Christopher Columbus and I in 2008

I've been mentally working on a list of favorites discoveries of mine last year. Mind you, me discovering something is something like saying Christopher Columbus found America when we all know it was beautiful land already inhabited with Native Americans long before his arrival.

These are things which I've stumbled across this year which have mattered to me.

1. Toothtunes- musical toothbrushes which sing a song only while a child has the brush remains in motion for 2 minutes. Why is this so important? My children simply didn't brush well enough and long enough before. This tool lets 'em know to keep at it longer than the obligatory 20 second swoosh. Even my teenagers think it's funny enough to use them.

2. The Hawk and the Dove- I've owned this trilogy a very long time, but I never quite made it through the first few chapters. I finally buckled down to read it through, and it is hands down the best book I've ever read. The insight into the woundedness of people and their necessary yet unlikely path to healing changed the way I think about human behavior.

3. Coldplay- Okay, they've been around a long while, but I just didn't know how much I liked them till Viva La Vida. Favorite song on that album is Death and All His Friends. "No, I don't want to battle from beginning to end. I don't want to cycle and recycle revenge. I don't want to follow death and all his friends."

4. Building the Bond of Attachment by Daniel Hughes opened my eyes to a new way to be with and guide hurt and exasperating child. The book is a fictitious case study on attachment disorder.

5. Watching my oldest son succeed and delight in the school setting.

6. My new comfort bike and the trips I've made with my sons. I especially remember the time I was fiddling with the gears on the first and very uncomfortable bike I started out with last summer. Surreptitiously, I ran smack dab into the back of Peace's bike which sent us both flying head over heel into the grass. We laughed till we cried.

7. Learning strategies how to not to argue and be a strong parent in unity with my husband. Did I ever post about WALTER? I still fail terribly, but at least I understand new ways to deal.

8. Reading The Secret Garden with my daughter. She doesn't mind my fake English accent one bit.

9. Kicking back with the best people on the planet for birthdays and sundry get- togethers.

10. Playing Clue and Earthopoloy/Monopoly with my family.

11. Making fried green tomatoes from my very own garden nearly every single day of the summer.

12. Finding over-the-top red flowered half reading glasses. Now I can read fine print and laugh at myself at the same time.

13. Watching my mother make a full recovery from brain surgery. That's something of a miracle to behold.



I'll stop here though there are many more, but I'll have to pay attention to my children some time today. Shoot, maybe we'll even homeschool a bit.