Welcome to First Grade! I Love Teachers!

My sun child just received his first letter in the mail and it was from his new first grade teacher. It said, "some of the fun things we will be learning about can be found in the poem below...

Friendship
Indigenous Florida Natives
Rabbit Play
Stories, Songs and Scripture
Treasures of the Ocean

Great Adventures
Reading, Writing and Arithmetic
Animals of Florida
Detectives
Explorers

I can't wait to meet you!" How awesome! He was thrilled and now first grade is a little less scary. I love teachers!!!

My First Blog Award!

My blog BoysRising received its first blog award! It has taken me a few weeks to respond but it is never too late to say Thanks! Thank you to Karen Pokras Toz for recognizing BoysRising. Sometimes, as a writer, you wonder if anyone is reading, so it is nice to know that someone not only reads but enjoys the content.  Please check out Karen's blog at Karen Pokras Toz, especially her weekly summaries. Karen suggests sharing 7 things about myself, so here we go.

Shedding the Post Pregnancy Baby Belly

Back on the Bike

 "Mom, do you have another baby in your stomach?" This came from my 6 year old, who has reached the "brutally honest" age where everything comes out unfiltered. I just smiled and said, "no sweetie" because I think that he was actually hoping that my answer would be yes. My husband quickly tells me not to pay any attention to my son's comments because unlike my son, he is not a 6 year old and has learned to filter his comments when it comes to a woman's weight.  Now,  at 5' 4", 118 lbs, I am certainly not overweight; in fact, my mother thinks that I am too skinny. However, in this small frame, there is 27% body fat, confirmed by the very young lady at the gym with the tape measure and torture device that clips to the skin. So why is it so hard to shed the baby belly

Fun with Legos - If You Can Imagine It, You Can Create It.

Almost every evening, my 4 year old says, "mommy, close your eyes, I have a surprise for you!"  He then leads me to his Lego creation. It is so challenging to get kids, especially boys, to sit and focus on a task that I am so happy that he can let his imagination run wild with his Legos. Often, I have no idea what he has created but he knows and he had a great time creating it. 

A few more

Boy in the Mirror: Celebrating Fathers Who Create a Positive Reflection

Happy Father's Day! It is a sentiment that I have rarely had a chance to express to my own father. He was in and out of my life for many years and when he was in my life, it felt strange to say it. Happy Father's Day seems like a special statement to be reserved for the most special fathers, you know, the ones who were around to change diapers, wipe tears, give great advice, lecture that boy taking me out on my first date,  and walk me down the aisle during my wedding.