Susiej

I have those boxes. You have them too. We’re smart enough to put them in “acid-free” boxes, but the photos are certainly not in a photo album. They are not organized, nice and neat, so that anyone can enjoy them. Technology has rescued us. Here, I’ll list some of the new scanners that will digitize batches of your photos, (inexpensive) and where you can get access to them.

Since I bought my Digital Camera, I have used Adobe Photoshop Elements to digitally organize my photos by date, person and event. So now, when I’m planning a birthday party for my 11 year old, and I want to embarrass him, (I wouldn’t. He’s too kind.), I just click on his photoshop Tag, and every digital picture I have of him pops onto the screen. I store them on back-up CDs, but more importantly on my external hard drive. CDs will only last about 5 years before they start to deteriorate.

There he is, in all his digital vintage glory. (For more on posting photos of your children, read this. My solution? I try to post older pictures, so you don’t recognize who I’m actually showing. One nice thing about not having my Mom around is that I don’t have to answer her. I know she’d have something to say about it. Actually, I think she’d say go for it, because she’d be so proud.)

Now, where was I? Right, notice above, I that I said I had all the “digital” photos in the computer. I didn’t own a digital camera until he was 8. So, there’s a lot of his life that is virtual undigitally documented. But, my HP Printer has a scanner. I have been dutifully scanning them in for 4 years now. Once the photo is scanned, I import it into Photoshop and add the date and tags, and it’s part of my on-line digital collection. However, it takes forever to scan the photos. And, these photos have streaks on them from the scanning bar. I guess that’s this century’s version of “vintage” photos. But I have 4 boys now!! I can’t keep this up!! And then, I have the black and white pictures of my Mom’s, and her family and my Grandma. I have lots of scanning to do.

Help has arrived. The The Wall Street Journal reports that there is a slew of new companies offering cheap, quick digitized services. High-speed document scanners with automatic feeders can handle hundreds of photos, letting them charge less to convert the image into digital format. Xerox, Canon and HP all sell scanners in the $1000 range, that can scan 225 to 50 images a minute, the WSJ says. No. You don’t have to run out and buy one. ShoeboxReprints.com, in Irvine, California, can scan 1,000 images for $49.95 and send them back to you on a CD. Once the images are digitzed, you can make more copies, store them, or go to mypublisher, an online photo-book company to create a memory book. Remember though, it is still a scanned image, and it won’t make a great poster. There are bigger, flat-bed scanners for that. Ask a professional photographer about it.

Your local photo store may already own such a scanner. Many of these stores miss you — you haven’t been back since you bought your digital camera, because you’re no longer getting your film processed. So, now, your local photo store is buying these scanners to get you back in the store. If your store doesn’t have one, show them this article, and tell them you’d use it if they offered it. Tell them you would rather bring the photos to them, rather than send them off to California. They are priceless, you know.

Get your shoebox. Convert those photos, and make a very nice Mother’s Day or Father’s Day Gift.

So what do you think? Will google run shoe ads or photography ads on this story. Or will I still have those bat (oops, I probably shouldn’t have said that) ads. They always amaze me. And speaking of photographs, have you been here? Or here? Or to Paris Daily Photo?

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“Desert Salt” is a common ingredient in many Spa Exfoliation Products. It softens skin, removes dead skin and eliminates toxins. You might already have it sitting in a green box in your laundry room. It’s simply 20 Mule Team Borax. If it’s not there, try looking in the laundry aisle at the grocery store – it’s the one with horses on it. (I think they’ve removed the horses now.) Salt, and Epsom Salts particularly, are very good for your skin.

Here, I will give you a recipe for a smooth, exfoliating rub that will leave your skin glowing and soft. It’s cheap and very easy to make. Expensive spa treaments are all the rage. You can take a public “mud bath” at the Standard Hotel Spa’s Mud Lounge in Miami, Florida with OTHER people. This recipe will help you avoid all of that public humiliation. (Wait! I do do that. I do that every time I go out to dinner with my kids. I usually wear enough food and spilled juice on me that it qualifies as a mud bath.)

(Before you start, sprinkle some baking soda in the bottom of the tub – it will absorb any of the oil you drop and keep you from slipping.)Recipe for Dry Skin

• 1 cup Epsom Salts
• 1/2 cup 20 Mule Team Borax
• ½ cup Olive Oil always in a glass bottle. This Book explains that the plastic reacts with the oil and creates some nasty toxins.
• 10 drops Essential Oils use the real thing, Not perfume.
• Rub it In, and let the grainy salt crystals polish off the dead skin, so the oil can penetrate through your skin. And yes, the essential oils are like medicine. Yes, you and your bathroom will smell like heaven.



For a list of great smelling essential oil combinations, click here and here (also a bathbomb recipe) , here, here, and here.

Keep the leftover oil and salt mixture in a jar in your refrigerator. Pull it out whenever your heels hurt, you need to feel pampered, or you want to get your skin ready for your swimsuit. And, here is an informative article about the properties of essential oils, and how to use them to clean your house — they’re great disenfectants. Do you want more recipes? Try looking here, The Complete Guide to the Use of Oils in Aromatherapy and here, The Enchanted Bath: Bath Rituals and Recipes.
Do-it-yourself-spa treatments, according to The Wall Street Journal is the $9.7 billion Spa industry’s latest move to attract new customers by lowering costs by putting more of the work in your hands. Mr. Andre Balazs, who Laura Landro of the WSJ interviewed, operates the Standard, and says, “The goal is to make the spa an integral part of life, like the baths were to the Romans or the sauna was to the Finns.”

So tell me, I ‘d love to know. Would you? Could you? In a bath? In a Patio? In Public? With Men?

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Herb Ayers, Member ATFT Board of Directors, contacted me (see comments in previous post), and I found they are offering a free download for those suffering from the Post Traumatic Stress of Tsunami. Very kind of them. This is a good technique that goes beyond temper tantrums. Learn it. And to learn where the happiest children are, see this post.

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This is the post that you will bookmark and show your friends to prove just how crazy I really am. Or it could be the page you bookmark and come back to because it’s so valuable. Either way, I’m really going out on a limb here with this one. This is weird — but hey, IT WORKS, in a matter of minutes. And, I’m nice enough to tell you about it, so you’ve got to love me for that. But if you’re skeptical, keep this in mind while you’re reading this: This cure has basic core components that are actually very practical:
* Zeroing in on the core issue that’s causing the distress.
* Stating the issue out loud — validating.
* Physical touch. (Touching spots that you probably already do touch when you’re stressed.)
* Give attention to a problem, and attention always changes things. A proven property of quantum physics.
We’re just going to learn to organize it all into a neat little symphony that optimizes all the things you’re already doing. That doesn’t sound too weird, now does it? Plus, I do happen to know a thing or two about stress. This technique has been used to help adults recover from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, children who are victims of abuse, fussy babies, and to help a child recover after an ice cream cone falls on the sidewalk.
The best part? This is a very quick cure, so even if you are skeptical, it’s not going to eat up too much of your time if you try it. If you’re skeptical, and still with me, it may interest you to know this: “the prestigious medical journal, Lancet reported that acupuncture may have been used to heal people thousands of years ago.” Also, in her book, Temes, explains that the National Institutes of Health are already studying acupuncture and have “concluded that acupuncture does some good, some of the time, for some people.” And, The American Cancer Society lists acupuncture as a stop-smoking tool.
This cure comes under the category, Energy Psychology. Now, stop moving your mouse toward that back button. Stay with me. Do you really want to be standing in the middle of Macy’s again while they’re screaming, “I hate you”? Some psychotherapists use this method for rapid treatment, others don’t believe in it. No one is sure how tapping works, but some theories say that when a person goes through a traumatic experience, a blockage develops in the energy field. The block creates phobias, distress, or all kind of emotional ailments. By tapping the energy flow on specific acupressure points, the energy begins flowing again. Other theories say it’s electrical activity, while others say it’s our magnetic field that is out of balance that causes the disruption. More research results can be found here, here, and here.
Regardless, you don’t have to understand how tapping works for it to work. You just have to know how to do it.
I learned this technique from several sources. Most notably, from the book, Instant Emotional Healing: Acupressure for the Emotions. This book gives very long, detailed cures (based on research from biofeedback) for a specific range of emotional problems. Each emotion, (post traumatic stress disorder, fear, anxiety, depression, anger, nervousness), has a specific protocol treatment. The book is very detailed, and is specifically designed to help you help yourself without a medical examination.
Then, I found The Tapping Cure: A Revolutionary System for Rapid Relief from Phobias, Anxiety, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and More In this book, Temes gives shorter version of the specific protocols, and makes it easier to use in public situations.
Practitioners of the method are adamant about making sure you can do this method for yourself — you don’t need to go to a therapist, or a doctor. Freedom at Your Fingertips: Get Rapid Physical and Emotional Relief. However, because the method is so simple and fast, every step in the protocol is critical. To get good at this, pick up some of these books, visit these web sites and learn about psychological reversals, eye movement patterns, and how to uncover core blocking beliefs. But these steps are not hard to learn. (Four basic steps can be read here.) But just to get you started, here’s an instant cure for a child in distress:
1) Know the cause of the distress.
2) Depending on the age of the child, stress level, try to hold the child — if not, try to make eye contact.
3) Say something comforting about the stress, and end it with something loving. For example: “Even though your ice cream fell, you’re OK”. Or, “Even though they called you a cheater, I still love you.” Or, “Even though you’re mad about leaving the store, I still love you.”
4) The entire time you’re saying the statement, tap one of these spots (scroll down, it’s there. I know these pictures look scary) or here. The karate chop spot (side of hand, where you would hit if you were making a karate chop) seems to be the most effective, but you can try whatever seems to be working at the moment. Here are some other books to check out at the library, or buy from Amazon: Tapping the Healer Within : Using Thought-Field Therapy to Instantly Conquer Your Fears, Anxieties, and Emotional Distress. And,Energy Tapping. Here’s to a stress-free afternoon. Oh, and by the way, don’t forget to tap yourself — especially right after that temper tantrum. And who knows, maybe it can help this cute one get to sleep. I really like her idea, of giving up multi-tasking. because yes, the simplest answer really is the best, and brings less stress for everyone.

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Even though there is part of the hemisphere out there that is basking in Summer, some of us here are sloshing through gray, dirty, melting snow. It’s enough to make anyone blue. Not me. I found this: “We must think from and not of what we want in our life. The rich man, poor man, beggar man or thief are all experiencing reality from what they have imagined for themselves.” (Cody Horton). All wealth and riches aside, I also found this research: Worrying about math test scores, creates feelings of dread and fear, sapping the brain’s limited amount of working capacity, causing lower test scores. Imagine what it does to our life when we worry about anything. Have you ever tried, when you were afraid, or under a lot of stress, to dare to think, or imagine your way through it with a happy ending? Sometimes that act can be so powerful, we can feel a physical shift in our bodies. Sometimes it takes a lot of effort. We would be wise to teach our children, and ourselves, how to live from this quote by William Wordsworth “Imagination, which in truth, is but another name for absolute power. And clearest insight, amplitude of mind and reason in her most exalted mood.” (Cody does point this out in her book.)

I haven’t been able to see the big picture, I don’t think, of how my boys interact with each other, and what our family will look like as it grows. So much baby care, toddler giggles, and growth has kept every son incased in a specific role: The oldest, the baby, the one who goes to preschool, the ones who are too old for that — they’re starting to shed some of those labels and come into their own as they are. And, I’m starting to see them grow and spread their wings in my imagination, especially, as one gets ready for Middle School. Amazingly, I am not afraid to see this in my mind. This is a nice change in me. It’s no use having all this anxiety about them growing up, as that is what they must do. I do like what I’m seeing. As they grow, I’m getting more time to watch. I like seeing the oldest, freshly showered, and hovering over his homework in his white t-shirt and PJs, making a final check for his teacher. The youngest two running around in circles in their pajamas, afraid that if they stop, they will fall asleep. And the other watching, looking for something to pull his interest and give him an excuse to stay up a little later tonight. They are nice boys, and I know that there is something beautiful shining within them that is growing, and any of the mistakes I have made, or will make, as a parent, can’t put an end to that light. I only have to give them — the light — the space, the acknowledgment it needs.

Still blue? Look at the pretty pictures here. Or, find some foods to change the blues here. Or listen to Two Lights (I don’t know — I melt whenever I hear a good piano player.) Now go, imagine something great.

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Once upon a time, Daniel came down with a fever. Lethargic, no other symptoms. Pediatrician says, just keep him hydrated, this virus is going around, and it usually lasts 5 days. Four days later, I make the call to the pediatrician again — because I’m thinking that by now, I should see that shift. You know the one, where they start to get a little hungry, and start asking for food, and the color starts to fill their cheeks. I’m seeing a paler and paler face. And stranger yet, none of the other boys are showing any of the same symptoms — they’re all healthy as a bird.
The nurse, tells me, that it’s not day 5 yet. Yes I know. But he must be seen, today. She then asked, “What is he doing right now?” Well, he’s trying to play Bingo with me, but he can hardly sit up to do it because he doesn’t have the strength. OK, bring him in.
My husband, the one that did an IronMan, comes home from work to watch the other 3, and I’m enjoying my little one-on-one outing with Daniel, liking the idea, of devoting all my attention to one child, all at once. And then, I start to get a little nervous. The memory of the bat keeps coming back.
This is that story: Six nights before this, I got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, and I heard, felt — something — the floor creak. That was odd. I know our house is old, (1922), but I don’t think I ever remember hearing the ceramic tile creak. But what’s this? Something else? Something fluttering. It is dark, and I feel something fluttering around my legs. I turn on the light — and YES, it’s a bat.
I do scream, pretty loudly, and yes that news report that your kids will never hear the smoke alarm if it goes off in the middle of the night, is true. All 4 slept quietly in their beds while Ironman Dad came running in the see what was the matter.
I have read that even though the door is closed, bats, being the “rodents” that they are, will squeeze their way underneath door jams. And, they can carry rabies. The problem is, Ironman’s contacts are in the bathroom, and his glasses have been missing since we got back from one of our whirlwind trips to Uncle Bud’s Lake, and he is “blind as a bat” without them. So, it’s up to me to take care of the bat.
Now, in Ohio, Bats are a “protected species.” You cannot kill a bat. (They do a lot of good things for us, apparently.) So the plan was to grab it in a towel and set it free outside. But I could not do this. It was all “fluttery” and — I can’t even think about it. The trauma of it all.
So, we move to plan B. I open the door, and give Ironman the exact location of the bat. First, it was in the sink, fluttering around. I close the door, give Ironman the quadrants, and then, he carefully opens the door, throws on the towel — but there is no bat there. It’s flying overhead. We had to do this about 12 times before we got it right. I won’t make you sit through all the gory details, but the most memorable of his locations was when he was hanging off the drawer pull of the cupboard.
IM caught bat, and it was happily set free — outside.
As my mind races back to the incident while I’m waiting in the pediatrican’s office , I make a cell call to IM, (even though the sign said it was a no-no) to ask him to google rabie symptoms. Sure enough, they were the same ones that Daniel was showing. Of course, “once these symptoms appear, it is already too late.” Of course, he doesn’t have bite marks — but that doesn’t always mean anything, the web site said.
So, Dr. Anne arrives, happy and friendly. But how do I tell her? How do I tell her my Son has rabies, and I had a bat in my house one night, and never brought each child in anyway for rabie shots — just to be safe? What kind of Mother am I? So, I just cry instead, and tell her he’s very sick, and yes, we had a bat in our house. Her red medical reference book was a little more detailed than google, and no, he didn’t really have those symptoms. And she checked for bat bites — and there were none (and surprisingly, none from a brother that particular day.) But he had something else, and that remained a mystery. After lots of prodding, and measuring, we learned it was pneunomia. Awfully strange — as he did not have a cold, or a runny nose, or even a cough. He couldn’t breathe, and it was taking all of his strength to do that. Antibiotics did the trick. And he was fine and dandy.
Recipe: They ask for this by name in my house — anytime anyone has a fever. Lemon Barley Water (Scroll down, it’s there under the gorgeous picture of ginger). Hydrates, provides B vitamins and lowers a fever, and all kinds of other good stuff. And if that sick child sleeps a lot, and you happen to find yourself with some extra free time (not me), you might want to stop here. Literary Mama. And when everyone is all better, you might want to celebrate with these, Banana Oatmeal Cookies.

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Did I ever tell you about the time I almost invested $10,000 in my very own Chihuly Vase? After my fourth son was born, and he was still an infant, and my husband was out of town all weekend, and I was DETERMINED (I’m like that) not to let a sweet little baby stand in the way of the cultural activities I planned for my older children. So, I took them — all four boys, ages infant, 2, 5 and 8, to a Children’s Educational Program at the Art Museum. By myself. Our “assignment” was to copy a stained glass piece of art with tissue paper and glue. First, we had to go upstairs to the main museum exhibit area to view the Chihuly Glass sculptures. I carry one in a sling, and try my best to hold the hands of the 2 and 5, while reading the instructions of items that we’re supposed to “observe.” The 2 and 5 year olds start jumping around a little bit — maybe too much — and I realize, that there is an entire collection of Glass Chihuly Vases standing on glass podiums, uncased. Just sitting on top — nothing holding them. One bump, and nothing but shards of glass crystals. I realize, this could be my latest investment.
I then spot a security guard, looking over at us, talking on a radio, and his exact words were, “I’ve got em covered.” Then, I look around, and there are 4 more, hovering around us. One body guard for each one of us. I decide then, maybe it’s time to go back downstairs to the children’s area. We made our stained glass, covered with lots of glue, and went back home where we were safe again.

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I was pleased to find out this morning that I won the “I Am From” contest at Owlhaven. Journey Mama (love that name) won the “I Am” contest, and MiKael’s Mania won the prize for the most comments.
The prize is a book, and I I’d like to donate my prize to my hometown library, which dutifully kept me supplied with Nancy Drew mysteries as a child, in West Liberty, Ohio, where “I Am From.” (I no longer live there.) Home to the Luminaria Run;Marie’s famous chcocolate candies; and yes, there are two of them, The Piatt Castles and truly, the most beautiful caverns (I’ve seen them in Europe too) in the world, the Ohio Caverns.
Thanks to all who voted, and for the pats on the back. (No particular order, and if I’ve left you out, it’s not intentional, it’s just these links are tedious to build!)
Straddling the Line, Donna, Just me, My friend Jen, Pioneer Woman, Wife Mother Maniac, Owlhaven, Dot’s Spot, TheDuck, Foodnut, Keep Listening, My Organic Life, Writing from the Hip, NannyWorld, Blog4brains, Rising Rainbow, Californian Working Mom’s Mess, My Mommy’s Place,
Be Present Be Here, It’s Always a Production, Carmi, Charlotte’s Web, Mommy Chef.
And thanks for the many e-mails that I will not publish!

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Here are the answers to the little game from yesterday’s post, Little Known Code Words to Get Kids to Eat. Christopher, you did very well. Your right answers have this *. The “answers” come from Frank and Ernest.

Georgia pie: is really Peach Pie — and Christopher was right with the “horticulture of Georgia angle” when he guessed Peanut Butter.
Hen Fruit: Egg*
Burn a Snowball: Dip of chocolate ice cream. But Christopher, I like yours better; melt some ice. (Can you imagine working in a diner with someone who had their own version of that one? How do they keep it all straight?!)
Life Preservers: Donuts*
Lighthouse: F&E say a bottle of Ketchup. Christopher guessed a stack of pancakes with with butter on top.
Mike and Ike: OK, Christopher, you are right. It is Licorice flavored theater candies. But, maybe Frank and Ernest was published before that, because they call it salt and pepper shakers.
One from the Alps: A Swiss Cheese Sandwich, but how can you argue with Christopher’s St. Bernard on toast?
Hold the Hail: My favorite. No ice*
Atlanta Special: Coke*
Popeye: Spinach*
Put a Hat On It: Christopher says it’s What bald men do. But in the diner, it’s add ice cream.
Rabbit Food: Lettuce*
Shake One in the hay: Blushing here Christopher — Where babies come from? (No wonder it’s called DeathbyChildren!) No, a strawberry milkshake. How obvious?
Eve with a lid and moo juice: Christopher says, “A painting from the Rennasaince showing Eve blessing a cow. Very controversial.” I like your analysis. But F&E’s is even better: Apple pie and a glass of milk. Clever.
Sneeze: Pepper.
Yum Yum: sugar
Splash out of the garden: Vegetable soup (What happenend to you Christopher?)
Throw it in the mud: Add chocolate syrup.
Wart: Olive
Paint a bow-wow red: Hot Dog with ketchup.
Adam and Eve on a raft, wreck’em: Two scrambled eggs on toast.
Nervous Pudding: Jello, of course.
Raft: You know, Toast!
Burn One, take it through the garden and pin a rose on it. Hamburger with lettuce and tomato.
Balloon Juice: Seltzer

You think this list is good, you should see the pictures in Frank and Ernest. Imagine. All this focus on the words and food, and nobody once says, “Hasn’t ANYBODY noticed that this diner is being run by an Elephant and a Bear?” Don’t you think that’s kind of weird? Honestly, great illustrations.

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I WON! I made it to the top 3 in the I Am From Writing contest. Now, your vote decides the winner. There are 2 categories, “I Am From” and “I Am”.
CLICK HERE TO VOTE. You can read all of the beautiful entries there, and you have until Friday to vote. Now, let’s keep this in perspective. I have already won in my heart — just
writing it was a privilege, and the icing on the cake was when my Dad found
it on my web page, all on his own, and loved it.

Here’s mine again:
I am from formica counter