6 year old daughter). For one thing, the man who is paired with Lacey, Steve-O, apparently was on a popular TV show titled Jackass. That's fine to be mentioned once, but did they really need to use that word to describe him and use plays on that word in every sentence? Another thing, I was disappointed to see Holly Madison, former girlfriend to Hugh Hefner and Playboy bunny as one of the new additions. I totally don't agree with that lifestyle for a TON of reasons, therefore it will be rather difficult to just watch her on the show strictly for 'entertainment value' and not judge her and her lifestyle. Will I continue to watch? Perhaps, but maybe not completely committed every week. I do look forward to watching Julianne Hough with her real-life boyfriend, country singer Chuck Wicks though.



2. We took our overnight family 'winter getaway' on Sunday. We only took a 20 mile drive to a local hotel attraction which includes an indoor water park. It helps when a place like that offers a spring break rate that includes the room and 4 water park passes for one low rate! As expected, we had a great time as a family and the kids thoroughly enjoyed it. Like last year, we spent hours at the water park both on Sunday afternoon and for a little bit before check-out on Monday morning. We also ordered pizza for dinner and ate it on our beds (the kids always get a kick out of that for some reason!!). It was a short getaway, but worth the family time.

3. Have you checked out your local library's Books on CD/Tape selection lately? We've just recently began diving into ours and the kids love them! It's a lot of fun for them to hear simple stories in a new voice and Jonah really likes the ones that have a page turn chime. For some reason, this section of our local library just never caught my eye or seemed to draw me in, until recently. There's a pretty large selection of simple, short books as well as chapter books that Lily can enjoy too. As if we weren't already in love with the library, now we just have one more reason to look forward to our library trips!

4. Speaking of reading, Miss Lily has been progressing throughout the school year in her reading and is so much fun to listen to! The words that she just automatically reads for the first time without hesitation are most often tough words to even sound out. She just keeps at it and keeps moving on to a different level. Just yesterday, after Lily read our family Lenten meditation from this book , my husband marveled at her reading proficiency. Which is a good reminder, because sometimes we easily forget that she is only 6 and in Kindergarten! I think I'll be doing a lot of looking at our Catholic Homeschool conference in May to decide what program to continue with her in the fall in order to continue to nurture her reading skills.

5. I've been doing some research on our state's department of natural resources website this last week. There's a lot of stuff out there! I'm in search of some fun nature programs for our local Catholic homeschool group or even for my family to go enjoy. The closest State Park for us that has a variety of programs available is probably a good 45 mins. away, but looking at some of the stuff they're offering the drive should be worth it. Do you know what your State Parks have to offer you and your family? I found a few fun programs in April and May like bird watching, woodland flower walk, a pond view walk, dragonflies and more! Now we'll just have to narrow it down to a few and get them on the calendar.

6. Well, hopefully spring is around the corner and that has got a lot of blogging mom's talking about spring cleaning. I found that a number of them do it during the season of lent as they prepare for Easter, along with the spring season. What a great idea! I'm a bit behind since I haven't started yet, but I'm working on my cleaning list and hope to get started next week. I did it a couple years ago where I made the list and did a lot of cleaning and purging as well. I cleaned everything, right down to the woodwork and walls. Not that some things were as dirty as others, but it was nice to have the WHOLE HOUSE clean! I'll let you know how it goes. You can check out Elizabeth's list here or Emma's list here to get ideas how to start your list.


7. Spirited child, anyone? I'd heard this term in the past, but it wasn't until recently that I've contemplated that perhaps I have one living in my home. These children may sometimes also be referred to as strong-willed, determined and intense. Their characteristics commonly are MORE than normal children, more intense, persistent, sensitive, perceptive, etc. I'm not sure yet if my child completely carries all of these traits, however, he does have some of them and he is at times MORE. I just picked up this book from the library to hopefully help me in deciding. If this is him, I'm hoping that the book helps give me some good tools to guide him and live with him, minus a lot of our current battles.


Jen has more Quick Takes for you today here!