tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65295471792770636082024-03-12T23:45:50.678-07:00Laura's BlogA random assortment of posts on stuff I think about. Mostly a journal of my children's milestones, but also book reviews, recipes, tutorials, sewing, crafts, serger repair, and anything else I might know something about that I think might be useful to other people.Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.comBlogger291125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-61049626231255580932016-06-09T20:50:00.001-07:002016-06-09T20:50:51.273-07:00Best Books of 2015<i>*The links to amazon are affiliate links and if you purchase something via them I will earn a small advertising fee. </i><br />
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Ready-Player-One-Ernest-Cline/dp/0307887448/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&qid=1458023506&sr=8-1&keywords=ready+player+one&linkCode=li3&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=6055736a8a0ba58d447323af67000f7e" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0307887448&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=li3&o=1&a=0307887448" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td valign="top">This was a fun nerdy book, that completely preys on nostalgia. Even though I was am a little young for the 80's nerd culture references I still really liked this book. </td>
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fools-Quest-Book-Fitz-trilogy/dp/0553392921/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&qid=1458023551&sr=8-1&keywords=fool%27s+quest&linkCode=li3&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=b477ccb5856d144289ecc26ac1e74495" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0553392921&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=li3&o=1&a=0553392921" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td valign="top">I first read the Fitz and Fool series back in high school and college and it has been one of my all time favorite series'. So when Hobb decided to bring the story back to Fitz as an old man I was very excited. The bummer is having to wait for the next book.</td>
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Martian-Andy-Weir/dp/0553418025/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&qid=1458023581&sr=8-2&keywords=the+martian&linkCode=li3&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=4e0e0f58b7197d536930c0ac86a4d2df" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0553418025&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=li3&o=1&a=0553418025" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td valign="top">This book was awesome. Apollo 13 is one of my favorite movies, and book is a comparable fictional story. Just saw the movie, and it is good too, but the book is way better.</td>
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Firefight-Reckoners-Brandon-Sanderson/dp/0385743599/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&qid=1458023612&sr=8-1&keywords=firefight&linkCode=li3&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=7b9a5bb1d5072dc8e7091deb04229955" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0385743599&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=li3&o=1&a=0385743599" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td valign="top">Sanderson is an amazing. I have never been into the superhero stories, but I really love this series.</td>
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Moon-Called-Mercy-Thompson-Book/dp/0441013813/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&qid=1458023688&sr=8-1&keywords=moon+called&linkCode=li3&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=7111f4791ac5cb21d0b8590141197c2a" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0441013813&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=li3&o=1&a=0441013813" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td valign="top">This was a new series I started based on a friends recommendation. It is light reading and has werewolves, vampires, and shape changers, and takes place in Eastern WA. </td>
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Unbroken-World-Survival-Resilience-Redemption/dp/0812974492/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&qid=1458023726&sr=8-1&keywords=unbroken&linkCode=li3&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=d5448444d3583c62485859a090985ebf" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0812974492&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=li3&o=1&a=0812974492" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td valign="top">This is an amazing and unbelievable biography. I was afraid it was going to be depressing since part of it takes place during WWII, but I think the author's point-of-view was far enough away that it didn't completely overwhelm emotionally. The movie was good too.</td>
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Diastasis-Recti-Solution-Abdominal-Separation/dp/098965396X/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&qid=1458023746&sr=8-1&keywords=diastasis+recti&linkCode=li3&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=0b28b03aa655b084ef1f50ce65fa4190" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=098965396X&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=li3&o=1&a=098965396X" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td valign="top">Of course I have to add a Katy Bowman book. This is the book I had been waiting for, as it is the subject that pointed me in the direction of Katy's work. I have been reading and listening for the past two years, to all the content Katy has created, and even did her 52-week Everybody Biomechanics course in 2015, but still this book had a few tidbits of new info, and some new exercises to do. I have been doing better on the everyday moving through life aspects, but I do want to be more diligent on working on the correctives outlined in this book. </td>
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Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-45407221964198468002016-06-09T20:50:00.000-07:002016-06-09T20:50:21.543-07:00Summary of 2015I failed at blogging last year. Not sure if I will do much better this year as I have been working part time doing custom software development / consulting work for my dad's consulting company. It has been fantastic in that I'm bringing in extra money, and I have a flexible schedule, and can work from home, and I get to make stuff that makes people's jobs easier, but it also makes it so I don't want to spend much more time at the computer blogging, making apps, or writing, and it kind of uses up all my creative energy.<br />
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I really wanted to publish a storybook app last year, and I joined 12x12, an online picture book writing group. I wrote some drafts for a handful of stories, got one polished fairly nice. Recruited a friend who was also interested in publishing some stories. Worked on illustration work through some online art classes, and then ran out of steam towards the end of the year. </div>
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I have an update for my Open Face Chinese poker app that has been close to being done for almost the all of last year, and I really need to get that released before getting serious on a new app, but testing is really low on my things I like to do, and it seems that when I am just about ready, some new API comes out and I have to go change my code to be compatible with that and have to do more testing. I am really full of excuses. </div>
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The girls are now in 1st and 3rd grade, meaning they are in school full time which has been lovely as I have great swaths of time to work uninterrupted, but its a bummer because it is hard to do all the fun stuff we did when they were little like playing outside, going to the zoo, etc. They still want to do activities like rock climbing, gymnastics, soccer, swimming, girl scouts, and wrestling, but at the same time get worn out not having enough down time. It has been especially tough for Allie this year. She says she needs a time machine so she can go back to kindergarten when it was half day, and she got to have play-dates.</div>
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Both kids did rock climbing in the spring and loved it and hope to start up again soon. They both played soccer in the fall. I helped coach Selena's team which was a lot of fun. They were undefeated for the season. Allie also played and was a goal scoring machine often racking up 3 - 5 goals a game, while also hustling back on defense and making great plays. Selena did wrestling this winter and learned a lot, and was amazingly tough out on the mat and ended up winning two matches for the season.</div>
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The girls are still at the cooperative public school and I have required volunteering time weekly. I have been teaching computer programming weekly in 15 minute rotations of 6 - 8 kids. I did it in Selena's 2nd grade class last school year, and then in both the 1st and 3rd grade classes this school year. It's fun because I am a favorite, and the kids get super excited when I come in. I'm hoping they have some real skills by the time they get out of elementary school.</div>
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We did our annual extended family vacation this year in Monteray, CA and I want to move there. The weather warmer than it is here, but not super hot. I think I require big tall trees to feel at home, and they have the redwoods. It is so beautiful, and there were dolphins and sea lions jumping in the surf every day while I ran barefoot on the sand. My sister and I went whale watching and saw about 30 humpback whales and tons of sea lions feeding. The whales were fluking and lifting their flippers in the air. It was amazing. Body boarding in the surf with my sister, sister-in-law and mom was one of my favorite memories of the year.</div>
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We also took a trip to Los Angeles to visit my brother for spring break last year. We got to meet my brand new niece, who is the cutest baby ever, but is already over a year now, and is walking and jabbering like crazy. And of course we did Disneyland. </div>
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The summer was amazing and wonderful. We spent a lot of time with friends from school doing hikes almost weekly, a mud run, and trips to the beaches and parks. My sister and I also got away a handful of times and did some longer tough hikes -- Lake Blanca being the best in that we got to jump into the glacier fed lake on a 90 degree day. </div>
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Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-25335382283302772092015-01-31T11:07:00.001-08:002015-01-31T11:07:06.691-08:00Favorite Books of 20142014 was a good year for reading books. I read <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/4637571-laura?order=d&shelf=2014&sort=rating&view=table">55 books for the year</a> (or here is the <a href="https://www.librarything.com/catalog/bangerlm&deepsearch=2014">librarything version which I like better because it lets you give half stars</a>) and was part of two book clubs, one of which was a new one and I have met some really awesome ladies and I really love it.<br />
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So here are my best books of the year (*all links are affiliate links to Amazon)<br />
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FQVVDRC/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00FQVVDRC&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=SOED7S36CLGBG66W"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B00FQVVDRC&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00FQVVDRC" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NXZH8PO/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00NXZH8PO&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=K5AZFAIZ3KHCYPLB"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B00NXZH8PO&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00NXZH8PO" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td>These were the <a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2014/06/alleviate-menstrual-pain-eliminate.html">life changing books</a> of the year, so much so that I have became a bit obsessed with learning all I can about Katy's work and paradigm. Her work is nuanced, but at the same time extremely simple and I have had such significant improvements in my health that it is mind-boggling.
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DA6YEKS/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00DA6YEKS&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=FM3VA7T2USRHHS6S"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B00DA6YEKS&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00DA6YEKS" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td colspan="2">I really love Brandon Sanderson, but was a little bit disappointed with the first book in this series (it didn't have a very satisfying end), but this book completely made up for it. Typically I am a fast, impatient reader, but even though this book is over 1000 pages I found myself slowing down and not wanting it to end.
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AEBETU2/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00AEBETU2&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=QKNQHCDQA2JFTHJ4"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B00AEBETU2&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00AEBETU2" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td colspan="2">This was a book I read for both my book clubs. It takes place in Seattle and I loved being taken back to what the Pacific Northwest was like in the 1930's. The sports parts of story are excellent. Even though you know the outcome of most of the races, they are still suspenseful. Finally the discussion of Hitler's propaganda is interesting and adds an interesting third layer to the story.
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00O5J3QV2/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00O5J3QV2&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=3NP3JN5P4HA5BPJF"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B00O5J3QV2&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00O5J3QV2" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td colspan="2">This is a plug for a friend's book. It also takes place in Seattle. It is a murder mystery about a woman with a stalker, with a fantasy twist.</td>
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000JMKRKC/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000JMKRKC&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=XVKUMHOUGEXI6RLQ"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B000JMKRKC&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000JMKRKC" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td colspan="2">This was another book club book about a mysterious fictional author. While I was reading the book I was expecting some sort of surprising plot twist, and I was not disappointed.
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FCK9EK/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000FCK9EK&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=FF6UZ3NWCDOMCNQ6"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B000FCK9EK&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000FCK9EK" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td colspan="2">I spent a lot of time re-reading books this year. Dave Duncan is my favorite author and this is the first book of one his best series. The neat thing about the Blade books is that each book is a standalone novel, but the first three all tie into each other for a larger plot. Thus you should not read the first two books without reading the third. I think I actually read this particular book in 2013, but finished the other books in the series in 2014. (<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1617566128/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1617566128&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=OX5ZLBXQHBCB2ZVU">Lord of the Fire Lands</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1617566128" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0380791285/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0380791285&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=DBXKAFD3V3GCF7X3">Sky of Swords</a>)<img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0380791285" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FBFMG6/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000FBFMG6&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=JW22OPKCTILRIUDU"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B000FBFMG6&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000FBFMG6" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<td colspan="2">This was another set of series re-reads. Robin Hobb has 4 finished trilogies that take place in this world, and then released the first book of a 5th series. I reread the two series starring Fitz. I had put off re-reading these two series which are favorites because I remember how much I cried the first time I read them. The second time wasn't different. Robin Hobb is kind of a brutal author in that she really puts her characters through the wringer. The newest book is intriguing, but she has hinted that it is going to involve even more tears. :(
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Honarable Mentions<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AJGNICW/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00AJGNICW&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=VL7QCEUQKTQZMQEH"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B00AJGNICW&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00AJGNICW" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004G8QZSS/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B004G8QZSS&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=KW3RTEM57QIUNSU2"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B004G8QZSS&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B004G8QZSS" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008J4GRTM/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B008J4GRTM&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=5T7OXZ67BWTRDGNB"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B008J4GRTM&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B008J4GRTM" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/search/label/books">Past book lists</a>Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-39950662418231254762015-01-13T22:47:00.001-08:002015-01-13T22:47:38.134-08:002014 In Review2014 was a good year. It started off with the Seahawks winning the Super Bowl, which was amazing. :) <div>
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We went to California over spring break and stayed with my brother and his family. The cousins had an awesome time playing, and we got to do Disneyland as well. On the way back we stopped in Monterey and stayed with a college friend, and all the kids had fun.</div>
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Floyd did his annual trip to Vegas, and played in various poker tournaments including the WSOP Main Event and made it to day 2. Unfortunately Vegas was not lucrative this year. I joined him for a few days and enjoyed relaxing by the pool and eating delicious food (I highly recommend the Bellagio Buffet). </div>
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We had nice weather this year with a unusually warm and dry spring, and a long summer. We did lots of hikes,visits to the park, and played a bit of golf. The girls are developing an entrepreneurial spirit and did lemonade stands, face painting stands, a garage sale and even had a booth selling bean bags at the farmer's market. </div>
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In August we went to Cannon Beach with my parents, sister, grandmother, and my brother's family. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg7UXEBMmiPuoEYkQGdbccnoxtGeefgyELJZcsgmYXfydvPdnbc342Ps-qVel07qFiLAu-dsF04uWigJLB4LM3FHOyvY_Ka0wv3f7UA_zMGS27Dfk731B8UxcoMG5Kw72WqCE33pzek9hL/s1600/20140430_165751.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg7UXEBMmiPuoEYkQGdbccnoxtGeefgyELJZcsgmYXfydvPdnbc342Ps-qVel07qFiLAu-dsF04uWigJLB4LM3FHOyvY_Ka0wv3f7UA_zMGS27Dfk731B8UxcoMG5Kw72WqCE33pzek9hL/s1600/20140430_165751.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a>In the fall the girls went to a new school. This was probably the biggest change/event of the year. Selena transferred schools, and Allie started kindergarten at a public co-op school in the district. I knew before we started that I was going to dislike the drive (we walked to the old school), and I do. I had wanted to send my kids to this school since before Selena started, but Floyd wasn't interested. Then Selena had tested into the highly capable program and we considered that, but I thought we should reconsider the co-op. I was concerned that the highly capable program would be too much homework and the co-op seemed to offer more variety of classroom activities due to the parental involvement, so we decided to do that. <br /><br />The activities have been great -- in Selena's class I am teaching computer programming. They also do chess, cooking, maps, economics, sign language, etc. They have small group exploration projects five times a year, as well as numerous field trips. The community has been wonderful, and welcoming. Making friends has happened faster because we see everyone more often, and have everyone's contact information. The people we have met are all very cool, not pretentious, and tend to be like minded. It is very nice.<br /><br />But besides the driving (12 - 15 min drive there and back 3 times a day when not carpooling), the downside has been that the new school has a more <a href="http://www.makeyourdayparents.com/philosophy.html">punitive school wide "citizenship program"</a> (ie discipline policy) than our old school, and even though my kids do not get into trouble, they speak negatively about their classmates and/or teacher almost daily, which tends to get me down, and negate some of the good feelings towards the new school. </div>
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And because it is still a public school in the same district it has the same recess/lunch schedules as the rest of the schools, which really get me upset. No recess for half day kindergartners, and a 20 minute lunch and 2 recesses for a total of 30 minutes for the rest of the kids and unfortunately significant portions of the lunch and recess time are spent standing in line. My entire educational/parenting philosophy since they were born has been centered around <a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2013/09/exercise-makes-you-smarter-and-happier.html">physical activity</a> and child directed learning. Thus it really bothers me to know that I am sending them to a place I know to be physically and psychologically unhealthy because they are sedentary for 92 percent of the day, and have virtually no autonomy. But the sad truth is even if I were to home-school I am not confident that I could live up to my own expectations. In the summer it is easier, but when it is cold and rainy and playmates are harder to round up I'm not sure if I could do it.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4ZQAGPKeBC2AIzuKS487Ic3NN-KTH6sPNX7y68RLzWr9OaQ7TkM6qJK4Q3L5O4DPHXV7ONaGAJi-E1j-obYUmE0qXWdUo5l4bADnGHlWrxIrtz9lx4guobaKqBHQwfODZgoYobV_fd4To/s1600/IMG_9668.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4ZQAGPKeBC2AIzuKS487Ic3NN-KTH6sPNX7y68RLzWr9OaQ7TkM6qJK4Q3L5O4DPHXV7ONaGAJi-E1j-obYUmE0qXWdUo5l4bADnGHlWrxIrtz9lx4guobaKqBHQwfODZgoYobV_fd4To/s1600/IMG_9668.JPG" height="320" width="213" /></a>As for other news for the year. I continued to update my <a href="http://openfacechinesepoker.corvidapps.com/">OFC app</a>, and released an iPhone/iPad version of my <a href="http://www.corvidapps.com/2012/03/learn-to-read-mobile-app.html">Learn to Read app</a>, but didn't manage to release any new apps, partly because I was also doing contract work for my dad's consulting business. This year I will be working almost part time for him, which will be great for our bank account, but will make it very difficult for being able to do anything for my apps. Which is probably for the best, because developing apps was only marginally lucrative before, but seems to become even less so, as the novelty of smart phones is wearing off. Though I really want to create some picture book apps, not because I think they will make money, but just because I want to. We will see if I am able to pull it off.</div>
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I continue to run, but not race. I also have been playing a bit of indoor soccer which I alternate between enjoying and not enjoying (tendency for injury and mean opponents). Haven't got to sew much, especially for myself. I think this year <a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/search/label/ssc">I made a soft structured baby carrier </a>for my cousin, a Halloween costume for Selena, a tank top for myself (that was too small), a pair of fleece pants for Allie, and helped Selena make herself a sleeping bag. </div>
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Selena and Allie did gymnastics, swimming, art classes, and soccer this year. It was a lot of fun to see them learn new skills. Swimming was the most amazing. They went from being unwilling to put their heads underwater to little fish. Allie was a goal scoring machine in soccer, and Selena is the toughest kid I know. She gets hit and just brushes it off and gets right up. </div>
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Floyd continues playing poker, and running off and on throughout the year. </div>
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That is about it! Looking forward to 2015. :)</div>
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Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-9815231238124030732014-12-13T11:02:00.000-08:002014-12-13T11:02:27.787-08:00Hour Of CodeThis last week has been Computer Science Education week and a lot of kids have been doing some computer programming at school, and a lot of my friends have been asking me for resources. <br />
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I have been intermittently working on an Introduction to Computer Programming series of videos and have posted on my business website the first four of those videos as well as a list of some resources that I like and have been using. Please share and if you have any feedback that would be welcome too. :)<br />
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<a href="http://www.corvidapps.com/2014/12/hour-of-code-is-underway.html">http://www.corvida<span id="goog_539747501"></span><span id="goog_539747502"></span>pps.com/2014/12/hour-of-code-is-underway.html</a><br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-24149297595610261132014-11-28T22:01:00.000-08:002014-11-28T22:01:09.002-08:00Learn to Read App Ported to iPhone/iPadA couple years ago I released my first app, a simple interactive early reader book. I released it on Android devices and it has had some success. The free, lite version has over 200,000 downloads and I have made some money from it. I wasn't sure if it was worth porting it to iOS, but at some point I did 75% of the work, but then switched gears to due the <a href="http://openfacechinesepoker.corvidapps.com/">Open Face Chinese Poker app</a>. But I had a potential customer email me the other day, telling me that a friend had recommended the app to her, but she only had Apple devices. That motivated me to finish the port and I released the Apple version a few weeks ago. So if anyone is looking for an early reader app for their iPad please take a look at it. If you do download it, a rating and/or review would be extremely appreciated. Ratings and reviews drive rankings, which increase visibility, and make it so that I actually get paid at least something for the work I did. For more info you can check out my <a href="http://www.corvidapps.com/2012/03/learn-to-read-mobile-app.html">business website</a>. Thank you!<br />
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Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-61884326263237464702014-09-18T09:00:00.000-07:002014-09-18T09:00:09.939-07:00Summer Recap - HikingI did quite a bit of hiking this summer. We did <a href="http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/bridal-veil-falls">Bridal Veil Falls</a>, <a href="http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/wallace-falls">Wallace Falls</a>,<a href="http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/barclay-lake"> Barclay Lake</a>,<a href="http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/lake-22"> Lake 22</a>, and <a href="http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/trip-reports/trip_report.2014-08-16.8133348809">Bear Lake</a> with the kids. Cynthia and I did <a href="http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/wallace-lake">Wallace Lake</a>, and Floyd and I did <a href="http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/mount-dickerman">Mount Dickerman</a>. <br />
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Quick Recap:<br />
<b>Bridal Veil Falls</b>- Cool water fall, fairly flat trail till the last bit.<br />
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<b>Wallace Falls</b> - Popular hike not too far away. <br />
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<b>Barclay Lake</b> - Nice flat hike to a beautiful lake, but farther away than I remembered it being. You have to go quite a ways on a forest road to get to the trail head.<br />
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<b>Wallace Lake</b> - Longer hike that avoids some of the crowds heading to Wallace Falls. Parts of the trail are logging roads and not a ton of elevation gain.<br />
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<b>Mount Dickerman</b> - This is a tough hike and one <a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2011/12/2011-in-review.html">that I did before when it was covered in snow</a>. This time we did it Labor Day weekend and there were wild blueberries on the trail that were ripe and very tasty. Unfortunately it was cloudy so we didn't get to enjoy a view.<br />
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<b>Lake 22 - </b>This is out on the Mountain Loop Highway. The hike has very well maintained trails, but the terrain is still pretty rough. There is some water on the trail, you go through a rock slide so there is a part with a lot of shale, but the kids did great. It is 5.5 miles and the scenery is gorgous. Tons of large old growth cedars and douglas firs and lots of moss and skunk cabbage. There is a fancy boardwalk around a significant portion of the lake and there are some places with beach area to wade. I was excited when we did this because I spotted a random geocache. :)<br />
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<b>Bear Lake</b> - Pinnacle Lake is the main destination for this trail head, but despite its short length the trip reports say it is fairly hard. You have to take a long forest road (7 miles) to get to the trail head, so we ended up parking a mile away from the trail head and then just doing the short Bear Lake trail. It was very quiet and peaceful, with really large old growth cedars.<br />
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Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-524091149312384452014-09-16T09:00:00.000-07:002014-09-16T09:00:01.717-07:00Summer Recap - RacingThe girls did quite a few races this year. There was a 5k fundraiser for Selena's school in May. Every year we do the Swedish SummerRun for Ovarian Cancer research and we did that again this year. Selena was running around 33 minutes for most of her 5k's. Pretty fast! Allie isn't quite up for running a 5k but she did do a combo of running and walking.<br />
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The girls did the Mill Creek Kids Fun Run. Allie did both the 1 lap and the 1k. She initially wanted to do the 1 lap, but then it didn't quite seem long enough so she did the 1k too. The combo seemed a bit too long though. Selena did the 2k and looked good.<br />
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Selena also got really excited about doing a triathalon. She had just learned to swim so she was super excited to do the kids tri. It was at McCollum park. It was a 25 yard swim, 1/2 mile bike ride, and 1/8 mile run. The swim was the biggest challenge. She can swim, but isn't quite able to do a consistent crawl stroke. She can do a crawl stroke, and flip to her back, then flip to a crawl, etc. The race day came and she had had a fever the night before so I wasn't sure if she should do it. I was worried if she did, she might get really sick. She decided to at least go and watch and if she felt okay then she would do it. She ended up doing it, but decided to just stick with a straight back float for the swim and did great on the other two legs--and she rested the rest of the day, and didn't get really sick.<br />
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The girls also did a community run hosted by my cousin's high school cross country team. Selena did the 5k and Allie did the 1k. I wasn't there, but heard that they did good.<br />
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Unfortunately we didn't make it to any of the all-comers track meets this summer. We will have to remember to fit that in next year. <br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-45365786426006406832014-09-14T21:06:00.002-07:002014-09-14T21:06:37.648-07:00Summer Recap - Canon BeachWe went to Canon Beach with my family during the first week of August. My parents rented a house just south of Canon Beach and my brother and his family drove up from California. My grandma came from Texas, and my sister was there too. <br />
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We went to the Tillamook Cheese factory and I discovered cheddar cheese curds. Yummm! Apparently Beecher's makes them too and sells them in the grocery stores. <br />
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We were a bit south of Canon Beach which was nice because there were less crowds, but there was a weird mico-climate that made it foggier and windier than it was in town. But we made lots of sand castles, explored the tide pools and went on plenty of runs on the beach. <br />
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There was very little light pollution at night, and a hot tub on the deck, so we could sit at night and look at the stars. I think that was my favorite part. <br />
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I know we took some group photos, but they must have been on someone else's camera.<br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-48901668112483809592014-07-19T18:48:00.003-07:002014-07-19T18:48:40.546-07:00I Want to Learn How to Draw<div>
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Art class was something I missed out in school. I did band from 6th grade til my sophmore year of high school, and band took the place of any required art credits. I did take one drawing class in college, but other than that I missed out on formal drawing lessons throughout my schooling--which is a bummer.<br />
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Lately I've been trying to improve my skills in hopes that I can illustrate my own apps more skillfully. I've picked up some art books at the library, but one that has intrigued me the most has been <a href="http://www.carlasonheim.com/">Carla Sonheim's </a>work. She has a few book (affiliate links to the right) filled with art lessons and she has online classes as well. At the beginning of this summer I signed up for her imaginary creatures class. Her style is intriguing and interesting and learning her techniques have been fun. <br />
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Here are some various things I have drawn, some from both the lessons in her books, some from her class, and some on my own. I really want to do her year long fairy tale class, but the $200 tag plus supplies is a bit much for me right now. I'll just keep hoping a large fortune comes my way before the end of the year. :)<br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-55121939325193084722014-07-07T13:57:00.000-07:002014-07-23T23:23:13.360-07:00Healthy Teeth and Sun Protection for Your Skin<i>*I am not a medical professional and supplements can have unintended consequences. Please do your own research and consult a health professional for advice.</i><br />
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When Selena was five years old I noticed a big black hole in her tooth. I took her into the dentist and she had 10 cavities. $2000 dollars later she had had a lot of work done in her poor little mouth. <br />
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I stumbled across some people who swore that Vitamin K2 is the go to vitamin for dental health. It is a vitamin that is not found in many foods. The foods with the highest amounts are butter made from the milk of grass fed cows, and fermented soy beans. The claim is that this vitamin is essential to the remineralization of your teeth. That just like bones are constantly regenerating and growing, your teeth are doing the same, assuming they have the necessary supplies. I did not know yhis was possible, but a hygenist friend said it was. There is some limited research that K2 helps with bone regrowth, but overall it isn't a well studied vitamin. Most of the evidence for teeth health is anecdotal.<br />
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I decided that I might as well try it. One recommended supplement is a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002M06SMU/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B002M06SMU&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=OT6WMFILICSIAT5M">High Vitamin Butter Oil/Fermented Cod Liver Oil </a>mix. It is pretty expensive but after spending $2000 on dentist bills and Selena had yet another black spot on her tooth--I figured it was worth a $50 shot to see if it worked as it could potentially save us a lot of money (what with us not having dental insurance). <br />
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Here is a picture of the black spot on Selena's tooth. She had gone to a free dental cleaning that was being offered to the community and the dental assistant who cleaned her teeth said it was a cavity. I gave her a small bit of the "chocolate" vitamin every day for a few weeks after that but before she went in for a scheduled cleaning. The spot was gone and she was deemed cavity free. She also has a small spot on the front of one of her teeth, that gets noticeably smaller when I am consistent in giving her the supplement, but gets larger if I forget.<br />
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I too have had some spots on my teeth that I have been able to get rid of by consistently taking the supplement. One year ago some x-rays showed a cavity between the teeth. In the name of science I have refused to get them fixed because I want to see if they will go away. If they still show up on my next x-rays, then I will have them taken care of. <br />
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The other benefit I have noticed from the Cod Liver Oil/Butter Oil supplement is that my skin doesn't burn as easily. I have had quite a few days that I have spent 30 - 40 minutes in the midday sun and have not gotten burnt, which historically has not been possible with my fair, freckled skin. I struggle with knowing <a href="http://www.marksdailyapple.com/why-some-sun-exposure-will-protect-you-from-deadly-skin-cancer/#axzz36NiSOrX2">what is more risky, no sun exposure, or too much</a>, and I have settled on trying to get as much as possible without getting burnt. Cod liver oil contains vitamin D, which is supposed to help prevent you from getting burnt (the reasoning on why tanning helps to prevent you from getting burnt), and there are some studies that show that vitamin K2 and vitamin D have a synergistic affect that could explain the positive affects in sun protection. <br />
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Overall the supplement tastes and smells awful, which is part of the reason I sometimes forget to take it for a while. I buy the "chocolate" flavored kind so I can tell my kids it is a chocolate vitamin, but I still serve it up in a bite of applesauce. That way you can slurp it down without having to taste it. <br />
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The positive affects I have seen on both mine and Selena's teeth could be coincidence. There aren't really any scientific studies on its efficacy for cavity healing and/or prevention, and most of the proponents of it are from single group of people*, but I have had enough periods of me or my kids taking it versus not taking it to make me feel like I do see a positive difference that I am willing to spend 50 or so bucks every six months to buy it. <br />
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<i>*Weston A Price was a dentist who did some anthropological like research and determined that populations with the healthiest teeth had some sort of "X-Factor" that he seemed to think was found most often in cow's milk during the spring. The Weston A Price Foundation thinks that Vitamin K2 is the name of the X-Factor Price discovered as it is found primarily in milk/butter of cows that eat fresh grass. </i><br />
<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-45295081677428795292014-07-02T22:38:00.002-07:002014-07-23T23:23:33.763-07:00Hacking My Health<i>*I am not a medical professional and supplements and exercise programs can have unintended consequences. Please do your own research and consult a health professional for advice.</i><br /><br />I have been writing these posts in my head for years, but the concepts are so interconnected that I find it really hard to succinctly explain all the connections and relationships, but I am going to try.<br />
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I am 33 years old, which isn't very old, but ever since having kids I started feeling old. My joints are stiff, my back aches, and I can't physically do things that I used to be able to do, and it doesn't seem right. If my life expectancy is 78 (or whatever) then I shouldn't start feeling old till I am 40ish, not 27ish. <br />
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When I first started this blog I did not think supplements were useful and that eating whole foods was good enough for overall health. But over the years I have adopted a new theory about the difference between surviving and thriving. You can survive on many nutritiously deficient diets, and even a nutrient dense whole foods diet can lack in some areas and supplementation can allow a person to thrive versus just survive. <br />
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One major complaint against supplements is that many do not "work" and any results are only a placebo effect. I do not have an issue with this. If a supplement can provide someone with a way to use the placebo effect to their own benefit then I think that is a good thing. Most of the supplements I will use, I have had noticeable positive affects, they have a compelling scientific basis for how and why they work though may not have a double-blind placebo study to back it up, thus I do admit there is a possibility that I am simply experiencing a placebo effect.<br />
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Nutrition isn't the only health hack available. Movement and nutrition go hand-in-hand. The general consensus is that exercise is good for cardiovascular health, but I go a step further and think there is strong evidence that movement is integral to mental and brain health. Recently I have been convinced even further, that the simple mechanics of how we position ourselves throughout our day has a real affect on a multitude of common ailments and degenerative diseases.<br />
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I plan on doing a series of posts sharing some of the "health hacks" I have discovered, and I am going to start with that last idea first, because it is the one that I have just discovered and the results are mindbogglingly impressive.<br />
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<a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2014/06/alleviate-menstrual-pain-eliminate.html">Hacking Your Period - Alleviating menstrual cramps, reducing the length of your period, and how heavy it is.</a><br />
<a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2014/07/healthy-teeth-and-sun-protection-for.html">Healthy Teeth and Sun Protection for Your Skin</a><br />
<a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2012/02/child-with-sensitive-sense-of-smell.html">Sensitive Sense of Smell Could be a Zinc Deficiency</a><br />
<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-14964648914783184402014-06-30T23:24:00.000-07:002014-09-23T23:02:29.838-07:00Alleviate Menstrual Pain, Eliminate Heavy Periods and Reduce the Length of Your Period <div style="float: right; padding-left: 10px;">
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FQVVDRC/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00FQVVDRC&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=FYREOO5FJ3CVSXIB"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B00FQVVDRC&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=lausblo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00FQVVDRC" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<i>*I am not a medical professional, supplements and exercise programs can have unintended consequences. Please do your own research and consult a health professional for advice.</i><br />
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It is so hard to not sound like an infomercial when I talk about this because it is so crazy. The bottom line is I alleviated my menstrual pain, eliminated my heavy periods and reduced the length of my period from 7 days to 3/4 days by doing calf and hamstring stretches. <br />
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I consume a lot of information and I love it, because I find all these weird connections and develop these philosophies, but when I try to explain them it sounds weird. There is so much back story, that it is hard to be coherent. A small example would be<a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2014/02/the-heartache-is-over.html"> my post about languages, tribalism and the Seahawks</a>. I also have a theory about high stakes testing, and the<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observer_effect"> observer effect</a> that I have yet to put into words. So I come across this lady, <a href="http://www.katysays.com/">Katy Bowman</a>, and she has this blog, and at first what I read seemed a bit odd and random, but the more I read, the more excited I get because everything is connected and she explains how.<br />
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Katy is a biomechanist whose has dedicated herself to educating the masses on the importance of alignment. Alignment is not posture. Posture is in aesthetic way to hold your body. Alignment is a correct way to hold your body. She takes principles of biomechanics, kinesiology, physical therapy, exercise, ergonomics, biology, chemistry, physics, anthropology among other things and finds the connections between the fields, and then uses that information in a practical way. She tells you how to stand or walk, and then explains why you should, and why you don't, and why it is hard, and what will happen if you do, and what will happen if you don't. It is a lot of information, and sometimes it is technical, but Katy is funny and explains it entertainingly. <br />
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Just a warning this will be way TMI about myself in case the title of the post wasn't enough of a hint. I have always had heavy periods, except when I was on birth control. My period has never been shorter than 5 days, even when on birth control, and it usually lasts 7 days. I have incontinence problems when I run. After having kids it became much worse. I have <a href="http://mutusystem.com/diastasi-recti-infographic-mutu-system.html">diastasis recti</a>. After Allie was born my abs split apart which has the unfortunate effect of making me look 4 - 5 months pregnant despite being 5 years postpartum.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006NZA93Y/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B006NZA93Y&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=X73TSRTQRQZS32VX" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B006NZA93Y&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=lausblo-20" /></a>Katy Bowman had been floating around my internet for a while. The first time when I heard of her was this<a href="http://mamasweat.blogspot.com/2010/05/pelvic-floor-party-kegels-are-not.html"> interview about how kegels can make incontinence worse</a> and thus I tried to do more squats. Then I came across a reference to her from the Mutu program which is for diastasis recti. I read a few of Katy's articles and got her foot book from the library, but had to return it before I had read it all. I had been contemplating buying her<a href="https://www.alignedandwell.com/shop/down-there-for-women/"> Down There for Woman DVD</a> when she wrote a post about <a href="http://www.katysays.com/how-your-period-works/">how your period works</a>. The gist being, that painful and long periods are caused because the uterus is never getting enough blood which makes it take longer for your body to repair the lining that was shed. I had read enough of what she had written to realize that poor alignment can restrict blood from getting where it needs to be. It was an aha moment and I immediately decided to <a href="https://www.alignedandwell.com/shop/down-there-for-women/">get the DVD</a>. When I went to her site I saw that she had duplicated the DVD in an <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/down-there-for-women/id517486431?mt=8&uo=4&https://itunes.apple.com/us/app-bundle/id921408489?mt=8l74d&at=11l74d">iPhone app, which I immediately bought</a>. It is $10 (which people inexplicably find too expensive for an app -- that type of attitude needs to be changed. ;) ) and has five stretches and a short informative lecture. <br />
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The main goal of the program is to <a href="http://www.katysays.com/neutral-pelvis/">get your pelvis into neutral</a>. A neutral pelvis allows maximum blood flow to the uterus. Many women have their pelvis's perpetually tucked. There are a few main causes of a tucked pelvis. <a href="http://www.katysays.com/muscle-an-oversimplified-model/">The first is shoes with heels</a>. Pretty much every shoe, except the new "minimal" shoes, has a heel. To adapt to the heel, and not tip over, your body adjusts its angles, and this typically results in shortened calf and hamstring muscles, that then pull on the pelvis and cause it to tuck. Sitting and running are also activities that can cause shortened calf and hamstring muscles. Finally many women are told to tuck their pelvis to avoid a sway back. Unfortunately this is usually a band-aid fix that can end up making things worse. More often the correct correct adjustment is to drop your ribs.<br />
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The DVD/app has five exercises, but the two main stretches of the program are <a href="http://www.katysays.com/expert-ankles/">calf and hamstring stretches</a>. There is also a pelvic list stretch that I found very difficult the first few times. The crazy thing about these stretches was that I had never seen anything like them. I did gymnastics for years when I was younger. I did soccer, basketball, track in high school and track and cross-country in college. My sister is big into yoga and barre and we discuss fitness stuff frequently. I used to work at a company that made software that contained drawings and instructions for thousands of stretches and exercises. Overall I have a lot of experience with various exercise paradigms, and this one is subtly, but importantly different.</div>
The stretch that seemed to make the biggest difference was the double calf stretch, which involves bending over keeping your hips over your knees, your knees straight, and sticking your tailbone into the air, and relaxing your back into a concave curve. Initially I could not relax my back into the concave position because it was too tight. Fortunately I am a generally flexible person and wasn't too far off. After just a few days of doing the stretches 3 - 5 times a day my back released and went concave. It is hard to describe how incredibly good it felt. My hips, butt, and especially my piriformis had been perpetually tight for years. I would get massages or do hot yoga, but never felt like they were relaxed. Essentially it was 10 - 15 years of tension released, and it felt awesome. <br />
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I started the exercises right after my period had ended, and did them for 3 weeks before I got my next period. Typically the first day of my period I feel tired, nauseous, and have very painful cramps that cause me to cry. In general I dislike using medicine (I frequently have negative side affects) and do have a high pain tolerance, but after being miserable for months I eventually succumbed and had been taking over-the-counter pain killers for the first two days of my period every month. This time it was different. While I still felt tired and not well, I was not in pain and did not need any medication. The amount of flow was significantly lighter. Normally I soak through pads/tampons/cups, etc within a couple hours, this time I was not at risk of soaking through anything. And my period ended after only 3.5 days, instead of 7. It is a miracle!<br />
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From that moment I was on Katy's bandwagon, and spent over a month consuming every <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0989653900/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0989653900&linkCode=as2&tag=lausblo-20&linkId=DZIXFF6RTC2ODCFX">book</a>, <a href="http://www.katysays.com/abcs/">blog post</a>, <a href="http://www.wholeliving.com/136269/detoxifying-stretches-boost-your-immunity/@center/179721/yoga#61793">article</a>, <a href="http://www.katysays.com/katy-radio/">interview</a>, and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClgvURJ0dOkiLpkaQtT1NuQ">free video</a> she offered. I also ordered a <a href="http://www.restorativeexercise.com/courses/">few of her online classes</a>. The cool thing is she has all these little tests you can do to test your range of motion and diagnose the spots you are tight, or areas that could use attention. Since then I have been able to release my psoas so I can lie flat on the ground comfortably. I can stand with my knees straight and my quadriceps relaxed. I have <a href="http://www.katysays.com/keeping-you-all-abreast/">reduced lymph accumulation in my armpits</a>. I have increased my <a href="http://www.katysays.com/under-pressure-part-2/">lung capacity and am able to breath deeper</a> and I have increased the range of motion of my toes. I have changed the way I walk, and stand, and sit. <br />
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The nice thing about her paradigm, is that it doesn't involve a lot of time or work. If I happen to be standing around I just stand differently. When I am walking the kids to school I pay attention to what muscles I am using. I do add some stretches to my day, but they feel so good, they don't seem like a chore. <br />
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If you have any ailment at all, I highly recommend looking into what Katy Bowman has to say. Foot, knee, back, hip, and neck pain, heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, varicose veins, bunions, menstruation and fertility issues--all of these things have mechanical components to them, and the kinks in the mechanics of how your body works affect your body on cellular and hormonal levels (<a href="http://www.restorativeexercise.com/whole-body-alignment-prerequisite-pack/">download for free the first two hours of her Whole Body Alignment course</a> if you want to learn how).
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<iframe frameborder="0" src="https://widgets.itunes.apple.com/widget.html?c=us&brc=FFFFFF&blc=FFFFFF&trc=FFFFFF&tlc=FFFFFF&d=&t=&m=software&e=software,iPadSoftware&w=250&h=300&ids=517486431&wt=discovery&partnerId=&affiliate_id=&at=11l74d&ct=" style="border: 0px; height: 300px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; width: 250px;"></iframe><br />
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*The links to the app and the books are affiliate links and I will get a small percentage of the sale if you buy from the link.</div>
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Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-64952276770023809952014-05-05T23:30:00.001-07:002014-05-05T23:33:05.736-07:00My Favorite BlogsI don't think I have ever done a round up of my favorite blogs so I figured I should do one. I use feedly as a blog reader. I am not sure how many blogs I am subscribed to but it is at least a couple hundred. Serves as a good way to feed my desire to know everything about everything. <br />
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<b>Education - </b><br />
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<a href="http://teachertomsblog.blogspot.com/">Teacher Tom</a> - Cooperative preschool teacher in Seattle. I kind of have some hero worship toward Teacher Tom. He posts daily and is consistently insightful. <br />
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<a href="http://www.notjustcute.com/">Not Just Cute</a> - Early childhood education.<br />
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<a href="http://www.educationrethink.com/">Education Rethink </a>- Teacher blog with some tech involved.<br />
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<a href="http://pernillesripp.com/">Blogging in the Fourth Dimension</a> - Teacher blog.<br />
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<b>Parenting</b><br />
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<a href="http://crappypictures.com/">Crappy Pictures</a> - Funny parenting cartoons.<br />
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<a href="http://www.freerangekids.com/">Free Range Kids</a> - Advocate to stop having policy being driven by worst-first thinking. <br />
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<a href="http://www.hobomama.com/">Hobo Mama</a> - One of the first blogs I subscribed to. She lives in Seattle. Mostly parenting topics.<br />
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<b>Sewing </b><br />
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<a href="http://indietutes.blogspot.com/">Indietutes</a> - There have been numerous posts that I feel like came out of my own head. Sewing, parenting, books and learning.<br />
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<a href="http://www.ikatbag.com/">Ikat bag</a> - Lots of sewing and crafting as well as parenting posts. Love her posts on drafting.<br />
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<a href="http://www.fashion-incubator.com/blog/">Fashion Incubator</a> - I don't read this one much anymore, but at one point in time I read almost the entire site and learned a ton about sewing and manufacturing. <br />
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<b>Food / Health</b><br />
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<a href="http://katysays.com/">Katysays.com</a> - I am completely obsessed with this blog right now. I downloaded some of her exercises and they have been amazingly effective.<br />
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<a href="http://www.marksdailyapple.com/">Marks Daily Apple</a> - Primal eating blog.<br />
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<b>Tech - </b><br />
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<a href="http://mathbabe.org/">mathbabe</a> - Former Wall Street quant turned Occupy Wall Street supporter. <br />
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<a href="http://geekwire.com/">Geekwire</a> - Seattle based tech news<br />
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<b>Art -</b><br />
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<a href="http://www.willterry.blogspot.com/">Will Terry</a> - Children's book illustrator. He has lots of instructional art videos and shares about being a freelance illustrator and children's book app creator. <br />
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<a href="http://www.carlasonheim.com/">Carla Sonheim</a> - I love her art books.<br />
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<a href="http://www.humansofnewyork.com/">Humans of New York</a> - Photographic documentary of people in New York.<br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-57927942120199818442014-04-27T22:18:00.000-07:002014-04-27T22:18:00.942-07:00Road Trip To California - Part 2After spending a week in Los Angeles we headed to Monterey. Monterey is absolutely gorgeous. I would love to live there. It was green, and warm, and the beaches were beautiful. <br />
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We stayed with Lisa, a college x-country teammate of mine and Floyd's, and her family. Her kids are the same ages as Selena and Allie and all the kids had a lot of fun together. They are stationed in Monteray for 18 months. Every time they move I always want to go visit, but traveling with kids always seems expensive and stressful to me, but this time it seemed like a good way to visit both them and my brother, and save money by driving.<br />
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We visited the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which was another really cool aquarium. The kids especially liked the jellyfish exhibit. We also got to see the penguins walking from the employee only area, to their exhibit.<br />
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Other than that we mostly just hung out at the beaches and ogled the fancy houses. Lisa took me on a run along the beach which was amazing. A long run with a good friend is pretty much my favorite thing in the world to do, so I was happy. <br />
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Floyd got to run with Dan (Lisa's husband) along the beach, and on the Pebble Beach golf course. I think he would have rather golfed the course, but running on it was the next best thing. He did get to play golf too, just not at Pebble Beach.<br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-17375473332607693722014-04-26T22:17:00.000-07:002014-04-27T20:10:21.770-07:00Road Trip To California - Part 1For the end of March we took a 2 week road trip to California. Last time we <a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/search/label/california%202012">road tripped to California</a> we went in a motor home, towing our car, and drove through the night. Which was okay for the girls who were almost 3 and almost 5. But our dog did not like the motor home and was freaking out, which made it quite stressful till we finally put her in the car we were towing. <br />
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This time we drove in our Mazda 5. We did a 9 hour drive to Redding, and stayed in a hotel overnight, and then did another 9 hour drive to Los Angeles. Culver City to be exact, and stayed with my brother and his family for a week. Then we drove about 6 hours to Monterey and stayed with our friend from college and her family for four nights, and did a 14 hour drive from Monterey back to Everett. <br />
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The trip was surprisingly smooth. I want to say that mobile devices are awesome for road trips. We had music, movies, tv shows, books on tape, games, and regular books all available and it made the trip pretty reasonable. <br />
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In Los Angeles we stayed with my brother which was so fun. The kids had fun playing with their cousins. The only bad part, was our timing, as they had just moved a few days before we arrived so their house was full of boxes, and I am sure it was a bit stressful for them. <br />
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We did Disneyland for a day (no California Adventure), the Aquarium of the Pacific, visited the beaches quite a bit, and just hung out and let the cousins play. My nephews are the cutest boys ever.<br />
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Disneyland was of course wonderful. I am kind of regretting not doing more than one day, but on the other hand it was crowded and pretty exhausting. Allie just met the height requirement, which was great, because it meant we could all go on Splash Mountain and Space Mountain. I was worried about the kids being scared, but they loved it. They are kind of crazy. <br />
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We spent some time going on rides with the cousins, and we even met up with Lisa and her family (who we were staying with in Monterey), who also happened to be at Disneyland the same day as us.<br />
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The Aquarium of the Pacific was cool. Their deep water exhibit was pretty awesome. There are some weird creatures way down deep. They also had some birds to feed, and rays to pet, and even had a penguin named Floyd. :) </div>
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The beaches were fun, and probably the most relaxing, as the kids can spend hours digging in the sand and you don't have to deal with crowds. </div>
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We visited muscle beach in Santa Monica where Selena impressed the guys with her rope climbing skills.<br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-53220100177649530062014-04-17T19:50:00.000-07:002014-04-17T19:50:03.283-07:00Lost Her First Tooth<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzrevwaOodf3YzAryF6eE08FFSlslILSn2lP88RRC-dar957rXL21eLd82GJvnIJmuULEOr8Zgbv4JWWT-0CtZUTRyN_l1ef7yuSX4huuuNu9ka9Wqt1M3GT3BzPU_M-B1Dsm1XV7quBwH/s1600/selena_tooth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzrevwaOodf3YzAryF6eE08FFSlslILSn2lP88RRC-dar957rXL21eLd82GJvnIJmuULEOr8Zgbv4JWWT-0CtZUTRyN_l1ef7yuSX4huuuNu9ka9Wqt1M3GT3BzPU_M-B1Dsm1XV7quBwH/s1600/selena_tooth.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a>Selena lost her first tooth! She is seven and has spent almost two full school years watching all her schoolmates lose teeth, but all her teeth were staying stubbornly in her mouth. She had even sewn herself a tooth pillow all by herself in anticipation of the event.<br />
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She lost it while we were on vacation, staying at my friends house. It was really loose and I asked if she wanted me to pull it. I tried, but it was giving me the heeby jeebies so I set Floyd to the task. He pulled it out, and stuck it in a plastic bag. <br />
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I decided I needed to wash it. My friend stopped me and told me to go to the bathroom and plug the sink. While I headed to the bathroom she was telling us about how she lost her daughter's first tooth by trying to wash it and it went down the drain. Of course while she is telling the story I am rinsing the tooth. It slips from my hand. I panic and attempt to turn off the water, and hit the handle that was clogging the drain, which opens the drain, and the tooth goes down the sink. It was April 1st so Floyd was hoping me losing it was an April Fool's joke, sadly it was not.<br />
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Luckily Selena is handles disappointing situations extremely well and assured me that a nice note to the tooth fairy would be just as good as the actual tooth, and she was right. :)<br />
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She also lost her second tooth a few weeks later. This time she pulled it out herself, and I was not allowed to touch it. It stayed in ziplock so it could be safely put under her pillow. <br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-745288598275622972014-03-07T23:47:00.001-08:002014-03-07T23:47:35.756-08:00Allie's Art FactoryAllie wants to create as much artwork as possible so she can sell it to make money. I am completely biased, but I think she is pretty good. What impresses me the most is how she creates her image just so, and then moves onto the next one without overworking any one piece. The only downside to her factory, is that she goes through reams of paper, and leaves them scattered all over the house, not to mention when she cuts them up into teeny tiny pieces for her collage works.<br />
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Other than her art, Allie enjoys animals. She likes watching Wild Kratts and can give you all sorts of interesting facts on worms, honey badgers, dolphins and all sorts of other creatures. Lately we've been collecting worms on our way home from dropping Selena off at school and letting them live in our garden, which is a good place to live because there are no moles or raccoons who are their predators. Despite claiming that she does not like to play princesses I have witnessed her pretending to be Princess Worm.<br />
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Her tummy and other general aches and pains, and reflux still trouble her off and on. She is gluten free and around August when I finally managed to stop accidentally feeding her gluten she seemed to get a big increase in energy. Where she usually refused to walk, she went 3 miles without complaining. But once school started the energy seems to come and go. She tends to be constipated frequently. It is really frustrating not knowing what is going on. <br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-65839995042826784622014-02-08T12:26:00.000-08:002014-02-08T12:26:23.394-08:00The Heartache is Over<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit_C5QC24RxNlPi07mfXWfZ_ehlIr23WpLfdSRoMAGh1AM56XsuulpT5MU64Mo5C5DjRilJajf9X0im3aYfdDZhi3GyTH68t_inqAei1t4QoTOuK9GEhbiVQwwqY4TqKbSEjGVXuKI8ZeM/s1600/kemp-payton.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit_C5QC24RxNlPi07mfXWfZ_ehlIr23WpLfdSRoMAGh1AM56XsuulpT5MU64Mo5C5DjRilJajf9X0im3aYfdDZhi3GyTH68t_inqAei1t4QoTOuK9GEhbiVQwwqY4TqKbSEjGVXuKI8ZeM/s1600/kemp-payton.jpg" height="320" width="250" /></a>My first heartbreak came in 1994. It was the first time I had really followed a team. Gary Payton, Shawn Kemp, Kendall Gill, Detlef Schrempf, Nate McMillan, Sam Perkins were all my guys. The Sonics had the best record in the NBA, most home wins, most road wins. It was looking like it would be a championship season. But it wasn't to be,<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XGt25SRmdg&fmt=18"> they lost to the Denver Nuggets in the first round</a>. It was horrible. I just remember celebrating Mother's Day at the park and being in tears. How could this happen?<br />
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Ninety-five ended in another first round exit for the Sonics, but 95 was the year for the Mariners. I wasn't really a baseball fan, but the Mariner/Yankee series was truly exciting baseball, and though I wasn't emotionally vested in the team I did enjoy watching them. But the miracles they pulled off late in the season didn't extend to the next round.<br />
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In 1996 the Sonics finally made it to the NBA finals, but it was also the year Michael Jordan decided to unretire and dominate the league again. The Sonics just weren't as good as Michael Jordan and the Bulls (and Dennis Rodman was so frustrating). <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAFDVWUDNDjiY_9mkAxwzkYTBFhphEu-g3fgDSZYwCXownWCiU41d2WyNvaF37kdArT1z39hAKCDWq-GJsxpQ-QfPkO9aCNlceoHjOXFw_AQJ7TYIZGD6xYV6TxlvRcr7DzZBBVTAp7Phb/s1600/mariners.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAFDVWUDNDjiY_9mkAxwzkYTBFhphEu-g3fgDSZYwCXownWCiU41d2WyNvaF37kdArT1z39hAKCDWq-GJsxpQ-QfPkO9aCNlceoHjOXFw_AQJ7TYIZGD6xYV6TxlvRcr7DzZBBVTAp7Phb/s1600/mariners.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a>By 2001 I had been dating Floyd for a while, and we frequently watched Sportscenter over and over and I had become more of a baseball fan. 2001 was a great year for the Mariners. They won a record setting 116 games in the regular season. Ichiro, Boone, Buhner, Freddy Garica, Carlos Guillen, Jamie Moyer were unbeatable and fun to watch, but they didn't make it to the World Series. That was a real tough one.<br />
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2005 was the year for the Seahawks. The Seahawks had never been good in my memory, but that year they were. Hasselbeck, and Shaun Alexander led the team to the Super Bowl. <a href="http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/08/06/four-years-later-bill-leavy-apologizes-to-seahawks/">It was the worst officiated game ever.</a> There were so many game impacting bad calls that still make me sick to my stomach. It was horrible, and left me feeling like there was no way a major Seattle sports team would ever win a championship--we were cursed.<br />
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Then I had kids and it was harder to watch sports. Seahawks made the playoffs some years and some they didn't. <a href="http://www.thenation.com/article/grand-theft-hoops-stealing-sonics#">The Sonics were stolen and moved to Oklahoma</a>. The Mariners were terrible. Floyd and I did make it to the playoff game versus the Saints where we were a part of the <a href="http://www.nfl.com/videos/seattle-seahawks/0ap2000000291693/Reliving-the-Beast-Quake">Beast Quake in 2011 when Marshawn Lynch made his epic run</a> (that video gives me chills), but I still missed a lot of games that year and only followed them loosely. <br />
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Toward the end of last year I felt like I had more time to watch football, and Russell Wilson was amazing. He was a rookie quarterback, <a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1165320-2012-nfl-draft-grades-power-ranking-teams-that-failed-on-draft-day">surprise draft pick that everyone thought was horrible</a>, he was short, and he was amazing. They won the Wild Card game and the <a href="http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-network-gameday/0ap2000000126016/GameDay-Seahawks-vs-Falcons-highlights">NFC championship game was one of the craziest up-and-down games I had ever watched</a>. They were so close to pulling off the come back of a life time, but didn't quite manage. When that game ended I knew that the next year would be our year (and re-watching those highlights I can see how much better the Seahawks were this year). I could just feel that this Russell Wilson and Pete Carroll had the champion mentality, and this was the year that Seattle could have a world championship.<br />
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We were so excited for football to start. For the first time ever I watched preseason games (which they won). The 12th Man is the perfect marketing strategy because it makes you feel like you are an important part of the team. We went to a couple games and really felt like we influenced the game and that we had a job to do (and it was exhausting). The whole season was a perfectly written story. There were games with amazing comebacks. We smashed our biggest rival the 49ers at home, but then barely lost to them when we were away. Commentators claimed that the Seahawks defense just hadn't played a good offense and thought the Saints would prove that, and we throttled them. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2bIaL3gkk675CkfUvlHnR-KmR-kzK9WcmAKOcw-2ZXjGUgJ67I9CAks1EmAWah2aJFQSpcgWnDT5fTB03c-G5ycdiEEA7nFAmyENHwXxStTHR3NHlQ8h1TFayNv7KOAmwSOuzpIPWu95A/s1600/sherman-crabtree-features.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2bIaL3gkk675CkfUvlHnR-KmR-kzK9WcmAKOcw-2ZXjGUgJ67I9CAks1EmAWah2aJFQSpcgWnDT5fTB03c-G5ycdiEEA7nFAmyENHwXxStTHR3NHlQ8h1TFayNv7KOAmwSOuzpIPWu95A/s1600/sherman-crabtree-features.jpg" height="184" width="320" /></a>Then it was the NFC championships, Seahawks versus the 49ers. It had to be that way as a huge rivaly had developed between the two teams and fans from each team played it out. I was worried about the game.<br />
The 49ers were on a roll and were looking good. The teams matched up well against each other and I knew it would be a tough game. It was one of the most exciting games ever, and a bit stressful too. The last play of the game decided who won, and it was truly awesome.<br />
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Whereas I was worried about the NFC championship game I wasn't as concerned about the Super Bowl. The commentators once again tried to say that our defense probably couldn't handle a truly great offense, but I didn't believe them--and I was right. It was the most dominating performance of the year. It was euphoric. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvp2i9KleWUnuUwncNUYAWT6lDrD9Js45lly4N8r85XNaDU3LLzm9kppE0kXsdFAq6k66UCanksrAaRrJeYxgKTs2FuRAJpH2ZZ7DNfxpSn8m72vjb5n7zGABlB5CihY8540jxDc9Ic0_M/s1600/super-bowl-football.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvp2i9KleWUnuUwncNUYAWT6lDrD9Js45lly4N8r85XNaDU3LLzm9kppE0kXsdFAq6k66UCanksrAaRrJeYxgKTs2FuRAJpH2ZZ7DNfxpSn8m72vjb5n7zGABlB5CihY8540jxDc9Ic0_M/s1600/super-bowl-football.jpg" height="298" width="400" /></a>The great thing is I can live the moments over and over. I have watched the NFC championship game 4 times. I have watched the Super Bowl game twice. We dragged the kids to downtown Seattle to the parade despite hating crowds and knowing we probably wouldn't be able to see much. I have listened to way too many commercials on sports radio for just the chance to hear something about the Seahawks.<br />
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I wonder why do I like this so much? Why does this victory feel like a great life moment. Why did I feel so much heartache when other teams lost?<br />
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I was listening to the <a href="http://www.npr.org/2013/12/13/248190652/spoken-and-unspoken">TEDRadio hour podcast the other day and there was a segment on Mark Pagel's Ted talk about humans, language</a>, and whether it brings us together or drives us apart. He said that we developed language because we are social and needed a way to communicate with each other, but if that is so, then why did we develop so many different languages? He pointed out that language is used as a clear way to delineate who is in your tribe and who is not. Your language helps you communicate with those in your tribe and it prevents you from communicating with those not in your tribe. Humans are tribal. This is why I get really attached to my sports teams. It is a way for tribalism to manifest itself in my life. It is why watching my sports <b><i>team </i></b>win magnifies feelings of euphoria so much more than watching an individual athlete I like. It is why the 12th Man has been so huge in Seattle. I feel like there were so many more Seahawk fans this year then there were in 2005. I think it is the 12th Man combined with the internet. Facebook and Twitter has allowed our tribe to be bigger and unite more thickly. It has been such an awesome experience and I am so thankful I have finally got to experience it, that I got to experience it with so many more people, and to be able to relive it over and over because I can easily record my TV, watch Sportscenter, listen to the radio, read it on the internet, and talk about it on Facebook.<br />
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SEA - HAWKS!!!!<br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-7470362133200124332014-01-17T09:53:00.003-08:002014-01-30T22:22:23.987-08:002013 In Review2013 has come and gone. As always there is so much to do and so little time. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsZaT3-9nim3PgYfaDuhxcGLq-lZe1PNI0VLEH9-mjdiLuQJrdXfC3ARuERjTSzx_pLjx45imXFTURqjZ_n9M7rRJo9S8RFL3WJ1NzEXcF3vENkXzNdfcoWPmNs6qZODG66STkL5VkVwYf/s1600/20130804_144810.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsZaT3-9nim3PgYfaDuhxcGLq-lZe1PNI0VLEH9-mjdiLuQJrdXfC3ARuERjTSzx_pLjx45imXFTURqjZ_n9M7rRJo9S8RFL3WJ1NzEXcF3vENkXzNdfcoWPmNs6qZODG66STkL5VkVwYf/s1600/20130804_144810.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a>I have continued making apps. I came out with one app this year, a popular card game among poker players called <a href="http://openfacechinesepoker.corvidapps.com/">Open Face Chinese Poker</a>. Even though it has poker in the name, there is no betting. It is just a regular card game that you play to score points. When I started making apps I told myself I would not make a server based app because the maintenance would be too much work, but I didn't listen to myself. I missed coming first to market on Android by just a week or two which kind hurt.<br />
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The good thing is that I made money this year. For a SAHM working very part time, with completely flexible hours it was decent money. For a freelance software developer it wasn't much. My two free apps (<a href="http://www.corvidapps.com/2012/03/learn-to-read-mobile-app.html">Learn to Read Lite</a>, and <a href="http://www.corvidapps.com/2012/12/kids-christmas-pattern-game.html">Kids Christmas Patttern Game</a>) have been downloaded quite a lot. I don't feel like conglomerating the exact data at the moment, but there have been around 200,000 downloads between the two of them on all the platforms they are on. <br />
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For next year I will be taking on some contract work from my dad for his consulting business. I would love to release another app or two as well as get my pattern game apps on the Windows app store, but between that work, and updating the <a href="http://openfacechinesepoker.corvidapps.com/p/home.html">OFC app</a> it will be difficult to find the time. <br />
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Running wasn't much of a focus this year and I did a horrible job keeping track of my mileage. I've been logging onto <a href="https://everymove.org/">Everymove </a>this year, which is a fun site that gives you gift cards and coupons for exercising. I even won an Xbox Kinect from my insurance company and them. It says I ran 354 miles, but that was only starting in April, and if you don't record your exercise within three days then it doesn't count towards your rewards, so I know there are lots of runs I forgot to enter. I feel like I was pretty consistent at about 15 - 20 miles a week. So probably between 700 - 800 miles for the year, but who knows? <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghsN8Vr75X_I_gcSgp8ClWoUWdItr68R315YSDrqE_-FDQC-bwriYvks-PehANcRh8gL3Jp_VF5r7dkNw3kmFsNu4ePHPR80JjASxmM9BP_KlAObiRoBtXKjGDkiS2D4BRTdHwgiNj8mTs/s1600/IMG_8462.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghsN8Vr75X_I_gcSgp8ClWoUWdItr68R315YSDrqE_-FDQC-bwriYvks-PehANcRh8gL3Jp_VF5r7dkNw3kmFsNu4ePHPR80JjASxmM9BP_KlAObiRoBtXKjGDkiS2D4BRTdHwgiNj8mTs/s1600/IMG_8462.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a><br />
My sister and I got out for two hikes this year. We did Mt. Si, since that is a classic around here, but neither of us had done it. Then we did Lake Bl<br />
anca, which was absolutely gorgeous--never had I seen a lake so blue. It is a popular, but tough hike. There were more than a few people who we came across who were really struggling physically and it was worrisome if they were going to make it. <br />
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I did a little bit of sewing, but not as much as I would like. I made a <a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/search/label/ssc">soft structured baby carrier</a> for Selena's kindergarten teacher who had a baby at the end of the school year, bibs for my nephew, <a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2013/11/plants-vs-zombies-halloween-costumes.html">Halloween costumes</a>, and helped Selena sew herself some clothes. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD5glWOLhVEPL0KD2KSheVP6u4Comt3KqnU2oJfUukS9niI0qWAktMle36Pd0UatFxoK9Fd4S7cBsEvnmRg5bxO4B8bvg_2p9WEPy2QlG2NMOKh2OP6bOfdUl_v4tthttAZi_8yB1D1cuh/s1600/20130504_120153.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD5glWOLhVEPL0KD2KSheVP6u4Comt3KqnU2oJfUukS9niI0qWAktMle36Pd0UatFxoK9Fd4S7cBsEvnmRg5bxO4B8bvg_2p9WEPy2QlG2NMOKh2OP6bOfdUl_v4tthttAZi_8yB1D1cuh/s1600/20130504_120153.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a>Selena finished kindergarten and has started first grade. She is doing well in school and learning a lot, but finds waking up in the morning and being quiet all day kind of hard. She has been taking gymnastics and played a couple sessions of soccer. It has been fun to see how much she has improved. She loves to draw and write, and is constantly making picture books.<br />
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Allie finished her first year of preschool and is onto her second. She also has been doing gymnastics and soccer and is awesome at both. Allie loves to draw and create and makes around 30 masterpieces a day, and cuts up about 5000 pieces of paper a day. Allie also enjoys playing on the computer, phones, and tablets and is very tech savvy.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPAPVVQifJQBSjh2ioz9WCk0713x-TreeGDn8c1AB0IfgXZqXqW01T6dtQxGZt9tjoAEYknMvl63LQaeisMEW_lk66hIXr1Ue2pLL9ac9HbuCAvicapzP4gOHY55ptffjgxCXF4cyiU8bk/s1600/20130922_133152.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPAPVVQifJQBSjh2ioz9WCk0713x-TreeGDn8c1AB0IfgXZqXqW01T6dtQxGZt9tjoAEYknMvl63LQaeisMEW_lk66hIXr1Ue2pLL9ac9HbuCAvicapzP4gOHY55ptffjgxCXF4cyiU8bk/s1600/20130922_133152.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
Floyd continues to play poker and do well. He has mixed it up this year and has played some Pot-Limit Omaha in addition to No Limit Holdem. He took two trips to Vegas this year (and one of them I joined him for a couple days), but did not do the WSOP Main Event. The highlight for the year was placing 3rd in a pretty big tournament. He continues to run. We got to go to a couple Sehawks and Sounders games this year and we always enjoy that, even when they are wet.<br />
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2013 was a good year and I am sure 2014 will be as well. Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-90718422150443708092013-11-18T11:30:00.000-08:002013-11-18T11:30:00.765-08:00Broken Arm<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Maybe it was inevitable with all the climbing Selena does, but it finally resulted in a broken bone. Her and Allie were climbing on top of the dresser and jumping onto the bed. Selena slipped and fell and hurt her arm. It was almost bed time and she was in pain, but there was no visible signs of injury so we went to bed. </div>
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The next day I kept her home from school and was trying to decide if it was broken or not and I made her a homemade sling to keep it propped. I called the nurse line towards the end of the day and she said it was probably okay to monitor it for another day. The problem is, we only have catastrophic health insurance so every doctor visit we pay out of pocket. While we do get the insurance adjusted rates, they are still unreasonably high. We really didn't want to pay $500 to be told it was a sprain and to ice and elevate. </div>
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The next day she said it felt better so I sent her off to school in her homemade sling. Oops, talk about bad parenting. :S When she got home it was noticeably swollen so we took her to an urgent care clinic in which they x-rayed and confirmed that it was indeed broken. They said it was a buckle fracture. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_DRO2SLKAcnyREzFLC3-uvaF7dfApihnhXES_Svg_rm8ollmHvn1caJ5ptr0N8ZoB9eFrGUfqHZKDJC1qIchrRI2cXeAHQr3pj9uUhQraoHDGvnJT1OFewg0U7noi9x-VDJJuZFHf2aWq/s1600/selena_arm.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_DRO2SLKAcnyREzFLC3-uvaF7dfApihnhXES_Svg_rm8ollmHvn1caJ5ptr0N8ZoB9eFrGUfqHZKDJC1qIchrRI2cXeAHQr3pj9uUhQraoHDGvnJT1OFewg0U7noi9x-VDJJuZFHf2aWq/s400/selena_arm.png" width="196" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5tTcsM1RL_8m02i07g7cBmUmdndT7ehRcP4bVuaVge4kXZthfKmD4IXWpLaAXQWhB2IxZ9x93fx6x3RIVj8iD2XjAC6pVJNLEtTFVncnsWKrJbiuxfDP9DweE1JrUbePCEfQGh6rAHVoT/s1600/20131018_145238.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5tTcsM1RL_8m02i07g7cBmUmdndT7ehRcP4bVuaVge4kXZthfKmD4IXWpLaAXQWhB2IxZ9x93fx6x3RIVj8iD2XjAC6pVJNLEtTFVncnsWKrJbiuxfDP9DweE1JrUbePCEfQGh6rAHVoT/s400/20131018_145238.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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She got a purple cast that she wore for 4 weeks, and she just got it off and so she seems to be good as new. Though she didn't really stop monkeying around. I'd still catch her climbing on top of stuff and swinging from her one good arm. </div>
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When my mom asked if she learned anything from the experience, she couldn't think of one thing. When the nurse asked her how she broke it and Selena said she fell off her dresser. </div>
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The nurse said, "Dresser?".</div>
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Allie piped up and said, "It is really fun to climb on top of the dresser and jump on to the bed."</div>
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The nurse said, "So you probably won't be doing that any more?"</div>
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They both looked at her like she was crazy, and did she not hear the part about it being really fun. </div>
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So hopefully we won't have to deal with any more broken bones, now that we got this one out of the way. </div>
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Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-2497208766944592672013-11-17T11:16:00.000-08:002013-11-17T11:16:00.193-08:00Puyallup FairEvery year we go to the Puyallup Fair in September. It isn't as convenient to go, as it was when we lived in Puyallup, but it is bigger and more fun than the Evergreen State Fair and thus we make the trek. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhebZ5B6kie7T8W5A83G8GAcZ7v2Z2oYm1WV8seDYAqi7r-c6E_Il6DUhu5gPZkCUnON_eh4vEbOJqbc2ocVTu1uc4bGyesbE3jup6tJx2eHr7oeNguuqttQgmRyKaB3buHa3CRsZN1BAG1/s1600/20130917_160735.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhebZ5B6kie7T8W5A83G8GAcZ7v2Z2oYm1WV8seDYAqi7r-c6E_Il6DUhu5gPZkCUnON_eh4vEbOJqbc2ocVTu1uc4bGyesbE3jup6tJx2eHr7oeNguuqttQgmRyKaB3buHa3CRsZN1BAG1/s320/20130917_160735.jpg" width="240" /></a>The one highlight of the trip is the Mutton Bustin. Floyd and I watched it, slightly horrified, every year before we had kids, so when we had kids of our own it seemed like they should be a part of it, even if it is absolutely insane. Selena wanted to do it when she was three, but they said she didn't weigh enough and only let her be on the sheep in the corral, and then pulled her off when they opened the gate. When she was four, she fell off immediately, last year she made it about half way but got stepped on and there were some tears and bruises. This year she was ready and had been planning the perfect technique. <br />
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Allie on the other hand seemed unenthused. They upped the age limit and it wasn't an option when she was three. This year when asked if she was going to do it, she wouldn't answer, but when it came time to sign up she said she was ready. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGf60LAmG5P1fnURopmrVoltTnS7tc92VNYiL0J11CPimQoGa-SIdkblQk7HABJHy7FyJarDFatYzI65ECsrKHPoH9QyyRR519OcbB2537ayksK6wISlHShhagl356jH73aic-IrZJXMAU/s1600/20130917_151824.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGf60LAmG5P1fnURopmrVoltTnS7tc92VNYiL0J11CPimQoGa-SIdkblQk7HABJHy7FyJarDFatYzI65ECsrKHPoH9QyyRR519OcbB2537ayksK6wISlHShhagl356jH73aic-IrZJXMAU/s320/20130917_151824.jpg" width="320" /></a>Both of them did absolutely awesome. Selena made it all the way to the end and then some. She ended up getting second place because one other girls also made it to the end, and apparently she had a more difficult sheep. Allie made it half way across and popped right up when she fell off. It was fun watching.<br />
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Face painting, the Cutest Show on Earth, and of course the rides are the other main highlights. Usually food is also a positive, but as I get older fair food just seems gross to me, and Allie is gluten free so that also limits.<br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-67645955724201518252013-11-15T22:49:00.000-08:002013-11-15T22:49:56.284-08:00Plants Vs Zombies Halloween Costumes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I find it so crazy that every year I make the girls costumes that surprise me in how cool they are. I impress myself. I find it so bizarre that I am that mom who makes cool Halloween costumes because over-the-top costumes doesn't really match my personality. But the girls get so excited planning what they want, and they have such faith in my abilities that I don't really have a choice. :)<br />
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This year the girls decided to go as <a href="http://www.popcap.com/games/plants-vs-zombies/online">Plants Vs Zombies</a> characters. My brother has been playing the game for years, but I hadn't gotten around to trying it. My sister was playing it with the girls and Allie started asking if we could get it, and Selena, Allie and I all became addicted for a short while later. Thankfully the obsession only lasted a few weeks. <br />
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Selena wanted to be Chomper, and Allie wanted to be a Marigold, the little flower that gives you coins. <br />
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For both costumes I <a href="http://thememorynest.blogspot.com/2012/10/plants-vs-zombies-family-costume-theme.html">used this post from the Memory Nest as a guide</a>. The main differences were for the Chomper costume:<br />
- I used tacky glue versus a hot glue gun.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUOQw6rAOTrBtB7r_tMp0CIAKJo5JD4eHj2gK_ZSxwndfTrNOp4PJu6S9zmrgVb5p9fEhzDVoJRdpjnKV7Xr28PaZ6_caBHuFUBgtHDeMTehov96HPrjJpnxAKoVOYPdz7W9t-w1n38Oo0/s1600/20131005_193314.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUOQw6rAOTrBtB7r_tMp0CIAKJo5JD4eHj2gK_ZSxwndfTrNOp4PJu6S9zmrgVb5p9fEhzDVoJRdpjnKV7Xr28PaZ6_caBHuFUBgtHDeMTehov96HPrjJpnxAKoVOYPdz7W9t-w1n38Oo0/s400/20131005_193314.jpg" width="300" /></a>- I used fleece instead of felt.<br />
- For the leaves I used really thick interfacing sandwiched between the fabric and sewn around. I probably should have made them bigger than I did.<br />
- I also used the interfacing for the teeth.<br />
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For the Marigold costume I also used the interface and sandwiched it between some white fleece and sewed it onto some elastic.<br />
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<a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2011/12/brachiosaurus-aka-long-neck-dinosaur.html">Once again</a> I used the <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/heidiandfinn/search?search_query=urban+unisex+hoodie&order=date_desc&view_type=gallery&ref=shop_search">Heidi and Finn Urban Unisex Hoodie</a>. Using two layers of fleece make it really warm and thus the kids do not need a jacket when trick-or-treating. Fortunately the lovely creator of the pattern had graded the pattern up to 6 - 12 years and I was able to buy that and get a good size for Selena. She probably could have fit in a 5T, but since she had broken her arm and had a cast I needed something a bit bigger to fit over it. <br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">And of course my other go-to pattern, the <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetshop" style="background-color: white; color: #999999; line-height: 20.796875px; text-decoration: none;">Willow Wayfarer Hipster for Slimster</a><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="line-height: 20.796875px;">, was what I used for the pants. I am sad that Selena is just about getting too big for the biggest size for that one. I'm not sure what I am going to do next year. I used fleece for this which also is warm and cozy. </span></span></span><br />
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-50487072860869272382013-10-08T00:01:00.000-07:002013-10-08T16:48:56.787-07:00Screen Time - The Battle of Ideologies<!-- START TOP CODE -->
<strong>Welcome to the October 2013 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Kids and Technology</strong><br />
<em>This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by <a href="http://codenamemama.com/2013/10/08/5-ways-extend-screen-time/" target="_blank">Code Name: Mama</a> and <a href="http://www.hobomama.com/2013/10/raising-kids-who-love-tv.html" target="_blank">Hobo Mama</a>. This month our participants have written about their families' policies on screen time.</em><br />
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Kids and technology is a topic that I frequently debate internally. On one hand I prioritize <a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2013/09/exercise-makes-you-smarter-and-happier.html">physical activity as being vitally important for my children</a>, and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/156512605X/?tag=lausblo-20">Richard Louve’s book Last Child in the Woods</a> is my favorite parenting book. On the other hand, technology is ubiquitous in
our world. I can see my children learning and enjoying it, and... I make <a href="http://www.corvidapps.com/">mobile apps for kids</a>. That’s the stickler. Am I making and profiting from something that
is actually a detriment to children?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnpFx2TvIaqra9uG71AkTCKfFumVCSiGKaybUWVr7CKhugRhrjladVBq8EdovB2G6KParZbtEzFBP5wNqvhgZ0RVvYR-8-2IdJbAU3hjRlK29X-ZL5umcgp2J3u9ZxhF5qyU_JwCxgoOtX/s1600/laura_computer.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnpFx2TvIaqra9uG71AkTCKfFumVCSiGKaybUWVr7CKhugRhrjladVBq8EdovB2G6KParZbtEzFBP5wNqvhgZ0RVvYR-8-2IdJbAU3hjRlK29X-ZL5umcgp2J3u9ZxhF5qyU_JwCxgoOtX/s400/laura_computer.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me as a young girl playing Tetris</td></tr>
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As for research I can find just as many studies for screen time as I can against. There are so many variables involved that most of the research I have seen, isn't very compelling one way or the other, and I am left with my own observations and my own experience. In general, I have a difficult time restricting computer use, because I have a difficult time leading by example. Whereas I don't watch much TV, and thus have an easier time restricting its use. <br />
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<b>Why I think screen time is good:</b></div>
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<ul>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Stories are essential to
humans.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">We love them, and we learn from
them, and<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/sep/07/reading-fiction-empathy-study"> some even say we develop empathy from them</a>.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Television and mobile devices are particularly good at letting young children get involved with and interact with complex narratives at a younger age then they could otherwise. More isn't always better, but I find it pretty cool that at five years old, my daughter understood time travel paradoxes due to My Little Pony, <a href="http://www.storynory.com/category/original-stories-for-children/tick-tock-turkey/">Storynory.com</a><span id="goog_1046332107"></span><span id="goog_1046332108"></span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/"></a>, and Harry Potter. (Harry Potter was both reading the novel, and watching the movie.) </span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I would say that play is the most essential element to human learning. Generally play advocates are not referring to video games, but computer and video games are play, and they are fun. Many non-educational ones have strategy, logic and reasoning that are overall good skills to have. I would say that there are very few lessons in school that prepare you for the logic and reasoning required to be a computer programmer, and the lessons that do exist are in math, which many people seem to have a real aversion to. But the problem solving, and logic required to beat difficult video games are good stepping stones to the skills you need to be a software developer.</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Alternative to play many people advocate drilling and practicing for learning, ie. flash cards, math worksheets etc. Computer games are an ideal way to satisfy those ends without the tediousness, and boredom associated with the traditional method. You can do more problems, in a shorter amount of time, and with more enjoyment, then with a pencil and paper.</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">There is so much information, in such easy formats. The internet is amazing! </span></li>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZniGHsXimwyqWaMUfjKcL2WWz8p4ZpqOxMzEeJGkFaAERwQmY8kMCJudoYvfivq8r3MI3SPsTa9igwhPbG9kIsAnbOe3sNK7AivgWtSdv3mD6zLVDw22JnHEcPYXWmwsFj3z8NsZJmnVr/s1600/kids_on_computer.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZniGHsXimwyqWaMUfjKcL2WWz8p4ZpqOxMzEeJGkFaAERwQmY8kMCJudoYvfivq8r3MI3SPsTa9igwhPbG9kIsAnbOe3sNK7AivgWtSdv3mD6zLVDw22JnHEcPYXWmwsFj3z8NsZJmnVr/s320/kids_on_computer.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="text-indent: -124px;"><b>Why I think screen time is not good:</b></span><br />
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<li>It can be addicting. It draws you in and can absorb you for long periods of time, making you sedentary and grumpy. Long bouts of screen time make my kids really cranky and they fight more. Alternatively they get so involved with what they are doing that when you make them stop because they need to eat, or we have somewhere to go, they get angry and throw a tantrum. I have noticed the same problems with myself.</li>
<li>Lots of content is inane and probably makes you dumber.</li>
<li>The blue light from screens on at night can disrupt sleep patterns.</li>
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<b>What we do at our house:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>I make sure the kids get ample time for exercise and outdoor play each day. In the summer I restrict screen time a lot more than I do in the fall/winter/spring when it rains and rains and rains.</li>
<li>I make sure the content is high quality. On the computer I have a <a href="http://announcement.corvidapps.com/free_online_kids_games/">page setup</a>, so they can access <a href="http://announcement.corvidapps.com/free_online_kids_games/">good quality free educational kids games</a>. <a href="http://pbskids.org/">Pbskids.org</a> is by far the best as it doesn't have any advertisements, and the games are high quality. For mobile devices I visit sites like <a href="http://smartappsforkids.com/">smartappsforkids.com</a> (and <a href="http://www.smartappsforandroid.com/">smartappsforandroid.com</a>), <a href="http://digitialstorytime.com/">digitialstorytime.com</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/AppFriday">App Friday</a> where I know many of the developers and reviewers. </li>
<li>I try to limit the length of a session. I admit that I am not always as diligent as I should be. My oldest tends to be fairly good at self-regulating, but my youngest would play all day if allowed. I admit that I sometimes use a screen as a babysitter. If I have something I need to do I may let them play for longer than is good for them, and I usually feel guilty, and regret it later due to their grumpiness.</li>
<li>I play with them, and/or encourage them to play together on the computer or mobile devices. Computer's aren't usually considered social, but when used socially they can have some <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-10663353">amazing outcomes</a>. <a href="http://www.corvidapps.com/2012/03/best-use-of-computers-in-education.html">I talked a bit about this before on my other blog.</a> </li>
<li>I prefer for them to play computer games versus watching TV. TV seems more passive, and I personally do not care for TV as much. </li>
<li>Tie in what they see and learn on TV, etc with real life and/or books. For instance when Selena really liked Bob the Builder, we got lots of <a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2011/02/book-recommendations-for-kids-who-like.html">library books about trucks and building</a>, and <a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2010/11/can-we-build-it.html">did some building of our own</a>. </li>
<li>We use technology to enjoy nature. We love to go <a href="http://www.geocaching.com/">geocaching</a> (treasure hunting with a GPS device), and mobile devices make great cameras for recording scientific observations about bugs and plants outside, as well as animals at the zoo.</li>
<li>Overall I acknowledge screen time as a form of play, and one of many outlets for creation and creativity while also trying to prevent it from over-consuming our time and attention.</li>
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<b>Other kind of related stuff:</b></div>
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Great articles about how old people always think new stuff is bad:</div>
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<li><a href="http://mindsofkids.blogspot.com/2012/05/its-end-of-world-as-we-know-it-and-i.html">http://mindsofkids.blogspot.com/2012/05/its-end-of-world-as-we-know-it-and-i.html</a></li>
<li><a href="http://mentalfloss.com/article/52209/15-historical-complaints-about-young-people-ruining-everything">http://mentalfloss.com/article/52209/15-historical-complaints-about-young-people-ruining-everything</a> - My favorite quote is how in 1859 Scientific American railed against the wicked game of chess, that made the mind and body weak.</li>
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Great quote from <a href="http://www.squidoo.com/stop-stealing-dreams">Seth Godin's education manifesto - Stop Stealing Dreams (free ebook)</a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">The fork in this road is ever more pronounced because there’s now so much more to choose from. A citizen can spend his spare time getting smarter, more motivated, and more involved, or he can tune out, drop out, and entertain himself into a stupor. The same devices deliver either or both from the online ether—and the choice that people make is one that’s going to develop early, based on the expectations of our teachers and the standards of our peers.</span></blockquote>
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<a href="http://codenamemama.com/carnival-of-natural-parenting/#carnatpar" target="_blank" title="Carnival of Natural Parenting"><img align="right" alt="Carnival of Natural Parenting -- Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama" border="0" class="alignright" src="http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee159/lintpicker/CNPnaturalparent.jpg" /></a>Visit <a href="http://codenamemama.com/carnival-of-natural-parenting/#carnatpar" target="_blank"> <strong>Code Name: Mama</strong></a> and <a href="http://www.hobomama.com/p/carnival-of-natural-parenting.html" target="_blank"><strong>Hobo Mama</strong></a> to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!<br />
Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants (list will be updated throughout the day on October 8):<br />
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<li><strong><a href="http://www.hybridrastamama.com/2013/10/has-technology-taken-away-childhood.html" target="_blank">Has Technology Taken Away Childhood?</a></strong> — Jennifer at <strong>Hybrid Rasta Mama</strong> worries that technology is intruding on the basic premise of childhood - active play in all forms! Join her as she takes a brief look at how play has changed as technology becomes more integrated into the daily lives of our children.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://jennifermcmillin.blogspot.com/2013/10/fostering-healthy-relationship-technology.html" target="_blank">Fostering a Healthy Relationship with Technology</a></strong> — Jenn at <strong>Adventures Down Under</strong> describes her children's love of screen time and how her family implements their philosophy and policies on technology.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://http//crunchyconservativemommy.blogspot.com/2013/10/kids-chores-for-tech-privileges.html" target="_blank">Kids Chores for Tech Privileges</a></strong> — <strong>Crunchy Con Mommy </strong>shares how tying chore completion to iPad privileges worked in her house to limit screen time and inspire voluntary room cleaning!</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://sustainable-mum.blogspot.com/2013/10/screens.html" target="_blank">Screens</a></strong> — Without the benefit of her own experience, <strong>sustainablemum</strong> explains her family's use of technology in their home.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://bangerlm.blogspot.com/2013/10/screen-time-battle-of-ideologies.html" target="_blank">Screen Time - The Battle of Ideologies</a></strong> — Laura from <strong>Laura's Blog</strong> explains why she is a mom who prioritizes outdoor natural play for her kids but also lets them have ample screen time.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.raisingarevolution.tumblr.com/post/123/october2013-blogcarnival-technology" target="_blank">The Day My iPhone Died</a></strong> — Revolution Momma at <strong>Raising a Revolution</strong> questions the role technology plays in her life when she is devastated after losing her phone's picture collection from her daughter's first year.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.meegs1982.com/2013/10/finding-our-technological-balance.html" target="_blank">Finding our Technological Balance</a></strong> — Meegs at <strong>A New Day</strong> talks about how she finds balance between wanting her daughter to enjoy all the amazing technology available to her, without it overwhelming the natural parenting she's striving for.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.hobomama.com/2013/10/raising-kids-who-love-tv.html" target="_blank">Raising kids who love TV</a></strong> — Lauren at <strong>Hobo Mama</strong> sometimes fears what children who love screentime will grow up to be … until she realizes they'll be just like her.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.togetherwalking.com/1/post/2013/10/no-limits-on-screen-time-is-that-natural.html" target="_blank">No Limits on Screen Time? Is that Natural?</a></strong> — Susan at <strong>Together Walking</strong> shares misconceptions and benefits of having no limits on technology and screen time in their home.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.mommajorje.com/2013/10/screen-time.html" target="_blank">Screen Time</a></strong> — Jorje of <strong>Momma Jorje</strong> shares what is currently working (and what hasn't) regarding screen time in her household.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://livingmontessorinow.com/2013/10/08/positive-use-of-technology-with-kids/" target="_blank">Positive Use of Technology with Kids</a></strong> — Deb Chitwood at <strong>Living Montessori Now</strong> tells about her family's experiences with early technology, shares helpful resources from around the blogosphere, and speculates on what she'd do as a parent with young children today.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://your-fonder-heart.blogspot.com/2013/10/why-i-will-never-quit-you-tv-ready.html" target="_blank">why i will never quit you, TV</a></strong> — How Emma of <strong>Your Fonder Heart</strong> came to terms with the fact that screen time is happening, and what balance looks like between real and virtual life for both her toddler AND herself.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.ourlittleacorn.com/2013/10/technology-speaks.html" target="_blank">Technology Speaks</a></strong> — Janet at <strong>Our Little Acorn</strong> finds many uses for technology - including giving her child a voice.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://codenamemama.com/2013/10/08/5-ways-extend-screen-time/" target="_blank">5 Ways to Extend Children's Screen Time into Creative Learning Opportunities </a></strong> — Looking for a way to balance screen time with other fun learning experiences? Dionna at <strong>Code Name: Mama</strong> shares 5 fun ways to take your child's love of favorite shows or video games and turn them into creative educational activities.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6529547179277063608#" target="_blank">What parents can learn about technology from teachers</a></strong> — Douglas Blane at <strong>Friendly Encounters</strong> discusses how technology in schools enhances children's learning, and where to find out more.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6529547179277063608#" target="_blank">5 Tips for a Peaceful Home</a></strong> — Megan of the Boho Mama and author at <strong>Natural Parents Network</strong> shares her favorite 5 tips for creating a peaceful home environment.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.citykidshomeschooling.com/2013/10/technology-and-natural-learning.html" target="_blank">Technology and Natural Learning</a></strong> — Kerry at <strong>City Kids Homeschooling</strong> writes about the importance of technology as a tool for natural, self-directed learning.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.jananas.com/babies-and-technology/" target="_blank">Babies and Technology</a></strong> — <strong>Jana Falls</strong> shares how her family has coped, changed their use of, relied on, and stopped using various forms of technology since their little man arrived on the scene</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://www.her.joshandrosemary.com/kids-and-technology" target="_blank">Kids and Technology</a></strong> — Rosemary at <strong>Rosmarinus Officinalis</strong> talks about the benefits of using technology with her preschooler, and includes a few of their favorite resources.</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://wp.me/p2L387-1H6" target="_blank">Using Technology to Your Advantage: Helping Children Find Balance</a></strong> — At <strong>Living Peacefully with Children</strong>, Mandy discusses how technology can be used or abused and gives a few tips to help children learn balance.</li>
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Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6529547179277063608.post-85930913560950867822013-09-25T13:47:00.000-07:002014-07-23T23:36:17.483-07:00Exercise Makes You Smarter and Happier - Infographic<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="text-align: left;">I have been wanting to put this information into an infographic for a long time and have finally scraped together enough time and motivation to do so. I find it frustrating when people only look at exercise as a way to lose weight, and if it fails to satisfy that end, they dismiss it. I find it frustrating that schools have cut and eliminated recess and physical education when doing so is counter-productive to everything a school should be trying to accomplish, and I hate it when people look at me like I am crazy when I say so. :)</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Press Release
from California Department of Education December 2001 </span><span style="background: white;"><a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&ved=0CDEQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.myteacherpages.com%2Fwebpages%2Ftwelch%2Ffiles%2FCalifornia%2520State%2520study%2520proves%2520physically%2520fit%2520kids%2520perform%2520better%2520academically.doc&ei=At0zUtrZEsW7iwKs0oDQCg&usg=AFQjCNEC_CoQZmAc0zFq39uzwzW3Bu8APA&sig2=snt5gzpppquq0r26JnreXQ">https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&ved=0CDEQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.myteacherpages.com%2Fwebpages%2Ftwelch%2Ffiles%2FCalifornia%2520State%2520study%2520proves%2520physically%2520fit%2520kids%2520perform%2520better%2520academically.doc&ei=At0zUtrZEsW7iwKs0oDQCg&usg=AFQjCNEC_CoQZmAc0zFq39uzwzW3Bu8APA&sig2=snt5gzpppquq0r26JnreXQ</a></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Erwin, Heather.
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Mahar, MT.
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><<a href="http://archpedi.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=384475">http://archpedi.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=384475</a>>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">"Norepinephrine."<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Wikipedia</i>. Wikipedia, 14 9
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<span style="background-color: white;"><<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norepinephrine">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norepinephrine</a>>.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Ratey, John J.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Spark: The Revolutionary New
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2008. Print. <<o:p></o:p></span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0316113514/?tag=lausblo-20"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.796875px;">http://www.amazon.com/dp/</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">0316113514</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.796875px;">/?tag=</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.796875px;"><b>lausblo</b></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.796875px;">-20</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.796875px;">></span></div>
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1542-7. Print. <<a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15585045">http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15585045</a>>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12146270736158297146noreply@blogger.com0