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Fall vs Autumn – Think About It!
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Mumfection

This weeks Topic

Fall vs Autumn

What do you call it? Is it fall or is it Autumn?

Me, I intermingle the two. Neither of them really sound right to me. I feel if I call it Fall, I’m being laid back, and not educated enough. However, when I say Autumn, I feel like maybe I’m being a bit snooty.

Can’t we find some inbetween name to call this beautiful season? I’m thinking something like Fling…Ya know because we have Winter and Summer, we should have Spring and Fling.

Ok maybe not. That sounds a bit funny. So here is what I learned on my quest to figure out why the two names for one season.
- It was originally called Harvest, because it is when the crops are harvested.
- Around the 16th and 17th centuries, more people began living in cities, so Harvest had less meaning
- Fall possibly came from the middle english term “Fall of the Leaf”
- Autumn came from the Latin term autumnus
- Both Fall and Autumn have origins meaning to fall from a great height.
So basically, our neighbors across the pond like to use their high class Autumn, while us colonizers over here were just content with the simple Fall.

So all this to tell you how much I love this season! Fall, Autumn, or Harvest – whatever you call it, is the best season of the year! It’s this time of year, I dearly miss my beloved New England. The trees out here in the west just don’t compare. I won’t complain too much though. We still get the perfect chill in the air here. Allowing for the season change to bring a change not only outside, but inside the home as well. Blankets are pulled out, fireplaces prepped, and comfort foods planned.

As some take the time to slow down in the spring and smell the flowers, I’m inviting you to slow down and get cozy around your front room with your family.

Welcome Harvest!

PS I’m totally going to start calling it Harvest now, because I live in a small farming town, and Harvest has meaning here!

Next Week’s Topic

As a Child, What was one of your biggest Fears?

The ground rules:
1. No Giveaways or reviews please, we want to stick to our topic or whatever
  thought provoking topic you have decided on your own. We want to get to know
  you personally not what you like or give out right?
2. Make sure that you follow all the hosts via GFC and/or Facebook! (Mumfection, Home Maid
  Simple)
3. Only thought provoking posts, which is why we always have a great topic
  for you prepared in case you are just having a blank day.
4. Make sure your post has our Think About it Thursday
  button!
5. Have fun, make some friends, follow, comment thoughtfully and above all
  else be respectful! Don’t forget to let people know which hop your visiting
  from!
6. Suggest a topic, this is not mandatory, but we would love your input and
  we will definitely consider it for future meme’s!! If your topic is chosen you
  could end up receiving an e-mail giving you a chance to be one of the
  co-host’s!!!
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September 27, 2012
Mailboxes – Think About It!
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and

Mumfection

This week’s topic

MailBoxes

What? Seriously, mailboxes. I want to hear your thoughts on mailboxes. Do you love them, hate them. Are you a P.O box only kind of person, or a two timer?

This thought was provoked by my good friend Diane’s post “I Have a Love Affair with my Mailbox” from last week.

I too have a love affair with my mailbox! Sigh. As Diane said, it brings a lot of junk, but yet I keep hoping to open it and find more than just junk. Why? Because I love my mailbox. I love getting mail, even junk. Silly it may sound, but I feel even if I get junk mail, then somebody out in the world was thinking about me. True right?

The days I really get let down when I open my mailbox, are the ones that contain nothing. Not even junk. I start thinking negative thoughts. Mostly along the lines of….eh hem….”I just wasted time coming out to check you!” Come on, Adelina, it took all of 10 seconds to walk to the mailbox, and check it.

Maybe if I feed my mailbox more, I would get more out of it? What do you think? See I keep sending letters to my brother (serving a 2year LDS mission in Boston), but he hasn’t written back yet. He’s been gone 6months. I know he’s busy, and honestly I’m not complaining. I enjoy sending him letters.

Since that’s the only mail I feed my mailbox, I should probably try giving it more. Maybe it will then give back some. It definitely couldn’t hurt.

It’s not just what’s inside the mailbox that I like. I like the look of mailboxes. Something about them just screams Home to me. How can you have a home without a mailbox? It just wouldn’t look right. My parents live in a neighborhood that shares a big box of mailboxes, all with keys, and then shared package slots. It’s great for safety concerns, especially if you live in a well off neighborhood. With all the crazies out there you’ve got to keep mail safe. I wouldn’t want one of those though. I prefer something more like this from bhg.com

Source: bhg.com via Bonnie on Pinterest

Or what about something sentimental like we see in Disney’s movie UP

Source: boards.weddingbee.com via Melissa on Pinterest

Next Week’s Topic

Fall vs Autumn. What do you call it?

The ground rules:
1. No Giveaways or reviews please, we want to stick to our topic or whatever
  thought provoking topic you have decided on your own. We want to get to know
  you personally not what you like or give out right?
2. Make sure that you follow all the hosts via GFC and/or Facebook! (Mumfection, Home Maid Simple, Tim and Angi’s)
3. Only thought provoking posts, which is why we always have a great topic
  for you prepared in case you are just having a blank day.
4. Make sure your post has our Think About it Thursday
  button!
5. Have fun, make some friends, follow, comment thoughtfully and above all
  else be respectful! Don’t forget to let people know which hop your visiting
  from!
6. Suggest a topic, this is not mandatory, but we would love your input and
  we will definitely consider it for future meme’s!! If your topic is chosen you
  could end up receiving an e-mail giving you a chance to be one of the
  co-host’s!!!
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September 20, 2012
Would you change anything about your child’s school? – Think About It

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Mumfection

Tim and Angi’s Blog

This weeks topic

3 Things You Would Like to Change About Your Child’s School

Most of us are a good couple weeks into school. If our kids are in a new school, we’ve had time to get to know it a bit. If it’s a school you’re kids have been going to forever, you probably know all the ins and outs. So let’s hear them.

For us, we’re at a new school, because our oldest just started Kindergarten. She actually went to preschool at the elementary school last year, but then we moved, so it’s new again. So far we are really enjoying it, but there are a few things I would love to change!

1) Pick a different start time! She has afternoon Kindergarten, that starts at 11:50. I just find it the craziest time. For us, lunch is served at 12, but Kindergarten doesn’t eat at the school, which means I’ve had to change our meal schedule. We now eat at 11. It has totally thrown me off, and my kids have had some funny “grazing” habits since.

2) A separate pick up area for Kindergarten. There is one turn around area for the whole elementary school, and since Princess V gets out the same time as the rest of the elementary, it makes pick up CRAZY! For the older kids, the parents pull up, wait for their kid, and take off. For parents of the Kindergarteners, we have to park, get out of the car, walk over and let the teacher see us, before they let our kid go. I totally get it, and I think that’s great actually for safety. However, I’ve got 3 smaller kids in the car, and tons of traffic from every other parent there. This is the only place for parents to park their car, besides on the street a good distance away. So I have to show up to the school 20 minutes before it’s out, just to get a good spot right next to the Kindergarten pick up area. That way I can wait until they come out, then leave the other kids in the car (don’t judge, they aren’t alone for more than a minute, and I can see them the whole time!). Totally cuts into Prince L’s napping time.

3) Keep the fence closed around the playground. I’ve periodically driven by the Elementary school during the day, and noticed the gate leading to the road is wide open, and kids are out playing. I get we live in a small town, but the fence and gate are there for a reason. Crazy people are everywhere, and kids are always looking for a quick escape. Get that gate closed!

Ok, theses are really silly and simple changes. Obviously, they all, except #3 have to deal with my opinion, and schedule. I totally don’t expect the school to change just to accomodate me. As far as I can tell, we have been very fortunate to move to a school district that truly cares about their kids learning!

Next weeks topic

Mailboxes. Let’s spill out thoughts on Mailboxes!

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September 13, 2012
Carpet in the Kitchen? – Think About it!
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Home Maid Simple

Mumfection

Tim and Angi’s

What do you love/hate about your kitchen?

I’m trying very hard to focus on the positives. I believe life just turns out better when you do that.

But there is a big Don’t Do EVER I just have to share with you.

Carpet in the kitchen.

I don’t think this should ever occur in any kitchen.

Why? The kitchen in most homes is a major gathering place. You cook and eat your meals here. You hang out as a family, playing games around the dinner table. To keep a carpet clean in a kitchen is extremely difficult. It requires daily vacuuming, and extremely careful cooking.

At one point in time there was some kind of grease spill in this kitchen. The corner by the oven is very sticky, and uncleanable. It makes me sad, really.

So please, do everyone a favor, and do not put carpet in your kitchen. Small area rugs are fine, not something I would do, but easier to care for then full on carpet. As a side note, this rule applies to bathrooms as well. Trust me, you do not want to clean carpet in the bathroom when the toilet overflows. blech.

To end positively, I do love these old cabinets! They’re deep, and they hold a lot! I’ve got the perfect amount of drawers, which I’ve always found lacking in other homes.

Now it’s your turn! Tell us what you love or hate about your kitchen. Do you agree with no carpet in the kitchen? Or just let us know what’s on your mind today. Link up your posts below.

The ground rules:
1. No Giveaways or reviews please, we want to stick to our topic or whatever
  thought provoking topic you have decided on your own. We want to get to know you
  personally not what you like or give out right?
2. Make sure that you follow all the hosts via GFC and/or Facebook! (Mumfection, Home Maid Simple, Tim and Angi’s)
3. Only thought provoking posts, which is why we always have a great topic
  for you prepared in case you are just having a blank day.
4. Make sure your post has our Think About it Thursday button!
5. Have fun, make some friends, follow, comment thoughtfully and above all
  else be respectful! Don’t forget to let people know which hop your visiting
  from!
6. Suggest a topic, this is not mandatory, but we would love your input and
  we will definitely consider it for future meme’s!! If your topic is chosen you
  could end up receiving an e-mail giving you a chance to be one of the
  co-host’s!!!
September 6, 2012
Real life friends vs Online friends – Think About It!
Hosted by

Home Maid Simple

Mumfection

Tim and Angi’s Blog

This week’s topic

Are facebook {online} friendships easier to maintain than real life friendships?

To really get us thinking today let’s look at the key words here –

Friendship – is a relationship between two people who hold mutual affection for each other (wikipedia)

Maintain – to keep in an existing state (as of repair, efficiency, or validity) : preserve from failure or decline (merriam-webster)

So what we’re looking at today is preserving our relationships with people we like. Is it easier to do this with our online friends? Or in real life?

Online friends. We have them. In this day and age, just about everyone has some sort of online social profile. It has brought people back together who lost contact. At the beginning of Facebook, I remember becoming so excited because I got to catch up with so many of my childhood friends. When your family moves across the country, it is very easy to lose contact with friends. Back then, there wasn’t Facebook. After a few months, I stopped sending letters, as I found new friends. So when Facebook came up, I was ecstatic. It allowed me to rekindle those long lost friendships.

The downside of online friends, is that if you have too many, some get lost. Instead of maintaining that friendship, they become stagnant, and sometimes forgotten.

Real Life Friends. Are fun! You can go out to lunch, or for ice cream, and experience the love and laughter you get in those situations. Are real life friends harder to maintain? Yes, because it takes more work than just turning on your computer. However, in my opinion, real life friends bring much more quality to your life. With our recent move, my friends took me out for ice cream before we left. It was some of the most fun I’ve had in awhile. These were friends that I would get together for playdates with our kids, watch each others kids so we could run errands, or help out when someone was sick. Online friends can offer support through words, but physically they’re not there.

I found myself in quite the pickle after our move. I knew no one around, and our internet took forever to hook up. So I was out both real life friends (that were nearby), and online friends. We finally got the internet hooked back up, and I just delved right back in, talking to friends like I’d never left. My real life friends are also some of my online friends. The aspect of our friendship has changed now, because we are not close by. I can’t run over and borrow a cup of sugar if needed. I miss that.

So what was really exciting? My neighbor stopped by yesterday and we sat on our front porch just chatting like we were old friends. She is so fun, and I can’t wait to put in the effort to get to know her more, and really grow this friendship. It’s more work, but it brings greater results in the end.

*To all my online friends reading this – I love you guys! I wish we all lived close by and could relax on a porch while our kids play. I would put effort into our friendship to make that last, but until we do meet, I will enjoy our online interactions!

Next week’s Topic

Kitchens. What do you love/hate about yours?

The ground rules:
1. No Giveaways or reviews please, we want to stick to our topic or whatever
  thought provoking topic you have decided on your own. We want to get to know
  you personally not what you like or give out right?
2. Make sure that you follow all the hosts via GFC and/or Facebook! (Mumfection, Home Maid Simple, Tim and Angi’s)
3. Only thought provoking posts, which is why we always have a great topic
  for you prepared in case you are just having a blank day.
4. Make sure your post has our Think About it Thursday
  button!
5. Have fun, make some friends, follow, comment thoughtfully and above all
  else be respectful! Don’t forget to let people know which hop your visiting
  from!
6. Suggest a topic, this is not mandatory, but we would love your input and
  we will definitely consider it for future meme’s!! If your topic is chosen you
  could end up receiving an e-mail giving you a chance to be one of the
  co-host’s!!!
August 30, 2012
Back to School – Think About it Thursday

Your hosts for this weekly meme are

Home Maid Simple

Mumfection

Tim and Angi’s Blog

I’m so sorry about the lack of last week’s post. We were having internet problems with the move. So welcome back to Think About it Thursday. A weekly meme to let our thoughts spill out. Use the suggested topic, or write about whatever you want. Then link up your post in the linky at the bottom of this page.

This week’s suggested Topic

Back To School

I don’t have much to say on this really. I’m nervous and excited. I almost feel like a kid again, ready for the new year, but nervous about making friends. Only this time it’s for my kids. Our oldest is starting Kindergarten this year. While the second will be in preschool.

For the longest time I was baffled hearing about mom’s crying when their kids started school. I just didn’t get it. When Princess V went to preschool last year, I was so excited for her! This year is different though. I don’t know why. Maybe my emotions are finally in check. She’s starting Kindergarten, and I do kind of want to cry. My baby is growing up and going to school. She’s going to make lots of friends, and learn so much. Before I know it, she’ll want to spend more time with her friends than with me and her sisters. She’ll want to do her own hair, and pick out her own clothes (ok, she already does that, but I still have a little say). Today she has a Kindergarten test. Every other grade has begun school, but they test the kindergarteners individually the first couple days, and won’t actually start class until next week. Today is Princess V’s appointment. She has been so excited, and I’ve been so nervous. I think she’s right on track, but I know we could have focused more on numbers over the summer. Isn’t she cute though? Grandma P took her school clothes shopping while they were visiting. I’ve kept all the clothes in a bag waiting for this day. So first thing this morning she and I pulled out the school clothes. Isn’t she a doll?

Now it’s time for Princess C to go to preschool. If we hadn’t moved, she had made it into the same preschool Princess V went to last year. But we moved. They have a district preschool, but it’s focused mostly on kids who are behind. Princess C knows just about as much as Princess V so I don’t think she’s behind. They’ve put her on a waiting list though. They like having kids who are on track to be role models for those behind. If she can get in, great, but I’m looking elsewhere. Mark has found an in home preschool that sounds like it has potential, I just haven’t gotten the number from him yet. I’m also considering just doing home preschool with her. I know she really needs the social aspect of being with other kids though. She has a ton of energy, and I can’t always keep up with her. She is my social bug.

My mom taught me preschool and kindergarten at home. I didn’t go to public school until first grade. When we first had kids that was my plan. I saw no need for preschool and kindergarten outside of the home. My tune has changed though. My kids love being around other kids. They love learning. Plus by going elsewhere to school I am able to give more focused time to the smaller kids. Having 4 kids so close in age sometimes makes it very difficult to give each one the individual time they need. When the older two get home from school I’ll be able to focus some time on just them. While they are at school, I plan on having some fun activities for Princess R and Prince L. We’ll go grab a hot cocoa at the Hot Spot, hang out at the library, and do our own crafts together.

I later found out my mom kept me home until 1st grade because there was no preschool or kindergarten to send me to. She did what she did out of neccessity. If it comes to it, I will do home preschool, but if we can I know Princess C will really thrive with someone else in a social atmosphere.

August 23, 2012
Is too much computer time bad? Think About It!

Your hosts for this weekly meme are

Home Maid Simple

Mumfection

Tim and Angi’s Blog

Today’s Topic:
Is spending too much time on the computer bad?

I think the obvious answer to this question is yes. Anything that is too much, is bad.

Too much sun is bad for you. Skin cancer, really painful sunburns, etc

Too much candy/sweets are bad for you.

Too much sleep can be bad, or a signal that something is wrong with your body.

Individually though, these can all be good things as well. The sun provides a wonderful source of Vitamin D, has helped my jaundiced kids get better, and is a mood lifter for me and many others on depressing days.

Candy is yummy, and a great treat or reward for accomplishing something.

Sleep is necessary, though most of us struggle to find that perfect balance. Without sleep we don’t function to the best of our abilities. Sleep lets our bodies relax, and take a breather. (speaking of sleep, I should probably get some!).

So what about computers? Too much time spent on the computer can be bad. That doesn’t make the computer bad, or any amount of time spent on it bad. As with all things, we need to moderate it. Evaluate your day.

Let’s try a little exercise shall we? Take a 24 hour day. 12am to 12am. Break it down. How much time is spent sleeping? For me it’s probably 7-8 hours, depending on when the kids get up, and when I go to bed. Now how much time is spent eating? Are you taking the time to prep meals for your family? Or are you making them fend for themselves while you check out what happened on facebook while you slept? Are you enjoying a sit down dinner with the family, or are you pulling out the tv trays for your kids, while you check the nightly news on the computer?

The rest of the day here depends on what your profession is. How much time are you at work? How much time do you spend cleaning? If you have kids, how much time is spent playing with them, helping them with homework, doing what they want to do?

Now how much time is left, and how much time has been spent on the computer? Are you spending too much time on the computer?

Source: someecards.com via Samantha on Pinterest

If you can relate to this, you’ve spent too much time on the computer.

I’ll be the first to admit, that there are some days, I have spent too much time on the computer. Things begin to get neglected, but I just can’t pull myself away from this online world we have created. I have to though. My kids need me, my husband needs me. My house needs me! I can gladly say though, that I have never been guilty of the above picture! When I pin something, I make it eventually too. That’s a whole ‘nother topic though!

For the last almost week, I have been without internet. We moved into our rental house, while we look for a new home, and the internet has yet to be connected. I am finding so much joy in just sitting down with my kids, especially my little Princess R. Just holding them, and doing what they want to do. It’s not that I wasn’t doing this before, but I was always on the move before. Something always had to be done, including online things, that I just didn’t take the time to truly enjoy and relish in the spare moments I had with my kids. Living without internet has been a nice step back.

However, we just moved. I don’t know anyone in this very small town yet. I have wanted to shed some tears over many a topic. There’s a nice bunch of my mom friends scattered across the internet, that I missed, because I knew they could give me words of advice in a much needed time of emotional upheaval. I wanted to let some vents out, that I didn’t want to burden Mark with. You know guys, they want to fix everything, and sometimes we girls just need to be heard with no fixing involved. Plus I just felt bad complaining to Mark. Get this, though! Since I couldn’t vent to my online friends, I did to Mark, and he was a good listener. So lack of internet/computer actually brought our marriage relationship closer too. (I still missed my girlfriends though).

Stay tuned later today for a guest post on some fun Summer Activities to get you off the computer and outside!

Next week’s topic:

Who would you choose to be shipwrecked on a desert island with?

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August 9, 2012
Back to School or Back to Testing … Think About It!

Your hosts for this weekly meme are

Home Maid Simple

Mumfection

Tim and Angi’s Blog

Today’s Topic:

Has education become more about temporary results and grades than long term success and knowledge?

My kids have not made it to testing grades yet, so from personal experience, I don’t have much to say on this issue. However, I am married to a school teacher, and am the daughter of 2 school teachers. I have many friends who teach as well. From what I have seen, and read, we have become too focused on testing. Instead of teachers being able to really get down and teach the kids, and help those struggling, while also pushing those advanced, they’ve been stuck just trying to get every kid to pass a test.

Why? What happened? Well school’s started relying on test scores to get their funding. If scores aren’t good enough, they could lose some funding. It used to be that tests were used as an evaluation as a whole so the teachers knew where to help the kids. What were they struggling with? What did they have a good knowledge of? No longer. Now it’s an evaluation of how well the teachers must be doing.

I see where this may have been a good idea. It would help weed out those teachers who weren’t really teaching, and help push to keep kids at a level they should be at.

It’s gone south though. Now it’s all teachers can focus on. The test scores. Teach the kids what they need to know to pass the test, and forget the rest.

One major problem is that the smart kids are getting left behind now. Even advanced learning kids need an environment that will teach them and motivate them to keep learning. Otherwise, they will get bored, and fall behind the rest of the kids, or become mischievous.

My opinion is that the money needs to be removed from test scores. A revamp of how teachers are evaluated needs to occur. And kids should be taught at a pace they can really thrive in, whether it’s slowly, or advanced. We need to tailor a little more to every child’s learning need.

Next week’s topic:

Is spending too much time on your computer bad?

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August 2, 2012
When a joke isn’t funny – Think About It!

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Your hosts for this weekly meme are

Home Maid Simple

Mumfection

Tim and Angi’s Blog

This weeks topic
What, if anything, is too serious to be joked about?

Next week’s topic
Has education become more about temporary results and grades than long term success and knowledge?

So what is too serious to be joked about? Can a sense of humor go too far? I do believe it can. I love a good joke like the next person. Laughing is a great release of chemicals especially for anyone suffering depression.

For me personally a joke has gone too far when it brings others down. Race, Religion, and Disability are my big no’s. They just shouldn’t happen. I remember my brother saying some racist jokes when we were kids. At the time, it was funny. I have since learned better. It is rude and tears others down. When one of my other brothers was in middle school he was often taken advantage of. Kids could get him to do just about anything if he thought they would be his friends for doing it. Because of this, he highly offended someones religion and lifestyle by saying something someone else told him to. I won’t repeat it, because it’s in the past, and it was just wrong. These kids took advantage of my brothers need for friends to belittle someone else. Mark was accused at one point of making fun of a kid with a disability. We don’t know why this accusation was thrown out there, but it wasn’t true. Mark’s dad has Parkinsons, so he knows especially how hard those who have physical limitations fight to do the best they can.

Right now, however the biggest issue I am personally facing is my religion. I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Commonly referred to as a Mormon. With the upcoming elections here in the USA, and Mitt Romney running, my faith has been brought quite center stage. If you didn’t know it yet, Mitt Romney is a member of my faith as well. Sadly, I have seen my church drug through the mud. We get attacked on all sides almost constantly. Actually ever since our church was established we’ve been persecuted. There have been quite a few shows with little references to Mormon culture. Some are horribly inaccurate and insensitive. But, some are extremely funny. Take this clip from the show Cheers. I find it quite hilarious.

Where do I draw the line? When something I hold very sacred is made fun of, is called names, and thrown around like a piece of meat. You hurt me when you do that. Please respect me. Respect that I have a faith in something I believe is the truth. I will respect you. You can worship as you please, and I will not make fun of you. I just ask the same in return.

I find it intriguing that Catholics wear a cross to remind them of the Crucifixion. I think the little hats those of the Jewish faith wear are a wonderful outward symbol of their faith.

You don’t have to agree with what I believe. Just please respect me. Respect my faith, and please don’t make fun of something that someone else holds very sacred.

Now it’s your turn! We’d love to hear your
opinion on the topic, or anything else! Below are the rules for this linky.

The ground rules:
1) No Giveaways or reviews please, we want to stick
to our topic or whatever thought provoking topic you have decided on your own.
We want to get to know you personally not what you like or give out right?
2)
Make sure that you follow all the hosts! (Mumfection, Home Maid Simple, Tim and
Angi’s). Pop in and let them know you’re following via GFC and/or Facebook (or
whatever your following method is).
3) Only thought provoking posts, which is
why we always have a great topic for you prepared in case you are just having a
blank day.
4) Make sure your post has our Think About it Thursday
button!
5) Have fun, make some friends, follow, comment thoughtfully and
above all else be respectful!
6) Lastly, we would love it if you
suggest some topics for us to discuss! Who knows if we pick your topic, we may
feature your blog!

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July 26, 2012
Should kids share a room? – Think About It!

<a href=”http://homemaidsimple.blogspot.com”><img src=”http://i1192.photobucket.com/albums/aa339/HomeMaidSimple/ThinkThursday.jpg” alt=”BWS tips button” width=”150″ height=”175″ /></a>

Welcome to the first ever Think About it Thursday!

Your hosts for this weekly meme are

Home Maid Simple

Mumfection

Tim and Angi’s Blog

Each week on Thursday’s we will be discussing a different thought provoking topic. We would love for anyone to join with us. We will give out a pre-chosen topic a week in advance that you are welcome to blog about. BUT don’t feel you have to stick to that topic. Anything that’s on your mind that you want to share is welcome! We just offer the topic for those weeks where your mind is blank.

Alright with that out of the way, here is this weeks topic!

Children sharing a room Vs. Having their own room
Next week’s topic – What things/topics are too serious to be joked about?

This has been on my mind for a bit now. I don’t remember how long ago it was now, but within the last year, we put Princess V (our oldest) in her own room. We felt it would make bedtime smoother. So far it has actually worked pretty well. The younger two girls still share their own room, and of course Prince L has his own room. I like the set up. When we first decided to put Princess V in her own room, Mark wanted to put one Princess C in her own room, and keep Princess V with Princess R. It was really a hard decision. We ended going with Princess V because as the oldest we can trust her to go to sleep on her own, while we help the others.

Why not Princess C? Because I know she would get scared frequently, and we would have to still help her fall asleep.

Why not Princess R? We’ve been there done that, and we still end up needing one adult in each room to keep the kids settled down and in bed.
So we went with Princess V, and really it has made for some better nights. Princess V can put herself to bed with a hug and kiss from us, then I can take care of getting Prince L in bed while Mark reads to the other 2 or sings to them with the ukulele.

What about sharing a room? Personally I love the idea of kids sharing a room. I think it teaches them how to share a space, but still be their own person. I actually grew up sharing not only a room with my 2 sisters, but for awhile my sister just younger than me, and I shared a queen bed. Eventually I got my own bed, and my younger 2 sisters shared the queen. It wasn’t until I was in high school and a senior that I actually got my own room. My very first room all to myself, was in the laundry room! There were some nights my mom had to do laundry late, and I just had to sleep with the dryer pounding away. I missed my sisters, but it also felt freeing to have my own room. I could keep the light on and read as long as I wanted without bothering anyone else. I could set an alarm and not worry it would wake anyone else.

So should kids share a room, or have separate rooms? Why is this really on my mind right now? Well, as we look for a new job for Mark, we also have to look for a new house. Mark would love for all the kids to have their own room. I think they should share. It’s just good for them and creating a lasting bond as siblings. If we happen to buy a house with enough rooms for each to have their own, well I wouldn’t oppose it. Having a room to go to for quiet, and “alone time” as we call it, could be nice. The problem we’re running into right now though, is Princess V will often slam her door shut and yell at her sisters to get out of her room. I feel she has become too detached from her sisters, and she’s only 5! So even if we get a house with that many rooms, I may still have them share for awhile (and then I’ll get a craft room!), just for the sake of learning to bond and work things out.

I would really just love to have some awesome bunk beds like these too:

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Now it’s your turn! We’d love to hear your opinion on the topic, or anything else! Below are the rules for this linky.

The ground rules:
1) No Giveaways or reviews please, we want to stick to our topic or whatever thought provoking topic you have decided on your own. We want to get to know you personally not what you like or give out right?
2) Make sure that you follow all the hosts! (Mumfection, Home Maid Simple, Tim and Angi’s). Pop in and let them know you’re following via GFC and/or Facebook (or whatever your following method is).
3) Only thought provoking posts, which is why we always have a great topic for you prepared in case you are just having a blank day.
4) Make sure your post has our Think About it Thursday button!
5) Have fun, make some friends, follow, comment thoughtfully and above all else be respectful!
6) Lastly, we would love it if you suggest some topics for us to discuss! Who knows if we pick your topic, we may feature your blog!

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July 19, 2012