Christina, Author at A Mommy Story

Jul 21, 2010

An Early Love of Reading

Earlier in the summer, I was invited to visit the Columbus Metropolitan Library to learn about their programs, specifically their summer reading club. This was something the girls were only mildly excited about, because going to the library is a semi-regular occurrence for them. But little did they know that was the day the library was kicking off the summer reading program, and there were all sorts of special events going on at the library all day to celebrate.

Now, we don’t just have any old library here in Columbus – we have the TOP library. Columbus Metropolitan Library was named the top library of 2010 by Library Journal, along with several other honors they’ve received before. Our library is awesome – the diversity of their offerings is unmatched.

Cordy and Mira were both excited to sign up for their first summer reading club. Aaron signed up, too – adults are welcome to participate. Cordy already had a library card, but Mira got her first library card that day. (And wouldn’t you know it – it was PINK.) They each received a sheet to track their progress and selected several books to start with.

For the next few weeks, this was how we usually saw Cordy at home:

Yes, it’s a comic book, but there are words, so it counts!

Her nose was buried in a book, trying to earn time to get another box marked off of her sheet. But Mira wasn’t slacking, either – she brought me book after book and begged me to read until my eyes crossed.

And with only half of the summer complete, they have both finished their summer reading club tracking sheets. Aaron took them to the library on Saturday to turn in their tracking forms, and each girl received a library tote bag as her reward. They now use those tote bags to take library books to and from the library.

I’ve been thrilled to see Cordy’s interest in reading develop over the summer. I think she’s a stronger reader now than she was at the end of the school year. She may have trouble with social skills in kindergarten, but at least I feel confident that she’ll do fine with her academics this fall.

There’s still time to get your child enrolled in a summer reading club. Even if you don’t live in Columbus, this is something many libraries do each summer. Even my small hometown library had a summer reading club when I was a kid, although back then I had to give a verbal book report to the children’s librarian to earn my stamp. (You kids these days have it soooooo much easier! *said in my best old person voice*)

And if you have more time for reading that doesn’t involve navigating to Facebook, check out any adult reading club activities your library might have as well.

Locals: should you happen to live in the district of the Columbus Metropolitan Library, be aware that a levy to help fund the library will be on the November ballot this year. This will replace an expiring levy and help fund new services, as well as bringing back Sunday hours to the suburban branches. Don’t forget to vote for this levy!

Full disclosure: I was invited to come to the library as a special guest, and received a very nice presentation about all of the library’s services while my children were entertained by library staff during storytime. I received no compensation, other than the time of the Executive Director and other staff. Our family loves and supports our local library, and encourages you to love and support your local library, too!

Filed Under: Cordy, daily life, growing up, Mira, reviews ·

Jul 19, 2010

With A Little Help From My Friends

By Christina ·

I realized a few days ago that I have been running (well, running and walking) for a month now. I’ve kept to a single program for a month! Anytime I reach an accomplishment like that, I have to remind myself that despite the criticisms I’ve acquired throughout my life, I can do just about anything I put my mind to!

Of course, then a day like today happens. Week 5, day 2 of the couch to 5K plan, and I had to run two 8-min intervals, with a 5 minute walk in-between. It sounded do-able, but I didn’t make it. I managed to squeak out the first 8 minute run, and even recovered pretty quickly during the 5 minute walk. But halfway through the second run, I lost any pattern to my breathing and felt sick. I had to walk for 2 minutes of that interval, and I felt miserable. Probably didn’t help that it was insanely hot and humid, too, but I was more focused on my fault, not the weather’s fault.

Thankfully, friends came to my rescue online and reminded me that this is a hard week of the program, but that one setback isn’t failure. They’re right, and I’m going to try again on Tuesday.

Also, another little stroke of luck came my way last week to help me in my goals of shedding the weight and getting healthier. Healthy Choice is hosting a Better for BlogHer Challenge, and I was one of the bloggers selected to participate! As part of the challenge, I’m replacing just one meal a day with a Healthy Choice meal, and at BlogHer I’ll be meeting with Tara Gidus, “The Diet Diva,” for a one-on-one nutrition, fitness and wellness consultation.

Eating one Healthy Choice meal a day will be the easy part in this journey – I’ve already been eating them several nights at work, because they’re easy to pack, easy to prepare and taste better than many frozen meals out there. The real challenge will be consistency.

To go along with this new challenge, I’m also going to rev up my fitness routine. Right now I’m running three days a week and not doing much else otherwise. I plan to work some other type of fitness routine into some of my off days, whether it be biking, swimming, walking, or just doing some crunches.

We’re just over 2 weeks away from BlogHer, and my goal for the next two weeks is to make that scale show a number lower than 187 – where it’s been stuck for MONTHS now. Nothing has made it drop lower than 187. Last week I stepped on and it flickered between 186.8 and 187.0 several times before giving me the digital scale version of the middle finger and settling on 187.0.

That number will be lower in two weeks.

Full disclosure: In exchange for my participation in the Healthy Choice Better for BlogHer challenge, I am being compensated with product coupons and gift cards. No guarantees were made for positive reviews, but if this helps me get below the 187 mark on the scale, I might just kiss the Healthy Choice reps at BlogHer!

Filed Under: c25k · Tagged: better for blogher, the plan

Jul 16, 2010

Do Not Be Alarmed

By Christina ·

If you’re one of those people who has a sharp eye for detail, you might notice that this little blog has slimmed down slightly, at least where the address is concerned. I decided that after 5 years, it was time to drop the unsightly blogspot from the middle and just be http://www.amommystory.com/.

It fit better on my business cards for BlogHer, too.

Hopefully this transition is seamless, but if there are any hiccups, please let me know. I’m told that any links to old posts or feeds will still automatically redirect to their proper places. I’ll admit I have no idea how it works – I’m impressed that I managed to redirect the domain at all without calling for help.

And hey, maybe this transition to a slightly more professional-looking domain name will result in a slightly more professional blog?

Nah.

Filed Under: BlogHer, mom blogs, random ·

Jul 13, 2010

Full Circle

By Christina ·

It was almost exactly four years ago that our house was robbed. A man living across the street from us watched our house carefully, finding the one day of the week when no one was home for several hours and then broke our back window and helped himself to everything of value.

The new laptop I had purchased just three days prior – intended for my first BlogHer trip – was gone, along with Aaron’s laptop, our game systems and games, the video camera, and several other small electronics. The videos of Cordy’s first steps and silly moments were on the tapes he took with the camera. My engagement ring – set out to be re-sized – was stolen as well.

None of those items were ever recovered, even though we provided the serial numbers for everything. But thanks to my eye for tiny details, I spied a small drop of blood on the curtain, and it was through that speck of DNA evidence that the thief was caught several months later.

However, even being a repeat offender doesn’t guarantee more than a slap on the wrist, and the thief was released on probation, with a restraining order preventing him from coming near us or our house for 5 years. The final part of his sentence was a requirement that he pay us for our insurance deductible.

We never expected to see the money. Truthfully, I didn’t even care about the money. My sense of security had been shattered and I didn’t even feel safe in my own home. We always take precautions of locking doors and windows, but it wasn’t until then that security systems or other additional precautions to protect our home had even crossed my mind. Replacing the items we lost was costly, but the greater cost to me was in trying to replace any comfort I felt while at home.

As the years have passed, the sharp emotions of that day have dulled. Of course, we keep the house locked up and protected more than ever now, but I’m no longer waking up in a panic in the middle of the night, double-checking locks and systems I know are secure. Most of the items that were stolen were replaced.

But this past week, a letter arrived in the mail from the courts addressed to Aaron. I was completely puzzled, wondering if we had done something wrong, like missed a parking ticket or something like that. Instead, I opened the envelope and found a check for the same amount as our insurance deductible, with a receipt stating it was a restitution payment from the thief!

I never expected to see that money. Holding that check gave me just a little more faith in karma and in the system. It added one tiny bit of closure to an otherwise painful memory, and it just happened to show up during a time when we really need it, too. I only hope that the thief has used this past four years to turn his life around, finding a productive manner of contributing to society instead of shattering windows to take treasured belongings – and peace of mind – from others. Or at the very least, that he no longer lives anywhere near us and never comes into our neighborhood again.

Filed Under: daily life, memories · Tagged: idiots

Jul 9, 2010

Losing My Hind

By Christina ·

Those of you who follow me on Twitter or Facebook may know that I started working out again. And while I had a blast with Hot by BlogHer last year, I wanted to create a more year-round space to document my attempts at good health and losing weight. I haven’t said much about it yet because I wasn’t exactly posting much, and was fighting with myself over how much I wanted to share. Truth is, I need to share this kind of stuff – it helps me keep going.

So if you like reading about more than my two adorable children, be sure to check out Losing My Hind. There’s even a juicy new post today about what a head case I am when it comes to physical activity.