![Summer Copywork At Our House]()
by Catherine | May 24, 2016 | Family
I don’t know about your family, but my kids thrive on structure and routine. We are less than 24 hours away from officially being on summer vacation as an entire household. Anticipating the long dog days of summer, I thought I’d prepare a bit by building in some dependable structure for the kids.
As part of our morning routine, we’ll do copywork at the kitchen table after the kids’ morning jobs are accomplished and before we head out the door for camps or other outings. One of my friends who homeschools passed along a post from the Mater Amabilis blog called, “The Joy of Copywork.” The post was exactly the inspiration I was looking for to get our kids doing copywork over the summer! Please, do yourself a favor and read it. Sally makes a great case for why copywork is valuable for our children.
I have a drawer full of sharpened number 2 pencils ready to go, and I got a 6-pack of these fantastic Mead Primary Journals. These are the tablet style notebooks (not spiral bound) with front and back pages. The pages are lined at the bottom and have room at the top for illustrations.
I am going to write the Bible verse, poem, nursery rhyme, or other passage on the left-hand page. The kids are going to copy the passage on the right-hand side. Once they have written the passage correctly in pencil, they can go over it with a marker or gel pen if they’d like before drawing an accompanying illustration. I’ve decided to put my own handwriting in the book on the left-hand side for them to copy because the pages are quite thin, so the kids’ words and illustrations from the previous day will be bleeding through anyway. Having the passage written out on the left-hand side will help them to gauge their spacing and help them to see exactly which lines the letters should be touching instead of copying them directly from the books.
For inspiration, I’m starting with 3 of my favorite sources:
From left to right: Ignatius Bible: Revised Standard Version, 2nd Catholic Edition, Richard Scarry’s Best Mother Goose Ever, and Shel Silverstein’s Where the Sidewalk Ends.
We’ll listen to some relaxing instrumental music while we work together at the kitchen table. Jane (6) and Walt (5) will be doing the copywork as described above while Harry (almost 3) will be tracing letters out of his book or coloring. I’ll be sure to share pictures along the way. I think these little tablets will become treasures that the kids will really enjoy looking back on when they’re older.
Some questions for you:
What would you want to listen to while doing copywork? Have you ever done copywork at your house? What does it look like? Any tips or tricks for a family that’s just getting started? Do you have a favorite book of poetry, quotation, or passage that you’d be sure to include? I’d love your input!
![Walt & Dorothy]()
by Catherine | May 23, 2016 | Family
Photo by L Guerra Photography
From the moment they met, it has been a love affair.
“Can I hold her, Mama?”
Locked on each other.
Can’t go too far from his baby–even when playing on his tablet.
Photo by L Guerra Photography
Always, always, always giving her smooches!
Photo by L Guerra Photography
So fascinated
Photo by L Guerra Photography
“Don’t Mess With Her!”
Photo by L Guerra Photography
I love Dorothy’s expression in this one. I can almost hear her contented sigh.
Photo by L Guerra Photography
Story time in the nursery.
Photo by L Guerra Photography
She might be bored by the story, but she loves being with Walt.
Photo by L Guerra Photography
Trying to sneak a smooch in the midst of the chaos of our family.
“Look, Mama! I made her smile!”
![Walt & Dorothy]()
by Catherine | May 23, 2016 | Family
Photo by L Guerra Photography
From the moment they met, it has been a love affair.
“Can I hold her, Mama?”
Locked on each other.
Can’t go too far from his baby–even when playing on his tablet.
Photo by L Guerra Photography
Always, always, always giving her smooches!
Photo by L Guerra Photography
So fascinated
Photo by L Guerra Photography
“Don’t Mess With Her!”
Photo by L Guerra Photography
I love Dorothy’s expression in this one. I can almost hear her contented sigh.
Photo by L Guerra Photography
Story time in the nursery.
Photo by L Guerra Photography
She might be bored by the story, but she loves being with Walt.
Photo by L Guerra Photography
Trying to sneak a smooch in the midst of the chaos of our family.
“Look, Mama! I made her smile!”
![What Love Looks Like]()
by Catherine | May 18, 2016 | Family, Marriage
In this newborn chapter, Philip and I are making it a point to have one-on-one dates with the kids to help them feel connected to us. Last weekend was Jane’s turn to have some special time with me. After stopping at the book store to pick out a new read-aloud, we took a break for lunch at Chipotle.
While Jane and I were enjoying our lunch, several patrons came in and out. My back was to the entrance, so I was a bit startled when an elderly gentleman used the back of my seat to steady himself. Jane watched him make his way toward the utensils, napkins, and condiments. It’s always an adventure being out in public with a kindergartener because you never know what will come out of their mouths! It’s also an adventure because you never know what they’ll help you to observe that you might have otherwise ignored.
“Mama, why is he bent over like that?”
The man’s back was bent at what looked to be a painful position. It took him great effort to walk across the restaurant as he steadied himself, holding the chair backs at each table.
“Some people’s backs get weak as they get older, so they start to bend over like that, but some people are born with backs that are already bent that way.”
While we munched on our special lunch and talked about all of Jane’s latest kindergarten (mis)adventures, the gentleman must have made half a dozen painstaking trips across the restaurant, steadying himself on my chair each time he passed. One trip for napkins to wipe down the booth table. Another trip for utensils. Another trip for straws. When he was done, his booth had what Miss Manners Emily Post would call two picture-perfect place settings across from each other.
Fork on the left.
Napkin placed underneath the fork.
Knife and spoon on the right.
Knife blade facing inward.
Straws in their paper parallel to where the burritos would go. Almost as if they were dessert forks.
In a booth. In a Chipotle.
It took him visible effort and pain to go to this extra trouble, but he kept a smile on his face as he worked. He moved slowly but with a determined pace. At last, he was satisfied with his work. He took a seat to wait for his lunch companion to join him at his beautifully appointed booth.
Since my back had been to the entrance when he walked in, I wasn’t sure who he was with. A few minutes later, a woman who appeared to be in her forties joined him at the booth with their meals. “That must be his daughter,” I thought. She set the food out for the two of them, and didn’t seem to notice the place settings that he had gone to so much trouble to set. Instead of being internally irked for him, I was kind of thrilled. It meant that this sort of thing was routine for him. His loved ones had come to expect these not-so-little efforts of love on their behalf.
It instantly made me think of an article that had popped up on my Facebook newsfeed earlier in the week. It was called, “Outdated Rules for the 1950’s Housewife.”
I had to agree with the author that many of the guidelines for a “good wife” were more than a tad ridiculous. “Don’t complain if he’s late home for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through that day.” Uh, say what? Snopes and a few other places have claimed that this 1950’s article is actually a hoax. Regardless of whether it is a hoax or not, I hope we can all agree that a lot of the content reflected the misogyny of the era, but there’s a lot of good advice sandwiched in with the bad.
Many of the “guidelines” boil down to trying to make the home a peaceful haven for your spouse and the entire family.
- Keep homecomings pleasant with fewer distractions
- Freshen up before you’ll see each other (Remember when you were dating?)
- Try to have a warm meal ready for everyone to enjoy
- Be cheerful whenever possible to lift each other up
- Clear the clutter to make the home more welcoming
- Don’t greet each other with complaints or problems
Sitting at Chipotle last Saturday, I watched that elderly gentleman from that so-called misogynistic era work to set a beautiful booth when most would say it didn’t matter. He didn’t seem to think there was anything extraordinary in what he was doing. He did what he did because he seemed to think that that’s what you do when you eat a meal with someone you love. To him, it seemed to be a pleasure to work in this way and serve his daughter. I wonder if he was a widower and was living with his daughter. Ironically, the guy from the misogynistic era was working his tail off to serve his daughter who didn’t even seem to notice! Yet, he didn’t seem upset by it. It was visibly a pleasure for him to still be able to love and serve someone in this way.
And isn’t that what love does? Isn’t that what love looks like? All of those little, seemingly insignificant things that add up to an unfathomable amount of love on your behalf?
The full gas tank. A changed diaper. “You’re doing great!” Flowers just because. The last piece of cake. “You’re enough.” A head scratch. Wrestling the kids. “I’ll feed the baby. You sleep.” A surprise day off from work. Takeout from a favorite restaurant.
How many of those things have I stopped noticing? What grand gestures of love am I missing because I’ve come to expect them? Have my loved ones come to expect these things from me, or have they stopped expecting them because they don’t happen anymore?
Love is a beautifully set booth at Chipotle. Just because. That’s what love does–even if no one notices but the mother and kindergartener across the room.
![Navigating the Newborn Phase: Nutrition]()
by Catherine | May 7, 2016 | Everything Else
Last time, I tackled what I call “Minimums” in my Navigating the Newborn Phase series. Today, I’m sharing my experience with Nutrition in Navigating the Newborn Phase.
Transitioning from Pregnancy Nutrition to Postpartum Nutrition
I struggle with excessive nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. This last pregnancy, I was on my anti-nausea medicine until the 34-week mark. (Diclegis, I love thee!) Even after I was off the medication, I was still nauseated 24/7. As with all of my previous pregnancies, my prolonged nausea changed my attitude toward food. For the first 24-ish weeks, I just ate whatever I could keep down for the sake of getting calories regardless of how it tasted or its nutritious value. Toward the end of my second trimester, I began to be able to eat most foods. Unfortunately, even with my full dose of the anti-nausea medicine, I had to eat around the clock to keep the vomiting at bay. Between meals, this translated into me eating a granola bar here, a cheese stick there, a handful of grapes here, a cookie there, a yogurt here…you get the picture. So, even though I vomited more than I care to share this past pregnancy, I gained more weight this time than in previous pregnancies because of my need to eat around the clock.
Instead of enjoying food, eating became a constant chore. My relationship with food became tiresome, and I dreaded having to come up with something else to stop me from getting sick because everything sounded awful after I had eaten it for the zillionth time that week. If I didn’t start having aversions to food from having them on repeat, I had aversions to them from getting sick after eating them. Yummy.
You can imagine my excitement to re-enter the world of normal eating once Baby Dorothy arrived!
The Year of Me & Nutrition
As you might remember from my post about The Year of Me, I’ve decided to take better care of myself from here on out. It’s time to stop putting myself last and start putting myself toward the top. As one of my favorite mentor mamas told me, “Fill yourself up so that you can pour yourself out for those you love.” Nutrition is one of the areas I’m focusing on, and I’ve spent my 6 weeks postpartum trying to figure out my game plan. The date of my 6-week postpartum check-up with my OBGYN will be my “Second New Year” when I start officially holding myself accountable to my Year of Me goals.
I’m pleased to report that I think I’ve found a nutrition solution that will help me to:
- Reach my fitness goals
- Consistently eat healthy
- Reach my breastfeeding goals.
My Fitness Pal
My new favorite nutrition tool is the app My Fitness Pal. (I’m not getting paid to share my endorsement of this app; I just love how it works, and I want you to know about it!)
How it works:
You enter your age, your height, your current weight, and your target weight. With that information, the app determines your target daily caloric intake. (Breastfeeding note: Unfortunately, the app doesn’t have a special setting for breastfeeding mamas. After a little research, I learned that most doctors agree that the average woman uses between 250-500 calories breastfeeding. With this information, I simply added 500 calories to my target daily caloric intake to make sure I’m staying in the healthy intake range while nursing.)
Once you have your target caloric intake number set, you can log every single thing you eat in the “Diary.” My paper and pen food diaries were never successful in the past because I never knew what the exact caloric values of the foods were, and I’d find myself away from the diary, so I’d forget to log everything. With My Fitness Pal on my phone, I’m able to log things shortly after I eat them. Sometimes, if I’m in a pinch and can’t log things right away, I’ll take a picture of my meal on my phone so that I remember exactly what and how much I ate.
My Fitness Pal makes it so easy to track exactly what I’m eating, how much I’m eating, and what it’s “worth” in terms of calories. When I go to enter a food on My Fitness Pal, I find multiple results in the search bar. For example, when I’m having my favorite snack, I could type in, “Banana Cream Greek Yogurt,” and my exact kind of yogurt pops up with the exact caloric value. “Banana Cream Dannon Light & Fit Greek Blends, 5.3 oz. 80 calories.”
Another great feature is the ability to adjust the serving size based on how much I actually end up eating. If I decide I’m full and don’t need to finish that dessert or want to eat some extra fruit, I just change the serving size to reflect that.
If you’re like me and have some regular staples in your diet, you can choose to “repeat meal” on a subsequent day instead of plugging in all of the information over and over again. Also, as I start typing things in, the app has a “Recent” for the foods I’ve recently plugged in. I haven’t done this yet, but you can plug in your favorite recipes to draw from, too.
In addition to being able to track your nutrition in the food diary, you can log your daily exercise. As you enter in your physical activity, the app subtracts the caloric value from what you’ve eaten. This helps you to see if your nutrition combined with your exercise is helping you to stay above or below your caloric intake goal.
The app has a helpful blog on the home page with articles sharing healthy recipes and other fitness tips. I’m still exploring all of the features on the app like the goals, challenges, reminders, etc. One feature that I’m excited about is the ability to find other friends on the app. I just did a quick search, and a bunch of my friends are already using the app. I love the idea of being able to hold each other accountable by sharing what we’re doing on the app–what we’re eating, how we’re exercising, what’s working, what’s not, and when we reach personal goals.
Another benefit of My Fitness Pal is its ability to help me “be good” even when I’m eating out. The app has most items on nationwide restaurants’ menus, so it’s easier to track what you’re eating when you’re out.
Shift in Attitude
Now that I’ve been using My Fitness Pal for a few weeks, I’ve noticed some big changes happening. I have had a shift in my entire attitude toward food. Instead of treating food as fuel or something to stop me from being sick, eating is back to being an event that I look forward to. I’m savoring the calories I consume.
Today, I opted for the small protein smoothie at my nearby coffee spot. My thought process was, “This way, I can enjoy the smoothie this morning and still have a little something sweet later,” when my old mentaility would have been, “But $.50 will get me MORE SMOOTHIE.”
A small smoothie is still a delicious smoothie
Instead of just scarfing down whatever’s within reach when I’m in hangry mode, I’m planning out exactly what I’m going to eat that day, and I’m planning for busy times so that I have nutritious options available. Now that I’m more aware of what I’m eating, how much I’m eating, and what kinds of calories they are, I’m making the calories count. I know this sounds silly and ridiculous, but laziness can sometimes be a good thing with My Fitness Pal. If I think, “Man, how in the world would I log this food item on the app?” it probably won’t get eaten because of the hassle! Instead of mindlessly eating, everything I eat is a deliberate choice.
Going Forward With the Year of Me
I’m looking forward to officially launching The Year of Me. As I get started, I’m still working on my meal planning as well as meal preparation. After using it for a few years, I still love the app Paprika for organizing recipes and putting together meal plans. We’re not very good at eating the same things over and over again, so we’re always looking for new recipes. Lunch is always my most difficult meal to figure out. My brain gets stuck on the same options on repeat, and I struggle to come up with something I actually want to eat if I don’t have leftovers available. One of my friends does a “Sunday Set-Up” every Sunday where she does a lot of the prep work for the meals she’ll be eating that week.
Help a girl out! I’d love to hear your favorite, nutritious recipes. What about your meal prep hacks? What kinds of things do you do to cut down on your meal prep time? What tips or tricks do you have for helping yourself to make better choices when you’re hangry? What do your fridge and pantry look like? Share, share, share away!
What would The Year of You look like in the area of nutrition?
