Second Grader

The words make it seem like there's no baby around here anymore!

The Return of Lone Star Ma!

       Lone Star Ma:  The Magazine of Progressive Texas Parenting And Children's Issues is coming back...online!     

      Lone Star Ma #9 came out about four years ago when the Lone Star Girl was about to enter middle school and the Lone Star Baby was three years old.  They have since completed ninth and first grades, respectively.  There was a LSM#10 in the works for a while, but the money for printing never materialized and I had to let it go.   

      For a long time now, I have been telling myself that while I know that I cannot afford to produce Lone Star Ma anymore - I never really could by any sensible standard – I am just not ready to officially let it go yet.  Hopes and dreams, mamas – they are hard to let go of, for certain.   

      Just this spring, though, I have come to another realization  – I cannot let Lone Star Ma go.  I am Lone Star Ma and Lone Star Ma is me and if there was ever, ever a time when progressive Texas parents needed galvanizing, mamas – that time is now. 

      Things have never in my lifetime been worse for the women and children of Texas than they are now.  Our greedy governor and Republican-controlled Legislature are raping education and social services funding, not to mention the kind of scary science fiction bills that they are passing about issues that affect women.  We have a lot of work to do if we are to stay afloat and we need to pull together.

      I spend an awful lot of time just trying to keep my family afloat myself so this little magazine is never going to be your number-one source for Texas political news or anything, but I think we do provide an important venue for voices that often go unheard in our state.  I think we are needed. 

      So ... we are coming back.

      I do not believe that I will ever be able to pull off another print version of Lone Star Ma due to the expense, but I am going to learn how to produce a simple online magazine.  I do not know for sure how long the learning will take me and I do not know how often I will be able to put out new online issues, but I am going to do my best.  I hope to get up to four issues per year eventually, but we may have to settle for two per year for a while.  

      I will, of course, need you, gentle readers to write the stories and gather the news.  This is a no-pay gig, but I hope to help us get our voices heard, those of us who want better for the children and parents of Texas and the world.  A Call for Submissions will be posted soon.  Stay tuned here, please, and on our brand, spanking new FaceBook page and gather your thoughts and voices.

    

 xoxo ----  Lone Star Ma

Bridging to Brownies!

The Impressive Junior Woman

Today, the Lone Star Girl got a letter in the mail from the president of the Texas AFL-CIO, expressing her approval of the Girl's courage and conviction in speaking up for what she believed in at Congressman Farenthold's Town Hall Meeting on April 27th, even when his supporters behaved so badly towards her.   Heard about our Girl, she did.

Are we proud of this young woman who has just grown up to be so incredible or what?  I just don't think I could be any prouder! 

Tier One: Check

The school district that the Lone Star Girl and I both partake of in our separate ways is trying something new this year.  Yesterday was the last day of school for kids that passed all their classes and tests and had good attendance - the other kids are still in school through the sixth of June.  This is why the Lone Star Girl is already finished while I still have a ways to go at work.  

Lone Star Pa's district's classes get out tomorrow but he starts summer school right away on Tuesday.  The Lone Star Baby's school is a charter with its own schedule and Tuesday is going to be her last day.  Summer Swim League started yesterday night and the Lone Star Baby has an eye appointment on Tuesday, having not passed her eye screening at school (knew that was coming, but since she doesn't have to read a board in her school, we waited for it).  Let the schedule-juggling begin (or continue, or whatever...)!

Sophomore

Her being a ninth grader seemed to me to be quite an extreme enough example of wrong, but this is getting ridiculous now.

First Violin Recital

More Fruitfulness

Today, I took off work because the Lone Star Baby had a half-day at school and needed to be picked up at lunchtime and has a violin recital early this evening that she needs to get dressed up for now.  These are the things I accomplished this morning before it was time to pick her (and a buddy of hers) up for lunch:

• Parent-teacher conference at the Lone Star Baby's school (multiplying fractions and reading at grade level 4.5 - I'm happy with our choice in schools for first grade)
• Nurse conference at Lone Star Girl's school to check on allergy paperwork for next year/plan for getting meds home on last day of school
• Dropped off patches and permission slip, etc. to the mom of a Daisy who missed our last meeting
• Mailed off the donations that the Daisy troop collected for Japan
• Turned in permission and payment for Lone Star Girl's Leadership Institute at the Girl Scout office
• Purchased supplies for my Girl Scouts who are Bridging to Brownies (oh, the vests!) and Seniors, etc.
• Went to City Hall and got the Lone Star Girl signed up for summer swim league and found out when sign-up for swimming lessons and lifeguard trainings are.

 

The Human Geography Project

Fruitful

This evening after work, I...

• went to a celebration at the Lone Star Girl's high school for their International Baccalaureate Diplomate Programme certification
• helped the Lone Star Baby with her spelling homework
• gave the Lone Star Baby her dinner
• cleaned out the rabbit's litter box
• prepared some paperwork for the Lone Star Baby's school 
• packed lunches and laid out clothes
• read some of A Cricket In Times Square to the Lone Star Baby and lay down with her until she went to sleep
• answered and sent Girl Scout e-mails
• printed up some Girl Scout forms
• sewed and ironed the last patches and award on the now complete Daisy smock which will be worn for the last time at the Lone Star Baby's troop's Bridging ceremony this Sunday
• sewed up a hole (which I noticed in the middle of the graduation ceremony Saturday) in my only decent spring dress so I can wear it to my uncle's wedding this Friday evening
• had  a tiny white reason to open up a box that contained hair and a measuring tape and a hospital bracelet and some isolette tags identifying a certain little girl as a breastfed baby and place something new inside it.

Good Night.

Trunk

Since the Lone Star Girl's Human Geography project is going to be hard to fit in my car, even taking it piece by piece (Lone Star Pa and I will have to trade cars on the day we take the biggest piece and hope that my car can make it to Portland with him), I kind of cleaned out my trunk on Sunday to make as much room as possible.

Wow.

It's kind of amazing about what various signs for various protests and demonstrations can be piled on top of..wow.  

I usually just keep my signs in the trunk so I am ready to represent whenever I need to, but I had no idea how many I was hauling around - probably like ...12?  There are the No Las Brisas ones, the health care ones, the ones supporting unions and teachers, of course, but also....the no war toys ones from an old Mother's Day protest a couple of years ago and a whole bunch of other peace signs including one that says that five years is too many - yikes.  And under the signs...

My six-year-old's old diaper bag, various bags of magazine-related stuff, bazillions of first aid kits, old brochures and cassette tapes...you name it.  

Quite an adventure.

First Lost Tooth

I will probably have to peel off the protective spells that keep the faeries out for tonight.  Just kidding - I wouldn't peel those suckers off.   You ever met a faery?  They are an awful lot of trouble, let me tell you. 

Super Girl Scout!

The Girl Scout National Committee meeting is going to be in Houston this year and our girls have been excited about it for awhile. The Girl Scouts USA turns 100 years old this March so it is a big year for Girl Scouting.

On Friday, the Lone Star Girl found out that she has been selected as one of ten girls in our Girl Scout Council to attend a special Leadership Institute at the Conference in November with Girl Scouts from all over the country.  This is a big deal and she is so excited. 

Human Geography Heroics

The Lone Star Girl took her first ever AP Exam - over AP Human Geography - on Friday.  She has also been stealing every moment that she can during this festive, family-filled weekend to work on a human geography project she has due later this week.  She has created a model of part of Tokyo onto which she is attaching labels explaining how the various structures represent key concepts they have studied in the class (as they pertain to Tokyo).  This project is quite large - the tallest building comes up almost to my chest -  so we are going to have to transport it to school in pieces to be reassembled when she gets there.  I hope I get a good picture of it all velcroed together first.

City Council Election

It was bad.  Enough said.  At least Nelda Martinez will be back.

Graduation Weekend

My baby sister graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology on Saturday - cum laude even - we are so proud of her!!!  We had lots of family in town for the ceremony.  My sweeter-than-sweet little nieces and their dad stayed with us and it was such a joy to have them here.  They didn't want to leave and the Lone Star Baby wanted to go back with them if they had to - we miss them already!  We had a very nice time visiting with parents, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends and watching our Jazz shine so brightly. 

Challenges to Las Brisas Air Permit Filed in State District Court

Environmental groups have filed challenges to the Las Brisas air permit in a state district court in Travis County.  The struggle to breathe clean air continues...

Happy Mothers' Day!

I appreciate all you mamas, out there!  Have a gorgeous day!

Multiple Levels of Accountability For One Lone Star Girl

Me:  Have you talked to Coach about your swim bag?

LSG:  Yes, she said we can still use it as long as we're still practicing.

Me:  Are you sure?

LSG:  Yes!

Me:  I'm afraid you're inconveniencing her.

LSG:  I'm not.  Most of the other kids still have their workout clothes, too, and I already turned mine in.

Me:  Have you talked to A- (the swim captain) about doing something for Coach?

LSG:  No - she's not at practice anymore.

Me:  What does that have to do with it?  You need to talk to her - you are running out of time. 

LSG:  O-kay.

LSB:  Have you talked to the Paleontology Club about my question yet?

Early Voting!

I voted today!

Block-Walking For Daniel Lucio For District Two

I have had a very short list to block-walk for Daniel Lucio in my possession for a couple of weeks now but things have been so hectic that I have been making slow progress with it.  Tonight I finally finished it up and left my extra door hangers on doors on an additional street for good measure.  I got very good feedback - voters are ready for a change!

Lone Star Ma's City Council Endorsements

Early voting for the Corpus Christi City Council elections starts tomorrow and here are some of the candidates that Lone Star Ma thinks should be on the Council, due to my desire to protect our city from Las Brisas, urban sprawl and, well, oligarchy:

Mayor:  Carolyn Moon

District Two:  Daniel Lucio

District Three: Priscilla Leal

At-Large:   Nelda Martinez, Roland Gaona, Bryan Menard

For the rest, well - you're on your own.

Please remember to get out there and vote!

First Day School: Listening For God

After a rather long hiatus from First Day School due to scheduling issues, exhaustion and the need for me to spend some Meetings with the Meeting, our Lower El "class" (my six-year-old) finally met again today (the teen was still busy - the Young Friends "class" resumes in June).  Having finished a couple of years of parables and other New Testament and Old Testament-based lessons, we have been starting on a year or so of Quaker Faith & Practice-based lessons.  Today's lesson was about Listening For God.  We walked the Labyrinth they have at the church where we meet and Listened for God and we had a lesson based on/in the style of the Faith 'n' Play Listening For God lesson, which was very nice - like a return to those wonderful parables almost.  We included some meditative labyrinth art and the story God In Between by Sandy Eisenberg Sasso.  I will reinforce the lesson sometime in the next two weeks with a reading and discussion of Horton Hears A Who as well (I am also interweaving a curriculum of Dr. Suess books with a variety of other materials).

It was so nice. For me and her.  We need to not go so long between lessons again.