Thursday, October 25, 2007

MOPS IS CANCELLED

Because Capo Valley Unified Schoold District has cancelled school Friday, October 26th we will not have MOPS. Call your table leader if you have any further questions. Stay safe and stay sane!

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

How to Have a Healthy Marriage?

Don't we all want the answer to that question? Cindy Pook did a great job speaking to us on marriage last week. Did everyone do their homework? In case you forgot you were supposed to write down your top 10 needs and what you think his top 10 needs are. Then your darling hubby writes down his 10 needs and what he thinks your 10 needs are. And then you compare notes and the fun begins! Maybe you both learned new things about each other or maybe you learned some simple things you both could do to make life easier for one another. Either way it's a great exercise.
Cindy reminded us that children bring wonderful gifts, they bring out the best and the worst in us.
She also reminded us to have more consideration for each other, " The health of your marriage depends on the ability to adjust".
Love and balance are the greatest gift you can give to your kids and to your marriage. "When we love our spouse it's the best gift we can give our children".

Cindy also said that our husbands need be our number 2 priority after God!
She gave 11 tips but I somehow have 12.
  1. Greet your husband with a kiss
  2. Demonstrate to your kids that he's important
  3. Couch time for 10 minutes while your kids are awake
  4. You need time alone to connect which means turning off the computer and T.V.
  5. Develop hobbies together. Remember what you did together before you had kids!
  6. Don't keep score
  7. Know what his needs are
  8. Protect your family bed
  9. Let go of perfection and share tasks
  10. Expectation without communication leads to frustration
  11. Re-live falling in love. (Watch your wedding video once in awhile)
  12. Make love often and try to show intimacy (try to go to bed at the same time)
So I hope you all started your weekend by kissing your husband when he walked in the door Friday night and who knows maybe a few of your husbands "benefited" from Friday's talk!!! ;)

Happy Belated

Birthdays are so important and I wanted to make sure to recognize birthdays each month but I got a little late start. So Happy 3rd Birthday Sarina Cali! Her birthday was October 11th. Hopefully I didn't forget any other Moppets Birthdays for October!

Timothy II





Wanted to let everyone know that Saturday's Timothy II's Service Project went really well. Although it was just Erin, Kirsten and Linda from MOPS, Erin's friend and Grandma were there to help out and they had a great time! It was so organized and easy. So proud of you guys for helping and giving back!

Dr. Ann Corwin



I think it's safe to say that everyone enjoyed Dr. Ann Corwin and took away something valuable from her talk. Here are some key points she mentioned in her talk.
*During conflict don't react but separate!
* The 3 ways we connect are through:
  1. Eye Contact
  2. Touch
  3. Talk
*Move closer to your child when they're playing nicely, even with your back to them but don't interrupt play to let them know they're doing a great job.

*Discipline comes from the word disciple which means to teach and follow
*Remember the teachable moment is after the incident not during
*When sending your child to their room to "separate" turn music on because it clears their head and helps them relax.
*After conflict give your child LOVE
*When a child hurts you or another child don't have your child kiss the spot they hurt. Kids don't know what sorry means. So instead of using the word sorry have them say "I'll never do that again". They need to learn the meaning of sorry before they actually start using it. Sorry means regret and remorse.
*Tell your child that your family does not hurt with words or their bodies!

Book Tip- "The Way I Feel" by Janan Cain

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Tanaka Farms




You missed out if you didn't join us for the Tanaka Farms outing. The kids rode the tractor, pet the animals in the petting zoo, picked vegetables, and picked out their own pumpkin. Everyone seemed to have a great time, the moms included. It was a nice turnout and the weather even surprised us as it got a little warm! Enjoy the pictures.....

Friday, October 12, 2007

Dr. Sears Stops By


We're only in our 3rd week of MOPS and the kids seem settled in their MOPPETS classrooms, we already have had some yummy breakfasts, an amazing craft, and famous Dr speak. Aren't you glad you are at MOPS?!!
In case any of you forgot your pens or notebooks last Friday I was able to write down a few 'highlights' from Dr. Sears talk. I personally got a lot out of his talk and hope each of you walked away with something as well.

Dr. Sears says if you:
  • Eat fruit it reduces cancer by half
  • DO NOT eat High Fructose Corn Syrup, Hydrogenated foods and "colors & numbers" Red #40
The Best Brain Foods
  1. Salmon
  2. Blueberries (wild)
  3. Greens
  4. Nuts-walnuts are best
A healthy breakfast is so important for our kids. Research shows that kids who eat healthy breakfasts have higher math scores, more attentiveness, are less hyper and less anxiety and depression. So what do we give our kids for breakfast?
How about High Protein such as eggs, moderate complex carbs such as yogurt, whole grain bread and fruit and smart fats such as omega 3's.

TOP 12 FOODS according to Dr. Sears
  1. Avocado
  2. Blueberries
  3. Eggs
  4. Fish
  5. Flax seed
  6. Kidney Beans
  7. Lentils
  8. Oatmeal
  9. Spinach
  10. Tofu
  11. Tomatoes
  12. Yogurt
Honorable Mentions
  1. Almonds
  2. Artichoke
  3. Broccoli
  4. Olive Oil
  5. Oranges
  6. Papaya
  7. Peanut Butter
  8. Pink Grapefruit
  9. Soy Nuts
  10. Sunflower Seeds
  11. Sweet Potatoes
  12. Turkey
Remember you have a choice as to what to buy and feed your kids but they don't.