By brandyellen on May 22, 2012
On warm days we like to take out our $5 sprinkler we got at Ocean State Job Lots and have some fun. The most recent experience of having the sprinkler on brought out an idea that my three year old son and nine year old daughter had, let’s do a coup car wash. So Mister K did as his sister commanded and brought over his toy coup car.
He worked so hard to get this car off of the top of our hill in the yard over to where the sprinkler was.
Notice how his sister is right behind his car? Yeah, she had a plan alright… let’s push my three year old brother as close to the sprinkler as possible.
Mister K decided he had enough of being soaked and so his sister, ever so kindly turned his coup car around.
After all you have to wash both the front and back of the toy coup car, right?
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Posted in Brandy's Life | Tagged Aleppo, Car wash, Colorado Springs, Damascus, Irrigation, Irrigation sprinkler, Middle East, Syria |
By brandyellen on May 21, 2012
Last weekend my family and I decided to venture out and take in the scenes of an old railroad track turned four wheeling trail. There is this old train bridge, not sure if it is really a train bridge per say but that’s what my three year old son calls it, and he’s been begging to check it out.
The view was gorgeous, and although I am extremely afraid of heights we did capture some great family photos. One thing that our family enjoys doing together is taking walks, but we don’t like taking walks down the main road, rather we enjoy going hiking up a mountain or checking out various trails in the woods.
We happened upon a fly fisherman and a jogger while out on this trail and we even saw an elevation marker. You see, I grew up near this trail and even though I had walked it in my teen years, I had never walked this side of the trail so it was a new experience for me in addition to my sons.
Sight seeing and walking along this old railroad track turned four wheeling track really was relaxing. I laughed a lot. I gritted my teeth while my sons stood way too close for comfort at the top of the bridge, but overall I had a wonderful time. I love nature and it seems I am lucky to have children who love nature as much as me.
What do you all do, as a family, that is a pleasant experience for all?
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Posted in Brandy's Life | Tagged Base on balls, elevation 1000' above sea level, family, hiking, mommy blogger, nh mom, NH mom blogger, NH railroad trails, Organizations, Outdoor, Recreation, Tracking (hunting), Trail |
By brandyellen on May 20, 2012
Children are and have always been important to me, think about it; children are our future. Why would we not rank them of high importance? Children are loving, honest and kind, born into this world with such a curiosity about the world around them and the ability to have no filter on their mouths. I admit, the truthful nature of children can certainly take you back, make your jaw drop and sometimes make you giggle, with that being said, children are a true blessing. They come in all shapes and sizes with brain power in that little baby head beyond our understanding.
What happens when you insert the children of this world into the real world and they start to hear other people’s views? These children who are sweet and innocent by birth end up being influenced by their environment, heck even kids who haven’t yet walked outside of their family unit on their own yet have a lot of environmental factors inside of their own home that change the way they handle other people and view their own self.
I am a firm believer in genetics playing a key role in who we are, but I am also a firm believer that no matter what genetics have instilled within our own self, that we can truly become whom ever we wish to be. During the tween and teen years it’s extremely difficult for a child to do more than just follow their peers. Peer pressure plays a key role during this time of a child’s life and it’s up to the adults in this child’s life to have already formed a special bond with their child to ensure that peers are not able to fully affect this child in a negative way.
One thing that happens all too often and is overlooked more than I care to get into is verbal & emotional abuse. Having been a victim of said crime, I can tell you from experience that verbal & emotional abuse will hurt you far longer than the bruise placed on you from physical abuse. Yes, physical abuse leaves major scars, both inside & outside, which is probably why physical abuse is reported & addressed more often than emotional & verbal abuse.
What can we do to stop children from being emotionally & verbally abused by their loved ones? I don’t wish to have the government raise our children, we don’t need “laws” from government to tell us how to parent, what we do need is to remember that it takes a village to raise a child and whether you are related to this child & fear that speaking up will cause damage to the relationship you have with the abuser or you have learned what society says is acceptable “to mind your own parental business”, you need to speak up. You need to follow your gut instinct, listen to the child who is telling you about this verbal & emotional abuse and by all means do not let emotional & verbal abusers get off the hook so easy.
Someone who is abusing a child emotionally & verbally clearly has their own deep dark scars and demons that they have to address. We can not force a verbally & emotionally abusive person to change, but what we can do is save that child from the pain & suffering that will forever hold them back from being able to grow into a well rounded, happy adult. We, as a community, need to spread knowledge, speak up about verbal and emotional abuse. Get the word out that we, as a community, will no longer sit back and allow agencies to toss emotional & verbal abuse out the back window but rather face it, solve it and save a child from having to face their own demons & scars forced upon them by their abuser later in life in order to have a fully well balanced life.
Speak up, Speak out against abuse of children both physically & emotionally. We, the people, have the power to help our future adults enjoy their childhood fully.
Posted in children, parenting | Tagged Adolescence, Child, Child abuse, fight back for our children, knowledge is power, nh blogger, NH family, NH mom blogger, NH Mother, Peer pressure, Physical abuse, Psychological abuse, Verbal abuse, what can I do to help abused children |
By brandyellen on May 19, 2012
I finally was able to sit down and watch The Vow, a movie I had wanted to see upon it’s theater release, however, being a work from home mother of three going to the theater rarely happens. I sat down with popcorn in bowl and clicked play, prepared to release whatever emotions The Vow brought out.
The one thing I walked away from with the movie The Vow was the fact that we tend to hold higher standards for our loved ones. The person we married or are in a long term commitment with are sometimes held to such a high standard that one small mistake is held against them forever. It’s impossible for us to be perfect so why do so many partners think that their partner could not make a single mistake during the length of their relationship?
There is a spot in the movie when the mother of the woman who lost her memory says something along the lines of; “I chose to not hold one bad thing he did against him and remember all of the good things. I chose to forgive.” In all honesty, I think we would have a lower divorce rate in America if more couples made such a decision, the power of forgiveness goes a long way. I personally have more respect for those who have wronged me, admitted their wrong doing and allowed me a chance to forgive them. I live my life without grudge, without bitterness because I was able to simply forgive them.
This is not to say that I am friends with the various friends who wronged me any longer, but I did choose to forgive them. I, myself, have been forgiven in the past for wrong doing in a relationship. I was merely 18 years old and I recall how wonderful it felt to have that person I was dating forgive me. I confessed to him my wrong doing, he was upset but the end result was forgiveness. You see, those who end up doing wrong to their loved one may not do it maliciously, we are all human, we all have tests and temptations that come into our lives; sometimes temptation is so strong that we can’t seem to fight it.
If you are honest with the person you love or you are in a position where the person you love is honest with you, remember that forgiveness is an amazing tool. More often than not, if the person who did wrong is truly remorseful for what they have done to hurt you, then your forgiveness and ability to move forward in the relationship can change the way you two live and love. So I say, remember that we are all human, learn that forgiveness is not being weak, realize that the power of forgiveness is a strength within you that you can use to better your life, your relationships and your family.
The river of life has turbulence but learning how to handle that turbulence in a positive way is what will allow you to have a free heart, soul and mind to love and be loved.
Posted in Brandy's Life | Tagged forgiveness is powerful, how do I forgive my partner, I love my family, my partner cheated, NH, nh blogger, NH mom blogger, NH mommy, relationships, the vow |
By brandyellen on May 19, 2012
List your giveaways here every Saturday at 12am EST! This linky is scheduled each week so you can list your giveaways and so that you can enter them if you wish! Enjoy the list!
Please include the end date of the giveaway when linking up.
For newbies you should enter details something like this:
Blog Name, Giveaway Item (end date)
My Current Giveaways on Site
Land o Lakes Al-Natural Eggs Prize Package Ends May 26th
DOLE Real Fruit Bites Ends May 24th
Here is where you list your giveaways ….
Posted in giveaways | Tagged blog contests, blog giveaway link up, contests from bloggers, I want to win something, NH mom blogger, where can i list my giveaways |
By brandyellen on May 18, 2012
Each and every morning at my house goes something like this;
Alarm finally wakes me, after dinging for 15 minutes.
I hit snooze, multiple times.
Ki comes in to wake me.
Boys wake up and come in to my room demanding breakfast.
Finally I drag my butt out of bed to get them ready for school.
However, one fine morning after going to sleep around one in the morning, I woke up wide awake after a really odd, but life like dream to find that my sons were talking. I glanced over at my video and audio monitor to see that both boys were on top of the bunk bed just hanging out.
I slowly closed my eyes.
Then at 6:38am I hear “I bet you can’t jump off the top bunk bed” and “I can, I not scared” … that would be the five year old son daring the “I have no fear” three year old to jump off of the top bunk bed.
I jump out of bed, suddenly more awake than I was a moment ago.
Pressing the microphone button on the audio & video monitor I inform the boys that they best not jump off of that bed and that I am coming down to get them. Of course my morning scratchy voice makes them think that Daddy is coming because apparently I sound like a man in the morning.
The boys start laughing, saying “daddy is coming, quick jump off the bed”.
I race down the stairs trying not to slip down them in my slipper socks and am yelling that they best not dare jump off of that bed and that I am coming. I walk into their room to find that they want to leap, without notice, off of top bunk bed into my arms.
If that doesn’t wake a parent up, I don’t know what else would. I love my boys, but in all honesty, I was not prepared for the things that happen while raising these little boys.
Posted in Brandy's Life, children | Tagged Bed, Bedroom, bloggers, Bunk bed, Child, children, Furniture, Glossary of chess, Mattress, mom blogger in NH, mommy blogger, nh family blogging, NH mom Blog, NH mommy |
By brandyellen on May 18, 2012
The modern workplace is safer than it has ever been, and part of the reason for this is that in recent years many businesses have chosen to make a concerted effort when it comes to health and safety education and training.
The health of a workforce is down to the employer supplying the necessary equipment, conditions, and training to ensure a safe working environment. Employees have a duty of care to themselves and their colleagues, and need to ensure that they use equipment properly and follow all instructions and training provided to them by their employers.
Key areas for health and safety training
There are several key areas that should to be considered when planning health and safety training for a business.
Fire: Fire safety is a very important consideration no matter what the size of your premises. You should ensure that there are regular fire drills, and all members of staff should be familiar with the emergency exits and all procedures connected with safe evacuation of the building in the event of a fire.
Hazardous materials: If your business involves the handling of chemicals or other hazardous materials, proper training in the safe handling and use of hazardous substances is vital. Everyone who works with these substances needs to be aware of the specific dangers associated with any material, as well as how different substances react with each other. The proper storage of hazardous materials is another area that must be considered when a training plan is being implemented. When dealing with hazardous materials, formal training and qualifications may be required to ensure that the relevant staff members have a complete understanding of all of the above concerns.
Electrical: Electrical safety is another key part of most health and safety training programmes. Every workplace will have electrical equipment and it is important that this equipment is regularly tested and maintained to the highest standards. Staff should be instructed on the safe operation of all electrical equipment.
Machinery: Working with any type of machinery requires proper education and training. Whether the machinery in question is part of a production line, a specific type of vehicle, or a hoist or lift the workers operating them need to be aware of the hazards they present to both themselves and to other people in the area where the machinery is being used.
An awareness of general hazards is also crucial to the operation of a safe workplace. Tripping hazards, the handling of heavy goods, proper disposal of waste and garbage, and the storage of non-hazardous materials are for the most part not complicated or dangerous, but employees still need to be aware of any potential hazards and perform these tasks correctly.
Records and audits
No matter the industry, keeping clear and concise records is crucial; complete records should be kept of any training given to staff, and the maintenance of electrical and mechanical equipment. Should there be an incident or accident, a full investigation should be performed to determine the cause(s) as soon as possible and a report should then be generated detailing why the incident occurred and what steps have been taken to ensure that further incidents will be avoided.
Regular health and safety audits are also crucial in helping to ensure a safe workplace. They can be carried out by trained staff within an organization or by individuals brought in from outside the company who have specific expertise in health and safety. These audits help to focus managers and employees on keeping the workplace as safe as possible, and it is important that any recommendations made as the result of an audit are carried out as quickly and thoroughly and possible.
Posted in Guest Bloggers | Tagged business, Dangerous goods, Electrical equipment, Employment, Health, Health & Safety, Occupational Health & Safety, Workplace safety |
By brandyellen on May 17, 2012
I am a night owl, always have been and probably always will be. It’s just something about the quiet night time hours that really assists in allowing your mind to wander and then settle upon those questions you have through out the day about where life is heading. Once my children are fast asleep I find it difficult to settle down to bed right away, usually I am awake past midnight writing blog posts or, as of recently, reading a good book.
Now that both of my sons actually sleep through the night on a more consistent basis I am able to indulge in some “me time” once they are asleep in their bunk bed. Late night is the time when my mind wanders and I start writing parts of my various manuscripts for my some day to be published novels and my creative side really comes out during such silent times. I just wish my creative night owl mind could wrap around one manuscript so that I didn’t have to weed through various novel topics and could truly finish one someday soon.
No matter what happens during the day, no matter how exhausted I am, once my kids are asleep this Mama gets a burst of energy that refuses to allow my mind to settle down to bed at a decent hour.
Posted in Brandy's Life | Tagged Arts, Batman, Caffeine, NightOwl, owl, Research, Stanford University, Writers Resources |
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