Orga...Organiz...Or....oh heck.

If I can't even type out the word, clearly I have trouble with "it". That O word is an elusive idea that everyone else has and can maintain, except me. I've joked about it, I've lamented about it, I've attempted it, I've cried about it; I have never maintained it. Maybe, just maybe, I'm beginning to chip away at the key to that lightbulb. (yes, those were intentional mismatched cliches)

The Flylady system has worked for me in the past but as soon as I'd feel stuck or as if I wasn't progressing I'd give up. It has just occurred to me that I AM MY OWN WORST ENEMY. Why it has taken this long to figure out is beyond me--I can tell anyone else they need to be easier on themselves and give themselves credit for trying yet not give myself the same courtesy! I'd just allow myself to believe that Marla's (Marla Cilley, Flylady founder) system just did not work for me and forever be in search of a better system. I've tried email groups and online only sites, read books and blogs...all through those years of searching I'd at least hear "just 15 minutes at a time" in my head, and even use the timer to keep focused on the task at home. Starting at the very beginning of May I started leaving a shiny sink every single night, and have only missed three nights over the past 3 months. Did I let myself see that as progress? No! At the same time I also began an exercise regimen, slowly building from 10 squats that first night, to now 80 squats, 100 crunches, and several different arm exercises. Surely I saw that as progress--nope. That stinkin' thinkin' of just not good enough apparently ran deeper than I thought.

Today I have finally realized I am making progress. Is it in the form of any one particular program? No, it isn't, though the sticky notes and calendar use and 15 minute work timers sure do resemble you a whole lot, there Marla lol! I'm not sure why I can't acknowledge I'm beginning to fly again, but I can at least say that something is beginning to work, and all I can do is keep moving forward. I'm also using Cozi calendar on my computer and phone. Will you take the journey with me? Tell me what's working for you. Born Organizers (BO's) please be kind if you comment or share :)

Today I'm celebrating that I've moved each morning sticky from the microwave to my calendar, including the zone mission for the day. I'm not organized, but I'm facing my challenges and forging through, and that is good enough!

FlyLady is www.flylady.net
Cozi is www.cozi.com

Rapping Mannings!

Heck yea! Don't know F.O.Y.P.? Consider yourself educated, and you are very welcome:

Education Freebies!

A couple great free resources were posted on one my local homeschool groups today, so great I had to share them! While I can't vouch for what will be received because I just signed up today, the potential for what will arrive is terrific!

First is from the Nutrients for Life Foundation http://nutrientsforlife.org/ . You can order the FULL CURRICULUM, in all or any of 3 levels: elementary, middle school, high school. You can order a hard copy and/or a flash drive loaded with the curricula. Below is from the "What Your Students Will Learn":  

• How many elements are essential to both plants and humans?
• Why is it important to improve the health of our soil?
• How much of the world’s land is available for food production?
• What can farmers do to preserve our environment’s forests and other fragile resources?

There are posters (including a poster of the periodic table of elements), postcards, workbooks (again, for all grade levels), recipe cards, bookmarks and lots more. You can order as many as 75 of some items! All items are available for download AND hard copy orders, and all are free. This is fantastic for all types of schools, co-ops, and homeschoolers. 

UPDATE August 15, 2013--We got our box and it was even more than I imagined! As far as I know they are still accepting requests. So, GO! Nutrients for Life Website

Next is from NASA. Do I need to say anything? I hear free things from NASA and start drooling at the mouth and just about jumping out of my chair in excitement. Today's offer is three FREE DVDs, available for instant viewing or hard copy mailing:

• 3D Sun 

• Journey to the Stars 

• Cosmic Collisions 

When you go to the website NASA Educator's DVD Collection you can select "view online",  or order hard copies of the DVDs.

**********I just found out that the DVD's are no longer available, along with many other resources formally available, however you can still watch online.

Lego Competition Champion!

Youngest entered a local Lego competition (not an official Lego event). I was nervous for the "typical" mother hen reasons--I wanted him to win and not be disappointed! Those reasons I can deal with easier; it was the autism side of things that was truly worrisome: Z considers himself to be a creative builder, he loves the Lego company, he asked people to come vote--so in his mind, he should win. He told anyone and everyone he spoke to about the contest and asked them to please come vote for him. He could understand when I would explain to him he might not win but I'm not sure he could completely grasp it, which actually made things even more stressful. I reminded him over and over that just entering the contest took bravery and made him a winner, and since this was his first competition, and he was competing in the 6th-12th grade level (being a 6th grader) it would be a learning experience for the next time. The other issue causing me concern was whether he would be able to leave his Legos somewhere! He has left minifigures or vehicles or even one little Lego piece in places and would stress and worry until they were safely back in his hands. 

As the day approached his anxiety levels increased. He was so excited that the day to drop off his entry (a built, then re-built, then re-built, then re-built again, then again re-built firehouse) had finally arrived! Excitement+autism=TOO MANY EMOTIONS! He was as nervous waiting for the drop-off time to arrive as a dad in an old time movie waiting to hear news of the baby arrival, so much so that we got there 30 minutes early! Thankfully the facilitator of the contest warmly invited him to leave his creation. The look on his face as we started to drive away was heartbreaking; I asked him what was wrong and he told me it felt very weird leaving his Legos. I'm thrilled he was able to express his emotions to me but my heart lurched at what I feared was just the beginning of emotion overload...

The next 48 hours were rough; Z was edgy, emotional, and even somewhat aggressive. He had meltdowns at not just one store (which is so unusual for him) but two different stores! As I've written before, Z's meltdowns don't look like a meltdown to most people, I'm sure; however these were both meltdowns with one even including raised voice, slamming a freezer door, and attempting to stomp away from me. The humor in those moments is that when he does get angry and walks away, especially when a parking lot or street is involved, he only goes a certain distance and then--again especially with streets/parking lots--waits to grab my elbow. More on that in another post!

The day arrived and he was dressed spiffy and ready to go...only one problem, it was only 7am and we weren't arriving until 1pm! In spite of the clock definitely moving backwards at times, we finally headed out.

Very nervous young man on the ride to the competition

We arrived to find people already there voting for "Crowd Favorite". Z was at least able to relax a little because the formal judging had already been done earlier in the day. Some friends and family were there to support him--and vote for him, of course! ;) 

It was fun to see so many great creations, and it was very cool to see how much admiration was expressed over his firehouse! The rules for this competition were: no sets, no modular pieces, and the creation had to fit within a 12"x12" area and be no taller than 24". To quote Z, "It took a lot of 

hard work to think outside the box while inside the box!"

Finally, it was time for the awards to be announced. I prayed for him to just at least get a participation certificate! He takes certificates seriously, so when they said everyone would get a participation certificate I felt like I could breathe at least a little. As they began the announcements, the kids were asked to sit on the floor. 

They began with preschool and worked their way up, first through "Most Creative". I gasped when his name appeared on the screen for his age group! It happened again for "Best Architecture"...

 and the BIGGY "First Place"!

Getting his prizes and ribbon

Absolutely unimaginable ending. NOT that I don't think he's great at designing and building Lego creations--I just wasn't sure how anyone else would "see" his work. To say we were all incredibly happy is the understatement of the millennium. Legos are so much more to him than toys or building blocks; Legos are part of who this child is and who he will become. For Z, this was just further confirmation that his plan to work for The Lego Group will be reality. For me? It was an overwhelming journey of emotions leaving me drained but full of gratitude. 

 

Hope for Ella request for help

Ella's parents (my nephew and niece Chris and Terri) are hitting the bottom of their finances. Terri was reluctant to ever start any kind of fundraising for them personally; however they are barely halfway into Ella's chemo treatments and money is becoming a HUGE issue with travel costs back and forth into Philly, all the co-pays for things that are covered, all the expenses that come along when you are spending 8 or more hours at the hospital treatment days. In addition to all physical medical costs, Ella has developmental special needs requiring treatment (such as social skills groups, educational counseling, etc) which is very expensive. You can look back through my blog posts, searching for HopeforElla, or you can go to Ella's Blog for more information about my sweet great-niece and her amazing family.

Please help if you can, any little bit will help lighten their load--sharing is an enormous help too. They have more than enough to worry about, let's make money one less thing. Please  Click here to help with Ella's Medical Expenses  Thank you!