ALWAYS Wear Seat Belts!

Even though I ALWAYS tell my son and daughter to "Buckle Up"--and I have repeated this MANY times through the years--they still went through a stage where they didn't WANT to wear seat belts at all times. I always insisted, and they always complained--there were many times that I had to pull the car over and deal with an unbuckled child. As teenagers, they also seemed to go through a phase about it--until now. Losing a friend in a car wreck, even though he WAS wearing his seat belt, was a big eye-opening experience. It won't be long before they become teen drivers themselves--I sure hope they use their best judgment and are always cautious. I hope they wear seat belts as drivers AND as passengers in their friend's cars. I hope they follow speed limits and all rules of the road. I hope--I hope--I hope. Even the most cautious drivers can still be in accidents, though. It worries me that the leading cause of death (and injuries?) in teens today are car accidents. A lot of it is due to teen driver error and lack of caution--but not all. All I can do is teach them well--and hope--and pray--that they use everything they learned at all times. And one of the most important things they have learned is: ALWAYS wear seat belts! I was glad to see my son wearing his seat belt properly today--sometimes he puts the shoulder strap under his arm, but today he wore it correctly. Now that he is the size of an adult, the straps fit him exactly as they should--so he needs to wear them that way. My daughter also is more aware and wearing her seat belt correctly these days. I certainly hope they continue this pattern. And I hope they ALWAYS wear seat belts!

Digital Photography

Both my son and daughter received digital cameras last Christmas--nothing too expensive, but they are very handy for documenting things in their "teen world." They don't use them as much as I WISH they would--I think they miss some special moments that one day they will regret having missed. Sometimes they just get the urge to snap photos of everyday life--at other times, they are adamant about NOT taking photos. They tell me that I take TOO many photos!! My daughter was having fun today just taking casual snapshots of herself and her friends. When I tried to get in on the fun, she scowled at me and asked me to put MY camera away! :) She downloaded HER photos to the computer under her profile (and did NOT offer any copies to me!). My son sometimes does the same thing--they both claim that these are THEIR photos, not mine! :) Sometimes, though, they let me copy them and download them to my files. I think digital photography is SO cool!! It is SO much better than film!! I was remembering MY teen years: my first camera was a Polaroid instant camera, and my second was a Kodak 110. My teen photos are NOT of a very high quality! And I won't even TALK about videos!! I have absolutely NO videos of my teen years--I sure WISH I did, though! So, compared to MY teen years, my son and daughter will have a lot more photos--and they will be of a MUCH higher quality--AND they will also have lots of VIDEO, too! I think that is SO cool!! I sure wish I had that kind of technology to document MY teen years!! Oh, well--from now on, every generation in the future will have access to so much technology that can be used to document their entire lives! I guess that Generation Y is the first generation to have such thorough documentation of their lives. The idea of seeing yourself BEFORE birth--then seeing yourself BEING born--and seeing every stage of your life on film--it's really amazing, isn't it? I have always been the family photographer, and I suppose I overcompensated for my LACK of childhood photos and videos that I may have gone a bit overboard with cameras and camcorders with my own children. They sometimes moan when they see me behind the lens and the lens is pointed at them--maybe I DID overdo it a bit--but ONE DAY I think they will be glad that I did! :) Now the job of documenting their lives is slowly being passed into their own hands, and I am glad to see them continuing to record, through photos and video, the moments in their lives that are so easily forgotten. And when I get a chance, I'm going to copy what they have for my own files! :)

Wendy's Double

My son ate a Wendy's double cheeseburger for dinner tonight. In reference to my previous post about healthy eating, I don't want him to eat fast food TOO often--but on occasion, I guess it's okay. He IS a growing boy! He is around 5' 8" and only weighs around 128 lbs. He is very thin, really. I have seen him eat a TRIPLE burger before!! I don't know where he puts it!! Tonight, he was happy with a double. Still, I don't want him to eat too many of these--I know they can't be healthy in large quantities. So both my son and daughter ate fast food tonight--for the next few nights, we will definitely try to eat healthy foods at home. He sure did enjoy his burger tonight, though! :)

Wendy's Frosty

Today was one of our very busy afternoons, shuttling back and forth to several places after school. On days like this, we truly have to "eat and run," so fast food is usually our best option. My daughter's favorite is ALWAYS Taco Bell, so we went there first on the way to our first drop off place. She ate a couple of soft tacos on the way. Later, it was time to pick my son up, feed him, and drop him off again. He chose Wendy's. My daughter was back in the car at this point, and she requested a small Wendy's Frosty. We ran by Wendy's, picked up our order, and they ate in the car. I know, I know--this is NOT the best way to feed my family. The good news is that they USUALLY make pretty good choices when we eat out--and they occasionally go for treats that aren't bad every now and then. They are very healthy and in great shape--not overweight at all, and really on the thin side--so I guess that an occasional splurge on unhealthy food isn't going to mess them up too bad. But I do know about the obesity problem in America--and a LOT of it is due to eating too much fast food and junk food. It just seems "un-American" to not participate in the fast food craze! :) I really do want them to pick up good eating habits, though. I don't want them to eat too many things that are bad for them on a regular basis. As long as MOST of our meals are healthy, I guess a few not so great meals will be okay. My daughter ate tacos for dinner--they were reasonably healthy with lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese. I guess a small Wendy's Frosty isn't so terrible every now and then. She sure did enjoy it! :)

Broken Wheels

My son is in a biking club at school, but his bike wheel needed to be repaired. I thought he was going to take the whole bike to a shop for repair, but he surprised me this morning by bringing the wheel (he removed it from the bike) with him to school! He carried it with him on the bus and gave it to someone in his biking club that said they could fix it (or knew where to take it to get it fixed). I guess he is beginning to figure many things out for himself without my help. It won't be long before he begins to drive, and then he may be making some of his own car repairs or taking his car to a friend's house to work on it together. I am amazed when I see young men repair their own cars--all I can do is look at the engine and wonder what could possibly be wrong. So today, he and his friends are repairing his bike wheel--and it won't be long before he and his friends are working on their car engines together. That is a huge advantage considering the cost of labor on car repairs these days--maybe I will have my son and his friends repairing MY car some day, too! :) Having a teenage son who can do these things is kind of cool! :)

Math is...

My daughter is struggling a bit in math, and I completely understand how she feels. Some people have very logistical minds and math comes fairly easy to them. Others, including myself, are more talented in areas such as language and communication--and sometimes we have a tough time grasping some mathematical concepts. My teens know to ask Dad for help with math and Mom for help with writing--he uses math every day in his job, and I write and edit every day in mine. It doesn't insult him when they don't want his help with writing papers and essays, and it doesn't insult me when they know NOT to ask me for help with math. Thankfully, they have a balance of both sides with us--if we BOTH were good at math and bad at writing, or vice-versa, there might be a problem. Even so, they are also at an age where they rarely turn to their parents for help with homework. But when a question does arise, they know which parent can provide the best help in a particular subject. And when it comes to science and geography, the internet is a wonderful resource that we ALL can use quite proficiently. Remember when we were younger and would "look it up" in things like World Book Encyclopedias?--now the internet takes the place of that and is continually updated. One night I was the only parent available when my daughter had a math question, so we turned to the internet. We looked up the concepts and found some information that helped her understand enough to complete the homework. I STILL do not really like math, and I will never really be good at it--but that's ok with me. But if you need someone to edit the paper you are writing, I'm your gal! :)

Studying For Tests

My son has a lot of tests to take this week--they are nearing the end of the first quarter, so these tests are a big part of their grades. They won't have a lot of homework during testing, but they DO need to study every night. My son has what is known as a "photographic memory"--he can picture a page of notes in his mind and practically read it from memory, word-for-word. He got that from me! :) I usually had no problem taking tests that were composed from notes and textbooks when I was in school. My toughest subject was math--not as much about memorizing things as other subjects are. Sometimes my son will hand me his notes and ask me to quiz him on the material. I am amazed at how well he seems to know his stuff! He is making pretty good grades in high school so far--a big improvement from middle school. The thing about his middle school grades is that he often just forgot to do things or to turn them in on time. I am so glad to see that this problem has improved greatly now that he is in high school. He has the potential of making excellent grades as long as he doesn't forget things--I hope his renewed awareness continues throughout high school and college. At this point in his education, the number one secret to making good grades seems to be to take good notes and STUDY, STUDY, STUDY those notes. He is doing great so far! :)