How We Do It: Names

Aria Elizabeth

Ah!! It is still so very exciting!! A girl! We are going to have a daughter...a daughter! I told Jason he better set up her wedding fund soon! HA! 

Anyway, I am so so in love with her name... We actually had it picked out well before we knew that Austin was on the way. I guess even though I'm a boy mom, I always knew I would have a little girl. It is just so exciting!

So, back to her name. Wondering where in the world it came from and/or how we decided on it? Well, let me bring you back to my 8th grade Confirmation days... 

My name is Heather. We are Catholic. We love our saints and ask them many times to pray for us, just as we would as a friend to pray for us in time of need. Well, there is no Saint Heather....and, yeah, I'm not sure there will be, ya know? So, I had to choose a saint's name for Confirmation and, honestly, I cannot tell you who that amazing woman was... I'm sure my parents know. But, me...nope. Not a clue. Maybe Mary, but just because it is pretty common. Anyway, once Jason and I decided to have kids I was determined to have names for my children that were saint names for this very reason. 

Andrew - named for Saint Andrew the Apostle, a fisherman. What's funny is that my Andrew is ALL about that Animal Planet show, River Monsters. He wants to catch a catfish so bad... And, if you are wondering, Andrew means "manly." True. Have you ever watched an episode of Deadliest Catch?? I'd say fishermen are pretty manly!

Alexander (Alex) - named for Saint Alexander, the patron saint of philosophers. And, let me tell you ...my Alex. Every question he asks starts with, "Hey, ____. I was wondering..." Oh, dear. Another perfect pick, right? Alex's name means "defender of men." I can totally see that. He is always watching out for his brothers, even when it doesn't really seem like it. Also, he likes to argue...this little defender of men would make a great lawyer one day, should that be his calling.

Austin - This little guy's named took some effort and time and lots of thought. But, it is funny how it all worked out. I have always loved the name Augustus. And, yeah, here in the South...not sure how that one would fly. So, we searched and search and saw that Augustus was a version on Augustine, as in Saint Augustine. Again...not a name that would work out (or be pronounced correctly). But after reading more about St. Augustine, we found that Austin was yet another version of that name. So, yay!! Austin means "great, magnificent" and, well...I do think he is pretty great!

So, now we come to our daughter's name. 

Aria - named for Saint Aurea. I'm still learning about this saint and deciding on which one is best for our Aria. But, at least I know she isn't a Saint Nobody, right? As for the spelling...again, the South. I love it and will never leave it again, but let's be honest. Pronunciation isn't one our strong points. I could already hear the messed up ways "A-u-r-e-a" being said... Also, that spelling didn't have a meaning I really liked (version of Aurora...ugh. Sleeping Beauty is my least favorite princess...but that will be another post for another day). But, "A-r-i-a" means "golden; melody." Sounds better to me. Anyway, I'll learn more about her Saint soon. 

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First Family Portrait...as a family of 6. Whoa... Bet you can't guess which one is Mommy!

 

How We Do It: The Library {#31days}

I have been taking the boys to the library since Andrew could walk, I think. Maybe a bit earlier than that. Since then, he (and now his little brothers) has grown to love going to the library. But, it didn't start this way in the beginning.

We would attempt the story time with major failure in the beginning. Some libraries are not fans of children, apparently. Others are just fabulous and understand that this is a learning experience. But, to the new mother, it is just a major disaster.

We have visited about 4 different libraries in our town until we found one to call ours. Each library has their own rules, their own children's department, and their own way of shelving the books. And, when you are trying to teach your child how to use a library (which can most certainly be done), you have to find the one that is doing the same for each child that walks through their doors.

TIPS FOR TAKING CHILDREN TO THE LIBRARY:

1. Talk to the librarians! They are there to help you and your children. Get the calendar of events. Ask for a recommended reading list for children (some have this available by age group). Have your kids say hi to the librarian, too. Mine have gotten so used to this, that they run in before me and are already having a conversation with whichever librarian they found. Go to a few story times and events that are offered. We have done some cool things at our library!

2. Inside voices. Even if the library is OK with the louder bunch, still teach them this. It's polite. Especially if the children's department isn't located away from the adult sections.

3. Books "live" on a certain place. This is the part that was big for me. The library that you choose should be organized. There is one that we will no longer visit because you can't find anything - even if the catalog says it is there. So, when the boys find a book and pull it out, I get them to put it back when they are done. Andrew knows all about that little white label on the spine. And he is now showing Alex what it is for, too. Please, teach your children this. 

4. Get them a library card of their own! One day, Andrew saw the Arthur episode about D.W. getting her Library Card and he thought that was so cool. So, the next time we went to the library, he asked the librarian (on his own - because of #1) how to get one. As long as he could write his name, he could have one. So, he has his own card! (Alex can write his name, too...but we are waiting a bit.)

5. How many books can we check out? I can't remember where I saw this tip, but they are allowed to check out the same number of books as their age. Andrew is 5, so he gets 5. Alex gets 3. Not only do they know how many they can get this visit, but I know how many to keep track of at home. Also, it really doesn't matter what the check out at this point. They are learning and what's better than that!?

6. Use the HOLD system/option. If there are certain books that I know they want to read or I need for school, I just place them on hold through their website. When they are ready to be picked up, we have a library day. Now, I have quality books that are waiting for us and I don't have to bother with searching.

7. Teach them to use the catalog. Andrew is at the early reader stage and can spell/read a few things. So, we run with that and learn about the card catalog. He wanted to find some new train books. We went to the computer and I let him type in "trains." Once we found a few that were on the shelf, we wrote down the numbers/letters and went book hunting. And, since this library actually uses the Dewey Decimal System...we were able to find the books. I show Andrew how to find a few and now he can do this mostly on his own.

8. Stay a while! Explore your children's department. Our has creatures, tables for the little ones to sit at and play with the puzzles, sofas for the mamas to check their email/nurse a baby/read to their kids. Enjoy your library. Don't just run in and run out (unless you have to...we had to one and the boys were kind of mad at me about that...)

9. Let them check out their own books, if possible. Our library has a computer system at their level complete with a step stool. They both know how to scan their cards and place the books on the sensor. Once they are done, they bit the button and grab their ticket. They think it is awesome!

10. Enjoy them but, don't forget to return those books! The boys love return their books just as much as they love checking them out. They have learned where the return slots are, and where the books go versus the DVDs.

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There you have it! That is how we enjoy our library. We have finally built up to the point where if I need to grab a book for me, the boys understand to still use their inside voices in the "grownup section" and go right back to the kids books. One day I found out that the library had a coffee bar... Oh, yes. Another reason that this library is our FAVORITE library.

Do you take your tots to the library? If not, visit a few until you find the perfect one. And, get reading!

How We Do It: The Morning Routine {#31days}

Since I've written about the boys doing their morning jobs, it occurred to me that you might want to know what those are. There are a bunch of chore charts all over the place that you could use. And, for a while, we used a ton of different ones until we found what worked for us. We used the Melissa & Doug one, we used reward charts, stickers, etc. But the one that has worked the best for my boys was the Morning High Five! I guess it is the "high five!" factor that made it stick. I'm not sure. But, they help with keeping the house in order, so we we keep on keeping on!

Here's what the boys do every morning:

 

MORNING ROUTINE

Breakfast

Kitchen Clean Up

Brush Teeth

Get Dressed & Make Bed

Trash Cans

Dirty Clothes

Go Play!!

Pretty simple, really. They pick out their breakfast for the most part. When they are done, they help clean up the mess made in the kitchen and help with putting away the dishes. Then they go get dressed, make their bed, and brush their teeth. They each empty a trashcan from the bathrooms and bring the dirty clothes to the laundry room. Easy peasy, most days... They get to go play until Austin decides to take a nap which signals time for school.

As for rewards... We kind of dropped that whole thing. They already have too many toys, why add more to that mess? And we attempted the "beginner's allowance" with failure - get a quarter for doing their jobs without fuss. So, they get a sticker or tattoo for helping around the house sometimes. They are happy. I am happy. And, the house is picked up. That's how we do it.

How about you? Do your kids have a morning routine? What kind of reward system do you use?

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Not sure where to start in handing our jobs to your littles? Start here: 

Seventh Generation Blog - Age Appropriate Chores