Jpilkington's Weblog

Webkinz Day

jpilkington — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 21:19:21 +0000

I am LOVING this homeschooling thing. Brittany does most of her work at home with me and then goes to Willow Bend Academy to take her tests and sit in on devotions. I will gradually let her spend more and more time there until we work up to a 4-hour school day. But for now I am getting to enjoy having her at home most of the time. Today was “Webkinz Day” and several stores participated in a special deal. Spend $10 and get a Webkinz stuffed animal for free! So Brittany and I got out early so we could beat the after-school rush. We found that by using a coupon we got at Hallmark we could get really super deals. She got 4 Webkins for $20! I bought several to put in our “marble jar store” and for gifts for a couple of upcoming birthdays. While at the store she was talking a mile a minute to anyone who would listen (and a few others that weren’t). At Libby Lu she informed a preschooler of the danger of trying on wigs (head lice) and gave her complete testimony to the store clerk. She also held a yorkie for a lady so she had her hands free to check out. She informed the owner that “Squeaky” was overweight and the owner agreed. (Brittany has read about lots of different breeds.) Another lady said that Brittany gave her new hope for her grandson, who has Autism.

Dear Diary…

jpilkington — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 19:21:24 +0000

Brittany has been writing in her diary! She has tried this before but wasn’t consistent, and mainly wrote in lists and pictures. Well, there are the journal entries from school which don’t count, b/c they are her interpretation of what the teacher told her to write about and most of the pages are blank or have one sentence. She now has three or four dated journal entries in a little diary with a key. She enjoys reading it to Alex and me, I hope that lasts. I LOVE to see what she writes. I can’t tell you anything…shhhhh…but I can say that she is writing in cursive, and pretty neatly, too! It shows that all our handwriting practice has paid off.

LOL I remember doing those school journals. I hated them. When I was in 5th grade my teacher insisted that we write 50 words. She didn’t specify which words. So for about a week or so until she caught me , my entries looked like this:

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

Happy Earth Day!

jpilkington — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 23:17:46 +0000

Yay! Another “Google”. I have an extensive collection of “Googles”. Don’t ask me why, I have no idea.

Alex and I picked up trash at our Cub Scout den’s adopt-a-spot. Earlier, Brittany had delivered an impromptu soliloquy which included phrases like “However, some rainforest trees don’t deserve our admiration…” Neither one was specifically planned for Earth Day, though.

To Blog or not to Blog: Privacy and Today’s Changing World

jpilkington — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 01:20:57 +0000

I like my privacy. So why are my personal thoughts floating around cyberspace where anyone can bump into them? My husband says that privacy is disappearing, and I hate that. I don’t like being videotaped, having friends show up at my home with little to no warning, or even letting people read over my shoulder while I’m typing or writing. The thought of people putting videos of their children on YouTube makes me cringe. I guess by how, however, there are so many people “out there” that the chances of someone finding any certain random kid to kidnap are pretty slim. I suppose there are advantages to blogging. This may cut down on the number of tiny strips of paper I have floating around the house that say things like, “On such-and-such date Alex flushed a sock down the toilet.” This way I can look back and see all of our “adventures”. I’m hoping blogging will help me keep my mental abilities intact as I age. All this writing practice can’t hurt, anyway. Finally, I’m thinking that if I do decide to publish what I write, people I already know will have the chance to get to know me better. I’m not socially incapable or anything, it’s just that sometimes I’m not so good at expressing myself verbally. I don’t like crowds and I have a hard time getting a conversation going. I have ADD and mild Asperger’s Syndrome so I seem to go back and forth between being reclusive and being WAY too talkative about something I find interesting. Oddly enough, many people don’t find the same things interesting. Or maybe they did the first time I mentioned them…

Well, anyway, this is my first blog, more about me later.