eSpecially Ben

Will be back in full force next week - sick last week and then Uncle Brian (my brother) visited this week. Check this out in the meantime: Story about a Dad who creates an amusement park for kids with special needs.

 Ben, age 6 1/2 Not just an ordinary painted tree. First, tape is added for the branch effect. Second, paint over the tape and finally, pull the tape off. Pretty cool! Check out other works of art at Magic Marker Monday .

Ben's summer camp, coordinated through the Therapeutic Recreation Division of the county park service is planning a fundraiser called Amazing Race , based on the reality TV show . Teams of two will compete on Saturday, March 20, for a trophy.  Being a person who lives on the edge, I signed up right away. My teammate and I will solve challenging puzzles, find crazy hidden messages and possibly eat dead worms - I made that last part up (I hope).  We do have to know our local history. Our starting time for the day of the event is based on our score on a trivia contest a few days before the race. On the day of the race, we have to walk and run to get to each location. No cars, bicycles, mopeds or public transportation allowed. No mention of brooms, though. Ben has attended this camp for the past three years on scholarship. It is a wonderful camp offering really cool weekly field trips to amusement parks, zoos, and Monkey Joe's .  Each group goes swimming at a special zero entr

 "My Three Sweet Flower Girls" Check out other Special Exposure Wednesday Photos .

Why the Challenge? In my effort to turn 40 this year as a healthy, less stressed and fit woman, wife and mom, I challenged myself to run a race a month this year. I was inspired by another mom blogger who wrote about skipping her own doctor's appointments, gaining weight, eating poorly and then finally realizing that putting her own health in jeopardy was dangerous business for her entire family. I hope to spread this inspiration to other parents who may need to challenge themselves to take better care of their health. This can translate to mean more time with friends, reading a favorite book at the coffee shop alone, taking hikes or enrolling in a cooking class. The challenge for parents is to put themselves before their families once in awhile to enjoy something without feeling guilty, anxious or regretful. Race Update I finished my second race, a 5K at UNC Charlotte .  It was a tough one because of the hills. I expected them, but had not trained well for them. My trainer

  Since Ben was born, I have taken advantage of the photo studios with the low price package specials. They usually include a 10"x13" enlargement. Not knowing what to do with such a large photo, I decided to laminate them to be used as placemats.  The kids love to use these placemats because it is fun for them to see themselves as babies. It is a great way to keep the photos preserved. We also play the game, Whose that baby? The Halloween photo is the most confusing because they are all wearing the same pumpkin outfit. The lamination was done at Office Max , costs no more than $3. Use their largest size, do not cut it down. Be sure to put the child's name, age and year the photo was taken on the back in permanent marker before lamination.  An 8"x10" photo may be used also - in fact the second placemat has the smaller photo. When the kids get older, I will allow them to use wipe-off markers to "decorate" the photos adding mustaches, spiky hair and

After my post, Brotherly Love , I received an email from a reader who reminded me of this song. I knew the song, but had never really thought about the words and the meaning behind them. I looked it up and thought others might see the lyrics in a new light.   He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother The road is long With many a winding turn That leads us to who knows where Who knows when But I'm strong Strong enough to carry him He ain't heavy, he's my brother. So on we go His welfare is of my concern No burden is he to bear We'll get there For I know He would not encumber me If I'm laden at all I'm laden with sadness That everyone's heart Isn't filled with the gladness Of love for one another. It's a long, long road From which there is no return While we're on the way to there Why not share And the load Doesn't weigh me down at all He ain't heavy, he's my brother. He's my brother He ain't h