2019 Powersheets are COMING!

If you've been around this little piece of the web for any of the last couple of years, you'll know that I am a serious fan-girl of Lara Casey and the Cultivate What Matters Team.  They make the most amazing intentional products from their Write the Word Journals to motivational postcards you can send to your loved ones. It is this time of year that I love the most for so many reasons... one of them being the NEW Powersheet Collection release!

I seriously love my powersheets for so many reasons, but one of them is that they allow me to work through a series of worksheets designed to help me figure out what goals matter most to me. Now, I've fallen victim of overloading on the goals in the past, but I'm learning how to edit myself over time. One main issue here is that it is okay to not fill in every single line on your tending list each month... I'm a work in progress, Y'all.

I'm going to take you on a short tour of my goal refresh for the fall season...

To start your refresh, you're given these boxes to examine different areas of your life. Starting at the top of the left page going clockwise on the page - Health, Friends, Spouse/Significant Other, and Family are given a rank from 1 to 10.  You're then allowed to explain why you chose the rank you did, then a space to write what you're saying YES to in the coming season, and what you're saying NO to in the coming season as well. On the second page, you work through - Finances, Spiritual + Personal Growth, Work, and Recreation. After this two page spread, you're given space to choose up to 10 new goals for the season. 

You're allowed to do this within the 1 year dated workbook each season - Spring, Summer, and Fall - in addition to your initial goal prep work that is a 60-page journey toward uncovering the things that matter most to you. (at least it was 60 pages in 2018 -- they likely have added things for the new year.)

After you've finished your refresh -- or each month -- you'll find a blank tending list page that you can tear out and place somewhere meaningful for you. Maybe it's in your day planner or taped to the fridge or bathroom mirror... where ever you need to place it to keep you chipping away at your goals. I personally leave them inside the Powersheets and set it next to my day planner so that at the end of the year, I can pack them away and have a record of all the goals I set and progress made in the previous years.

Here is my list for October 2018... I left several lines on the weekly and daily goals blank because I'm focused in on some bigger monthly projects this season. I've got some checking off to do, but still LOTS of progress to be made!

Now, let's talk about the 2019 collection... there are SO many new products coming out on October 24th at 10AM Eastern -- you will absolutely want to make a note in your planner to shop that day! I'll make sure to come back and drop some links and share some more products for you to look at in the days until Launch Day. For now... let's talk covers.

In past years, there has only been one cover for the 1-year version -- and they've had a few choices for the 6-month versions... this year, however, there is only 1 version for the 6-month sets (a neutral cover) and FOUR covers for the 1-year versions!

Multi-colored (Funfetti)

Pink

Teal

Yellow

I am torn personally between Multi-colored and Teal... which one would you love to have in your hot little hands on October 24th? In addition to this, Lara has designed a Cultivated Homeschool Planner that I plan to print and take to Office Depot to be bound. It's completely free and customizable for how you need to plan your homeschool, but what a blessing for no cost at all! I do hope you'll join in the movement and Cultivate What Matters in your own life!

Journey to Getting Published

For as long as I can remember, I have loved writing. I process well through writing things out -- which was a big reason why I started ye ole blog. Then I had two babies in a year and lost my way with getting some writing done everyday.

I mentioned last fall that I really felt the calling again to finish my book and try to get it published. I felt the calling so strongly that I even sent an initial couple of chapters over to a self publisher.

They LOVED it, and even felt my writing was strong enough that I could actually edit the book myself -- although -- I would never try that. I've always known that when you're *THISCLOSE* to your story, you need fresh eyes on it to help weed out anything that isn't necessary. An editor can also help you find the spots that need a bit more flushing out because it isn't clear.

Anyway -- they sent me their recommendations and to say that I was FLOORED at the amount of money they wanted to publish my book would be an understatement. I mean sure, I *could* make it back and turn a profit eventually... it was a tough pill to swallow.

I mean we are talking $$ that I've never seen in my bank account at one time except maybe twice when we sold our house in Memphis or when John gets a good bonus at the same time as our tax refund comes in... it's A LOT.

Where does that leave me? Well, I could sign with them if money fell out of the sky... or I keep writing and praying that God will show me a different path. I've got plenty of work to do with writing still -- so I'm working on that end, but the process of finding an agent or a publishing company that might be interested in my book proposal seems daunting.

I'm not giving up -- and don't get me wrong. It was incredibly rewarding knowing that a publishing company thinks my work is good enough to publish under both of their brands, but at the same time -- it's a little disappointing to hear that they want a huge amount of money to get your book going. (Especially when it's money that you just flat do not have access to)

I do have a goal of polishing and finishing a chapter or two a month this year and hopefully if I can do two a month -- I'll be able to look for an agent or publisher later this year. I know that as long as I keep plugging along writing for God's glory -- he will help me fill in the gaps in His time. 

Goals for 2017

It's 2017 y'all! I'm so excited to have turned the page on the year and to have a fresh start. I don't know why everything feels fresh and new magically on January 1st, but there is just something about the start of a new calendar year that gives me a whole new hope for doing things better and being stronger.

Well, this year I've got a new tool in my belt -- it's called Powersheets! I'll have a link down below to check out to see if there are any left for you to get them. If there aren't -- you should ABSOLUTELY go over and check out Lara Casey's Blog -- grab a notebook and DIY yourself some powersheets!

I wanted to take some time and share what I came up with for my goals this year... but I want to start with Lara's overarching words for this year that we are all about Progress over Perfection. I couldn't have said that any better than she did. So with that said -- my word for 2017 is: JOURNEY!

I want to embrace all of the ups and downs that come along with setting goals for the year... which I have often let derail my goals in the past. I've so often started something, had a hiccup along the way and let that completely stop the entire process.

My main goal for this year is to NOT let those hiccups take away from the good progress that is happening in my life.

So I worked through the entire prep work section of the Powersheets and ended up with these goals.

(feel free to click on this to get a better look)

These are the 10 things that I'm working on this year -- or at least for this first season of 2017. Every 3 months there is a goal refresh process that you can work through to make sure that your goals haven't changed a bit over time. If they have - then you can change them up a bit and keep going... 

Once you've written your goals for the year out -- which you can have as many or as few as you want... then you make an action plan for each of them. 

I chose this goal to show you the action plan -- just because I wanted to show an example and I thought that this one is the most important for the year. I also bought a new bible for my work this year... 

 

This One Year Chronological Bible is on sale right now and it's the NLT version so it's going to be pretty practical. I love that it also has some adult coloring spaces as well for you to get a little creative and spend some time soaking in the Word of the Lord. Mine should be here by the middle of next week -- so I'll be working hard to get caught up to the daily reading for whatever day it delivers, by pouring into it for a few days. 

After your action plan is written in your Powersheets for each Goal -- then you fill out your monthly tending list -- which is a place for you to write in your Monthly, Weekly, and Daily tasks that will help you accomplish progress toward your goals. 

This is my Tending List for January -- and I LOVE that it has a progress bar for the monthly goals, then a checkbox for the weekly and daily goals. I'm already loving seeing the check marks getting placed in the boxes. 

If you see down at the bottom there that nothing is happening with my first 3 daily goals... well, that's because I also am in the process of reading about a new lifestyle plan that my sister uses along with her Beachbody workout systems... so I'm going to give it a shot. I just may wait another week or so to get it all planned out. I'm planning to go visit my mom for a few days a week from Monday -- so I will likely not hit the ground running with this plan until the last week of the month, but I do plan to start working out again next week and getting more water in... and making healthier choices with food once we are back into our other routines. 

I'll write more about what I'm planning to do here in a few more days -- once I've finished the book! 

Use this link below to check out the shop where all of these amazing Powersheets and other items can be found. There isn't a thing on their site that I don't have on my wish list!

The Dream of Writing a Book

I've been kicking this idea around for YEARS. Literally since the moment the story was clear on how it would end in terms of our journey toward being parents. The road toward having our crazy little family was a very long 8 year and 1 month trek through many of life's ups and downs.

We went through a diabetes diagnosis, infertility treatments, almost split up, weight loss surgery, infertility treatments a second time, being told we wouldn't have a child on our own, adoption, finding out you're pregnant the day you bring your newborn home, and so much in between.

In the middle of those last few, I worked through a 13 week bible study reading through the entire New Testament. I wrote a journal every day and took some detailed notes through that study that are just incredible to go back and read today. So I'll be sharing a bit of that...

Some of my old blog posts may come up as well, and just the emotions of everything that we endured while God had us waiting for our parental journey to begin. It's often not until you have crossed to the other side of things and had some time to look back in reflection that you can truly see the beauty and love that Jesus has for us as he shows us how much better his plans are than anything we can think of on our own.

I hope to have an update from the publisher in the next week or so, and I can't wait to share more as I get more written and am able to go through the process toward getting it published.

Planner Plans for 2017

I've put great thought into what I want to use for 2017 to keep tracking in the right direction toward my goals. I've decided to stick with the planner that I used last year since I've just recently fallen in love with it. It's the Homemaker's Friend Daily Planner, the 2017 version is on sale now, and it comes at a much more affordable price than some of the others that are on the market. I know loads of people that rave about their Erin Condren planners and Plumb Paper planners -- but I just haven't gotten enough use of them in the past to justify the price. 

Introducing some of my ALL time favorite products EVER! These are designed by the amazing ladies from Lara Casey Media. They have so much that just speaks to me. I could literally one one of everything! Cultivate What Matters Shop

I'm ordering this item that is shown below. Today is the first day that it is available, and I can't wait to get my hot little hands on it and get started planning for next year. I've got some big hairy scary goals to accomplish in 2017, and I know that this is the system that will help me get there. (all of these images are links if you see something you want to click on!)

This is the 12 month plan that takes you all the way through 2017 - and it has 176 pages walking you through setting up and deciding what your goals are... then how to break them down in monthly smaller goals to help you reach the larger ones. It has all of the tones of the seasons for the whole year.

She is also coming out with some add on guides for setting goals within your marriage, owning a business, and parenting as well -- those will be out sometime in the spring.


These smaller ones are the 6 month sets that are 110 pages that walk you through the same process as the larger one, just in two separate books. With the 6 month book you'll get to choose between these three cover choices.
I have been a huge fan of the Write the Word Journals from this same shop -- they are amazing! I have the whole set of them, but I believe that they are coming out with some new ones this next spring.
Lara Casey has been an amazing inspiration to me in the later part of this year, and truly - I just think she is outstanding... and she is one Mom that can totally relate to our personal story because she has been living the SAME thing we went through back in 2010 with adoption and having a baby super close together. She also has a weekly Live video session on each Wednesday morning -- and they are incredibly inspirational if you're interested in that as well.

So, I've ordered my Powersheets and an add on book of Stickers -- are you in?

What's Your Process?

What is your writing process... if you write? When you get the opportunity - do you make a big production of it with a special place and setting? Or do you just sit anywhere and let the words flow?

I'm more of a let the words flow type of person, but I love a good topic. What I mean by that is that I love to have something specific in mind and then just let off the gas and see where it takes me. I never go back and read it again -- unless it's something that needs to be edited for submission -- and often end my session not knowing if I've even made a single point that matters.

I am told that I do make a lot of valid points, and write really well -- but that of course isn't my motivation. Mainly, I want to write to keep the ability alive -- if that makes sense, and allow myself to process and preserve memories.

It's too bad that the whole blog book thing came up too far into my journey - because it would have been fun to compartmentalize the transformations that have happened in the time I've been writing this blog. Sometimes it's astounding to look back and see how far I've come.

I started in 2007 with a journey toward weight loss surgery as a married woman with no kids. Look at me now... while some might think the weight loss journey was a failure - there are so many other things that I've been through in that time. 100 pounds of weight lost in a year. Infertility treatments. Adoption. Pregnancy with a newborn. Two kids 6 months apart. It's mind blowing sometimes.

I write this to ask, how you turn your life into topics for posts? Do you blog in the same spot at the same time every day? What sorts of things do you want to hear about from me? Do you have any questions you'd like me to answer?

Letter to Me

Today, I thought I'd write a little something reflective and personal... a letter to the younger version of me...

Disney World circa 1994

To the High School Me:

You certainly have the world in your grasp, even though you don't have much desire to go to college... you will be glad you did when you look back and realize that very few of your friends from high school have a degree to fall back on. Your friends today will be a distant memory for the most part in a few years... only a handful will still be in contact with you in your 30's and it's not the end of the world. Somewhere in your early/mid 20's you will find out that your parents weren't quite as dumb as you thought they were - some of the things they said were correct, and you will be grateful for a grounded upbringing instead of the lavish lifestyles of some of your former friends. Your more grounded values will help you accomplish many things that others won't... it will also give you a good foundation to build on when times are tough.

Spend more time writing and reading - they will always be your passions... and when you have toddlers at home one day - time for these hobbies will be a premium. Try to keep some of the whimsy and fun of your youth in your heart with you always... don't always be so serious/intense. Don't worry so much about what others think - because this may take over your thoughts in your 30's.

Above all else, follow your dreams. Know that every twist and turn in your life over the next 20 years or so will shape you into the person that you were meant to be. Some of these life experiences will be HARD, but stick with it... the journey is worth it!

College circa 1998

To the College Me: 

These truly are some of the greatest years for so many reasons - take advantage more! Not everyone has the blessing of going to college and not having to work... a free ride to study and do whatever you want to do is an amazing gift. Buckle down a bit more on the studies and stick with your original degree plan - you will spend a lot of time unsuccessfully trying to get back to that plan over the years to come. 

Guard your heart a bit more, you can't rescue or save everyone - you can give assistance as needed, but don't let it bring you down or effect your everyday life. Make your own choices based on what YOU want - not based on anyone else: for instance, that high school sweetheart you moved home for - will call you that very day to tell you he got someone else pregnant. It works out for the best, but don't base your big life decisions on anyone else at this point... that comes with marriage and family. Dating someone 10+ years older than you at this stage of your life is a MISTAKE... especially the man you end up dating - alcoholism and abuse will follow in this case, and will take you quite some time to overcome. 

Embrace the new found relationships with family that you haven't always been close to... they are amazing people that will be your support system through some incredible journeys. Enjoy the victories and triumphs that come from stepping completely out of your comfort zone - these will be some of the projects and events you will be incredibly proud of for your whole life. Some of the best things come from taking a leap of faith... 

Your life might not look like you expected it to on your 30th birthday... but in spite of the pain you feel in those days... some INCREDIBLE things are on the horizon before you turn 32! Faithfulness and prayer will get you through it, and the journal you keep during some of those incredibly dark days will be a treasured keepsake looking back.

In terms of career, just realize that money isn't everything - smaller and happier is much more important. Don't leave a job that you are comfortable in just for money - because it will lead to two very draining and abusive jobs... stay where you are happy and able to do a variety of things for people that are even tempered and family oriented. 

Hang in there, because it will for sure be a bumpy ride... but every moment is well worth the trouble! 

More Than We Can Bear?

This weekend, I went to Dallas for a girls weekend with my sisters. We also had a Stella & Dot and Scentsy party while I was there - or actually that was the original reason for the trip. Anyway, while I was there - my sister and I were talking about her Step-Dad, Jerry. (We have a complicated family)

Jerry has been a part of my sisters' lives as long as I have - or actually longer. (You should go look at his bio and testimony on his website) Within the last few years, he wrote a book about his life. I never knew all of these things about him before and find his story fascinating - the amount of hardships that he has overcome is nothing short of a miracle and a true testament to the saying that "If God brings you to it - he will bring you through it."

I mainly wanted to tell you guys about this book because I know a lot of you are avid readers, and Christians... and I think that Jerry's story can bless your life as much as it has/will bless mine. There is so much to his story - and we all will take something different from it. One thing that I find interesting is that he was diagnosed with the same illness that our Grandmother died from, and he has found a way to beat it - I only wish that we'd found this treatment in those years when she was fighting it too.

On Jerry's website - this is what they say about the book: 

The child of a raped housekeeper who was deaf, mute, and poor, Jerry Smith had trouble before he even started. Does God Give Us More Than We Can Bear? takes readers through disappointments and failures as Jerry does his best to battle overwhelming odds with a deck seemingly stacked against him. Did God give Jerry more than he could bear? As an aging Jerry ponders this very question, he is diagnosed with an untreatable and terminal lung disease. With nowhere left to turn and a deadline with fate, God then reveals his plan for Jerry's life. Now, cured of his previously incurable disease but still suffering the damage caused, Jerry has been given new direction and shares with readers his struggles, stories, and wisdom. In these recollections, he reveals hope, a light for the darkest days, years, and even decades. Jerry's story is the perfect example of how God will use anything for good, even when it seems most unlikely. He now lives to share his story, the hope he has, and how the lessons he learned can change lives.

For only $10.99 - you can read about the struggle that Jerry has overcome, and what he learned in the process of dealing with each obstacle. The list is long - and I for one am amazed that he has survived it all with such grace. I know it couldn't have been easy to reconcile it all, but thankfully with God's help - we can all get through anything. Please go check out his book - I know you will not regret it!

Jerry has inspired me to start working on something for my own 2,967 day struggle to become a mother. (8 years, 1 month, and 17 days) - I would dearly love to share my story with all of you and anyone else out in the world that would be interested in reading it. If only 1 person in the world was helped by reading our story - it would make it all worth it to me. I just need to find some time to get started writing... I guess for now, a little here and there is all I can get. Maybe more when the boys are in school two days a week in the fall.

Working on details

I hardly got any sleep last night thinking about writing the book... I've gotten an idea of where the story begins - when I was 18 getting ready to go to college is truly where the journey began. It's interesting to me that I've been fighting this for almost 13 years - long before I truly wanted to think about having children. Anyway - someday I hope you'll all read a book that takes you through this journey step by step.

Since I got no sleep, I have had a rough day... mainly because we are going through another of our crazy weather changes, and I've got a migraine that you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy. I've been through all the stages tonight... vision problems, nausea, tunnel vision, and sensitivity to light... I'm shortly destined to go to bed and pray that this is gone by morning.

I haven't officially figured out what my 2009 eating plan is going to look like, but I'm working on that. I ordered a cookbook the other day that has 500 low carb recipes - so hopefully I'll find some inspiration there and ways to keep our meals full of variety.

I got some inspiration for a new vitamin regimen today as well from a wonderful blogger that happens to be a pregnant post RNY'er... so I'm following her closely as I hope to be following in her footsteps shortly. I'm taking her vitamin plan to my PCP on Wednesday and see what he has to say about it. I've got some other concerns with vitamins as I just found out today that your body stores up B12 for over a year... so you can be deficient before it shows on your blood work... and I've got one of the symptoms - troubled vision. I've been having some serious issues with my vision lately - so I'm planning on talking through that as well.

I've also got to talk to him about my Byetta shots and where we go from here - I think we could max out the dose and be a little more aggressive with it, but I'll see what he has to say as well. I think it's been doing wonders for me in a number of ways, but it has certainly helped curb some of my extra eating... I just wish that the weight loss was hanging in there to show that.

I'm thinking that I've got some dehydration happening too - so we'll be working on that in the next little bit as well. So lots of things that I'm working on improving...

I got my new iFit card in the mail today - so as soon as this headache goes away - I'll be hitting the treadmill to Jillian Michaels workouts... it's a series where you workout 3 days a week for 8 weeks... I'll try to get in some more workouts on other days as I'd like to put in more than 3 days a week, but we'll see how it goes.

I hope you are all going strong on your New Years goals... I feel a little behind as I wasn't truly prepared for starting right away... but I'll do my best to catch up by Monday. I just need some time to plan my menu and do the shopping... so that only healthy, low carb choices are in the house!

Mental Description

In this second part of this assignment - I was to take the same child and get inside their head. Which is intimidating as a 30 year old to try to think like a 5 year old... but I apparently nailed it.
I shared these stories with Taylor's Mom yesterday, and she liked them both - as she was reading the physical description... she looked up and said "I remember this day," which made me smile because I remember it vividly too.

This is the photo that I used for inspiration for this story...

I am so excited today because my baby sister is going to be born. My Mommy made me go to school for part of the day, and we learned some more counting- who cares about counting?

“Mrs. Adams, what time is it?” I asked.

“It’s 11:00, Taylor, why do you ask?” Mrs. Adams said.

“My PawPaw is picking me up at 11:30 to go meet my BABY SISTER!” I exclaimed.

“Oh, okay. Well, when we get finished with story time it will be 11:30,” Mrs. Adams said.

Our story today was about a gardening duck, and I was not interested. I sat in the circle quietly, but did not hear a word that Mrs. Adams was reading.

At 11:30 PawPaw came to my class to pick me up, and off we went to meet my new sister.

“Has Brooklyn been born yet?” I asked PawPaw.

“Yes, Baby she was born a couple of hours ago,” PawPaw said.

“Wow, I can’t wait to play with her,” I said.

“Well, lets just go meet her and worry about playing later,” PawPaw said.

When we got to the hospital, I remember walking for what seemed like a week. There must have been a million different hallways, and I thought that we’d never find Mommy and Brooklyn. While we were walking, we passed a big window that looked into a room full of babies, but Brooklyn was not in there. Two more hallways and we were there. PawPaw opened the door, and there was Mommy sitting in bed with Brooklyn in her arms.

I was so excited! I ran up to the bed and jumped in next to Mommy. I got in trouble for not being careful around the baby. My Aunt was there taking pictures, and I got to sit in a chair and hold Brooklyn for a picture. She is very little and doesn’t do much other than cry, sleep, and have diaper changes. I wanted to help with all of it, but all I was allowed to do was sit on the bed and watch.

I hope that Brooklyn will be able to play with me soon because right now having a little sister is boring!

Physical Description

Since today has been ultra boring - a lot of yard work, house cleaning, and grocery shopping... and the most exciting thing that I have done is a toss up between vacuuming the mini-blinds and cleaning the fan blades... I thought that I'd share my two latest returned assignments from my writing program.

This first one I was assigned to write a physical description of a child... I was having trouble figuring out which child in my life to choose, and I was sitting in my craft room. I looked over and saw a picture of one of my nieces named Taylor on the day of her first ballet class... I used that as my inspiration, and this is what I wrote... (also the picture that served as my inspiration)

As I sat in the tan leather chair, the door opened quickly and hit the wall. She ran inside covered in dirt, and her hair all over the place. Her blue jeans were dusty and her lime green shirt had muddy hand prints all over it. She threw her papers down on the table and climbed on the couch. She sat down to watch a cartoon on television, but heard her mom calling, “Taylor, come get a bath before ballet. HURRY!”

Slowly, she started to get up, but for as long as possible her little sapphire eyes never left the television screen. At first she cried, “The water is too hot!” That was quickly followed by giggling, and splashing.

About 5 minutes past, and she glided across the room with her light brown hair wet, her body dripping, and she was wrapped up tight in a fluffy pink towel. She plopped herself on the couch, again, to watch the rest of the television show. Her Mom calls her, “Taylor, we’re going to be late… come get dressed!”

She looks up at me and smiles a mischievous smile as she gets up to go back into her room. A moment later, I hear her cry, “Ow, stop it, you’re hurting me… you’re brushing too hard!” She cried for several minutes, but reappeared looking like a pretty little princess.

She had her long hair tied up in a ponytail with a pink satin ribbon, but little ringlets were surrounding her face. She was wearing pink tights, a jet black leotard, a black skirt with tiny pink roses around the waist, and tiny pink ballet slippers with bows on top. Her Mom was following behind pulling the tags off of each item she was wearing.

She looked up at me with her face glowing, and asked, “Do I look like a ballerina?” As soon as the words were spoken, there was no time to answer because she blazed into the house and was gone again. The door swung open hitting the wall, and the door slammed closed behind her. Taylor was on her way to her first ballet class.

Fire Bites

This piece was written for my class as well, and is the last one until I get the most recent edited and finished. It is a non-fiction piece for kids ages 6-9, and my instructor thought that this one was so good that I could get it published. We'll see when we get to that part of the class.

FIRE BITES


Have you ever been outside playing, and gotten fire ant bites? Did you know that the fire ant doesn’t actually bite? They sting like bees. Then sting again. And sting again. Unlike bees, fire ants can sting over and over again.


Fire ants attack anything that threatens their nests, and they attack in large numbers. It is common for hundreds of ants to attack at the same time. Large numbers of the ants can crawl onto their prey, and it can be up to 10 seconds before they begin stinging. During that 10 seconds, hundreds of ants can crawl up your leg without you even knowing that they’re there! It is normal for people to receive several stings because of the large numbers of ants involved in an attack.


Fire ants use their mandibles or jaws to hold on to your skin, and then sting from their abdomen. They sting several times in a circular pattern around the point that their mandibles attached to your skin. With each sting the ant is injecting a toxic venom into your skin. Within 6-24 hours the sting will develop into a halo of deep red surrounding a blister. The area will itch while it is healing, but if the blister is broken it can develop into an infection. Typically the blister and red mark will heal in about a week, but a small scar might remain for about a month after the sting.
Fire ants live in large colonies in open areas often near moist areas. River banks, pond edges, watered lawns, and highway edges are ideal spots for fire ants to live. They typically feed on young plants, seeds, and sometimes crickets. These ants attack small animals often and can kill them. Fire ant nests are usually less than a square yard in size, and may have several openings that are used to find food or to attach potential enemies. Colonies can be founded by groups of queens or a single queen, but only one queen will survive. Within a year, the colony expands into thousands of ants.


It is recommended that you sweep the ants off of your skin the second that you feel the first pinch of your skin. The sweeping motion will help you remove as many ants as possible before they are able to actually sting you.


If you are unlucky enough to experience a sting from fire ants, apply a cold compress to help with the swelling and pain. Wash the area with soap and water, but leave the blister as it is so that you can prevent getting a further infection. One final thing you can try is putting Listerine mouthwash on the sting. Field & Stream magazine reported in 2003 that the mouthwash might stop the pain from the sting and prevent the blisters from forming.


It is painful to get stung by any insects while playing outside. So during the spring and summer this year, be careful to watch where you are playing!

Summer Changes

This is another of my writing assignments for my program. It was inspired by John's weight loss journey between his junior and senior years in high school. He lost more than what is represented in the story and took a little longer than a summer, but he lost an incredible amount of weight between those two years - and I thought it would make a good story - so I took a lot of artistic licence with the rest of the story. It was written for kids between age 9 and 12.

SUMMER CHANGES


Braden stood there at his gym locker trying to get on his XL gym shorts, praying that the final week of 6th grade would end quickly and without much pain. His shorts didn’t fit anymore, but there weren’t any bigger sizes to purchase and it’s the last week of school anyway. While he was huffing and working to pull the shorts up, the boy 3 lockers down from him began making comments. “Hey fatty, those shorts are going to split if you bend over,” Mike said.

“Thank you, Mike for your brilliant observation.” Braden replied, wishing that Mike would trip in front of a large group of girls. Braden knew that Hope was in his gym class, but desperately wished that she wouldn’t be there that day. This was the day that they had to take their final exam, and run for 18 minutes around the gym. Braden was terrified that he was going to make a fool of himself in front of Hope – but he had no choice if he was going to pass 6th grade.

After the coaches took attendance for the class, they began to stretch in order to prepare for the run. Hope was on the other side of the gym with her friends, and didn’t seem to notice Braden at all. The run began, and of course Braden could only concentrate on breathing and keeping himself moving… but at the same time his shorts were riding up, and he had to keep pulling at them to try to keep them in place.

Braden somehow did manage to run the entire 18 minutes, and was thrilled that he didn’t have to change anymore for that year. As he was changing out of those pesky shorts for the last time, Braden decided that by next fall – he’d be able to buy a smaller size shorts, and never have to worry about completing his final exam again.

He managed to work his way through the week without anymore major embarrassments. Mom always made a special dinner to celebrate the completion of another school year, and this year wasn’t any different. As the family sat down to dinner, they saw the table completely filled with salad, spaghetti & meatballs, garlic bread. “Eat up everyone, there are brownie sundaes for dessert,” Mom said with a mischievous smile.

Braden was the middle child, so he waited for his older sister, Misty, to tell the family about her plans for the summer. Misty could drive, so Braden listened to all her plans for summer road trips with her friends. When the conversation rounded to his summer plans, he decided to lay everything on the line this year and make some serious changes.

“I want to lose 50 pounds this summer, and go back to school in the fall without having to listen to all the jerks tease me about being fat.” Braden declared.

“Braden, you’re a very handsome young man, and in time your weight will balance out with your height.” Mom said lovingly trying to console him.

“Yeah, fatso someday you’ll grow into your weight… or we’ll have to get a bigger house.” Misty taunted.

“At least I don’t have a pizza face” Braden responded wanting to hurt her feelings as much as she did his.

“That’s enough – you two. We need to support each other.” Mom scolded them.

“This is what I want to do. Mom, no more dinners like this,” he pleaded with her for help, “please make healthy dinners for me from now on and keep some healthy snacks around for me too.”

“Ok, honey – maybe we can get a family membership to a gym too. Then we can all work out in the evenings.” Mom said.

“Thanks, Mom! That will really help!” Braden said feeling better about having brought up the subject. As they finished their meal, Braden shot Misty a dirty look at helped clear the table.

The next morning, he got up and carefully measured one serving of Cheerios and 1% milk. This isn’t so bad he thought, and happily ate his breakfast. He decided to go for a swim to try to get in a little workout during the day – so he went out in the backyard and swam laps for an hour or so.

For lunch, he had a sandwich with some celery & carrot sticks. During the afternoon, he played video games to try to keep his mind off of food. It worked fairly well, and when Mom got home she made them grilled chicken, salad, green beans, and jello for dessert. Finally, the family piled into the car, and went to the gym.

During the first session, everyone got to work out with a trainer to get acquainted with the gym, and learn about the machines. The trainer suggested that he use the treadmill or stationary bike for 30 minutes a day. Braden brought his IPod, and was thankful that he had it when he needed to entertain himself on the treadmill.

He felt good about himself at the end of the first day, and was excited about the changes that he was making for himself. At the end of the first week, Braden weighed himself and had lost 3 pounds! He was very excited about his progress, and was dedicated to sticking with his program.
At the end of the third week, his focus was becoming harder to maintain. He missed all the sweets, and his favorite meals that Mom would normally cook. Braden would try everything he could to keep his mind off of food – ride his bike, swim, go to a friend’s house, play video games… but his mind kept playing tricks on him. He even found himself dreaming of bakeries, and pizza parlors! How in the world was he going to keep up with his weight loss? He was worried.

Mom made a big deal about the end of the first month, she made a banner to put up congratulating Braden on his determination. She also bought him a new video game because he had managed to lose 20 pounds during that month! Braden was proud of his weight loss too, but he desperately wanted a treat too.

He continued on with the program. One afternoon though, he was over at a friend’s house trying to keep his mind off of things… when his friend offered him some cookies. Braden knew that he shouldn’t take them, but before he knew it… he said, “Yeah man, lets have a few.” The cookies tasted great to him, but they soon were gone. At the end of the feast, Braden felt disgusted.
Braden was really was down with himself about eating the cookies – so he went for a bike ride. He mainly went to clear his head, but it was also exercise so it worked out in both ways. He decided to forgive himself for his small relapse, and get right back to business with his program.

The second month he lost another 20 pounds, and Mom had to take him shopping for some new clothes. He felt great being able to try on smaller sizes than ever before. The new clothes motivated him to keep going for the last month of the summer. He only had 10 more pounds to lose before he reached his goal.

The new school year was approaching quickly, and Braden decided not to weigh himself again until he absolutely had to. His Mom took him shopping again for school clothes and he noticed that he could even get into smaller sizes than the month before. He couldn’t wait to see what everyone at school would think about the new Braden.

Braden weighed in the night before school started, and realized to his surprise that he lost another 15 pounds that month! He had actually lost 55 pounds! He would never admit it to anyone, but he had actually cried a little over his achievement.

During the first day of school, Braden felt like no one noticed him… he felt very sad that no one commented about how good he looked or anything. While he was in the restroom, he overheard some of the guys asking each other where he was… and he realized – NO ONE RECOGNIZED HIM!! He walked out to the sink, and said something to the boys that were talking, “Hey guys, how was your summer?”

“Braden?” the said in unison.

“Yeah, it’s me…” he said with a smile.

“Wow!! You look completely different” they said.

Word spread around school very quickly about what Braden accomplished over the summer. He actually bought a medium gym suit that day, and was even looking forward to getting to wear it during class.

The last class of the day was math, and by some strange coincidence Braden was seated next to Hope. She obviously had heard about the weight loss, and immediately began talking to him, “You look really good, Braden.”

“Thank you,” he said blushing.

“I was thinking about going to see the new movie coming out on Friday, do you think you might like to come with me?” Hope asked him.

Braden’s heart fluttered at the invitation. “Sure, I can ask my Mom to drive us there.” Braden offered, knowing that this year was going to be very different from 6th grade.

FACING HER FEARS

This is the second installment of my writing assignments... again for a 6-9 year old, but is written about a 9 & 11 year old. The class teaches us that children like to read about older children for the most part... so I wrote this about my two older neices. It is only partially true and partially fiction. When I wrote it - we did take the family out on our boat and there was tubing, but that's where the truth stops and artistic license begins. Enjoy!

FACING HER FEARS


Brittany hopped out of the truck at the marina; she couldn’t wait to get out on the lake with her Dad and older sister, Megan. Dad’s rule forced Brittany to wait for her 11th birthday in order to finally be able to go tubing.

Brittany could feel the warmth of the sun and the whisper of the wind on her skin. She glanced at the water; it looked like glass at that time of the morning. Dad helped the girls on the boat once he launched it into the water, while they were fighting about who would get to ride the tube first.

“Okay, who’s going first?” Dad asked while driving to a suitable spot for tubing.


“Um, I think Megan can go first…” Brittany said, as the knots in her stomach began to tighten. Suddenly, all Brittany could hear was the pounding of her heart, and she thought it best to watch her sister first.

“Chicken…” Megan taunted, as she climbed down the ladder into the chilly water. Brittany watched her sister swim out to the purple tube floating on the water, wondering if her nerves would settle in time for her turn.

Megan pulled herself on the tube, and gave the thumbs up – signaling that she was ready. Brittany watched as her sister bounced all over the lake behind the boat. Megan was laughing the entire time, and seemed to be having so much fun! While watching Megan, Brittany began to feel less nervous, and the pounding of her heart faded into the sound of her sister’s giggling. After about ten minutes, which seemed like hours to Brittany, Megan signaled that she wanted to get off.

Dad stopped, and helped Megan back aboard. “Are you ready, kiddo?” Dad asked Brittany with a wink.

“I think so.” Brittany said with a gulp and started down the ladder into the water.

“Make sure to pull yourself up from the back of the tube – or you’ll never get up there...” Megan instructed her sister. “And HOLD ON!”

Brittany pulled herself on top of the tube, which was a lot harder than it looked. She grabbed hold of the handles, took a deep breath, and signaled for Dad to go. With a jerk, the rope pulled tight against the tube and it began to move. Brittany could feel water splashing on her skin, and the wind blowing in her face as she held on for dear life.


Dad began to turn the boat to the left, and the tube started moving to the right over the side of a large wave. Once the tube made it over the wave, the ride got much bumpier and Brittany
started to lose her grip. The boat began to straighten out as it came out of the turn, but on the way back over the wave – Brittany fell.

She hit the water with a lot of force, and the shock of it knocked the wind out of her for a moment. Her life jacket propelled her quickly back above the water, and she caught her breath. As the boat made the circle back to retrieve her from the water, she began to cry. She couldn’t remember ever seeing anyone hit the water that hard, or noticed anyone looking as alone out there as she felt.

“Are you alright?” Dad asked looking at her as if he could tell she was terrified.

“What did you do? Forget to hold on?” Megan teased.

“Leave me alone – I hate that stupid tube.” Brittany said and threw herself onto a seat. “I held on just fine thank you very much!”

“Megan, leave her alone,” Dad said, “Brittany, everything will be fine, and you can try again later if you want to.”

In the meantime, Megan went out again laughing and having a great time while hopping over waves and bouncing out of control. Brittany watched from the boat, and wanted very desperately to get back out on the water and have fun. She knew that having fun meant that she had to take the risk of being scared and miserable again too.

This time Megan held on for fifteen minutes, and Brittany talked herself into facing her fears to give it one more shot. She didn’t want to spend the summer watching as her sister had fun, and wondering if she was missing out on something great.

Brittany backed down the ladder into the water, and swam out to the tube. She hoisted herself on top of the floating doughnut, took another deep breath, and signaled that she was ready to go.

She felt the jerk of the rope again as the tube began to move, and reminded herself to relax. She felt a few small bumps, but was able to stay on the tube – so she began to giggle. The boat made a turn, and she tightened her grip as the tube went over the wave as before. As the tube started back to the other side of the wave her fears returned, but this time she made it without falling off! She was so excited – she began to really enjoy riding on the tube. She laughed and enjoyed feeling the water below the tube and the wind in her hair. She even managed to stay on the tube for ten minutes before getting tired.

She signaled to her Dad that she was ready to come in. “SEE! I can hold on,” she informed her sister as she climbed up the ladder, “that was really fun. Are you going again?”

Both sisters took two more turns on the tube, and had a wonderful time. They even took one ride on the tube together! Brittany couldn’t remember a day where she had as much fun as her first tubing experience. Even though it started out rough – she will always be thankful that she talked herself into facing her fears.

TORNADO RUN

This was my first submission to my writing class - keep in mind it is meant for readers that are around age 6-9.

Tornado Run

Carter slammed the front door closed, and looked to his little sister, Taylor in resentment. His Mom said that he had to take her with him if he wanted to go play baseball. Taylor is 8, and the annoyance of a sister two years younger was more than he could handle. The sun was hot on Carter’s skin, and he began to sweat as they ran along the sidewalk. He turned the last corner, Carter saw the other kids waiting by the diamond to pick teams. Carter watched as Taylor was picked to be on his team, and they began playing. A few kids were watching the game, and chanting, “Swing batter-batter swing!”

During the first two innings, Carter showed off his skills as a pitcher and tried to forget that his sister was stumbling around in right field. Mid-way through the third inning, Carter began to feel the wind pick up. It was hot and stagnate before, but now if felt chilly on his skin. The clouds were moving and changing slightly, but he didn’t think much about it.

While sitting in the dugout waiting to bat during the fourth inning, Carter noticed Taylor looking troubled. “Carter, doesn’t the sky look a funny color?” she asked.

“Be quiet, Taylor,” Carter replied, “If it starts raining, then we’ll go home.” The game continued, but the wind was getting stronger and the clouds continued to shift rapidly. Carter was ready to return to the mound as the other team got the third out – it was Taylor. “Of course it’s MY sister,” Carter said under his breath and rolled his eyes.

In the fifth inning, the sky began looking green, and the wind got stronger. It hadn’t started raining though, so the game continued. After a few pitches, it began sprinkling. “If it starts to rain harder or there is any thunder or lightening, we’ll call the game,” Carter instructed the other players. He didn’t want anything like a little rain to get in the way of his pitching.

At last the rain picked up, and Carter saw a large lightening bolt in the distance. The thunder followed very quickly. “I’m scared and we should be at home,” Taylor whined.

“Ok, everyone, it is probably time for us to head home,” Carter said. He tried not to seem worried, but he did think that the clouds looked a lot like tornado clouds.

Just at that moment, the clouds started to spin, and the sky looked very green. Carter heard Taylor scream, and he realized that he was responsible for his sister’s safety. “Hurry Taylor, get your things,” Carter barked. “We’ve got to hurry before the wind gets stronger.” It was only two blocks to their house, but Carter knew that tornadoes were very unpredictable.

Carter pulled Taylor along as they dashed toward their house. Carter looked up at the sky and saw the funnel starting to form. Anxiously he knew he had to get Taylor moving faster without scaring her. He turned to ask her if she wanted to race home, and saw tears streaming down her dirty face. He stopped for a moment guessing she saw the funnel too. “Taylor, it’s going to be alright, we only have a little farther to go. We will go straight to the storm cellar, and we’ll be fine.” He reassured her.

“Ok, but let’s run the rest of the way,” she urged hesitantly.

“Yes, HURRY!” he shouted.

They ran as fast as they could the rest of the way home, and Carter could hear their Dad calling for them before he had even reached that last turn. As he turned the last corner Carter saw their Dad waiting in the doorway of the storm cellar. As they ran into the cellar, Carter heard a loud crack…the tornado had touched down somewhere close by.

As he made his way into the cellar, he saw their Mom sitting on the floor with a worried look on her face. Instantly, she got up and ran to sweep the two of them into a big hug. The look on their Dad’s face was one of relief but disappointment too. “Carter, did you not see the weather changing while you were out there?” his Dad asked.

Carter knew he should have taken the weather more seriously earlier in the game. He had studied tornadoes in school and knew the warning signs with the sky color and cloud movement. “Next time, you head home at the first sign of a storm. Understood?” his Dad instructed.

“Yes, sir, I promise never to get caught in weather like this again.” Carter said as tears started pouring out of his eyes. His Dad gave him a hug, as they heard the tornado plowing through their house. Carter was relieved that he was home, even though the family was frightened by the noises they were hearing outside.