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Despite France having lots of talent and potential, firms are apparently lagging behind when it comes to practical innovation. French company cultures are often ill-suited to innovation and the support tools available are not easy to use.
In France firms are increasingly starting to embrace innovation, but it is only rarely a major area in its own right at the company. A study* carried out by the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) reveals that although "62% of company employees in the private sector have been impacted in the last five years by one or more digitally-oriented innovations", innovation is very rarely a major component of business strategy. Management still tends to think of innovation in terms of 'technological disruption' that might turn a company's working practices upside down to no good effect. Many employers still equate innovation with risk, viewing it as something difficult to control rather than as a real opportunity to take the business forward. Obtaining the finance for an innovation project can also prove a hard slog. Some 36% of those who responded to the survey had wanted to obtain funding but said that getting the necessary paperwork together was a complicated task, while 31% said it was hard to find the right person to talk to about their idea. Nevertheless, despite these sorts of obstacles, the survey revealed a real demand from employees: ″76% of all working people polled hoped that their firm would encourage them to be more innovative on a daily basis.″ Innovation certainly carries some risk, and failure is always a possibility, but you have to put things in context and see it as a learning experience. It is just as important to embark on innovation as to succeed, the Paris Chamber of Commerce report suggests, underlining: "Some 60% of private sector employees believe that innovation is vital to job creation.″
Getting competitiveness hubs to work better
Close to half of all small or medium-sized businesses in France have not taken any innovative steps in the last two years. There has been progress recently in government policy, but the emphasis is largely – too much so – on high-tech while "80% [of innovations] are in the social, organisational, commercial, marketing or financial fields, the report points out. In fact the Paris region has huge potential for innovation. The Île-de-France (Greater Paris) region has a number of 'competitiveness hubs' which can make the human, financial, technology and infrastructure resources available to firms that want to break new ground. Now the CCI is promoting the 'Grand Paris' (Greater Paris) project to create a ″network of eco-systems fostering innovation″ which will be able to meet firms' needs. Perhaps what is needed is a push from the Greater Paris authorities to drive innovation projects, in particular by improving relations between the different hubs and encouraging them to work together in partnership: ″40% of the firms in Île-de-France which have abandoned their innovation projects in the last two years have done so because of a lack of partners″, says the report, suggesting that support mechanisms are needed so that those with innovation expertise can find a market for their skills. Competition hubs provide vital support for developing companies but ″only one in four of the projects being developed at one of the hubs actually results in concrete innovation″. Moreover, in the Greater Paris region the hubs are in touch with very few of the 800,000 businesses established there. ″Only 14% of the companies in Île-de-France that have embarked on an innovation drive during the last two years are in regular contact with a competitiveness hub.″
Looking for information, reorganising ... companies testing the water
Sifting through the fifty or so interviews conducted for the report reveals that many of the respondents have been making some effort to inject a dose of innovation into the way their company works. Many French managers and staff are becoming more open to what is happening in the wider world, for instance going on 'Learning Expeditions'. And French businesses are now making much greater efforts to look for information – searching for market data, following technology tracking sites, reading surveys, etc. And aside from the search for information, companies are also changing their recruitment strategies: it is now creative people rather than qualified technology buffs who are in demand. Company teams are being reorganised and many firms now have a unit dedicated exclusively to innovation development. However, the CCI stresses that the involvement of top management – which alone has the power to push innovation projects all the way – is vital. Setting aside time for company staff to think about digital strategies is another step that many companies have taken. In addition, they feel they should adjust their working methods so as to foster innovation by setting up working groups and taking a different approach to managing large projects. All these different measures are targeted on the same goal – coming up with new products, new business models, new sales approaches and winning new markets. The challenge of innovation is certainly one that France will have to pick up if the country is to improve its competitiveness on the world scene.
*The report is based on some 50 interviews with company bosses, a statistical survey carried out among 6,000 firms, and conversations with public sector experts.


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Date(s) - August 1, 2018
10:00 am - 11:00 am
Highfield Hall and Gardens
Come alone or bring a group to a docent-led tour of this outstanding collection from last fall's 61st CWAJ print show in Japan. Highfield is the exclusive U.S. venue for this exhibition of established and emerging Japanese print makers. More than 50 artworks encompass diverse techniques from traditional woodblock, intaglio, lithography, etching, aquatint, and silkscreen. Reservations appreciated for groups of 5 or more.

subset: commoncrawl


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|Financial Engines to Present at the Needham Emerging Technology Conference
|View printer-friendly version
|<< Back
Investors and interested parties can access this live presentation by visiting the Company's investor relations website at http://ir.financialengines.com.
For more information, please visit www.financialengines.com.
All advisory services provided by
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170510005206/en/
Financial Engines


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Strong and Purposeful: Women Wage Peace
Exactly a year ago I visited the tent of Women Wage Peace in front of the Prime Minister's residence.The Movement organized a communal fast that lasted for 50 days to commemorate the last war, and to protest against the possibility of a future one. The women took turns fasting for 50 days–the number of days of Operation Protective Edge.
Unfortunately in the year that followed, we haven't seen any progress toward peace. Here are some of my impressions from last year.
July 27th 2015: Yesterday on 9th of Av, in the tent of Women Wage Peace, there were more fasting women than usual, as women fasted to commemorate ancient and recent national tragedies.
Some calamities are inevitable, but the last war, known by the euphemistic name Operation Protective Edge, was not one of those tragedies. Few days after the beginning of the war in July 2014, in the Israeli Arab town of Tira, more than thousand people gathered at the center of town taking part in the demonstration: "Jews and Arabs refuse to be enemies." They were speeches pleading that it was still not too late to stop the war, many people carried signs in Hebrew and in Arabic. One woman stood next to the stage holding a big sign in Hebrew "Jewish and Arab women refuse to be enemies."
The activists of Women Wage Peace want to make sure that this time, someone will actually see the signs, listen to reason and take action.
They have been camping at a tent outside the home of the Prime Minister since July 9th, 2015, exactly a year after the beginning of Operation Protective Edge. On that day, they also started a 50 day fast. The women of Women Wage Peace are calling on the government to return to negotiations with the Palestinians.
In my two visits to Jerusalem to sit in the tent, it was filled with action. In spite of the grim reasons for the protest, the energy and hopeful atmosphere were uplifting. Some women wore a blue sign of "fasting," and other women encouraged passers-by to come and sit in the tent. Every so often, there were spontaneous discussions and short talks.
On my first visit, a young Haredi man took the stand and preached to the group trying to convince them that peace was neither attainable nor necessary. The hospitable women listened patiently, perhaps even too patiently, while he kept talking.
Once, we actually got a glimpse of our Prime Minister. We saw his convoy passing by, operating the sirens. But, as expected, he didn't stop to talk to the women in the tent.
Several years ago Sarah Netanyahu offered pizza to demonstrators outside her home. Although pizza won't work, as the women of Women Wage Peace are fasting, they surely would welcome a friendly gesture. I have to wonder, doesn't Sarah Netanyahu, a mother and an educator, want peace?
Few days after publishing this post, Sarah Netanyahu met four representatives of the Movement. From reading about the meeting in several newspapers, I concluded that it did not go well. Here are my thoughts from that time, I believe that they are still relevant
August 17th, 2015: Following their meeting with Sara Netanyahu, the four leaders of Women Wage Peace were labeled "left wing activists" in two different newspapers. This is another example in which, despite the effort we put into our words and our actions, we have very little control over the way other people perceive us.
Since its inception in 2014, shortly after the end of Operation Protective Edge, Women Wage Peace has insisted that it did not identify with any political party. It started as a grassroots movement which aimed to gather under its umbrella as many women as possible, and it has purposely remained within the consensus focusing only on universal, seemingly non controversial, values. It should have worked: is there a woman who'd admit that she doesn't want peace?
But in today's reality even a Hallmark Card is not above suspicion, and members of a group of "ordinary" women, from all walks of life and from all over the country, who sit outside the home of our prime minister and fast, must be left-wing. It only took a short meeting of the four activists from Women Wage Peace with our first lady Sarah Netanyahu to ruin almost a year of walking on eggshells.
After more than 30 days of fasting for peace, when our first lady finally found the time to meet the representatives of the largest ever women movement, most of them mothers, she banished them to "hold their vigil outside the home of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, as "It is Abbas who is responsible for the stalled process," "Let him work to renew negotiations instead of trying to promote boycotts of Israel."(Haaretz 12/8)
At a time when "left-wing" has deteriorated from being a legitimate world view to a derogatory name, which is almost synonymous with being a traitor, I hope that branding the four activists of Women Wage Peace, who met Sara Netanyahu, as "left-wing" is not a cynical attempt to break the spirit of the movement and put a stop to such an important initiative.
I am happy to report that no one was able to break the spirit of the dedicated activists of Women Wage Peace. The movement continues to work throughout the country in order to raise awareness and to engage the public in a discussion about the feasibility of a political resolution. The movement also organizes national events in order to pressure decision makers to work toward reaching a viable peace agreement. One such event is planned for Sukkot. Women Wage Peace will hold a national March toward Jerusalem.
Hopefully, unlike last year's fast, the March of Hope will be able to wake up the leaders of both sides. We have grown so tired of their excuses why they cannot bring us peace.


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Graduate Study in the United Stated
December 19, 2011
Seemi Khosa, the Senior Advisor from The United States Educational Foundation in Pakistan (USEF) gave a presentation to the Lahore School graduating BBA/BSC Hons on 'Students on Graduate Study in the US' on Friday, December 09, 2011. The presentation was followed by interactive questions and answers session with the students [Saman Khan].
posted by S A J Shirazi @ 12/19/2011 04:04:00 PM,
City Campus
104 - C, Gulberg III,
Lahore, Pakistan.
Phones: 92-42-35714936, 38474385
Fax: 92-42-36560905
Main Campus
Intersection Main Boulevard Phase VI
Burki Road
Lahore, Pakistan.
Phones: 36560935, 36560939


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Cactus Flower Signed Lyric Print 8x10
Cactus Flower Signed Lyric Print 8x10
By popular demand, K.C. created Lyric Prints of fan favorite songs. Each signed 8x10 print comes packaged in a sleeve. Perfect for framing. Lyric Prints make great gifts for the K.C. fan in your life!
Add To Cart
The lyrics featured on the Cactus Flower Print are as follows:


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These roasted vegetable quinoa tarts, topped with melted mozzarella cheese, are high in protein and scrumptiously nutritious in every bite!
Crispy Tofu Nuggets with Sweet and Sour Sauce
Lightly pan fried, seasoned tofu wrapped in nori and crunchy paper-thin layer of bean curd sheets. Served with sweet and sour sauce. Mmmm Yum!
Baked Parmesan Zucchini
Easy, tasty, healthy baked parmesan zucchini. Low in calories - a perfect side dish for any meal!
Roasted Vegetables
A delicious and easy recipe with rosemary infused olive oil and a hint of balsamic vinegar. So good and healthy, you'll be eating them by the bowl full!
Luna Grill Feta Fries Copycat
Now you can make these crispy, delicious Luna Grill feta fries topped with soft melted crumbly feta at home in less than 10 minutes!
Parmesan Herb Roasted Butternut Squash
The easiest and quickest roasted butternut squash with parmesan cheese, herb and olive oil. A delicious side that takes only 20 minutes to make!
Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
This velvety smooth roasted butternut squash soup with garbanzo bean tastes as good as it looks! Quick and easy to make and perfect for any occasion!


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Yoga is for the whole person. While it is common to think of it as a method of stretching the body, it is much more. In fact, yoga was originally developed in India as a way to calm the mind. Physical postures were only used to settle the body down, so that people could sit for meditation, which was the ultimate goal. In modern times, we tend to forget this, and doing yoga is mistakenly seen as being able to do fancy and difficult-looking poses. In keeping with its true tradition, however, yoga is much more than that, and does not require that a person be flexible to practice it. In fact, all that is needed to do yoga is a desire to calm the body and mind, along with a willingness to move slowly, with precision and focus.
There are many different styles of yoga, and most combine the practice of certain physical postures along with the controlled use of the breath. These movements, coupled with a specific way of breathing, function to strengthen and calm the body. Poses can range from vigorous and athletic, as practiced in the Ashtanga or Kundalini traditions, to more moderate movements done in the Kripalu and Viniyoga styles, to the extremely slow and precise placements of the body that characterize the Iyengar style. Regardless of the intensity of the physical movement, the most important part of any yoga practice is the use of the breath to deepen the poses, and sometimes to link them together. It is the breath combined with posture that provides the calming tonic to the mind.
At the end of most physical yoga practices, there is either a period of rest or a meditation, or sometimes both. This is the culmination of the practice and, according to many experts, the most important part, as it is when the body settles down and the mind begins to move toward a state of calmness.
At Synergy Health and Fitness Center, yoga classes are conducted privately or in small groups, so that clients can benefit from the personal attention of a trained teacher. Practices are adapted to fit the needs of the client and all levels of experience are welcome.
Francine Morina has been passionate about physical fitness, nutrition, meditation, and yoga for most of her life. She was introduced to Pilates in 2000 and soon after became inspired. She received her USPA teacher certification in 2009 as an Instructor of the Authentic Pilates Method. Fran believes strongly in the mind and body connection that Pilates brings to the individual incorporating positive and appropriate intentions to each student and session that she teaches.
Email: email@example.com
Phone: 203. 461. 0298


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- Practice areas
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Enable people to improve your business' ability to Learn, Grow and Innovate through our scheduled, on-site or managed training solutions.
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Our range of interactive courses catalyse customer, centric creativity and innovation by applying Visual Thinking techniques.
Improve your visualisation skills for use within a business context
An Innovation through Visualisation workshop
Large portfolio of training courses available, with certifications from most industry bodies or from Radtac.
Our trainers have years of both on the job and teaching experience. Learn from their real-life experience, not just from theory.
From booking your course, practical examples and hands-on exercises, to high exam pass rates, training with us is a smooth journey.
Even after your training, we're there for you if you have questions about applying your learning in the workplace.
Looking for more support on your Agile journey? We've got you covered with additional services such as coaching, consulting and more.
Be part of a great community where you can join your peers, learn from each other and find new networking opportunities.
Contact us for any questions
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Thank you to the W5YI Group – and Gordon West – for featuring our programming services in the Spring, 2015 issue of the W5YI newsletter!
JumpScan is gone …
JumpScan was a great site that allowed users to create QR codes. Unfortunately, owner Mike McKearin called it quits after running it for free several years.
I visited several alternatives, and wound up settling with QRStuff.com – very configurable. You can create a bunch of QR Codes for free … CAUTION: If you use my link and subscribe to or purchase t-shirts of other goods from them, I make a ton of affiliate money … (grin)
This QR Code goes to my "clintbradford.com" Web site.
I already have an iWatch …
I've been thinking about the new Apple watch that was announced this week. Personally, I like my own "Apple watch" – an iPod nano 6th gen in a Lunatik watch band.
It's a fairly impressive device that can view photos, track calories burned, count your steps, play music , listen to FM radio, and record voice memos. It is actually more feature-filled than several other devices calling themselves "smart watches."
So … if you cannot wait until 1Q 2015 for the "official" Apple watch, here's some 6th Gen iPod nanos offered on Amazon – http://tinyurl.com/CLINTS-IWATCH … and here's the watch band firm that began as a Kickstarter project and went HUGE – https://www.lunatik.com/products/ipod-nano/lunatik …
Wouxun UV8D HT
This is becoming quite a popular HT!
And if you want to purchase FROM hams … get extraordinary support before, during, and after the sale … and have a model that does not have the "squelch problem" (and other oddities) that others are experiencing – then consider purchasing from Powerwerx.
Yes, We Do Mobile Rigs …
Southern CA Freqs
UPDATED 2Q 2014 – For Southern California hams, more than 80 local repeater systems, simplex freqs, and miscellaneous frequencies programmed in my demo FT-60R and Puxing UV973 radios. Weighed towards ENJOYMENT on the 2m/440 amateur radio airwaves! NEW: Most have URLs to repeater owner sites and/or club sites.
The four-page .pdf is available on the DOCS page at …
GoDaddy just sent out notices that they are dropping their Quick Blogcast product … and recommending WordPress to their clients. SO … WELCOME to the new WordPress blog for HamRadioProgramming.com!
I have been a customer of GoDaddy for almost 10 years for domains, Web sites, hosting, and other products. Their customer service is extraordinary: I cannot remember waiting more than five minutes to actually TALK to a rep when needed. Click on their logo above to receive a 25% discount on new products.


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SDWA §1431 Emergency Powers Enforcement Actions
Until recently there was only one law section violated choice in ICIS for entering SDWA §1431 emergency power enforcement actions. This was a problem because OECA counts SDWA actions in two programmatic categories: Underground Injection Control (UIC) and Public Water Supply (PWS). A SDWA §1431 order could address an environmental problem associated with either the UIC or PWS programs but with only one §1431 choice we could not easily tell which was being addressed.
Data Entry:
There are now two law section violated choices in ICIS for entering SDWA §1431 emergency power enforcement actions. Users should use the appropriate law section and program description depending on which SDWA program is involved: SDWA 1431-UIC: Emergency Powers/UIC or SDWA 1431-PWS: Emergency Actions-PWS, USDW.
Data Retrieval:
Revised ICIS national standard reports will now sort these §1431 actions in the proper categories: SDWA UIC or SDWA PWS.


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Pulse is a hacker lab launching a spatial social metrics platform. We build hardware and software tools to track, analyze, and visualize social movement within an environment. The platform relies heavily on open source tools, and said platform will be open sourced itself in the near future.
As an interactive artist and designer, Nick Sears explores the
boundaries between physical and virtual, and between reality and
illusion. A start in music combined with a love of technology
illuminates Sears' quest to create new means to affect the human
experience. In 2006, midway through the Interactive
Telecommunications Program at NYU, he created The Orb, the first in a
series of three-dimensional display surfaces, aimed at visualizing our
planet Earth. His work has been a part of exhibitions and events such
as SIGGRAPH, Wired NextFest, Coachella, and TED and has been featured
in The New York Times. He recently put the finishing touches on his
latest piece, the third in the Orb series, which has been featured in
exhibitions in Singapore and Dublin, Ireland and is slated to appear
at NEXT '09 in Aarhus, Denmark in early April.
Alex Bisceglie is an interactive engineer, designer, and strategist. He is
a graduate of the Interactive Telecommunications Program at NYU, and has
worked with a number of start-ups and interactive agencies including
Drop.io, Socialight, Organic, and the Barbarian Group doing interactive
development and design. He specializes in rapid prototyping in software,
hardware, and industrial design, and has worked on a number of large-scale
web sites and applications. Alex can usually be found hacking Ruby,
pigeonholing data-visualization into personal and client projects, and
hooking up Arduino boards to sensors.


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Il Bistrot at La Meridiana is convial and charming . It is the ideal place for a quick lunch in a cosy setting with typical Ligurian cuisine like ravioli with borage and ricotta, trofie with pesto, potato and anchovy tortini, stuffed pumpkin flowers, olive pâté and hot focaccia, minestrone alla ligure, panissa and other regional specialities, adding Pigato wine and tiny black olives from Taggia.


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What can microbial communities tell us? Research in a model human intestine and wastewater system
with Dr. Alicia Taylor
Wednesday September 2, 2015 at 7:00 PM
Restaurant Valparaiso, 1403 Solano Ave., Albany
This cafe is an informal forum for discussing interesting and relevant scientific issues. The goal is to encourage public engagement with science by inviting members of the scientific community to present topics for a casual evening of conversation. Cafes may vary in length and format depending upon the speaker and the topic. Audience questions are encouraged both during and after!
Microbial communities can be used to study emerging contaminants (nanoparticles) and serve as a proxy for understanding nanoparticle effects on human and environmental health. Using microbial communities in research offers many advantages to the traditional laboratory bacteria tests, which are often performed with one bacterium in idealized settings, and are not representative of realistic exposure scenarios or environments.


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Markets and market strategies for communities in Ancoraimes
Jiménez, Elizabeth
Romero, A.L.
Valdivia, Corinne
MetadataShow full item record
This poster describes the baseline survey results of the SANREM project in the Ancoraimes municipality - household income sources, primary commercialized agricultural products, transportation costs and prices received in different regional markets. The poster also discusses the factors responsible for product commercialization, the frequency with which these products are commercialized, and household perceptions about climate change and the market.


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Hosam Naoum named dean of St. George's Cathedral in Jerusalem
Posted May 8, 2012
[Episcopal News Service] The Rev. Canon Hosam Elias Naoum has been named dean of St. George's Anglican Cathedral in Jerusalem. He will become the first non-English incumbent to serve in the position.
Naoum, 38, has served as canon pastor at the cathedral since 2005, and was the acting dean from 2007-2009. As dean, Naoum will continue to serve as pastor to the cathedral's Arabic- and English-speaking congregations.
"I call upon all our partners and friends around the Anglican Communion to hold Hosam and his family in their prayers," said Anglican Bishop in Jerusalem Suheil Dawani in a May 3 letter announcing the appointment. "May his term as the dean of the cathedral be a blessing to many and to the glory of God."
Following the announcement, Naoum told ENS: "I am so happy that I am in this position to serve not only the local diocese but the whole Anglican Communion. … This cathedral will always be a welcoming and hospitable place for many pilgrims and visitors."
Naoum said he appreciates the "trust and confidence" shown in him by Dawani and Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, both of whom gave their blessing to the appointment.
He also acknowledged his gratitude to Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori who, he said, has been "very supportive to the diocese and to me personally."
Dawani said the appointment comes "after a long time of discernment and prayer and a lawful and constitutional procedure. Canon Hosam will continue to serve, especially in his new capacity as the dean of St. George's Cathedral, both the Diocese of Jerusalem and the worldwide Anglican Communion."
Naoum completed his initial theological training at the College of the Transfiguration and Rhodes University in Grahamstown, South Africa, and in 2011 earned a Master of Theology degree in Canon Law from Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria. Dawani also is a graduate of VTS, most recently earning a Doctor of Divinity degree in 2006.
The Very Rev. Ian S. Markham, dean and president of VTS, said in a statement that the seminary "considered it a privilege to train Canon Naoum for this important ministry. We celebrate with him and his family as he becomes the dean of the cathedral. We commit to remembering him in our prayers as he takes the important position both for Jerusalem and for the Anglican Communion."
The cathedral was consecrated in 1898. Today, it is home to two congregations: the indigenous Palestinian Anglicans, often called the "Living Stones," and a community of expatriate English-speaking members.
The Diocese of Jerusalem includes parishes and institutions throughout Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine and Syria.
Prior to moving to St. George's, Naoum spent nine years as priest of St. Philip's Episcopal Church in Nablus, a town in the West Bank.
Naoum will be installed as dean in St. George's Cathedral on Ascension Day, May 17, at 11 a.m. Archbishop Fred Hiltz of the Anglican Church of Canada will preach.
Hosam is married to Rafa. They have a son, Wadi, and two daughters, Laurice and Krista.
— Matthew Davies is an editor/reporter for the Episcopal News Service.
Priest-in-Charge (PT) Chula Vista, CA
Rector (PT) Roseburg, OR
Rector Appleton, WI
Associate Rector Whitefish Bay, WI
Rector (PT) Hayward, WI
Rector (Trinity) Huntington, WV
Rector Wheeling, WV
Rector (St. John's) Huntington, WV
Associate Rector Phoenix, AZ
Rector (St. John's) Charleston, WV
Missioner for Communications & Evangelism Knoxville, TN
Dean and Rector Burlington, VT
Director of Parish Ministries Augusta, GA
Missioner for Black Ministries Raleigh, NC
Associate Rector / Curate Snellville, GA
Rector Halifax, VA
Rector (St. Christopher) Charleston, WV
Priest-in-Charge (PT) Deer Isle, ME
Rector Salem, VA
Rector Harbert, MI
Rector San Diego, CA
Rector West Palm Beach, FL


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Magnesium Deficiency: 9 Symptoms And 9 Necessary Foods
"Though everyone knows what magnesium is, many are unaware of how important a mineral it is to the human body. Involved in over 300 metabolic processes in your body, more than 3,750 magnesium-binding sites have been found in human proteins. Magnesium also plays a crucial role in the transportation of calcium across your cell membranes. Your body will display numerous symptoms when it is low on magnesium. Here are 9 major red flags you should watch out for."
Did you know that over 50% of the population in the United States has a magnesium deficiency? It's astounding to think that so many of us have it and very few realize it. Read on about signs and symptoms of magnesium deficiency and learn about which foods you should be including more of in your diet so that you maintain proper magnesium levels.
Magnesium Deficiency: 9 Symptoms And 9 Necessary Foods


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Tribunal Costs Fear Over Equality Bill
ACS has warned Ministers that the proposed Equality Bill threatens to impose more costs from tribunal hearings on small local shops. In its response to the formal Government consultation on the Bill, ACS has expressed its concern that:
The proposed new right to bring cases using any combination of factors of alleged discrimination could grow the number of hearings before tribunals.
Requirements for recording and reporting of pay levels between male and female staff would be costly and bureaucratic for businesses.
ACS Chief Executive James Lowman said: "The convenience store sector employs around 250,000 staff who value the local, flexible and social aspects of working in their local shop. We absolutely support legal standards to support employees, but we fear that the measures proposed in the Equality Bill will just heap more costs and bureaucracy on small stores.
Full story....
Related Links
June 17, 2009


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During Colonial times in New York, people walked, rode horses or used stagecoaches for land journeys, but traveling by boat was much faster, especially for merchants hauling heavy goods like grain. Some roads in New York and other cities were paved with cobblestones, but many were dirt or gravel.
In the early 1700s, the colonial governor of New York, Robert Hunter, had many hills flattened to make them easier to walk and ride on. He also lined many city streets with trees. However, the Erie Canal and the railroads were not built until the 1800s. Bridges were rare, so people crossed rivers and streams by swimming or wading across. Rafts were used to transport stagecoaches across bodies of water.


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My Ups and Downs of Everyday Life
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
Patiently Waiting
I called the weight loss doctor because they didn't call me in April and the nurse said they were having a few problems getting it together but they will call me as soon as possible. I hate the waiting. I need this more than anything in my life right now. I need to get the weight off for medical and personal reasons.
My hubby doesn't understand. He wants me to do it naturally. He doesn't get that I am addicted to food and I try to explain it to him when it comes to his cigarettes but you have to eat to live but I live to eat.
well, I am busy going in and out but it looks like rain which is good for my vegetable, herbs and flowers.
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Monday, April 7, 2014
Finding Me
I am patiently waiting for the doctor to call me getting the Sleeve Surgery
I have been reading up on it and I think it is for me. I am so tired of being sick and tired and I know it stems from my weight and also having RA.
Hubby and I have been doing smoothies and they make me feel better and tons of energy but seem to always want junk food and sweets. Why, oh why do I have to be addicted to food.
Life has got to get easier. I just turned 54 in Feb. and I want to fit into my Mother In Laws wedding dress when I renew my vows next year. 10 years but we have been in each others lives since we were 6 years old.
I am really thinking of giving up my blog and reading of others but I sometimes like to see what is happening other then just in Facebook. Decisions, decisions.
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Friday, January 31, 2014
nothing much
I said I was going to try and write in my blog more but sometimes life happens.
I have been doing pretty good with my
it is really a big pain but putting my big girl panties on and making all of my doctor appointments. 1 down for this month, 3 in March and one in April.
I am hoping to spend the month of July in Tennessee and drive back with my sister, niece and brother in law to go to my brother's 4th wedding. She is the one and I wish he would have met her first.
Daughter is still in college and she is loving it. It is taking a toll on her father and I financially. I told her this is the last 4 months we are paying and if she doesn't get a job for the next semester, she would not be going. Keeping fingers crossed that she will step it up.
Big Super Bowl party at my sister in laws house but thinking of just staying home and having my girlfriend over for a few shots of tequila and some laughs. Hubby can go and bet his little heart out and hopefully this year we will win. Her parties are so much fun and I know I will probably regret not going but I really think I need to chill and hang out with my good friend. We will see.
Have a great weekend everyone.
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Thursday, December 26, 2013
New Year
As you know, we are now coming up on a new year. You know I have made resolutions to change the areas of my life that need it, and I ask for your strength to make those changes. I ask for your continued blessings and guidance to make me more like you, to walk better in your path, this year.
I also ask, Lord, for your continued blessings on those around me. I ask that this year be one of peace and joy for my family and friends. I ask that you continue to be a presence in all of our lives. I ask that you give each of us a heart for you and a desire to serve to make the world a better place. I also ask for peace and blessings on those far from home, for those who suffer, and for those who need you a little more each day.
Thank you, Lord, for all you do in my life and for all your continued blessings and love. In your name, Amen.
I am hoping to find some time and inspiration to start posting on a regular basis.
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Saturday, April 20, 2013
I am all over the place
tonight because of the pain. Hubby wants to talk in the morning and if I don't get to b
ed soon
, I will be a wreck.
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5 comments:
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Happy Easter
I want to wish everyone a Happy Easter.
My sister in laws 50th birthd
ay part
y is today and I am so excited. I made her a poster and I think it turned out wonderful. I will be taking tons of pictures to put on Facebook.
I have lost a
tal of 18.6 lbs. I struggled for a time and put back 9 lbs
but have almost lost
all of them. I am hoping to do good today at the party
. I know I want to have a few drinks but not sure of what. I haven't really been e
xercising much. I can only do about 8 minutes of my Walk Away the Pounds tapes but I know that with the warmer weather I will be going outside and taking the do
g for walks.
My wonderful little spoiled dog Bambi.
Well, it is time for me to get some coffee and st
art my day.
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1 comment:
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Happy St. Patrick's Day
I just wanted to make a quick post tonight since I will be cooking all day tomorrow. I can't be
lieve that I did not buy
corned beef and cabbage. Hubby wanted a big pork tenderloin so I will be making that
. I also need to make chicken salad, roast carrots
and mushrooms. I want to make my blueberries muffins since I love having those with a cup of coffee in the morn
I will be taking tons of photos this year of the garden and when I start canning. I have never done it before and my nei
ghbor gave me about 100 glass jars. I am excited about it. I think I am going to do spaghetti sauce, marinara
, st
ewed tomatoes, pickles and whatever else I can think of.
Have a great Sunday.
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5 comments:
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text:
Public Affairs Office
1100 Cultural Park Blvd
Cape Coral, FL 33990
Date: June 23, 2011
Subject: Cape Coral Police Make Arrest in Jewelry Theft Case
On June 6th Cape Coral Police responded to a report of a jewelry theft at 3457 NE 11th Avenue.
Upon arrival, Officers learned that the victim was missing several pieces of jewelry and she believed her son may have been responsible. Officers took a report and began investigating.
The following day, the victim found a sales slip for a gold dealer, Gold 2 Cash, in her son's possessions that indicated her son had sold her jewelry on two separate occasions in late May.
On June 8th Officer Howie Post caught up with the victim's son, James Rich, at his home located at 1421 NE 33rd Lane. Officer Post questioned Rich about the crime. Rich confessed to stealing his mother's jewelry and selling it to Gold 2 Cash on two separate occasions. James Rich was arrested on charges of grand theft.
On June 23rd Detective Nick Jones followed up on the investigation and spoke with employees at Gold 2 Cash about the transactions. An employee positively identified Rich as the individual who sold the jewelry and signed paperwork indicating that the property was his to sell. Detective Jones then added the charges of dealing in stolen property and violation of the pawnbrokers act. James Rich was charged with these additional crimes while he was still in custody for the original grand theft.
"Thanks to quick work and cooperation, we were able to not only make an arrest but also recover the victim's jewelry
before it was melted down."- Lieutenant Tony Sizemore.
James K Rich (11-12-90)
1421 NE 33rd Lane
Cape Coral, FL 33909


text:
LOS ANGELES, California — On the same day the first Ebola patient diagnosed with the virus in the United States, Thomas Eric Duncan, was pronounced dead in Texas, news broke that an unidentified patient had been admitted to and placed under isolation in a Los Angeles hospital directly after landing at LAX from the West African nation of Liberia. Liberia is also Duncan's country of origin.
The "possible Ebola patient," as the individual was identified in a written statement issued from Centinela Hospital Medical Center in Inglewood, was reportedly admitted to an emergency room in the hospital on Tuesday night, according to local news station KTLA.
The Los Angeles Times had initially reported that eight patients, thus far, had tested negative for Ebola, including the individual that was admitted to the hospital last night. However, a statement from Steve Brand, who is a spokesman for the hospital, revealed that said patient had not yet tested negative for the deadly hemorrhagic disease.
Centinela Hospital is reportedly conducting appropriate tests on the isolated patient and the staff had received the individual in accordance with Centers for Disease Control protocols, the hospital statement said, notes KTLA.
The incubation period for the Ebola virus is anywhere between two and 21 days, which is generally when symptoms for the disease begin to show. The isolated Los Angeles patient was reportedly not showing symptoms of the virus at the time of his or her arrival; however, it is believed the patient was isolated for safety reasons.
A 3:30 pm conference call with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is expected to shed more light on the developing incident.


text:
New Year's Fitness Challenge - Sign up
Now-Dec.31st 2015
Chapel Hill Training is looking for local companies and businesses to participate in its New Year's Fitness Challenge to promote health and wellness among the Chapel Hill workforce. It will be a 2-month long event to lose weight, improve body composition, get healthier, and start the new year off on the right foot! Businesses can create teams of 2-5 people in order to take part. For more information, or to sign up, please email Cody Johnson at firstname.lastname@example.com!


text:
HSHS Homepage · HSHS Faculty & Staff
CSI is currently not accepting new students to the program. Thank you for your interest in the Addiction Studies program. Please keep checking back here for updates.
Why Addiction Studies?
So whether you are considering an addictions career or wanting to enhance your knowledge and/or skills in the area of substance use disorders, this curriculum is for you.
Video courtesy of www.addictioncareers.org.
Individuals seeking an addictions career, will take specialized coursework, including a practicum course, that provides them with foundational knowledge and entry level skills to work not only with the addicted individual and their families, but to also work successfully within the treatment continuum and to network with other professionals and agencies.
Individuals not interested in an addictions career per se but are seeking to enhance their knowledge and /or skills in the area of substance use disorders are able to select from a variety of addiction courses that will provide them with the necessary information and/or training to help them meet their goals.
The successful completion of particular coursework in the Addiction Studies curriculum does allow an individual to apply for certification through the Idaho Board of Alcohol and Drug Counselor Certification, in particular, the Idaho Student of Addiction Studies certification. These courses will also meet educational requirements for individuals seeking CADC or ACADC certification through the Idaho Board of Alcohol and Drug Counselor Certification.
Addiction Studies-AAS Required Course Listing
Addiction Studies-ITC Required Course Listing


text:
Mid-Centry, Large Patchwork Vintage Quilt with Muslin Backing
Item description coming soon!
Quilt measures approximately 58" X 70"
Please keep in mind that, to my knowledge, all the quilts are either hand or home made...(This one is NOT home made!) Some are old, a few are new, some are vintage, some are antique, some have been camped with, snuggled with and others have been used for warmth or decor. Each has a story to tell of it's own! Some quilts I have mended, others I have left the wearing and tattering to keep the character in tact. Some have blemishes or small stains. *All quilts have been laundered unless specifically stated! **If you are a collector, please contact me prior to purchase. The majority of my quilts are sold to photographers. I am not a collector. I'm learning a lot about quilts and love the vintage character, but have little knowledge beyond what is passed on to me. I would always be happy to answer questions and provide detailed photos. Please note due to monitor/phone settings, the color may appear slightly different in person. Thank you! **
We are now shipping internationally! Please contact me for shipping price if you are not in the United States. Once ordered, product will ship within 7-10 business days. (Most likely, sooner!)


text:
Today Sue, Avery's OT, shared a funny Avery story. She said she and Avery were doing some Chirstmas role playing and Sue asked Avery what Santa says. Avery said, "Ho. Ho. Ho." Sue said, "Merry?" Avery replied, "had a little lamb."
Merry Christmas!!
Tomorrow were heading down to Angelton to spend the day with my Grandmother. She is moving in with my Aunt Jean after the new year so this will probably be our last visit for a while. With both of my brothers getting married in the Spring, I'm sure Holidays next year will be a lot different!
On Thursday, Walter and I will attend the dental prom. I'm not sure why they call it a prom...it's more like a Christmas party with free beer and appetizers.
On Friday we will do all last minute crafting and wrapping. I still have to make Dad's and Brooke's birthday presents. Reese's and Brooke's Christmas presents are almost done. Walter needs to work on Avery's and MeeMaw's Christmas presents.
On Saturday we will get all of the laundry done and clean the house from top to bottom. I guess Ill have to find the stockings so we can hang them up on MeeMaw's fireplace!!
After church on Sunday, we will deliver gifts to the family our Sunday school class adopted.
On Monday we will head to San Antonio. We will stay the night there before heading on to Roscoe on Tuesday. I'm not sure how we are going to get all the gifts into the car...we will probably have to give Avery her gift early and leave it here. There will more than likely be suitcases in the backseat between the kids...maybe that will cut down on some fussing!!
I don't know when we'll return...but we'll be back soon!
Have a safe and wonderful Holiday!!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Santa Says What?
Today Sue, Avery's OT, shared a funny Avery story. She said she and Avery were doing some Chirstmas role playing and Sue asked Avery what Santa says. Avery said, "Ho. Ho. Ho." Sue said, "Merry?" Avery replied, "had a little lamb."
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 7:47 PM 1 comments
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
When I was asked to consider homeschooling for Avery, my gut response was "No way!". I started looking into modern homeschooling. I read books, met with other homeschool moms, found a homeschool store, and surfed the web for real homeschoolers. It didn't take long to convince me that homeschooling was just what Avery needed, but I still wasn't convinced I would be able to teach her all she needs to know. My aunt is a 27-year veteran to teaching Kindergarten. I asked her a lot of questions and she showed me/explained to me how she teaches in the classroom.
I threw myself into preparing to teach. I made up a calendar showing what units we would cover weekly. I broke up our day into subjects. I had art projects, science experiments, and all sorts of fun things to do with the first few units and was planning out the rest of the year in my head.
Week One. Avery quickly informed me that I did NOT do things like she did in preschool. I assured her that we were now in Kindergarten and things had to be different. She half-heartedly participated in the activities I had planned, but refused to follow my time schedule. I evaluated our week, and decided to keep trying because things would get better as she learned the schedule and got excited about being in school.
Week Two. On day eight of her reading lessons, I threw the book in the floor and gave up. She was bored to tears. I asked her to grab Charlotte's Web off the shelf and she listened as I read. Later that week I gave up on the time schedule and decide to do subjects on Avery's time-table.
Now. All the workbooks and curiculum are on the shelf. If Avery wants to use them, she can at any time. I have latched onto the theory of unschooling. It is child-led learning. If I find a project that looks fun I tell Avery about it. If she is interested, we try it. She helps me do our daily chores in the morning. Then we play together or she plays alone in her room. She has several "educational" games to play on the computer and frequents pbskids.org and everythinggirls.com. Some days we turn on the Wii and play each other. Her favorite t.v. shows are SuperWhy, Sid the Science Kid, and Little Einsteins.
I have finally set aside all of my preconcieved notions of what a homeschooling mom should be like. After reading several articles, I think Avery and will definitely enjoy the rest of the school year more. I think I am fully "Deschooled" and am ready to embrace learning instead of teaching! http://lifewithoutschool.typepad.com/lifewithoutschool/2007/09/interest-based-.html
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 1:01 PM 0 comments
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Josiah threw a fit in the store and we ended up leaving without purchasing anything...but we'll go back next week!!! I changed his diaper and his dispostion improved greatly!!!
The Dental Prom is coming up on December 18th. I have a great dress, but no shoes. So, next we went to the K & G next door to the Lifeway. Their women's shoes start at a size 7, so we went further down the shopping strip to Shoe Cents. They had some great shoes, but alas they were also all too big.
They have just opened a JoAnn's that I couldn't pass up!!! We bought a few random craft supplies that I need in order to finish several different projects. The new store is so bright and clean...a big change from the other local stores!!! I even found the employees to be friendly. The employees at the JoAnn's closer to my house are either a.) Totally Clueless b.) Totally Grouchy c.) Totally Clueless and Grouchy!!!! One lady reminds me of Ouiser on Steel Magnolias, "I'm not crazy, I've just been a very bad mood for the last 40 years!".
Avery wanted to go into Ross. I have been on a quest to find some black boots, more pointy than rounded toe, 1"-2" heel, and that are comfortable. Not that I'm picky or anything!!! Today I found them!!! Nine West cowboy style boots. They were originally marked $169.99, and I got them for $15.99. My math is a bit foggy but I'm pretty sure that it's a great deal!!!! Unfortunately that didn't have any fabulous dress shoes, so I'll keep looking! While trying on shoes, a lady peeked around the corner and said, "You guys are a hoot. I bet you never get bored!" I'm not sure what we said that she found funny, we were just having a regular conversation...I guess we are more entertaining than I knew!!!
On the way back to the car, I noticed a Hearing Aid store. I stopped in and made an appointment for a free hearing screening next Tuesday. The man behind the desk seemed surprised that the appt was for me. I guess I'm a tad younger than his regular patients :). I have tried to find a hearing center closer to my house. This weekend I found a dail-a-hearing test. I called the number and promptly failed the test. I let Walter call the number and he passed. His question, "Could you not hear the low tones?" Um...if I heard them I would know if they were low or high, but then I would have passed the test. However, I FAILED. I don't know which tones I didn't hear!!!!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 3:55 PM 0 comments
Monday, December 1, 2008
No Energy
Avery cracks me up. She has quite an extensive vocabulary, but she often uses the "almost right" word! Today I was running the water and was getting ready to jump in the shower when she burst into the bathroom. "Mom, the energy left the computer."
Me: "Huh?" "What energy?"
Avery: "I was on pbskids.org and the computer lost it's energy. Everything went black."
Me: "It lost electricity?"
Avery: "Yeah."
So, after my shower I went to investigate. I figured she had inadvertently hit the off switch on the power strip. That wasn't the problem...hmmm. So I called Walter and left him a message to call me with instructions on how to find the breaker box. (Does it worry anyone else that all breaker boxes are made of metal...you think they would be made out of something that DOESN'T conduct electricity!!!) After he called back, I went outside and pried the breaker box door open. None of the breakers had been tripped. I went back inside and decided that maybe the power strip had gone bad. I have an extra one and was going to switch them out. When I unplugged the strip I realized the outlet is a GFCI. I hit reset and voila...the energy came back into the computer!!!!
Josiah refers to himself as Baby. So the whole time I'm working on the computer he's saying, "Momma...Baby. Momma...Baby." After I got the computer working again I turned to ask him what he needed. "Baby. Mark, Mark." Translation: I want to use the markers. So I popped him in his high chair and gave him some paper and washable markers and it made him SOOOO happy.
We put the christmas tree up on Wednesday (SHATTER PROOF ornaments only) and hung the wreath out on the door. I bought the wreath last year on clearance and today I decided to wire some ornaments on it to make it more colorful. When I opened the door to get it, Josiah took off outside. So, I took the gate off Avery's door and put it on the front door. He could look outside but not escape. Both kids were very interested in the ornament wiring and were right in the way...I mean, right by my side while I worked on the wreath. I hung it back up and went to make some lunch. Josiah started taking ornaments off the tree and throwing them outside where they bounced happily down the sidewalk. I gathered up the ornaments and put them where they belong. Now, the gate has been apprehended and put back on Avery's door, and the outside is once again closed off to Josiah!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 3:06 PM 0 comments
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Costumed Cuties
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 3:03 PM 0 comments
Monday, October 13, 2008
New Chapter
Well, we're entering a new chapter in getting our children to sleep. Yesterday Josiah figured out how to escape from his crib. He quickly climbed out as soon as we layed him down last night. Walter and I heard his feet hit the floor and both said, "let him cry a few minutes". He cried, and wailed, and banged on the door for about 20 minutes. When he got the popper/vacum toy and started ramming it into the door, Walter went and picked him up. Somewhere in the midst of his fit, he had stopped and put on some shoes...he was pretty cute in his shirt and his dress shoes (on the wrong feet)!! Walter ended up holding him until he went to sleep and then layed him in the crib. I don't want to get in the habit of holding him at night to sleep. We've already had to break that habit once and it was NOT fun!
Avery and I made two more necklaces today (sorting, pattern making, and fine motor skills). Afterward we used the necklace to 'write' out her lowercase letters. She isn't too keen on handwriting lessons, but she had fun spelling with jewelry. I'm always glad when I find a teaching tool that she loves!
On Friday, Avery drew me a picture. I asked her to tell me about and typed out the story she told. When I printed it out and put it along with the picture in a binder, she got so excited. I think it made her realize that her stories won't disappear. She told me several more stories to print out (both kids are OBSESSED with the printer and fight over who gets to pick up the freshly printed page).
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 7:00 PM 0 comments
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Almost there
Okay, so learning the Pledge to the U.S. flag and memorizing John 3:16 on the same day isn't the best idea. It comes out something like this:
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have Liberty and Justice for all."
(Almost there baby girl, almost there!)
I'm an AWANA volunteer this year. It is so amazing that these teeny, tiny five-year-olds can memorize so many verses. It is so sweet to hear their precious little voices saying Bible verses!!! Now I understand why parents, whose kids are long grown, are still volunteering. It is an awesome responsibility to teach our children to love God and to hide his Words in our hearts...I'm really glad I volunteered!!!
Homeschooling is going really well. We are having so much fun that it barely seems like learning!!! There have been many times already where late in the afternoon Avery asks when we're having school today. I tell we have done school already. When she doesn't believe me I point out things like we made truffles (physical science/fine motor skills/math). We sorted beads (pre-math). We read some books and you sounded out some of the words (reading/litereature).
I started working on the kids Fall Festival outfits. The patterns have been cut out for over a month, but I'm just getting around to the actual sewing! Josiah is going to be the most adorable little clown ever. I need to add a few details to his suit and make the hat, and then start on Avery's costume. She picked up a flowery/fairy costume pattern to make, we're just omitting the wings so she can be a flower! If I get the costumes made in time, I'm going to take the kids to ZOO BOO. I got an e-mail about the activities the Zoo is having this year and it looks like they would have a lot of fun.
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 2:40 PM 0 comments
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Josiah is talking more and more. His favorite phrases include, "Oh Wow!", "Hot Dog!", and "Oh Man!" This past week he started adding "Amen" to the end of our mealtime prayers. This Sunday he came home from the nursery saying, "La-la-lu-lu." We've decided he's saying "Halleluia". The nursery worker in his new class keeps telling me he is just the sweetest little boy. I'm so glad we have such a great church to raise our children in!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 4:08 PM 0 comments
Friday, September 19, 2008
IKE: glad we're back
The kids and I got back into Houston yesterday afternoon. We had left the previous Thursday in order to avoid Hurricane Ike. Walter stayed here and braved the storm and says he is very glad we didn't have to go through it too. Our house had electricity restored on Wednesday, but there are many people who are not expected to regain electricity until next week. Our house had no damage, but the neighborhoods trees were not so lucky. The roads are barely passable because after a week of cleaning up, there are still broken treesbranches everywhere. Our biggest trees were the hardest hit, they lost several very large/long branches. We went grocery shopping yesterday and had to go to two different stores in order to find a variety of foods. None of the stores have anything in the frozen sections...and very little in the dairy or refrigerated sections. Walmart had some fruit. We had a hard time finding Lactaid for the kiddos. I filled my gas tank up in Katy so hopefully by the time I need more gas, there will be more available!
The Dental school has been closed all week, so we took advantage of the beautiful weather today and took the kids to the zoo. (The temperatures have been in the low 80's all week.) They have changed the zebra exhibit and you can actually see the animals now...Avery is very excited. She says her favorite animal is the zebra...or the giraffe...or the elephant. The kids rode the carousel for the first time today. I was a bit worried about Avery but she seemed to love it. Both of the kids love to pet the goats in the children's zoo!
Maybe this week we can get back to normal. We are so glad to be home!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 4:33 PM 0 comments
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Stepping Stones
We are calling our home school Stepping Stones Academy. If we have a name and official nametags, then I can recieve a teacher discount at several stores. I have found a great Home School Store that we pass by every Tuesday on our way to therapy. The science books I bought yesterday are linked to the Internet so Avery can learn even more online.
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 3:47 PM 0 comments
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Wow! It's Been Over A Month!
I 've had a busy summer but, I can't believe I've gone so long without posting anything. Recap of last months activities:
July 17- Ringling Brothers Circus "Bellobration"; go to San Antonio afterwards
July 23-Go to San Angelo and eat at Mathis Field Cafe. Drive on to Abilene to visit Papa John in the hospital. Drive to Roscoe to stay at MeeMaws.
July 25-Walter takes Board One in San Antonio. In Roscoe we celebrate Avery's, Boaz's, and Reese's birthdays.
July 26-take pictures of the cousins in the boat...tip the boat!!!
July 28-Drive back to Houston, with Mom. Stop in Llano to look at antique stores. I bought a set of china and Mom bought a Hotel Mail Cubby.
July 29-Happy Birthday Avery
Aug 4-Eduard expected to make landfall in the morning. We leave for San Antonio that afternoon.
Aug 5-Take Dad's pick-up to Llano to get our things from the store!
Aug 6-Walter and I go to Washington D.C. while Mom and Dad keep the kids.
Aug 7-Go to Navy Medical Center in Bethesda to meet with Dean of Graduate Dental School program. Get information about residency programs.
Aug 11-fly back to Texas
Aug 12-we bring the kids, and Peanut (my brother is giving us his mini dachshund), and all of our stuff back home to Houston
Aug 18-Walter goes back to school. Avery and I start homeschooling.
On Monday I also started the Body-for-Life for Women 12 week challenge. I'm having trouble remembering to eat every 2-4 hours but am otherwise doing well. I wish they had some pages in the back of the book for you to use as your Mind/Mouth/Muscle Journal.
Avery is doing well with Homeschooling. She wants me to do things the way her Beehive preschool teachers did, and she is learning that all people teach a little differently. Our first Unit is All About Me/Family. Josiah has a doctor's appointment tomorrow which will be a good way to transition to our next unit, Doctor/Dental/Human Body.
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 10:39 AM 0 comments
Monday, July 14, 2008
That's So Toile!!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 6:27 PM 0 comments
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Orcas, Penguins, and an Octopus
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 7:11 PM 0 comments
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Nine Years!!
You are the love of my life And you are the reason I'm alive And baby baby baby When I think of how you saved me I go crazy
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 11:15 AM 0 comments
Monday, June 30, 2008
Do ants sleep?
Hobby Lobby has 80% selected home accents. Avery found a small metal ant and, since her initials are A.N.T., we bought it. On the way home she asked me if ants sleep. My answer, "I don't know. I've never really thought about it!" So we came home and looked it up on the Internet. It seems that ants at least go into a rest phase, if not real sleep...some for up to 7 hours a day. Isn't it great that we can just type in "do ants sleep" and get instant results???
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 2:48 PM 0 comments
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Day Three and Day Four!!
Day Three:
We started in Dolphin Cove. We fed the dolphins with our left hands and we're able to pet them with our right hands. Avery was leery of the teeth and didn't reach out to pet any of the dolphins. Then, she cried for thirty minutes afterward because she didn't get to pet a dolphin!!!
We walked over to the Sharks/The Coral Reef building. We learned about the sharks first. The kids were all fascinated with them! We had shark dress-up time and snack before going to the coral reef section. The kids picked their favorite fish from the exhibit and then tried to draw them. Avery chose a yellow and blue striped fish...and did a very good job of drawing it. Then the kids had a salt-water fish dress-up. A boy and girl both had sparkly outfits!!
Then we went to the clydesdales. They are so big and beautiful. We got to pet a male named Andy, and took pictures as a group.
Ater camp was over Avery and I went back to the dolphin tank. We stayed there until Avery worked up the courage to pet one. The amazement on her face was worth the tears and the waiting!!
We went to the Believe show and each time I see the orcas perform, it is amazing! Avery wanted to ride the Ferris Wheel so we did, twice. Then she wanted to ride the Orca roller coaster. We got in line and a little girl behind us was looking for a partner to ride with. So, I got out of line while the two girls rode together!
Day Four:
We spent the day behind the scences at the Zoological research facilities. We observed a bull shark and two nurse sharks. The kids were all very good at following the rules! Then we were able to play with the (de-barbed) sting rays and brown manta rays. They would swim right up to our hands and wriggle their bodies as we pet them. Avery would only pet the small ones, but we both had a great time! Then we learned about the transport boxes and I'm afraid I would be claustophobic if I had to ride in one very long. We pet a Bamboo shark. I think Avery would have jumped right into the shark tank if we would have let her, she really was mesmerized by them. We met a Monk seal that was hoping we had food, and saw some more bottlenosed dolphins. On our way back into the park we passed by some flamingos, scarlet ibis, and spoonbills. There is also a lemur back there!
Then we got to go behind the scenes at the Shamu theatre. Shamu is a generic name they use for any of the adult orcas. There are currently four orcas in San Antonio: Kyuquot, Keet, Unna, and Tuar. Then the kids made shamu costumes out of paper bags. They were so cute. Lea gave us a cirtificate saying we had completed camp, complete with our group picture from the day before.
We stayed in the Shamu theatre and watched the Believe show. Cameron and her uncle Matt had to leave, but Sophie and her Nana stayed. We had lunch/snack with them and then let the girls hang out together. They rode the orca roller coaster twice, the ferris wheel twice, and the paint can ride once. They played in the Water works, Then we went to Lost Lagoon where the girls swam in the kiddie pool.
Avery bought four stuffed animals, one for each day of camp. We now have Sarah the seal, Emily the beluga, Candy the orca, and Cindy the dolphin. I purchased some education material that we will use this year in school. We had such a fun time, Avery is already asking if she can go to camp again next summer!!!!!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 5:46 PM 0 comments
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Shaky Start
We were late to camp today because Avery got sick last night and threw up again this morning, actually both kids threw up! Luckily it was just a bug or something and they appear to be better.
Today was a lot of fun. We started by comparing the length and weight of dolphins, beluga whales, and orcas. Orcas grow from 18-22 feet and weigh 12,000-16,000 pounds. Beluga whales get up to 12 feet and about 3,000 pounds. The Pacific White Sided Dolphin is 6-8 feet long and weighs 300-400 pounds.
We went and looked at the beluga whales, we were only a few feet away from where they surfaced! Then we had a question and answer session with one of the dolphin trainers. The kids were asking basic questions like how cold is the water (67 degrees), how many dolphins do you have (7), do the animals prefer one trainer over another (sometimes), and other relatively simple things. Avery raised her hand and waited several minutes to be called on. When it was her turn she simply asked, "Where is the Daddy dolphin?" The trainer said that was a very good question. The dad, Jump-Jump, is on loan to an aquarium in Chicago. Zoos, aquariums, and parks around the world work together and trade semen samples to keep gene pools varied. He said that sending sample through Fed-Ex is much simpler than trying to transfer the animals across the country or around the planet!!! Have you ever tried to explain artificial insemination to a bunch of 4-5 year olds? Obviously the trainer hasn't either! It was pretty funny!!!
We had some time to spend before the Viva! show. It was the perfect time for snack. Then, we made some construction paper tadpoles. I didn't realize that Sea World had a frog exhibit, but we got to see it today. Most of the frogs appeared to be wax figures, you had to look very closely to observe them breathing.
After the frogs, we went back over to the Viva! stadium and Anthony got to dress up as a beluga whale. He had blubber, fins, a tail, and a humped head. The kids offered explanations for why a beluga has the hump on his head...protection for when he bumps the glass, stores water like a camels hump, or helps them float. The real reason is for echolocation.
All of the Small Wonders campers got to see the Viva! show together. This is an acrobatic show with Beluga whales, dolphins, synchronized swimmers, and high-jumping divers. It is simply amazing how high out of the water the dophins can jump!!! They don't just jump, they also twist and flip and spin!!!! WOW! Avery was impressed with the beluga whales pushing the trainers around the pools. After the show one of the Beluga trainers came over. He said the animals started out nopt wanting to cooperate, but the show was successful in the end. The kids wanted to know if it hurt the whalews for him to stand on their noses. He told them no! Whales are much bigger and stronger than humans and they just feel pressure when the trainers are on their noses!!
I'm really enjoying Sea World camp!!!
After camp, Avery and I went to Lost Lagoon with Cameron, her uncle, Sophie, and her Nana. They floated a while in the Castaway River. All appeared to have a good time, and I enjoyed relaxing by myself! The others stayed in Lost Lagoon to have lunch while Avery and I went over the Shamu's Harbor. There we rode the Orca roller coaster. Avery really enjoyed it, even going on it again by herself!!!! She is growing up too quickly!!!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 6:28 PM 0 comments
Monday, June 16, 2008
Happy Campers
Today was our first day of Sea World Small Wonders Camp. Avery's group is called the Killer Whales. There are 10-12 kids in each group and only three girls in the Killer Whale group: Avery, Cameron, and Sophie. The girls quickly sought each other out, and by the end of the week I'm predicting they will be great friends!
We started at the Penguin Encounters. We looked at the Penguins then had a question and answer session. We learned that the penguins must have fresh snow shoveled into the exhibit several times a day or the penguins can get a disease in their feet! Then we looked at the Puffins. We compared and contrasted the Penguins and Puffins. While they do look very similar a major difference is Puffins can fly.
Each day of camp the one child a day will get to dress up as a sea animal. Today Avery was chosen to dress up as the penguin. They discussed the adaptations of a penguin as they dressed her. Blubber is for warmth. The black and white coloration is camouflage for protection. Flippers and webbed feet are for swimming. Today's story time was also about a Penguin's adaptations.
We had a snack of animal crackers before going to feed the seals and sea lions. We saw some American otters on the way to the Seal and Sea Lion tank. Once there, an educator told us the differences between Seals and Sea Lions. Each camper received a small container of fish that we threw to the animals. The seals just sat still and hoped you threw the fish directly to them, the sea lions were pushing each other, barking loudly, in order to compete for the fish. We did a seal craft before getting to meet the sea lion trainer. We met the trainer and Dylan, a sea lion. He, the trainer...not Dylan, told us that it takes about 5 years for a sea lion to learn all the tricks and cues for the performance, The Cannery Row Caper.
The last activity of the day was to walk to Alligator Alley. Over at the alligator pond, we met Remi...a baby American Alligator. All the kids had the opportunity to pet Remi!!!
Avery and I stuck around for a while. We wandered through the Clydesdale Barn, strolled over to the Dolphin Cove, and saw Believe. Then, we went to McDonald's for a chicken nugget lunch. Avery slept all the way to Lakehills. I think it was a great first day!!!!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 3:27 PM 0 comments
Friday, June 13, 2008
Dinner Story
We are so lucky that my Mom doesn't have to work this summer. She came to Houston to visit us for a few days. Avery brought over a Diet Dr.Pepper for my Mom to drink. My mom told her no thanks, she didn't want a hot soda. Avery took it to the kitchen then came back with another Dr. Pepper. She told us, "I'm just going to have a cold one."
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 6:19 PM 0 comments
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Chubby Cheeks
Walter had his wisdom teeth extracted yesterday (ouch!), and is swollen today. It's been a chore to get the kids to leave him alone. They want to get up near his face, but I'm afraid they'll bump him and make the pain worse.
We've been busy cleaning up the house and making it pretty. Karen Poe, from the Cocker Spaniel Rescue Center, is coming today at four. She has to make a home visit before they decide if we get to be Jesse's family. Avery is super excited. While in the waiting room yesterday, she told everyone that passed through that she is getting a Cocker Spaniel named Jesse.
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 1:45 PM 0 comments
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Prehistoric History Lesson
Avery gave me a history lesson today:
There once were dinosaurs. T-Rex was the dinosaur king. But, he was a very mean king. The other dinosaurs decided they wanted Triceratops to be kings. So, now Triceratops is a very good king because he just eats plants. Then, there were some 'Bolcanoes' in Africa. The dinosaurs ran to Houston to get away from the hot lava. When the dinosaurs got to Houston, they were scared because there were so many cars. The dinosaurs were so scared they ran back to Africa. A few were left behind so we put their 'skeleskins' in the museum. The 'bolcanoes' were still hot in Africa, so the dinosaurs dug big holes and covered themselves up. The dirt got burned all up and the dinosaurs were stuck underground. That's why we have to dig them up to get their 'skeleskins'. It is so sad that the dinosaurs 'isappeared', because I would like to have a pet Triceratops. If you go to Africa, can you find me a Triceratops and bring it home? I want a green one!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 5:40 PM 1 comments
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Beehive Last Day
I can hardly believe that it is already the last day of Preschool. I almost cried when I picked Avery up today. It is the end of her being a preschooler...she's now a "big kid".
What has Avery accomplished this year? I could make a list of all the things she knows like how to write her name or that objects at the back of the drawing are smaller, but that isn't what is important. What is important is the sense of confidence Avery has gained. She loves to perform, to sing and dance for people. It's important that she has learned how to share, how to verbalize her feelings, and that everyone is different AND the same. She has learned to wait her turn, how to be a friend, and how to play on the playground without being afraid.
I'm so proud of her! She is such a great kid!
What have I learned this year at preschool? *I could not teach 24 four- and five-year olds everyday! *the day you wear white pants will be the ONLY day you get paint on yourself! *band-aids are to owies/boo boos as Duct tape is to broken objects! *little kids LOVE to help *trees poop! *when you have the Gallerias it is really bad, you spend all day sitting on the potty! *goats poop too, they poop beans! *four- and five- year olds are REALLY bad at telling JOKES, but they think they're hysterically funny! *all parents are known by their children's names, "oh that's Cate's Mom"! *we should all jump in the rain puddles!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 4:03 PM 0 comments
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Yesterday we went to Surfside Beach just to hang out and have fun. On the trip down, Avery was looking at a book about Dinosaurs. She was telling us all about the Pterodactyl. Then she and Walter got into a discussion about Ostriches...that they are really big birds, but that they can't fly. Avery told Walter that Penguins are big birds that don't fly. Walter said that they 'fly' underwater and do great acrobatic swimming. Avery said, "Yeah, and the Flingos are big birds." It took Walter a minute, "Flingos, huh?" "Yeah, Dad. They are big pink birds." It finally clicked with Walter, "OH, flamingos can fly!"
Walter and I were the only parents who made our kiddos wear a life preserver, but the kids are too young too protest!! The temperature outside was only mid-70's and the water was pretty cold. We would let Josiah play in the water about 20 minutes at a time, then we would take turns wrapping him in a towel and holding him. Avery never acted like she noticed the cold. She helped find seashells, she played in the sand, she has a little floaty/boat that she would let us take her into the wake, and she 'swam' in the shallow water. I thought seashell hunting was a great way to work on her visual discrimination. I told her she could only bring whole shells that had gray on them. She did a great job too!
As we piled back into the car, we put a Pull-up and a tank top on Avery. We asked her to put on her shorts while we drove to the bathrooms, about 4 miles away. I assumed she minded and didn't think about it anymore. As we neared the store, I asked if she had on her shoes. She said, "No, and I don't have on any shorts either." Walter told her to put her shorts on. She said, "NO." I said in my best Mommy voice, "Avery Nicole!" She quickly replied, "I didn't say no I'm not putting on my shorts. I said 'Oh, no. I've got to put my shorts on!'"
Yeah, right!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 2:48 PM 0 comments
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Busy Week
Tuesday afternoon we took the kids to the Museum of Natural History. It is free after 2 pm to see the general exhibits. We got to see some beautiful gems and jewelry. Some very interesting minerals...it is amazing how beautiful rocks can be!!! There is a Chemistry exhibit. It reinforced the concept of gas, liquid, and solid that Avery learned at preschool this week. The energy exhibit was neat. It took you through the processes of producing energy. It had some examples of crude oil from around the world that surprised me with an array of colors!
What interested Avery the most were the DINOSAURS. We saw them first. Then each time Walter and I tried to see the other exhibits, Avery constantly asked when we were going back to see the dinosaurs! She was more than a little leery of the life size replica of Ankylosaurus, complete with skin, armor, teeth...I stuck my hand in it's mouth and she finally relaxed when it didn't move! Her favorite was the Triceratops even though it was just the head...or maybe because it was just the head!!! She found the Pterodactyl to be very fascinating, but didn't like to be upstairs looking out over an open floor!!!
On Wednesday they had Water day at Beehive. All of the kiddos wore their swimsuits. There were four kiddie pools set up to play in. They had attached a sprinkler upside down on the monkey bars with a pool underneath that the kids could 'shower' under. There was a pool at the bottom of the slide that was great fun! There was a water table, a baby doll bathing center, and doll clothes washing center, and a water bucket/paint brush center that the kids used to 'paint' the playhouse. All of the kids had a blast!!
Wednesday night was Avery's Spring Choir concert. The Quarter Notes were adorable in their animal costumes. Claire Knuckles was the most adorable Rooster!! The Half Notes sang really well. They were supposed to stand with their hands behind their backs...too hard for Avery. She tried, but fell down twice and finally gave up. I guess that is something with can talk to Miss Sue, the OT, about focusing on next. They sang Seek Ye First which Avery calls the Louie song. You know, "Hall-le-lu, Hall-le-Louie-ya."
Tuesday was Walter's last day of class for Spring semester, YEAH!!!!! All of his grades have been posted and he is doing a great job! He has a short summer session and will take Board I in July. After that, Dental school will be a lot easier. He will start having more clinic, more patients, more fun and less class, less studying, and less stress. He gets to try his hand at being the patient in June. He is going to have his wisdom teeth removed by one of the Fourth year residents. One of the upperclassmen is redoing a porcelain crown that has been bothering Walter, and that he says was not made correctly to begin with! Then, I get to be Walter's patient because I have two cavaties that he feels were caused by night-time reflux.
Only one more week of Beehive, then Avery is free for the summer. I'm not sure she really understands that she's not going back, and that her friends will all be going to Kindergarten in various school throughout the area. Several Moms have talked about setting up playdates during the summer, so I'm hoping that occassionally seeing her friends will help make the transition easier. I'm sure a few more trips to see the Dinosaurs will help ease the pain!!!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 10:35 PM 0 comments
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
A Bible Story
I love taking Avery to preschool. When we are driving she tells me the funniest things!!
Yesterday: "Mom. Can I tell you a Bible story?"
Avery-"There once was a Grandpa named Paul. He was mean. He told the children they couldn't run to Jesus. Jesus said, 'let the children come to me'. Grandpa Paul said, "No, they'll knock you over and trip you." But Jesus told him he could outrun the children. So Paul, Jesus and the children had a race. The End."
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 1:16 PM 1 comments
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Happy Mother's Day!
Posted by PenelopePenguin at 4:44 PM 0 comments


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Gratitude #5
I love May for its long weekends and its good weather. The beautiful days put me in an early vacation mood and make me want to slow down and start fresh. This month, I am grateful for:
Solo Staycation
I took a much-needed week off. It was my first break since the Christmas holidays and I was quite exhausted from work and our home move. My intention for this solo staycation was to write and work on personal projects but I ended up doing none of these. Instead, I spring-cleaned my wardrobe, watched movies, visited friends and read. My body was telling me to rest from the intense quarter and I listened to it.
Spring Refresh
When the nice days approach, I get excited about pretty dresses and pastel colors so I switched my wardrobe to Spring/Summer clothing. I also ordered online new items and went slightly overboard with pink and stripes – I blame it on the sales code from J. Crew's newsletter.
POM Scarves
The brand POM makes the best handmade scarves with fun designs. They hosted a special sale with unique pieces produced from leftover materials. I went to Amsterdam to stock up for the upcoming winter and extend my collection.
Hugo Couch
Our new couch was finally delivered. We sold our old one before the move and were couch-less for two months. It made me realize how central this piece of furniture was in my life. About 50% of my time at home revolves around it; it is the place where I read, watch TV, relax and welcome guests. After such a long wait, we couldn't wait to sit on a comfortable sofa... except that the salesperson ordered a couch with the wrong corner! The chaise longue was not on the correct side. The store re-ordered a new one and we now have to wait for an additional 10 weeks. At least we can keep the couch until the new one arrives!
Furniture Hunting
We spent many weekends in home stores. Home decoration is not my strength and I did not expect such a tiring process. You need to identify your style, visit many stores, verify the measurements, compare different models and compromise with your partner. Luckily, we both love Scandinavian design. Our current favorite store to visit is Bolia. This month, we splurged on a new dining table, a coffee table and a TV stand... and now, our wallets need a break!
Modern Family
As Phil Dunphy always says: Y-Hello! It is my favorite comedy show after Friends. Season 7 has been released on Netflix and we are binge-watching it. I adore this funny charming family. Each character has something relatable, they remind me a little of my own family.
Family Time
On that same subject, we drove to France to visit my parents for the Ascension weekend and had so much fun. The initial objective was to collect my childhood belongings and some family albums but we were also able to celebrate Mother's day (it's always the last Sunday of May in France), spend time with my larger family, enjoy drinks in Paris and melt under the 35 °C sun. My parents live 70km away from Paris and we drove through the countryside, which is an enjoyable sight. Bonus: we brought back wine, cheese and saucisson.
Food Trek
Each year, I look forward to the food truck festivals. We dropped by the Food Trek in Rotterdam on a Sunday night. I stuffed myself with a hot dog, tortillas and a salted caramel crepe and most importantly, some rosé! It was a perfect warm evening. There was nice music and I also enjoyed dancing on silent disco. I already booked my September weekend for the Trek in the Hague.
For those who live outside of the Netherlands, this video will give you a feel of it.
Hoek van Holland
Scheveningen is closer to us so it's our go-to beach but we decided to try Hoek van Holland for a change. This beach is much 'smaller' than I expected but it is a fine location for some fresh air. The beach season has just begun and I want to visit more of them.
Sandal Days


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Brexit, Zika, Election, Oh My!
By Darren Munn, CFA
This quarter is a perfect example of how the market, and society in general, jumps from one fear to the next. The vast majority of the time, the fears come and go with little lasting effect. The end of the 2nd quarter ended with a bout of volatility over Brexit fears. As the third quarter started in July, the market bounced right back and now Brexit is hardly mentioned anymore. Then, with the Olympics in August, the Zika virus became a hot topic with fears of worldwide outbreaks. Yet not a single athlete contracted the virus. Now, attention has turned to the election and the fears of what will happen when the results come in. Yet the market continues to be resilient in the face of the fears. As the old adage goes, "the market climbs a wall of worry."
Many clients are asking about the impact of the election. In our last letter, we discussed how the market hates uncertainty. In the short term, until there is a certain and clear winner, both for president and congress, the market will probably bounce around with little progress. Once there is certainty about our next slate of leaders, I believe the market will likely celebrate with some small gains, regardless of who is elected.
Longer term, I don't believe the President has as much impact as many believe, but there is certainly impact. The result of the election will affect our expectations for future economic growth, which will influence how the markets do over the next 5-10 years. But this impact will likely only be marginal.
The third quarter was the best of the year for stocks and the worst for bonds – both of which have done reasonably well for the year. For both stocks and bonds, nearly all of the return for the third quarter came in July, with essentially flat markets in August and September.
- Employment continued to be steady with the unemployment rate at 4.9% and job openings increased to 5.8 million.
- Low oil & gas prices continue to save money for consumers.
- Oil & gas rig counts have continued increasing over the last few months, which is helping to stabilize the energy sector of the economy.
- Housing has continued moderate--but choppy--growth. Low interest rates have helped keep prices affordable.
Challenges & Risks
- Economic growth has been very sluggish: Q1 = .8%, Q2 = 1.4%
- Oil price declines are still working through the system and we are seeing the expected defaults from many energy companies.
- Oil dipped during the quarter, but came right back to the $50 range. So we got to enjoy some nice gas prices a little bit longer. But the end of sub-$2.00 gas is likely upon us.
- Interest rates – the Federal Reserve still did not raise interest rates in September and now only expects one increase for the year. The uncertainly has affected the markets and they seem to have painted themselves into a corner for a December rate hike just like last year.
- Government regulation is a huge drag. Health care costs are continuing to rise significantly & government interference in several areas (finance, education, energy) continue to limit economic growth.
Frankly, we are pleasantly surprised with how well the market has done this year considering the weak economic growth and uncertainty surrounding the election. Times like these reinforce the proven wisdom of diversification and not trying to time or predict the market.


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When I first started out with cloth diapers, I vowed to use cloth diapers and cloth diapers only. Many of my wonderful friends who also use cloth diapers admit to using disposables overnight. Despite their attempts at using cloth during the night, the results had been so disastrous that disposables were the only thing keeping the sheets dry in any way. When the choice comes between washing sheets every day and using disposables, I would pick the disposables too.
Fortunately for me, my desire to use cloth diapers all the time has been a success. When I first began with overnight cloth diapering, I used a Blueberry pocket diaper with two Blueberry bamboo inserts and one microfiber insert. Since that time, though, I have moved away from any type of cloth diapers and have begun using Best Bottoms almost exclusively.
I say almost exclusively because my use of Best Bottoms extends only partially to overnight. For the past few months now, I have consistently been using a Flip cover overnight with a Stay Dry Best Bottom insert, a microfiber overnight Best Bottom insert, and a FuzziBunz minky insert on my daughter. I love my Best Bottoms during the day, but I found that stuffing so much into the Best Bottom cover at night was only okay at best. I could stuff all of those inserts into the Best Bottom shell, but the results were too bulky, and sometimes an insert peeked out the back of the diaper, which could lead to wicking.
Instead, I have been stuffing a Stay Dry Best Bottom insert, a microfiber overnight Best Bottom insert, and a FuzziBunz minky inside a Flip cover. I am not a big fan of the Flip inserts, but I do really like the covers overnight. The flaps on the inside of the cover hold the three inserts firmly in place and prevent any wicking. Despite the lack of double leg gusset (which is one of the features that I love about my Best Bottoms), my daughter has yet to leak at night with my overnight Flips solution.
In addition to the Stay Dry Best Bottom insert, microfiber overnight Best Bottom insert, and FuzziBunz minky combination, I also have one hemp/cotton Best Bottom overnight insert that I pair with a Stay Dry Best Bottom insert and the two Blueberry bamboo inserts. Rotating among my seven Flip covers, I can have four overnight cloth diapers ready to go at any one time.
If you are looking for a cloth diaper solution that works overnight, then I highly recommend a Flip cover with a Stay Dry Best Bottom insert, a microfiber overnight Best Bottom insert, and a FuzziBunz minky insert. My sheets are always dry with this cloth diaper combination.
How do you cloth diaper overnight?
Heather Johnson is a blogger and cloth diapering mama. To learn more about her and her cloth diaper addiction, check out The Parenting Patch.
Image Credits
Cloth Diapers Overnight © 2013 Heather Johnson


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Sunday, October 16, 2011
Another kind of textscape: the architecture of consciousness
The New York Times architecture critic, Michael Kimmelman, has a news analysis piece today, "In Protest, the Power of Place." Kimmelman makes the point, convincingly, of the power of physical place both to create and nurture community and to become a powerful emblem of an idea. Zucotti Park may not be Tahrir Square (or the Bastille or the Parthenon) but it works as an icon that resonates with complex concepts and emotions and that will affect politics, policy, and maybe even history.