Where your treasure is, there your heart shall be.

I've been thinking about this verse often lately. Recently many opportunities have come before me to give of my time, talent or treasure. I like and believe in may of the causes, but I cannot give to all of them. Some I may have given to last year, but for many reasons, I will not this. Where is my heart in my giving?

Last year I made a contribution to my local Public Radio Station. I listened often, so it seemed worth it. In turn I got a "free" subscription to Newsweek. In the past year, I have found the same station to offend me more and more, mostly regarding their portrayal of Christians and Pro-Life people. Newsweek is outright anti-Catholic and 100% pro-choice. I cannot give my treasure there, but a place like sqpn needs funding, and can do far more good,and so my heart turns to where the truth is.

I volunteer with a a large breastfeeding organization. This group is not organized and lately has lost its focus. I'm saddened by what I see, and the mothers I work with in my affluent community frequently are too quick to quit nursing for a trip, or to be able to spend more time working out. Both can be important, but, it seems so selfish to me. I'm judgemental, I know. Where is my heart? Again, My treasure needs to move toward the greater need. I now am able to shift my focus to teaching Breastfeeding to women in Crisis pregnancies. These women need help, they need someone to say that they can do it, they need someone to believe in them. They will most likely be working and away from baby, but, they will have that quiet moment when they get home that they can be the sole provider for their baby, and my hope it that will empower them.My heart is in this work, with the support of my organization.

It can be anything really, but my Heart and Treasure need to be united. If all I do is for Glory of God, it is a waste if my heart is not in it. It wastes my money, my usefulness and my time. I guess I have flipped the verse, where my heart is, there my treasure is, but,my real treasure is in Heaven, and that is where my heart longs for, so if my treasure in this world and my heart do not match up, how can I unite them for heaven?

Me Know Music

What exactly happens to the knowledge that once dwelled in our brains daily after a few years of non-use? This is the great mystery I need to solve. Twice this week I have been asked to define a music theory term, and the answer was pathetic. I used to be able to spout off this kind of stuff. Where did the knowledge go? 

I've heard theories, the best was that the knowledge that filled a brain pre-children goes out with the milk. So after 11 years of nursing kids, my brain should be pretty empty. That would explain the fact that I now respond to simple questions like a cave-woman. 

The sad thing is that this very useful knowledge has been replaced by other information, like the names of every Star Wars guy that litters my living room floor. Or even better, how to make a paper water bomb. How could this info be more important than the definition of fugue? 

At this point all the Ginkgo in the world cannot help, I guess it is time to just give in. So if you ask me an intelligent question, and I look glazed over, use small words and hand gesture, and maybe I can come up with a two word answer.

Video Game Review- Lego Games Part 1

By request, I'm going to tackle all three Lego games. These are some of my favorite games in all honesty, we play them all the time. Lego Star Wars was the first release, and is the best of the three. Lego Indiana Jones is good, but if you have seen the Indiana Jones movies is much better and Lego Batman is the most recent of the three and the one I like the least.

First, Lego Star Wars. I've played this on three systems, Wii, X Box 360 and PSP. I've seen the DS version played by my nephew. The best part of the game is the sheer length of time it takes to play through the entire thing. It lasts weeks and weeks, if you are playing it regularly, but not constantly. It is a cooperative 2 player, which I always love, and a very enjoyable one player. 

I was asked particularly about the rating of E-10 for comic mischief. Let me explain that, Legos die. You blast Lego Storm Troopers and other Lego "bad guys" (and Jar Jar). That is the reason for the rating. That said, if your children have seen the Star Wars movies, they have been exposed to more violence. The violence is a bit funny, in all honesty, because the characters break like Legos break, into pieces. There is no blood or guts and the violence is confined to fighting. Use your judgement in letting younger kids play this, the rating is a suggestion. Most families I know have let this game be played my younger children (6+, usually).

The actual game is really fun. You journey through all 6 of the Star Wars films, which are broken up into 6 sections. First you play through in Story mode, and have to play each film in order, but once you have completed an episode in Story mode, it is open for Free play. There is a nice combination of  "ship" levels and character levels.  The game can get complicated at times, but it is easy to play once you get the hang of the buttons.

As for how it plays on each system, PSP and X Box play very similarly, you mash buttons. One the Wii you have the option of swinging the wiimote or button mashing, depending on how you want to play. DS, lots of tapping, loud tapping. Other than play, the key difference between the systems is that on X Box 360 you can earn achievements. They are pretty funny too, there is one for killing Jar Jar 20 times. Needless to say, it did not take long to earn that one. 

Overall, Lego Star Wars is a nice family friendly game. I enjoy playing it with my 7 year old  son, it is easy enough for him and entertaining enough for me.  As for the rating, each parent knows their child and what they can handle. Just another note, it is easy enough to find the Star Wars games (there are technically 3, even though the complete saga is 1 and 2 put together on one disk) used. That helps save a bit of money.

Sadness and Joy

This weekend a woman who had a great deal to do with who I am now died. I had not seen her for years, but because of her work with youth, I met my husband, learned practical cooking tips, and mot importantly, grew in my love of Christ.

Jean was a mother, not just to her children, but to foster children, and to the many many teens and young adults that came into her home over the years. She cared for each and every one of us, I truly believe, even when, like a good mother, she was correcting us. In remembering her, I recalled first the times she was teaching, explaining the various things we needed as we prepared for a retreat. Sometimes we would have other ideas, and Jean would explain in a stern yet loving way, why it would not work. I remember being annoyed at the time, but as usual, Jean was right. She new more than a 16 year old, imagine that!

Jean died cooking for her husband, who also helped many many young people grow closer to Christ. The fondest memories I have of both of them are the many in which they guided us to take the reigns, so to speak. They were forming Leaders, not just Christians, but Christians who would look beyond themselves to serve and then guide.

I was at Mass when I was told Jean died last night while cooking dinner. I was so saddened, but another friend reminded me, that think of Jean's encounter with God, think of all the people she led to Christ, to faithful marriages, to serve. I truly believe that God will look at her and say"Well done my good and faithful servant"

Active life Out Door Challenge for Wii

This is the game that promoted me to want to review games here! My husband saved us from the cabin fever that was destined to do us in by bringing Active Life home this bitter cold week.

I really really like this game. I was skeptical, another extra(the mat) is the last thing I wanted in the house, but as I said, super cold days were turning us into couch potatoes. We've only had Active life for a few days, but a few simple things one me over. First of all, the game is impossible to play from the couch, you run, jump and shake your way though the game. Virtual Jump Rope sounds easy, but as a woman who has now virtually fallen on her nose, it is even harder than the real thing! There are daily fitness modes, too, not unlike Wii fit, but far more fun. 

The second thing that has impressed me is that the hyper 4 year old of the house can play. There are very few games he can join in on, even Mario Cart Wii is a huge challenge for him, and he never wins. In Active Life, he can run and jump and best of all for the little guy, win. I have also seen his behavior improve in the last few days since he has had an outlet for his energy. 

The third impressive point is what I am currently witnessing, co-op play. Two kids, or mom and a kid, can play at the same time, with the option of playing as a cooperative team. They are not just playing at the same time, or against each other, but they have to work together to succeed in the team mode. 

The downside of Active life is the mat, it is big and if you have many accessories, like we do, it is one more thing to store. Also, some of the games are a bit hard and take a while to learn, but there are very good instructions.  Like I said, we have only had this for a few days, but from what I have seen, it seems worth the $60 it costs, at least in weather where we are not leaving the house and need to get energy out. It is less expensive than taking the kids to the movies, and even there they'd be sitting around.

Video Games-New feature

My Husband works in the Video game industry and for several years it was our little secret. After all, Homeschooler don't play video games, right? the few people who knew where he worked reminded me how he was contributing to the demise of morals and corrupting youth. Nice, huh. We quietly brought several game systems to our home, and enjoyed them, secretly. When other homeschoolers came over, my kids were not allowed to play games with them, as their parents did not allow them to play. Slowly word got out that we were the "video game" family. Shame on us.

I never felt like we were being corrupted, we carefully chose what games came into the house, and we set rules and timers for usage. We played Wii together, and interacted the entire time, as a family, not as individuals. It seemed to me that there were worse ways we could spend time together.

Attitudes have changed, most of our friends have gotten a Wii, and we weekly get calls or emails for game recommendations. My husband has access to  most every new game on the market for us to try, so we can give opinions of almost everything. We try to look at each game as parents, what will be good for kids of various ages, and the parents who have to watch them. That said, I am going to start reviewing video games here. I think there is a need for families to have a place to go to see if games are appropriate for kids and if they are truly family games. I'll take requests for game reviews, at times I will use my husband's opinion and not actual game play for info. 

Video games are not the evil that may have made them out to be, like everything in life, in moderation and with selection, they can be a good way to learn.

In response to my last post

It's like this was written for me..

In the Bleak Mid-winter

I honestly have to say, I hate January. All of the excitement of Christmas comes to an end, the weather is dismal and the days are cold and grey. I just feel tired the whole month, like the life is being sucked out of me. Every task that requires me to leave the house is faces with the dread of scraping the car, warming the car, driving in the snow, being stuck in traffic, not to mention the bundling the kids and listening to them whine about how cold it is. I know it is cold, and I want to whine, too!

Even the house loses its brightness, the recovery from the Christmas decorating seems to take forever, nothing seems to be in the right place. There are no sweet smells of cinnamon, just soup and plain warm things. While December is filled with the sound of Christmas music, January is filled with the sound of batteries dying in Christmas toys.

I look at my poor little aloe, shivering on my window ledge, and like the plant long for the warmth of the sun on me, I long for the sweet smell of grass and the shrill sound of frogs in the air. I long for the days that seems to go on forever, and the nights that make you want to never sleep again, for fear you will miss a moment.

Those days are still long off in Chicago. For now, all I can do is escape into a book, or try to make everyone think it is warm with the sweet taste of tropical fruits. It is a good effort, but not the same. Everyone is still grumpy and morose. The darkness still looms at the door and very little can keep it at bay.

Even the prayers of winter seems less joyful, we are in the growing time, the season to learn, but long before any growth can take place, the ground has to be prepared. The snow has to melt. The bitter cold sometimes mirrors the bitterness of our hearts. The ecstasy of Christmas leaves us behind as we trudge back into the routine of our daily work, and forget the small babe in the manger, for he is much harder to love when he is dirty and tired from his time with the fishermen. His work is our work, and is not a work of gratification, but a work of great love. In the cold, in the grey, will we be able to fish? Will we be able to shine, even in the darkness of winter, when we feel the darkness ourselves.

Dressing the pre-teen

This is my dilemma of the week. My 10 year old is 5'4" and therefore cannot wear kid's clothes. She loves skirts. But, have you seen the skirts this season??? My husband refers to them as glorified belts. Thankfully my daughter isn't fond of them, but we have not been able to find her skirts she likes. This is the problem, she wants to look modern and a bit trendy, but not cheap, she wants to be modest, but not Amish. Where is the happy medium, and where can I buy it! I've tried the thrift shops, but the ones by my home are gross. I've shopped and shopped, and only come home with one skirt. 

Pants are not much better. She likes jeans, but again, this year, they are not right. The tight look is in, and she hates tight. Again, she wants to look young but wants to dress modestly. Ugh, why is it so hard to find clothes that are cute, modern and modest?

What to do with a wild four year old?

Lately my dear sweet youngest has become a royal pain in the neck. We are talking beyond the normal antics of a four year old boy. I have another son, and I've seen nonsense before, this is far beyond that. My husband is one of seven, four of which were boys, and even he is done with the insanity. 

So far the suggestion I've received from well meaning people include: 

• Drug him, thanks but no thanks, that doesn't seem like a real solution to me.
• Spank him, again, not an option, we have on occasion tired to spank, and the darn kid laughs, so no need keep that up.
• Take his toys away, well, good idea, but we already did, he can play with anything, not just toys.
• Run him more, great idea, but we have no yard and it's like 20 degrees out.
• Stop giving him sugar, already did that, but he keeps finding all of my hiding spots, and has resorted to my sugar dish.

So far the only advice that seems to have any effect is the advice from my confessor, give up on natural means and go for the supernatural, beg his angel, St. Monica, and anyone else in heaven who will listen. Done. No great results yet, but at least there is hope. 

Pray for me, that I do not resort to my parent's childhood threat to me, and sell him to the gypsies. The joy of Polish parents.