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Showing posts from July, 2014

The Language of Love-ASL

I know three languages. Obviously, I've got English covered. For nine years I was a student of Spanish and studied abroad in Costs Rica. I've lost my Spanish language abilities over time because I don't read it or speak it very much any more besides counting to ten with the kids, watching some Dora the Explorer, and singing a Pitbull song. It's been years since I actively practiced but I can still speak it conversationally and can eavesdrop on conversations and understand every third or fourth words. It seems, with langauges, it's easier to read or understand than it is to speak. That's the case with my third language. In addition to my mastery of English and my conversational Spanish, I comprehend Andy as a Second Language. That's right ASL, the real language of love. It's best way to learn a langauge through immersion and that's what I have done for the last thirteen years. It was hard at first and I was often confused and misinterpreting what I...

Easy Tip for the Perfect Summer Vacation

Ahh, summer vacation. Toes in the sand. Sun on skin. Lazy days by the lake. Idle trips to cultural attractions. Hikes reaching breath-taking views. Yummy dinners. Great company. Good times. Everyone looks forward to vacation, whether it's a big one that has been dreamed about for years, or a quick get-away to escape an otherwise hectic life. For anyone with a family (that means EVERYONE), however, vacation is an oxymoron. I've written before about my 2 month summer work hiatus with the kids, and Andy's assertion that my time not at work is my "bon-bon" summer. Well, this summer, I am a part-time working girl so my bon-bons are limited to long weekends and the big cake was a 4 day adventure along the New England coast. I knew that giving up the lazy days of summer, mornings in pjs, coffee on the deck would be hard so, of course, the 4 day family adventure had to be the best trip ever, or else. I mapped it all out weeks in advance. I checked the weather daily, pl...