Are you smarter than a 3 year old?

You know that show called Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader? I am often disappointed to learn that I am indeed not smarter than a 5th grader most days. But now I'm wondering if I'm smarter than my 3 year old.

Connor has been interested in the alphabet pretty much since he was able to talk. He could recognize all his letters even before then. Well, his obsession with the alphabet continues in a way that totally amazes me. He is able to write every letter except A. I can't really say he can't write A, I just haven't seen him do it yet. Last night he sat down and wrote the entire alphabet (minus A) on his etch a sketch thing. I was totally blown away. The letters aren't as perfect as if you or I wrote them, but they are legible.

He's begun reading, now he's writing......this kid is going to be bored out of his mind when he starts school. ;)

Lessons from the park.....

With the nicest weather we've had in months, Connor and I have spent most of the last two days at the local park. And I've had some scary revelations.

First, not all parents teach their kids how to play nicely and share. It makes it very hard to teach your child how to behave properly when no one else's child is doing the same.

On Friday, there was a little girl at the park who was maybe 8, who thought it was her job to tell everyone else what they could and could not play with. Problem was, according to her, none of the other kids could play with anything. Her parents never said a word to her, just watched her bully the other kids. I generally do not like to say anything to anyone else's kids, but I had tolerated it long enough and all the other kids were getting upset. So I finally stepped in and told her she had to share. She ran off crying. There were also kids who were waaaaaay too big to be on the playground, jumping off stuff, climbing up the slides and pushing the little kids around. Again, after no parent intervention, I finally told them to knock it off. After about an hour, we gave up and left. Friday was not a fun time at the park.

We tried again today, and had a little better experience. Most of the kids there were playing nicely, and parents were attentive. The thing that literally broke my heart was a boy there, who was maybe 10, named Scott. He started playing with Connor. Connor likes older kids, so he was in heaven to have a new playmate. At about 3 p.m., most of the kids cleared out. But Scott was still there. I finally realized that Scott was there alone. I asked him where his mom was, and he said "I dunno." Asked him if his dad was there, he said no. He then told me he walks to the park just about every day by himself. Now, we don't exactly live in a high crime area, but it's not safe for a 10 year old to walk to a park by himself either. Anything could happen. I felt so bad for this kid. He latched onto us because we paid attention to him. Chances are, he'd have latched on to anyone who paid attention to him, and that's how kids end up hurt. When we left, Scott was heading home, so we watched him. I thought of offering him a ride, but the kid is 10, and I am a stranger, so I thought better of it after common sense kicked in. We did see that he made it home. He lived close, but still.....where are the parents?

My husband often accuses me of crowding our son and being too protective, but I'll take that any day over totally ignoring him.

Are you there, God? It's me, Shari......

For the last week and a half, I have been awake long before the chickens. In fact, I started to notice a very scary pattern in the last few days. I have been awake at exactly 5:38 a.m. EVERY DAY. If my mind worked like a gambler's, I'd be running off to the local lottery place and playing that combination of numbers every which way I could. But I'm not, so I haven't.

This morning, when I was awake at yet again 5:38 a.m., a crazy thought struck me. Maybe this is a sign. Then I got to thinking, what kind of sign is 5:38? What could that possibly represent? The more I looked at it, the more I thought, "hmmm.....that could be a chapter and verse from a book in the Bible." I realize some people might think I was delirious, crazy or both for even coming to that conclusion, but the mind does funny things when it is tired. So out of curiosity (and the fact that no one else is awake at that hour in my house), I got out my Bible and looked through every book in it. Do you want to know how many books in the Bible actually have a chapter 5 with a 38th verse in it? Because, I can tell you, I now know. It's five. Exactly five. All four gospels have a 5:38 and the book of Acts. That's it. Here is what each of them say:

Matthew 5:38----You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.'

Mark 5:38----When they came to the house of the leader of the synagogue, he saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly.

Luke 5:38----But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins.

John 5:38-----You have never heard his voice or seen his form, and you do not have his word abiding in you, because you do not believe him whom he has sent.

Acts 5:38----So in the present case, I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone: because if this plan or this undertaking is of human origin, it will fail;

After reading all of them and the context in which they are written, I am not sure how they apply to me. When I saw the first few, it made me think of the shootings in Pittsburgh and my post about how I don't think the accused will ever find Christ. I got to thinking, maybe this is God's way of saying I am wrong and I should have some faith. But then I read the verse in Acts and it threw me off of that thinking. So at this point, I am not sure how they relate to one another or to me. Maybe this isn't why I've been awake at 5:38 a.m. every morning for over a week. Maybe I am just crazy. But if any of you have any ideas of what these versus might be trying to tell me, I'm all ears. Otherwise, I'll just move along and chalk this one up to lack of sleep and brain cells. :)

Ouch....ouch....and OUCH!

See that guy doing that weird pose to the left? Well, that was me two days ago. And I have to say, I am now in pain I didnt' even know was possible.

Why on earth would I twist myself into such a pretzel? Well, it's called Bikram yoga. And let me tell you, it kicks butt.

I am always looking for ways to stay in shape since I can't exercise the way I used to (before having a 3 year old, that is). A friend suggested yoga, and I thought I'd give it a try. The first yoga video I did was relatively easy, so I laughed about it. Then I tried Bikram. I twisted my body into positions I didn't even know it could get into! And I laughed the whole time, because aside from a little balance issues, I felt nothing when I was doing it. And now I am paying for my mistake of thinking it was nothing. I have muscle spasms where I didn't even know I had actual muscles.

So if you're looking for a good workout....do the pretzel.

I just don't get it.....

I've tried really hard in the last couple of days to wrap my brain around the tragedy that happened in Pittsburgh Saturday. But there is just no way to understand what the man who killed three officers was thinking that even begins to make sense to me. A story in today's Post Gazette made me even angrier when I read it. Here it is if you want to read it, too: http://post-gazette.com/pg/09098/961304-53.stm I was shocked and totally saddened to hear this man feels no remorse for the lives he took and, in fact, is upset he didn't manage to kill a few more. I know God can change the hearts of anyone who seeks Him, but it sure doesn't seem like this guy is headed down that path.

The more I read about this man, the more I must admit I find myself wishing the old Biblical concept of stoning one to death was still permissable. I know, I know....someday, he is going to stand before God and have an awful lot of explaining to do. But in the meantime, I can't help but feel sorrow for the families of the men he killed. How awful it must be to see stories like this, where he is expressing no remorse at all. It's just added salt for their wounds. I almost wish the media wouldn't publish the information, but I know they can and will.

My heart and prayers go out to the families of these officers. May God give them peace in a time of such tragedy. And for Mr. Poplawski, if there is no desire in your heart for forgiveness for what you have done, then I hope there is a very special place in Hell for you.

Calling all extras....

I get emails all the time from the Pittsburgh Film Office, because I once covered a story for them. Here is the latest. I thought I'd post it in case anyone is interested in doing this. It might be a fun way to earn some cash! Just follow the link:

http://www.pghfilm.org/hotline/hotline_casting.jsp

Where is God?

A friend sent me this today and it was too good not to share:

He was just a little boy,on a week's first day.Wandering home from bible school,and dawdling on the way. He scuffed his shoes into the grass;he even found a caterpillar.he found a fluffy milkweed pod,and blew out all the 'filler.'A bird's nest in a tree overhead,so wisely placed up so high.Was just another wonder,that caught his eager eye.A neighbor watched his zig zag course,and hailed him from the lawn;asked him where he'd been that day and what was going on.'I've been to Bible School,'he said and turned a piece of sod. He picked up a wiggly worm replying,'I've learned a lot about God.''Mmmm very fine way,' the neighbor said,'for a boy to spend his time.''If you'll tell me where God is, I'll give you a brand new dime.' Quick as a flash the answer came! Nor were his accents faint.'I'll give you a dollar, Mister,if you can tell me where God ain't.'