I am a 'persuasive parent' I practice all http://www.copyblogger.com/persuasive-writing in order to convince my children to do things my way...Now before you go thinking I am brainwashing them from free thinking free will children into automatons... realize you are prolly doing it to your kids too. If you don't you should about some things.

1. Repetition
brush your teeth, brush this way, check out this example of clean teeth, and now the yucky teeth, Listen to this story about brushing teeth. Trust me we all do that! (though not all parents about teeth)

2. Reasons why
Because if you don't you will get cavities, or your teeth will need pulled, or you will just plain have bad bread/yucky teeth, and because I don't want to pay for any of that to be fixed! If you havn't told your kid why yet, you should.

3. Consistency
Monday - "brush your teeth"
Tuesday - "brush your teeth"
Wednesday -"brush your teeth"
......you get the idea

4. Social Proof
The dentist and all parents think tooth brushing is important! (a few testimonials from those not ingrained in this habit in youth and how they are paying the price are well warranted)

5. Comparisons
See the non brushing mouth..see the yucky cavities..see the dentist bill

See the frequently brushed mouth, see the nice teeth..see the no cavity bill is lower...

6. agitate and solve
oh my I haven't brushed my teeth, I would rather read/play/watch/cuddle/sleep but I know a yucky feeling mouth has yucky germs that eat away at my teeth, I will go brush MY teeth. (and of course you will too)

7. prognosticate
If you do not brush your teeth regularly you will have a yucky mouth.

8. go tribal
Time to brush teeth for everyone! (and I do mean everyone a whole stack of tooth brushes a full bathroom and one big brushing party goes on)

9. address objections
I know it seems like a waste but it is important. I know you don't like the tooth paste much, next time you can pick. I know yellow isn't your favorite color of brush, next time we trade them in we will look for pink!

10. story telling
Once upon a time there was a little girl (rabit, bear, fish, whatever) who rarely ever brushed her teeth, now she is all grown up and had to go to the dentist to get a root canal...she had to pass up on going out to several fun events (renfest, football game, movie, whatever) because she didn't have the money left over after the root canal.

Now we don't have to do that every night, but those are ten of the tricks we use to convince our kids to pick up a lifelong habit of tooth brushing.

If only I could formulate finances into all those rules......a save money mantra instead of a brush teeth. Part of the trouble is teeth need taken care of twice a day (minimum) money doesn't.

Or it will be for the trip, if weather.com is accurate that is.

I was so worried about cold, not that cold is a problem, but that we do not want to deal with the extra packing of winter coats! 3 kids, two adults and iffy weather makes for one full packed car!

So packing the clothes I did include a few warm pieces, for layering, but I think we can skip the winter coats.

I also added my daughters princess costume for the RenFest, I will try to get a picture for you all.

And we are cashing a check to have some 'splurge money'..there is plenty in the bank, but I plan on using that for the car. And we always like to splurge a little at the RenFest...we save all Gold coins to use at the food vendors, just looks cooler I think a pouch full of a wallet with American bills ruins the best costume..a pouch full of gold coins looks nice, even if it is a native American, instead of a medical king or something. (course if everyone did it, the vendors would have to heavy a load to carry to the bank!)

I received a depressing note in the mail today, no extra was sent on the car last month...I kept it in the account to use to buy a shed..that we didn't buy..because apparently there is more work involved than I thought, leveling ground and stuff....I still want one, but for now the stack is in the garage...and he is the one who has to get in the cold car 5 days a week, I only have to on Sunday or evenings, so I guess it will have to stay out for a while longer with the boxes in.

So when we get home I will send the money off and let it pile back up for a later purchase of a shed.

I read an article yesterday on preferred parents, most children have one at some point, some keep it up long enough to give Mom or Dad a complex.

The line "I promised myself life wouldn't change when the baby came" inside the article struck me as one of the most selfish anti parent ideas ever spoken.

Oh I understand it, with each kid I promise not to fall off the house bandwagon and make certain at least some cleaning gets done..not to mention the vow to make a shower a higher priority in the first few weeks..but I know that baby takes precedence over a clean floor, and a daily shower.

A new life, impressionable, needy, genetically engineered to nurse, hold, and seek comfort, comes into yours ....and you think yours wont change?

How can anyone offer a child all the love, time, care, and support they need without putting a crimp on pre baby life? How do you fit in an infants nearly 24 hour care, with any life!

Why would you want to have a kid just to keep on living life the same? There is nothing wrong with scheduling some 'grownup time' (and everything right with some) but there is something wrong with failing to schedule A LOT OF 'parenting time'..The different part about having kids isn't the 9 months of pregnancy or the labor and delivery. It isn't even the next 18 years..having a kid is different for the REST OF YOUR LIFE......

We are planning a last minute (well last week anyway) trip to PA, and one of the things needed to be done (that might actually get done) is making sure all the bills will be paid while gone.

I love online bill pay, but I hate the fact that it could go very wrong...Not that the snail mail system never lost a check..just that I guess seeing immediate proof of payment makes me feel like I need that proof, whereas the old snail mail was sent of with a 'lick and a prayer' cause there wasn't a thing else to be done.

So all this instant news just means I have to check each day! Though for me, that is good, I will either do it nearly every day, or hardly at all!

Yesterday while teaching my son long division, I discovered that the brain cells lost are not just for memory.

The problem was 4050/50..in order to solve 'big' division problems we talked about how you get to 'ignore digits' and just look at the first few to start..in this case 405...immediately he says 8...50 times 8 is 400..I said..'Umm'..to buy time, a word I once tried to eradicate from my vocabulary is coming VERY necessary to buy me enough time to multiply myself.

We finished the problem, but added on top of my recent hunt to find the answers for conversions (man I hate those liters to pints, to gallons, ugh..or is it pints to liters, to gallons, which is smaller again?)

I am finding his math is reaching the limit of my ability fast. A teacher shouldn't have to look up the answers, if you can't understand the problem quickly how do you break it down for a kid before they find something new to amuse themselves with?

I am barely making it now, but soon his math class will have to be moved to a time when Daddy is home. (I already have to call for things like the square root of infinity, or a number divided by 0-I could look it up, but in the middle of breakfast I prefer to call)

Not to mention all the looking up I have to do just to keep on top of his trivia...I don't want to shoot him down when he comes up with a tidbit, but I also would like to be able to help him if he is wrong. And that requires I know a lot more about animals and space, and plants than I ever cared to!

And it brings to mind another reason I home school, I have to have him home so I can at least read the book he learned from. Learning with him is my only defense!

Nearly every day (I like that phrase, it makes you think I do it all the time, but gives me an easy out if I skipped today)

Anyway, 'nearly every day' I log in to ING to make sure bills are going out, and money is available for spending if needed. I also log into our 'brick and mortar' bank..mostly to transfer money out and put it in ING.

Today I brought up ING, and froze..I literally cannot remember the number, the same number that I enter nearly every day..I don't even know the first digit!

After typing this and trying again I finally came up with it, but really you would think I am ancient or something, can't even remember a number I use nearly every day...It's the kids, they steal brain cells!

Last night after the in laws went back to the in laws. My husband and I day dreamed about buying the property next door..it is empty and according to a couple reports from the company it isn't big enough to build a big house and still be the required distance from the curb and neighboring houses.

So if we buy it we could convince them to let us combine the properties, and add on to our house...

from simply adding a 'master suite' to doubling the size of our house all dreams were considered.

And perhaps the scariest thing of all...I honestly would consider adding on a loan payment to buy the property.

But we really shouldn't..this community is about as anti libertarian as they come. Can't even try to 'naturalize' the lawn, has to be green and all that. Not to mention the clothesline restrictions.

I had a good idea for a blog note last night while trying to fall asleep. Like most ideas it was completely gone by morning.

I had another one while doing the daily 'clean up chores'. Completely forgotten by now.

Then there was the inspiration while planting outside...you guessed it, forgotten.

So reading the article on PF about how to keep track of your great ideas hit home!

Of course I had this idea to write things down before..they turned into mile long to do lists..I have one of those in my head, the inability to remember it all is the only thing keeping me sane!

Actually this is why I do the same thing in pretty much the same order every day..not the whole day, just the work. It really isn't that big of a deal to do dishes then laundry as opposed to laundry than dishes, but I seem to run on autopilot better than conscious..so every day 'workout, laundry, breakfast, teeth/face, dishes/kitchen, vacuum, swiffer, bathrooms, clothes, laundry'..this means when (not if, when) I am interrupted by a kid I know to go right back to where I was. At the worst I can run thru the list (even going to the washer or kitchen to check) untill I hit on something I didn't do yet.

The kids have the same kind of list: 'breakfast, clean up, teeth, face, clean room, make bed, daytime clothes, vacuum, dust, house help' Which means I don't have to know what they need to do in addition to what I am doing, I just ask how the list is going.

So I prolly wont ever become rich, since all the good ideas are lost, but at least 'nearly every day' the work gets done.

Now if I an figure out what I was going to do after I posted.....

We went to the park yesterday for our usual weekly recycling run..and while there we decided to try and pick up some garbage along the way...I have since decided that there aught to be a law...you cannot shop at McDee's unless you can put the garbage in the trash!!!

How about an enterance law..something like the hitchhikers galaxy ticket system..only in reverse..anything in has to go out with you! or else you can get a reciept for putting trash in the trash can.

Oh and fishing should be outlawed unless you get your 'stuff' inspected, come out with less than you went in get fined..

I lost count of how many lunch containers with drink bottles, cans, or Mcdee cups were found sitting ever so perfectly right where the owner left them.

What on earth are people thinking! I understand the occasional mishap, I have lost items before that were supposedly safely tucked in my pocket for disposal. But the amounts we were finding could not have been accidental!

Of course you know this is how silly laws get started...supposing you had the money to police trash removal, it is a good thing right? but then you have to find the money for it, and innocent people like my husband and I would have to stop and get our bags checked on the way out to make sure we had trash in them...while the 'illegals' are sneaking out empty handed, having left their trash behind.

You cannot legislate good behavior...wish you could though.

In general we are frugal people, and non spenders. Even when we got into debt, we did it with normal grocery buying and having a 5,000 dollar baby (JC - no complications that was our portion..ugh)

So when we spend big it is unusual..oh we have our 'latte' trip ups (dried mangos!) but mostly we don't have a problem living within a budget, and especially since the last raise. (bring us up to a decent wage).

BUT! I have insisted that something be done about the boxes...They are growing, my husband is a pack rat, and I have HAD IT. I dunno if it is the right thing, but I figure a shed for his junk is cheaper than a psychologist. or a marriage counselor. So...we are going hopefully tonight to buy the biggest shed they have, and have it delivered. Yep delivered, paying the extra fee just to get it delivered, and if they offer an express delivery I want it!

I had aloooong rant here to add, but I think that would by 'airing out dirty laundry' so ... I wont.

deep breath..deep long slow breaths..thats it...life will go on...

20/20 had a show on health care last night and while making copies I watched it (put in sheet press button, wait 5 minutes, turn over, put sheets back in press button etc..total time waster)

Anyway, the proposed plan by many is to 'have the government take over' the first thing I have to ask is how well did that work for education? Today a high school GED test contains LESS knowledge than a common 8th grade test from 60 years ago..and many 'graduating' students couldn't pass the GED if they tried!

Now before you think I am a total Anarchist, I do feel some things are done best by a large slow body..protecting the borders..Of course weather or not we need any, and from whom is a completely different debate, let's leave it at individuals don't band together to train as often as an army.

Now back to health care, what is an alternative to nationalizing it? How about not getting any for simple routine care..how about including Dr visits as a routine reoccurring bills, not unlike changing the oil in your car. This is the method I prefer with an added insurance for major issues, like cancer.

The number one complaint is that if it came out of pocket, many people would not get routine checkups. Maybe so, many people don't change the oil in their cars either..many people also don't read to their kids. I can't make you read to your kid, and I have no right to, neither does the government. Same with getting your cholesterol checked, I have no right to make you do it, and neither does the government.

Besides, I haven't been to a real Dr.in 2 years, after my youngest son was born one of my moles started bleeding so we had it removed and checked. Before that it was a sympathy visit when my husband had a bleeding mole. I figured since I was making him go, I aught to join him in the torture. (both were fine) Aside from the Dr pestering me to find some excuse to get the insurance to pay for a full workup of blood tests, I learned nothing and didn't want to ever go back. (I have had prenatal care, all three kids were delivered by medical professionals)

Until recently I had health coverage, I just never stopped to look for or visit a Dr. I had better things to do with my time (no offense to any Dr.s). So no amount of health care coverage free or paid by me is going to make me go without a good reason. Only difference between the health care I have had and government would be the wait time..I was in the office within days of calling, and it could have been sooner except each time I made them wait till my husbands day off.

In England there was a recent campaign promise to 'reduce hospital wait time' to 18 weeks..that is almost 5 months! Canada has a similar problem with wait time. Dr.s go on strike there as often as teachers do here! I know they don't want to, but they DO want to be able to pay their own bills.

I am sure there are some kinks that could be worked out to help, but the short version is we have better cheaper cell phones and better cheaper education toys outside of the government system..We also often have better medical equipment..but in the hands of the insurance companies we can't pay for it.

Many companies are working on a flex medical spending plan..where you have insurance for big things, but routine care is your own responsibility..think of it as being in charge of your own oil changes, but repairs on say the transmission are covered.

I think specific kinks need worked out of that too (for example children should have more routine things covered) But I also think this is a wonderful method, and if more people would be conscious of what it really costs to run a blood test or get a script for antibiotics, maybe less parents would ask for one when their child only has a bad cold.

Then again, people might be too stupid to take care of themselves.....many do not brush their teeth or avoid fat. They also do not care for their children's teeth or diets. The junk food industry is booming, sedentary entertainment is a multi billion dollar industry, and we sit around and complain because insurance companies don't want to pay for open heart surgery....

How about we put the government in charge of making TV shows, and junk food..they can screw that up (no more Hershey's special dark!) we can start smuggling in chocolate, (without the regulation how do we know what people are putting in that back ally dark chocolate?) and no one wants to watch government run TV, so we can maybe get off our duffs and go outside once a week at least (or not, we will be online finding a dealer to mail us chocolate!)

One of the wonderful things about digital cameras is that I can let a kid take lots of pictures and not worry about wasting film.

One of the bad is they still get to see the 'yucky' photos..one learning lesson to not take a picture of your hand and to try for decent lighting, is that the photo store wont print the ones that don't show right. meaning a kid sees less pictures when they take bad ones.

Now with the digital world your computer screen will try to show you any picture you take, no matter how black, or white, or blurry.



Oh well, GMC still managed to take one or two nice ones. Though for the most part he is going to have to learn to wait for people to look at him!

Smiling hill farm again, we read how after 30 years the area around the farm developed (nice picture of a water wheel for the mill) and one of the new additions was a 'pike road'

According to the book they were called that because money was collected every so often by a fellow holding a pike across the road..after you paid a few cents he would then turn the pike for you to pass..

So far I have not been able to confirm that, but sounds interesting. wait according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turnpike_trust alsohttp://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=turnpike

As a financial note, a free hand me down reader is a wealth of information...and makes a good reader most days there is one word he needs help with..and a normal one at that, many of the library books have only dinosaur names he doesn't know, or some other science term he prolly wont use unless reading of that science (speaking of which I have got to aim him toward more social studies books!)
PS quote of the day:
The most interesting information comes from children, for they tell all they know and then stop" -http://en.thinkexist.com/quotation/the_most_interesting_info...

Unfortunately many children make wonderful guesses, and fail to note they are guesses..but so long as that habit is curbed I have to agree children are wonderful.

Also my son told me today.."Thats why you don't send us to school..you would miss us" I was talking about how my husband completes me, and how I need him all the time, I even miss him when he is at work...and my son figured it applied to the other people I love (the discussion came up cause my daughter has been on a having kids kick, I mentioned a good father is a must first....though I am sympathetic to situations where children are raised by one parent, I think aiming for two is best, so I talk it up)

Our week in review (cheap, and fun)

Sunday was church with a potluck meal. Followed by a cub scout meeting (looooong, but we got important things covered) Then the library, then the in laws for dinner (the tacos were WAY better than our PBnoJ!)

Monday we went to the recycle center..gas money only, nice stop at the nature center to check out the animals (a tadpole had grown up quite a bit) and then leftover salad outside picnic. followed by a nice hike over to see the pond (I was surprised my youngest walked 3/4 of the way before even asking to be picked up! bout 1 mile)

Tuesday was a couple quiet games followed by a library rented movie on trains (cub scout theme of the month) and then boys off to their meeting (tons of fun according to them) and extra stories for the girls (and youngest)

Tonight we are taking the kids back to the playground for GMC to practice riding his bike with no training wheels..in some ways he is a bit old to be finally learning (5 in April) but in others he himself is not the physical type, so we are rather proud of him (besides we refused to work on it with him all summer..when outside we were all about swimming! Which he can do quite well.)

So this week has been fun filled..and nearly free

And looking ahead:

Thursday is a 'thing' at my husbands work, might be bring the family which will be free fun.

Friday we might have company (casual invite only) or else we will watch the other movie on Ben Franklin we borrowed from the library (free of course)

Saturday afternoon is a litterbug pickup event at the park (free).

Of course one day we will need to go shopping for groceries...but not till Sat prolly. Nice cheap fun week. My favorite kind!

Still reading about Smiling Hill Farm and my least favorite part of all books is the school intro, where they assume your kid is in school and they are filling you in on what school used to be like, or is like in another country.

I also get irked that no one prays for home schoolers while every church has a prayer for teacher... Not that they don't need prayer and support, just that homeschooling is hard enough without any prayer or support.

Regardless let's get back to Ma and their school....I think the biggest reason she didn't do much schooling is that she had too much work already..she made the girls dresses, no not just sewed them, she had to make the linen from flax..Pa prolly did most of the growing but Ma had to beat it, soak it, spin it then weave it (with woolen thread bought from town) then cut sew and such....bit more work than grabbing one of three out of the closet (purchased by gmas and aunts - so I didn't even have to earn the money for them....).

This was all work needing done after her 'house' chores...and I doubt hers were done by 9:30 (mostly) I also doubt making lunch was as simple as slicing some cheese, spreading mustard, and nuking green peas (for one thing she would have to make the cheese, bread, mustard, and shell the peas!)

Not to mention the dishes I spent 2 minutes filling the dishwasher with would take much longer to clean with sand and water (that had to be drawn up from a nearby creek).

No I don't fault her at all for wanting to spend 5$ a 'term' per kid rather than adding reading education to the list of chores..though at the same time..why not sing the alphabet while you hang the wash? Why not count the peas you shell? And why on earth doesn't Pa teach reading while Ma spins...Allen should be able to entertain Ma with his reading while the girls get extra help.....

K so I think all kids should be involved in all parental chores, and I think the involvement should be of learning interest...I might be a pick picky.

Regardless, I am grateful for my microwave, store bought food, and vacuum! (yet another reason why in spite of what the census says we are rich)

On a side note, I missed a meeting last night, I was out at the park, walking with the kids...I had a wonderful time...I do regret missing the meeting, but given the choice..I would have chosen the walk with the kids. I do like em

Ok really it was only $59...then we also got floss for $59. Every dentist I have been to in recent years has sent you home with a toothbrush, sometimes toothpaste, and floss.

I am getting ahead of myself I aught to mention that the staff was very friendly and patient and that my son didn't give any hassle whatsoever.

Except for X-rays...I actually asked him if he wanted the X-rays, mostly cause it always helps if your kid wants to do the stuff you are going to make him do. I expected him to eagerly jump at the chance to see his skeletal looking teeth in a 'picture'. He did say he wanted to see them, but not till next time. I really don't know why he wanted to wait, but with how long the cleaning lasted and how well he did, and how expensive X-rays are, I decided not to push the issue. (Besides I asked, not fair to then say he had to)

He also has one tooth going grey! Last month he ran into his cousin and then said his tooth was loose, I told him not to mess with it till we found out if he was supposed to or not (when I was a kid they told us to 'play' with our loose teeth so they would fall out sooner). The Dr said not to worry, but it might fall out earlier than it's 'turn'. Apparently it is now grey, and thankfully not a grownup tooth since it is dieing...a tooth dieing, odd.

So after the cleaning he was given a basket of treats to choose from like tattoos, gliders, and such. (I love that, a non sugar treat!) and a baggie of the toothbrush and paste, and floss.

At the in-laws house later he tells his favorite cousin "I got a free toothbrush!"

Umm, not really, it was a $118 visit, that includes toothbrush, paste, floss, oh and a cleaning.

We no longer have dental, baring major surgery for the tots, the cost was much greater than paying out of pocket, so I called around and found the cheapest price.

I was slightly surprised to find the place advertised as 'low cost so all kids can get care' cost more than the family dentist.

We of course picked cheap (and happens to be a friends dentist, so comes recommended) We also opted only to take the oldest, GMC. Somehow we just can't see taking a 1 year old and a 3 year old to the dentist yet..though if the coverage was low we might, at 160 per visit, we aren't. (adults are 180... no we don't have apointments)

GMC on the other hand is getting up on the age of losing teeth, and besides it fills a cub scout elective

Off to pack food for the drive.