UW-Peek

This has been quite the year for adjustment for this momma. I am used to – and appreciate – Carter driving everywhere on his own. Still worry a bit, but it is sooo convenient. Am adjusting to the fact that Junior Prom is coming up and, well, he's a junior so this is the work / decorate year. I had a tough time when I signed him up for his upcoming ACT test, knowing that is the first step toward college.

Today, though, was the "mother" of them all for me. His first official college visit.

We both struggled to get up and on the road by 6 a.m., but we did it. Between fog and lots of rain, we basically hydro-planed our way down to UW-Platteville.... located in the far southwest corner of the state, close to Texas and Mexico, I think.

It did take us just a hair under 3 hours so that wasn't bad. And we got there just in time for the start of the EMS (Engineering, Math & Science) Expo. Staged in two of the academic buildings, it was an open-house style of event with a ton of student demonstrations and hands-on activities for wanna-be engineers.

I didn't realize that there would be all ages groups there, including students that were probably treating it more as a field trip than a college fact-finding mission. Still, that worked out fine for us. When the kids would leave the room, Carter and I would talk to the presenters about their specific area of engineering, how they liked the school, where they came from, why they chose Platteville for engineering over some of the bigger schools that we plan to visit yet (Madison and Minnesota), and more. I dusted off my reporting skills, ha, but then sort of forced Carter into doing the talking / asking. He did fine and felt really good about the visit.

We were both glad that you can enter the college as an engineering major but don't have to define that to a specific area until you are a junior. Meanwhile, all your engineering-related classes will apply to any specific major in that department. He can gets exposure to all 8 or 10 categories before choosing.

I imagine we'll hear similar stories at the other two schools but this was a good starting point. A good first UW-PEEK! The campus is small in comparison and he can decide if that's a good point or bad point for him. Class sizes (student/teacher ration) are small, too, which he considers a good point. The tuition there would be less than the other two, and he probably isn't concerned about that point!

We'll take it one step, one visit, at a time.

Even though I had my internal maternal struggle about setting this ball in motion, it was exciting, too. And, of course, we both feel blessed our son has a good head on his shoulders – even if it was slumped over in sleep while I white-knuckled us back home in the deluge.

The things we do for love.

Mad Scientists

Got to hang out with the mad scientists of Assumption Middle School tonight for their science fair! Lots of interesting experiments and demonstrations crammed together in overheated classrooms. But cool to see.

Carter was inspired by some "Brain Games" on the National Geographic Channel and he created an interactive display from that.

If you look at the gray boxes, does one look darker than the other? They are actually the exact same shade of gray. Don't believe me? Put your finger over the line between them and you will see.

Pretty cool, huh?

He also demonstrated the Stroop Effect, which has to do with how quickly your brain recognizes words versus colors. Participants were timed identifying colors on a flash card when the words matched the ink: Blue, Red, Green, etc. They were then timed when the colors didn't match the words -- Blue, Red, Green -- and found the brain took longer to figure out the color because it wanted to say the word instead of the color. Make sense?

He did pretty well from what we (and our spies) could see. Plus, his board looked magnificent! Thanks to my Cricut cutting out the letters. Ha. Carter was the one who lined everything up like a perfectionist, though.

I thought mad scientists were messy...

How to Eat Fried Worms

Funny how names of certain books from childhood can still stick with you years (and years) later. I recall the Little House books, of course, but I also know I was a fan of Encyclopedia Brown, Harriet the Spy, any Judy Blume book and, for some reason, a book called How to Eat Fried Worms.

In the book, the main character, Billy F., has a problem vomiting on the spot and wonders how he'll get along in a new school where they are taunting him with worms. Hmm, sounds like a boy I know who seems to faint on the spot -- at his new school! Thankfully no worm taunting (before today).

Carter has read the book and even enjoyed the movie about it, released about 5 years ago. That must have been before he turned squeamish on us!

Last Friday, he came home from school and announced that Monday (today) they would be dissecting earthworms in Science class. "And guess what's for lunch on Monday, Mom? Spaghetti!" (Who checks the lunch menu ahead anyway??)

If you think he didn't think about that all weekend, then you don't know Carter. Though he says now he was not the least concerned.

Right.

I told him the whole menu option was just a coincidence but I wondered secretly if the Science teacher is in evil cahoots with the lunch lady!

Needless to say, I was fully expecting a call from school at some point today. Based on recent history, that is, not because I didn't have faith in my "Man up!" speech this morning. I was pleasantly surprised and relieved not to hear from Carter until he was home after school. Yay, he survived.

I asked how he managed to choke down his lunch OK. "I just didn't look at it," he said, but quickly added, "I'm just kidding. I wasn't that nervous."

I felt like saying, "Maybe not. But you're the one who brought it up 3 days beforehand!" But I didn't say that. I just said good job .... and bypassed the container of leftover spaghetti in our fridge tonight and opted for pork chops.

Blinding me with Science

I have a feeling I'll be dreaming about volcanoes and earthquakes tonight. No, I didn't overdose on the Weather Channel. I was helping Carter study for a science test.

I've quickly observed that fifth grade is way different from fourth grade. The teacher may talk about everything but the student has the responsibility to read about it, too, to thoroughly understand the subject matter.

This has been a bit of a challenge for our fifth-grader -- reading all the facts and new vocabulary and then, comprehending it. We have found that it helps if after Carter does the first pass, we read through it again together, then I ask him questions. Last week I had a flashback to American history. Tonight it was science.

It was actually a grueling two hours. We had 30 pages of content to cover, with concepts as straightforward as landforms to the four layers of the earth, the causes of earthquakes and volcano eruptions, and the effects of erosion. That's a whole lotta info for one test, I think. I actually wish I could take the test to see what I retained!

I'll probably revert back to the nervousness of my test-taking days and lose enough sleep for both us. Unless I stop for a minute and realize thoughts of shifting plates and fault lines would actually put me to sleep if I had to sit in a classroom and hear about them... Yeah, that's it. G'night.

Farewell, fourth grade!

School's out for summer!! I know I always say I can't believe my baby is growing up. But he just keeps doing it. Now, I guess, he's technically a fifth-grader! Yikes!

An interview with outgoing Grant Elementary fourth-grader Carter Austin:

Mom: What was your favorite subject and why?
Carter: Science because I liked doing all the experiments.

Mom: What did you like most about your teacher?
Carter: Most of the time she'd give us extra recess, which was fun.

Mom: What did you do that got you in trouble?
Carter: Talked in class when I'm not supposed to.

Mom: Anything else?
Carter: Nope.

Mom: What did you like to do at recess?
Carter: No matter what, I would always play soccer.

Mom: Who are you favorite friends to play with?
Carter: Clayton and Jacob.

Mom: How about girls?
Carter: Not tellin'.

Mom: What was your favorite memory of the school year?
Carter: When Cody walked by and said "Hi" and my other friend Craig said "Hi popo!"

Mom: What was the coolest thing you learned?
Carter: That school's out.

Mom: What are you looking forward to in fifth grade?
Carter: Dissecting frogs or deer hearts.

Mom: How about this summer?
Carter: Sharing my memories and Kidz Camp.

Sad Mom: Why do you have to grow up?!
Carter: It's natural and everybody has to grow up. So don't call me your "wittle baby" anymore!

Monday Musings

Pitching Pain: As predicted, my upper back and right shoulder are feeling the pinch of trying to be a professional pitcher this weekend. Next time, I think I'll be staying in the bull pen.

That's What She Said: There's a catchphrase from the sitcom "The Office" that is supposed to be funny in an adult humor sort of way -- but only if used correctly. For example, if someone hands me a piece of cake and I say, "Wow, that's too big!" Then somebody would pipe in with "That's what she said!" You get where I'm going, right? It may come as a surprise, but Carter has been hearing that phrase from some Office fan in the house. So he's saying it now -- but he doesn't know what it means or when to say it. Like if I say something like I need some sleep, he'll say "that's what she said." Doesn't make sense. Tonight at supper, though, when I said I just needed one pickle with my burger, he says, "That's what she said." I look at hubby and say, "He is officially banned from saying that from now on." I'm just afraid he's getting too close to understanding it -- or accidentally using it correctly.

Homework Helper: Just to set the record straight about where Carter gets his sense of humor. It comes equally from both Daddy and Mommy. I will not take all the credit or the blame. Tonight I was helping Carter study for a science test on weather. I asked him to define climate. Jim the homework helper says: "You find a mountain and you climate." Good luck on that test, Carter!

One giant LEAP for ...

Happy Leap Day! This is the first Leap Year Carter is old enough to grasp that we have an extra day and why. I mean, if his teachers give him a good explanation today, that is.

Daddy and Mommy gave him the simplified version this morning: It takes 365 1/4 days to rotate around the sun each year. So every 4th year, we throw in an extra day to even it out and keep Daylight Savings Time on track, etc.

Then Carter responds with something like: "Did you know the Earth's rotation slows down 10 seconds every decade?" Clearly, the future scientist is more entrenched in Solar System facts than Mom and Dad.

I suspect in general Leap Day is far more interesting to scientists (and wanna-bes like Carter) and those who actually have a birthday or anniversary of sorts on that day. On the way to work, hubby says, "Twenty years ago today I started working at the newspaper." So technically, he only had 3 work anniversaries while employed there 15 years. That would explain why he got so few raises.

Although it seems like just another day, wouldn't it be great if we could stop time, have no requirements to work or go to school, and say: "Here's an extra day for you. Do what you want!"

Wouldn't that be cool? 24 extra hours to scrapbook or golf or play Madden '08 with Carter (just kidding on that one -- I wouldn't know the first thing about operating PS2). If we could pick (and I don't mean to be selfish), I would rather have that extra day in the summer naturally, since I'd rather curse over a missed putt than trudge through the woods on snowshoes.

What would you do with a Leap Day like that?

All-nighter?

My brain is fried tonight. Remember how I said I was a "lifelong student"? It's not so easy to learn new things -- well, i should say "relearn" things.

I was helping Carter study for a science test for about 90 minutes this evening. Go ahead, ask me anything about the parts of a tree and photosynthesis! I am ready for this test!

I hope Carter is ready, too. It was actually fun for me to help him study and I told him so. I explained how much I loved school (read: Geek!) and how it was fun studying for tests because I would cram all these "clues" and "word plays" into my head so I'd remember things.

For example, an easy way to remember what coniferous tree is is to think of it as cone-iferous ... it produces cones and has needles instead of leaves. You get the picture.

When I tucked him in, I told Carter to try not to think about it so he can get some sleep, but can I do the same? I'm a little hyped up! I'll probably be going through that tree trunk, layer by layer in my dreams!

Maybe that will help me sleep -- counting tree rings instead of sheep ...

House call

I'm deeply indebted to my son Carter. Or I should say deeply in debt with him. But I don't mind a bit.

We were chatting at the dinner table about school and work. Sometimes it's just like conversing with another adult. Sounds strange but I've come to realize (and appreciate) sometimes he is 9 going on 90.

So I was talking about how I was a little bit nervous about an upcoming one-on-one meeting with the CEO of our company. (As I was trying to explain: the boss' boss' boss -- like a grandpa boss.)

Carter told me not to be nervous. "Just be yourself, Mom, and don't overdo it. Try to think about something else, but don't forget to stay on the right topic."

I smiled and tried not to laugh because I can't help it when he sounds so grown up. So he says, "Mom, don't laugh. I know you're gonna say you don't know if I should be a psychiatrist or a scientist. Well they're practically a homophone so they must be close!"

I said, "Oh, should I call you Dr. Austin then? What do I owe you for this house call?"

"Uhm," he said, thinking it through, "I think about a million lovin's. And you can take your time paying me!" Sounds like a super deal to me. Good advice at a great price! Paging Dr. Austin ...

Blinding me with science

(Yes, it's another blog with an '80s song for a title. Deal with it and move on, please!)

Carter asked me the other day how old he would have to be before he could be a scientist. I may have told you before that he's a little into that kind of thing. "I just want to be a scientist so I can know everything about everything!"

I told him he probably will have to be an adult before he is a real scientist, but he could join a Science Club at school to start. "They don't have a Science Club until junior high," he set me straight. "They only have Chess Club at Grant Elementary."

OK, nothing against you chess moms, but I'm wondering how much of a nerd I want my son to be. Thankfully, he doesn't want anything to do with chess. But I am learning I can do little to stop him from traveling that road to Geek-dom.

Before we headed out the door this morning, I saw Carter was carrying a book under his arm. Turns out it was an encyclopedia! "Is it OK if I bring a different encyclopedia each day to look at in the car?" What parent would say no to that?

So on the way to work today, I learned about the surface temperature on Mars, how many days make a year on Jupiter and how many elements are made out of metal. I guess that's better than hearing about what Pokemon he's defeated on his GameBoy.

Maybe he'll start his own Science Club! I just worry the initiation will have something to do with shaving ...

A grim fairy tale

Once upon a time there was a mad scientist named Snipe who liked to experiment with nature and things of that nature.

One June day he brought home a cute little caterpillar and placed him in a jar with grass and a big stick. He named him Timmy. Snipe’s Fairy Godmother placed cellophane over the top of the jar, held in place by a rubber band, and poked small holes in it so Timmy could breathe.

Every day Professor Snipe checked on Timmy. He knew one day he would make a cocoon and, later in the summer, magically transform into a butterfly.

As luck would have it, not too many days later, Snipe found another caterpillar. This one looked big and mean, with evil spikes and black dots. He named him Freddie. Snipe wanted to see how the two would get along. It wasn’t meant to be.

One night, while the rest of the house was sleeping, Fat Freddie beheaded poor Tiny Tim … and escaped! For days, Fairy Godmother was on edge, wondering when the creepy critter would crawl up her leg or out of her purse or some dark corner.

Then one day, she was doing her Cinderella chores and lifted the rug to sweep. There, not 6 inches from the front door, lay a Flat Fat Freddy. He was inches from freedom and a life on the lam – only to be crushed in hiding by Snipe or Big Daddy.

The moral of the story (and of course, there is one): Crime doesn’t pay. When you’re guilty, you can’t worm your way out of anything!