madameblogalot

We spent this past Monday at a special high school day put on by Texas Christian University. It was a good day and the program was incredible. They have done this for a while and are doing it well and it shows. The kids (my son and his friend) left with a great feeling about TCU and thought it might be an option for them.

The morning started with a free breakfast and trivia game. Then we broke into our groups for campus tours. After that we went to sessions that talk about different aspects of college/TCU life. Then we were fed lunch. Afterward, we toured two dorms. Then the kids chose their prospective majors and toured that department. Last, we were given refreshements before heading out.

The guys wanted to catch the end of basketball practice before heading out. Then we stopped at the bookstore for fan gear, got gas, a hamburger and headed home.

The Monday at TCU is a great program, even if your kid doesn’t know where s/he wants to go to school. It’s a great way to springboard some thought into what area to move in the college search. It is all free, except for any travel expenses you incur. (And any fan gear you buy.) We were given lots of little freebies and even got umbrellas since we spent the day walking in the rain!

There are four more Mondays at TCU if you are interested:

2009 Dates December 7
2010 Dates January 25 ■ March 1 ■ April 26

The holidays are just around the corner. I have already made some purchases but still have a bit more to do. And I love to comparison shop. I have found places online that let you bring up items and will compare to find the best prices available. That is so much better than going store to store or even trying to get through on the phone. One stop shopping, or even one stop comparison, makes everything go much more smoothly during the holidays. And if I can find everything I need in one stop, from Barbies, to NBA comforters, bean bags, robotic vacuums, and even an Oilless turkey fryer, it makes my life easier!

Some of these things are always on Christmas lists. My son would go for the NBA comforter. Girls love Barbie and Bean bag s. My daughter still has her bean bag. She uses it every time we watch TV. I guess because four on the couch is kind of cramped and she loves her own little space! And hey, a robot that vacuums for me…priceless!

A couple of weeks ago, we had some fruit salad left after dinner. After sitting in the fridge for a day or two, it was kind of mushy and I knew no one would eat it. I did not want to throw it out. So I put it in the freezer to add to a smoothie.

This afternoon was the perfect time to give it a try. Using some juice, half a frozen banana and the leftover fruit salad, I had a wonderful afternoon snack-fruit salad smoothie!

ISS means in-school suspension. When I was in school, it was just called “The Hole”. What was it that my darling daughter did to get threatened with in-school suspension (never mind that she’s homeschooled and this would not have happened anyway)?

I let her attend a local football game last night. She was going to meet a friend and sit with her through the game. My son was going to arrive later and meet his sister and bring her home. Luckily I waited in the parking lot to make sure my daughter met up with her friend. She texted to tell me that they would not let her sit on that side of the stadium (I still don’t know why, I guess because she was wearing a shirt for the other team?!) and told her that if she did go sit on that side, she would be given in-school suspension!! WHAT???!!! A kid will get ISS for sitting on the “wrong side of the stadium”? I cannot even believe that!

I was very angry by all that but we got it worked out with help from a nice gate attendant who told the other attendant to let my daughter in on that side. My son said it was lucky he was not there. He says he would have lit into anyone, the teacher, the attendant, the cop and he would have ended up with ISS! All for wanting to sit with a friend from a different school! What a shame!

My daughter and I are going on a field trip with my parents and my nephews. And I am really looking forward to it! We are going to the State Fair in Dallas and then to see Mary Poppins! It should be a day filled with fun, sweets (the kids are already planning all they want to eat!), and an evening of fun and song. I think I am ready for a little time away doing something fun!

When I first heard about the free night of theater tickets I was really excited. I tried to get reservations right then. However the reservations were not being released yet. I thought I read they were not going to be released until Oct. 5, today. Even though I was busy today, I wanted to be sure and get online and try to reserve some tickets. By the time I got to the site tonight, they were all sold out except for one childrens’ show to which we actually already have tickets! Wow! No free night of theater for us!

My reading is not at a very high level these days, but at least I got some done this past month!

The Giver: I have not read this book before. It is a very compelling young adult fiction book. My daughter is required to read it this year. It is disturbing in some ways and very thought provoking. I have to say that it was a HIT with me.

The Great Gatsby: This is another book I had not read before. I think I could have gone on without reading it. I only read it because I think my son will be required to read it this year. I have to say that I hated this book. Perhaps maybe only because I was reading it as a “preview” for my son. I just think this book is inappropriate for high schoolers. I can see that folks would like it and perhaps learn from its theme and final conclusions. But I feel like high school is too early for this one. So for this reading of this “great American novel” I have to say it was a MISS for me.

Gathering Blue: This is another installment by Lois Lowry. For me, I guess it was mostly a HIT, though there were a couple of MISS aspects in the book. Of course, for me, I don’t like crude language in a story, particularly one for kids-including teens. However, that was not the biggest drawback. What was the worst part for me I would likely call an editing error, twice! Yes, twice in the story, a certain character was called by another character’s name!! That is disappointing. However, overall, I guess the story itself was not bad.

Messenger is the last book in the loose trilogy by Lois Lowry. This book was a MISS for me. I did not enjoy the story as much. Also, something that frustrates me is when an author writes a book but forgets the details of previous stories. This happened a couple of times in Messenger. When referring back to the previous story, some of the things told in this book were not what happened in the previous story. I know that I am reading them only a few days apart and it took the author years to write, but why not go back and read the first story you reference to make sure the details fit?!

East of Eden: I did not technically read this book. I started it and read the first few chapters. I won’t finish this one. It was recommended to my husband by one of the teens at church. I told him I’d read it for him. But, as with other Steinbeck novels, I started and then decided I did not want to waste my time reading through it. I don’t like it and since my son won’t be reading it, at least not this year, I decided I didn’t have to waste my time! Without being given a fair chance, I am rating it as a MISS for me.