How to keep your science info sharp while raising a kid.....

Create a song!

So, I had this assistant teacher in 7th grade science (shout out to USC middle school IB people!) I don't remember his name...maybe Mr. Wyncoup?) He taught us this song about DNA to help us during a science test. I have remembered it since that day and have used it during everything from chemistry tests to science lessons for my own middle schoolers:

(Sing to "Row, row, row, your boat")

We love DNA made of nucleotides

Sugar, phosphate, and a base bonded down the side

Adenine and thymine make a lovely pair

Cytosine without guanine would be very bare

Ok, totally dorky, but come on..with an affinity for music this is.....awesome!

So, in that vein, here is my stab at a less catchy tune for the heck of it while I was feeding Maddy today. No, not trying to indoctrinate her. But, honestly, there is only so much "Ah ah apple" and "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" I can take! So before she has a say, time to sing some things to test myself too haha....then maybe if she ever decides she would like to study science, this stuff will be helpful. Or not...who knows ;)

Anyway..here it goes:

(Sing to bluesy tune like..."Pittsburgh's Goin' to the Super Bowl"(YES!) just realized the tune...just go up and down that scale...and oh yeah, we are going to the SB by the way ;P)

Yummy yummy yogurt oh it tastes so good

Good bacteria and milk make this excellent food

Receptors on our tongue work with electrical power

Sending signals to the brain to tell us yogurt is sour

Haha, this is fun! Now to go play with my daughter =)

On Creativity

Here is another TED talk I just watched....

Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love, on nurturing creativity.

Thoughts on this to follow tomorrow - I am no creative genius, but have to say, this spoke to me today regarding my struggle against thinking accomplishments determine my self-worth.

Vulnerability

Here is a TED talk that a dear friend just shared with me last night.

Brene Brown: The power of vulnerability | Video on TED.com

I definitely struggled to dismiss this talk when I first watched it, thinking that I of course was vulnerable and that I was living the way this woman professes to be important...no work for me to do here. Ack! Quite the contrary! Being in Ithaca these past few weeks have been both incredible and incredibly difficult. I've confronted some family issues, received heartbreaking news, seen triumph through that, traveled a total of 30 hours to share in the celebration of two wonderful weddings, watched as God provided my husband with a TAship at the eleventh hour (and gave us a stipend, free health insurance, and FREE tuition for the semester...WHAT?!!?), cuddled (or tried to cuddle) our daughter as she continues to work through SO many transitions, new teeth, weather changes, long car rides, and new scenery, visited with old friends from Hamilton, and...read through my transcript for the first time in 3.5 years.

Now, I know that the last is silly...and the fact that it would actually cause as much personal struggle as it did yesterday (and even today) is indicative of how much I need to process this talk and actually spend the time when I'm not taking care of Maddy opening up, reflecting, and learning, rather than deflecting with Hulu as I so often do. My GPA is not grand, my major GPA is even less grand, I've been applying for jobs here since May and even receptionist positions are alluding me. Not only these things, but I am feeling directionless in terms of career, motivation to attempt new things is nowhere to be found, and I feel like most of my time is spent doing things that I can view as burdensome and difficult - making meals, worrying about food allergies, changing diapers, interpreting cries, and trying not to feel guilty when putting our daughter down for a nap and she doesn't think she needs one.

When I think about the possibility of going back to school, some of my years at Colgate seem a waste - why oh why did I not pay more attention or spend more time in my science classes? Better yet, why oh why did I even jump into cellular studies without even considering my passions. When I think about how "low" I am now, it's easy to think that this has everything to do with my lack of effort. Ok, let's stop for a minute here. What's most frightening about that last statement? Not the thought that I didn't work my butt off in college and just had a rough go of some classes (and I didn't try as hard as I could in the first year too, that's true)...No, the more troubling thing to me is that I find myself struggling internally with this idea that what I am doing now is LOW. The idea that a person's value comes from her achievements alone is something I thought I had addressed long ago. What a laugh!

And where does this devaluation come from? Oh, I'm sure I could write a whole book series on the research that's been done around social dynamics and the push for women to not only be a mother, but also an individual that holds a 9-5 job and receives promotions, etc. But, I think the main issue I want to look into here is what causes me not to find JOY in what I'm doing now? Why am I struggling with rebellion from this lifestyle so much? And why now do I squander away my time so easily...and frequently?

Do I have answers? HECK no. Do I think this is going to be something that changes in the near future? Um, it would be nice, but no. I told Dan when we first started looking for jobs that I really thought I wasn't supposed to have one right now. I thought I was being lazy and just trying to convince myself that I didn't need to send in too many applications. But, several applications and no job later, I am realizing that my rebellion from being at home, taking care of my kiddo alone, and letting God take care of me while I watch my husband fulfill his DREAM (which is both exhilarating and challenging) is just what I need to be letting go, even though I really do not want to.

All this from a 3 hour conversation and a transcript last night. I have much more processing to do and I fear that these next posts will be my place for spouting out that processing. But, I promise to also include pictures and videos that are probably much more enjoyable for you all...like this:

I've been told TED talks are amazing and intend on starting to watch them more frequently instead of the trashy stuff I've been watching lately to pass time.