8 Habits I'm Learning About

Such a long time since I have posted anything. I feel like I am just coming out of an intense fog or some sort of hibernation. I almost forgot about this blog and what its purpose was. The search for an understanding of freedom and how to impart this knowledge to my children.

I was introduced to a book called ," The 7 Habits of Happy Kids" by Sean Covey. A tremendous children's book that illustrates Stephen Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. As a family, we have been studying the 7 Habits and I have been trying to implement them into our family culture. Here are the 7 Habits:

1. Be Proactive: You are in Charge.
2. Begin with the End in Mind: Have a plan.
3. First Things First
4. Think Win-Win
5. Seek first to Understand, then to be Understood
6. Synergize: Work as a Team
7. Sharpen the Saw

I am now reading the book, " The 8th Habit" by Stephen Covey. The 8th habit is to Find Your Voice and to inspire others to find their voice.

Can you imagine the freedom that comes from implementing these habits. At this point, the habits are giving me a language in which to guide my family. When the kids are bored I can say, "Be Proactive: You are in Charge". When the boys need to clean their room I can say, "Let's Synergize". I am loving this new change in our family and I have great hopes for the positive feelings that can envelop our family if we practice these habits.

Adam's Baptism

It was a special day for Adam October 25, 2008 when his dad was able to baptize him a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Many of Adam's family were in attendance and when asked how he felt after the baptism Adam said, "I feel better." Our family sang, "I Like My Birthdays Every One" and Abby played the piano for us. Mac Hicken gave the talk about the Holy Ghost and Auntie Krissy said the prayer. What a beautiful day

WOW time flies

I have been so very busy learning and growing that I haven't posted a thing in almost 6 months. That is just not acceptable so I endeavor to remedy that and do a catch up post.

The summer ended with a baseball tournament, swim meets, Liber Youth Retreat and two boys birthdays.

Carter and I had a fantastic time at Liber Youth Retreat near Sylvan Lake. For 3 days the youth discussed books they had read, put on skits for each other, heard great motivational speakers and simulated difficult situations. They learned that each of them has a special purpose and that it is their job to figure out what it is. Carter met some great friends and enjoyed every minute of it.

Abby is our swimmer. She loves to swim in the summer time and does very well at the meets. She had some great coaches this year that were very inspirational and I know she learned a lot.

Abby spent a whole month with her Grandma and Grandpa Witbeck. Two weeks in Kelowna and Two weeks in Utah. She really enjoyed herself and I know she will always have great memories of the summer of 2008

Bienvenido a Miami

What a great time we had in Miami. I wish the whole family could have been there. The weather was perfect and we had such a great time. I was so glad to see my grandfather. It had been 3 years since I had seen him. He is doing great. I was so glad that I could take my two youngest children to see him. It had been 5 years since he had seen them. He said that he was pleasantly surprised by their behavior. I'm not sure what my mother had been telling him but I am glad that he enjoyed our company.

We spent 10 days on Miami Beach. My grandfather lives in a Condo right on the beach. The last picture shows the view from his balcony. We played at the pool and beach everyday. We also took a trip to the Miami Seaquarium. The kids saw animals they had only seen on tv. Orca, dolphins, sealions, iguana, cranes, sharks, and alligators.

It was such a relaxing time. I know it was a trip the boys will always remember.

June The Busiest Month of the Year

Once I finished teaching piano lessons I thought life would slow down a bit. Boy was I wrong. Life seemed to speed up. Soccer, Baseball, Horsebackriding, recitals, year end facilitator meetings, year end parties, and swimming lessons. I am looking forward to July. Hopefully there will be some lazy days.

We visited Helen Schuler Coulee Center last week and enjoyed an hour stroll through the Old Man River Bottom. The above picture is under the train bridge. We went with my sister Kristina and her two daughters, (Brooklyn is in the picture) and my mom. It is a beautiful area and the kids really enjoyed themselves. We had visited the same area a month before when the leaf buds were just coming out on the branches and everything was still brown. What a difference a month and some rain makes.

This is a picture of a wild rose. These roses are the official provincial flower of Alberta. I find them so beautiful. I found them near the entrance of the center.

On June 20, Westwind Alternate School held a track meet and a year end pool picnic. Our kids had a great time and did very well. In this picture Adam is getting ready to do the Long Jump. He ended up with a first place ribbon.

Now we are nearing July 1st which is a big deal in our little town. Our town's birthday as well as our country's. Lots of people come home and the town nearly doubles. After that Summer Games (Adam is on the under8 soccer team), then a trip to Miami. I'm sure I will enjoy a few lazy days on the beach watching Adam and Jarett play in the ocean.

Earth Day Adventures

On April 22, 2008 a few homeschooling families got together to celebrate Earth Day. We went on a service race, collecting recycling from our neighbors with the intent of depositing the recycling at the Raymond Recycling Trailer. When we went to the trailer it was full. It remained full for 3 weeks while the large amount of recycling stayed in my driveway. When we were finally able to take the recycling to the trailer we found the surrounding area very dirty. Many weeks of the trailer being full and people leaving their recycling out of the trailer seemed to be the cause of the mess. As a group we decided to clean it up.

The Haynes', Witbecks and Burtons worked together to make the area more fresh.

For the most part, the kids played and the moms worked but they did begin to chip in near the end.

The finished product. It felt great to do something nice for our town.

Writing On Stone Provincial Park

Yesterday, May31,2008, we travelled about an hour east and spent the afternoon at Writing On Stone Provincial Park. They have a new interpretive center which is fantastic. A lot of learning occurred and the kids had a great time exploring the hoodoos and playing in the Milk River. We went with one of our best family friends, THE SIMPSONS, as well as Carter's good friend Carson Dudley. It was a fantastic way to spend a beautiful Saturday afternoon.