Halloween

We just carved our pumpkin, yes I know a little late, but my son didn't care. He told me how he is going to teach his kids to carve pumpkins when he is a dad. Then, he really wanted to dig into all the candy that I was pouring in the bowl to hand out.  I told him he had to wait until he gets his own. (I don't quite understand why we make our kids walk around in the cold spooky night when we have a huge bowlful, at home.) But I know my son and I will have fun walking around in the cold together.

Kathy    

 p.s. I just wanted to say how proud I am of all my students.   Not all of them passed their tests, but I was very proud of the way everyone skated!

Testing Day

Today is testing day for many of my skaters.  Passing tests is the only way a skater moves to a new level.  It's nerve racking.  Three judges sit at the side of the rink and zero in on every mistake like a hungry eagle hunting mice.  If the skater performs the particular set of skills well, they receive a "Pass".  If not, the dreaded "Retry".  If I have done my job correctly, all the skater has to do is stay calm, hopefully the skating just flows.  Unfortunately, this is not an easy task.  Some skaters attach so much to passing the test that they "lose their legs" out on the ice.  They wobble, they forget their patterns, ......they fall.  But skating is all about handling pressure.  As their coach all I ask is that they do their best and get back up if they fall.  There is always another test.
Good Luck to all my students!

Kathy              

It's a Stretch

In order to effectively do my job, I have to demonstrate certain techniques on the ice. Because I'm quickly approaching the big 40, I have to make sure I stretch regularly to prevent injury. When I was younger, there were many times in the day that I set aside for stretching.  Now, it is much more difficult.  I managed, however, to find the perfect time.  My husband thinks I'm totally crazy (which I probably am), but I do it while I'm brushing my teeth.  I have one of those electric toothbrushes that beeps when you're supposed to switch sides.  I hate just standing there waiting, so while the toothbrush scrubs my molars, I put one leg up on the sink and stretch.  When I hear the beep, it's time to switch sides.
It only adds up to 2 minutes of stretching, but once I have started it's hard to stop.  Usually, I continue for another 10 minutes, then I'm relaxed and ready to go to sleep.  I only wish I could read my book at the same time.  Oh well.

Kathy

Sick Day

My son, who's 6, is home sick today with a fever and a cough.  I never like it when my kids are sick, but I have to admit I like it when they are home.  I wanted to make him a light breakfast that would help his throat feel better.  He asked for miso soup, ginger tea, and Jello.  Luckily, I had all the ingredients on hand because my wonderful mother-in-law keeps my pantry stocked with the staples of Japanese cuisine.
After breakfast, I told him he should lay down and rest.  He wanted to put in a movie.  I didn't want it to distract my daughters from their schooling (I homeschool them).  He decided to watch a production of the Metropolitan Opera  performing Mozart's Magic Flute. He likes the dragon in it. So while I'm writing and the girls are studying, he is laying on the couch listening to the Queen of the Night's transcendental arias.

Kathy
          

Going Off to College

Last summer my 13 year old daughter had the exciting opportunity to take classes at Northwestern University.  She had never been on her own before.  Though she is a responsible kid, I was nervous to think that she would be 5 hours away from us for 3 weeks! I was going to miss her terribly. She was still so young, at least in my mind. She and my husband, however had confidence that she would be fine.
She filled up the van with more than 3 weeks worth of clothing.  We stuffed ourselves in and drove her from Ohio to the Chicago area.  As we approached the University, her stomach began to tighten into knots.  We  arrived at the dorm where she would be staying.  We had to practically pull her to the different check-in lines. It was like her brain had shut down as she waited for us to figure things out for her.  Finally, my husband decided that if she was going to make this work, she had to start being independent now.  So we sat on a bench in the lobby and we told her to go figure things out.  She kind of wandered around, shyly asking a few people questions.  She came back and reported half an answer.  My husband gave her his quizzical look meaning, "What, are you sure that makes sense?"  She would return to the line to ask a follow up question.  Eventually, we met her roommate and unpacked all her things.  It was now time to leave.  I told myself that I couldn't cry because it would make her upset.  She and I were both fine until my son gave her a good bye hug and refused to let go. He looked like a monkey clinging to his tree for dear life.
"We can't leave her!" He said.  Now three of us were crying.  We pried his fingers from her and got back into the van for a long quiet ride back to Ohio.
3 weeks without my first child did not fly by, but soon we were all happily climbing back in the van to pick her up.  When we arrived back on campus, we were supposed to wait for her at the dorm. But we wanted to see her as soon as possible, so we walked to her class building and waited outside.  When she came out of class, my son was the first to run up and jump into her arms.  Back at her room, we packed up all her things.  This time, she quickly and efficiently found out exactly how to check out and return her keys.  She had gained a new confidence in herself.  It was great to see.

I'm definitely not looking forward to the day she goes off to college for 4 years, but I can't wait to see what she becomes when she is finished.

Kathy      
        

Something Good

I have a friend at work who is trying to improve his diet. He knows that I'm kind of a health food nut, so he asked me if I had any suggestions.  He already knew that he should be eating mostly fruits and veggies, but it was hard for him to come up with interesting ways to eat them.
I love yogurt and I'm a firm believer that ever since I started ingesting massive quantities, I've been a lot healthier.  I suggested he add more yogurt to his meals, but I wasn't convinced that he would.  I decided to bring him a sample dish to show him how yummy yogurt could be.  I brought  in a large plastic container of my Yogurt Apple Salad, a spoon, and a bowl.  He gobbled up his bowlful and said he would rather have that than dessert.  Yeah! I left him the rest of the container. I was thrilled that he enjoyed it. I know that my salad alone won't make the world healthier place, but I was happy to have given him a healthy and tasty option.  The next day I came in to work and he had finished the last spoonfuls, told everyone else about it, and asked for the recipe!
So here it is:

Kathy's Yogurt Apple Salad

1-2 apples chopped (peeling is optional, I keep the peel on because it's good for ya!)
1 stick celery chopped
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup chopped grapes
About 2 cups French Vanilla yogurt (I use Stonyfield Farms whole milk variety)
chopped pecans-optional
About 1 T of honey or to taste

Simply mix the apples, grapes, and nuts(if using) in a bowl.  Mix in the yogurt to thoroughly cover all the ingredients.  Add the cinnamon and honey.  Mix and serve and enjoy!  Store refrigerated.

Kathy

Piano Trouble

My son has grown up with music.  My girls have played the piano and violin since before he was born. It was only natural that he would want to start playing himself instead of merely watching their lessons.  This year, as he turned 6, he decided he wanted to try piano.  The first few trial lessons went very well.  He seemed to catch on quickly and the teacher suggested he have his own 1/2 hour lesson.  This last week however, we hit a major bump in the musical road.

 He was told by his teacher that he needed to practice his 4 songs 6 times every day.  We sat down to practice one night and he asked me how many total songs that meant.  When I told him 24, I thought he was going to run out of the room.  He did however sit on the bench and begin to play, but not the songs he was supposed to practice.  He wanted to make up his own songs.  I sat behind him and let him play his own composition until I felt he might not stop on his own. We turned to his song and we started to review the notes. (I'm far from a musician myself but I know enough of the basics to guide him.)  He read the first three notes keeping the time as he spoke.  The fourth note he said incorrectly and he knew it before I even said anything, so he started over. This time he made it to the 6th note, so he started over.  Now he reached the end of the first line.... and he started over.  By this time his short fuse was about to ignite and he hadn't even played the song yet.  He felt he had to be perfect and if he wasn't he had to start over. I told him he should keep going but he refused. After about 20 minutes of this, I was able to get him to begin playing.  Unfortunately, we went through the same routine.  I quickly decided that our practice session of 24 songs was going to have to be trimmed down to maybe 1.  

I finally told him that as soon as he made it through the whole song (which was only 2 lines), we could get ready for bed.  Despite how much he wanted to be done practicing, he continued to start over at the slightest mistake in note or tempo. I wasn't even pointing out the errors, he did it all himself and I just sat there behind him.  I honestly had no idea what to do.  But I felt that if I let him give up and go to bed it would set a bad precedent.  So we continued to sit at the piano, both of us now exhausted.

After about an hour of this he finally finished the whole song and it was almost perfect, he made one tiny error on the last note.  But I quickly said,"Okay you're done. Great job!"  He sat on my lap on the couch and we listened to my daughter play Beethoven's Fur Elise. We were both so glad to be finished.  I asked him if we could finish tomorrow's practice a little bit quicker.  He smiled a knowing smile and said, "Mom, I love you."

Kathy