I'm Straight (and so is My Hair)

I FINALLY DID SOMETHING WITH MY HAIR! Granted, I didn't cut it off or anything creative (see former blog with hairstyle poll), but I got it STRAIGHTENED! It's a step in the right direction! Here's the proof! Notice the lack of CURL (and the super cute orange zebra stripe cardi that should be under the Christmas tree marked "Merry Christmas to me")!

ANYWAY...

Guess who is coming to town? The Hendricks and the VanDerWerkens! There will be a convergence of former Virginians at our house over New Year's! Jodie and Steve are coming down for the Air Force game, and I think that Angela is responding to the invitation I sent her last week for my pity party. Any other takers?!

Also, based on poll results, some were wondering what 'Smart Discipline' is all about. I'm no expert, but from what I've read, the author encourages boundaries/rules, privileges, revocation of priveleges, and the healthy nurturing of children's self-esteem. Sounds like a lot of other parenting books? I wouldn't know because I rarely finish any: they usually bore me to death or make me feel so guilty about what I'm doing wrong that I don't want to read anymore. Not so with this book. I read it over a couple of days (and laughed as I did so) and am currently implementing with Lucy and Mackey. Calvin has the funny misfortune of standing in the corner for his 'offenses': standing on the counter, barstool, table, or other object over 3 feet tall and hitting. I should get a picture of that...it's hilarious. The corner, not the hitting. I've really liked that the author supplies some 'dialogue', behavioral lists, sample privelege lists, and valuable self-esteem building formulas to help get started. Implementation really is 'turn key'. So far, with Lucy and Mackey, I've seen improved response time to requests, chores getting done without reminding (after initial daily decree), increased unsolicited help (Mackey), and less complaining (Lucy). They also catch themselves more often before they start fighting. Downsides: I foolishly picked a couple of rules that were a little too much to start with, and I'm having a hard time prioritizing priveleges. I've hated seeing them suffer over the consequences of their negative decisions, but hopefully they'll learn to make better choices over time. Rightly so, the author is huge into not giving second chances or letting kids 'earn back' lost priveleges. Anyway, I give it a thumbs up - I've learned a lot.