Check it out for yourself and let me know if you agree with the commandments or might add/delete a few. Happy writing!

     Chah! There’s no double standard here. There’s intelligence. Wisdom, even.

     I have no fears that little Joey will grow up to be at least computer literate. His parents already own e-readers, so there’s a decent chance that they own other electronic communications devices, and there are also computers at the very libraries and schools that little Joey may visit or attend, and, oh yeah, his place of work will likely have a computer, too. So I’m not worried that little Joey will think an e-reader is a shiny paperweight.

     I’m a lot more worried — as are his parents obviously — that little Joey will think of the e-reader as a nifty projectile. Seriously, what do toddlers do when they’re done with a book? They throw it. Okay, maybe, if they’re particularly gentle children, they’ll drop it. Super. Imagine, all my faithful readers, going to your bedroom and repeatedly dropping, oh, say, your alarm clock, which probably cost a whole lot less than your precious e-reader. After even two drops, are you still thinking that giving little Joey an e-reader is a good idea? Of course parents are hesitant to hand their kids devices that cost hundreds of dollars. Witness the evidence; this second picture is from a friend who handed his iPhone to his toddler. Not as pretty as the first picture above, is it?

     So let’s imagine instead that you choose to simply hand little Joey a couple hundred-dollar bills (the cost of the e-reader). What will he do with the bills? Why, tear them! Obviously! That is why books for the young are BOARD books, because otherwise the books would end up shredded all over the living room or chewed up in baby’s belly.

     And, yes, I must concur with parents that electronic gadgets don’t enhance a child’s concentration. How many times have we seen children hit buttons just to see what will happen? It’s power at their fingertips!!! “Forget what Curious George did at the zoo!” thinks little Joey. “Look what happens when I press the bat! He flies! Yippee!” It’s cool and all but doesn’t exactly help him sound out the word “bat.”

     So I say, don’t feel too hypocritical if you refuse to surrender your electronic gadgets. They’re yours for now. When little Joey can handle it and respect it, he too can enjoy all the whiz-bang extras of the latest and greatest electronics. He’ll be just fine for now.

     This weekend, my eldest daughter, Corina, did something pretty awesome. She took home the third place medal for what was only her third meet as a high school cross country athlete!

     It was during her 4k (2.5 mile) run at the Whitnall Invitational at Hales Corners Park. In that meet, her time dropped almost two minutes from the previous races! She’s loving the sport and her truly supportive teammates. Here’s a great picture of my daughter sprinting toward a finish line. Go, girl! Go!

     It was my first time on television in nearly three years. I remembered how it all worked, so I guess it’s just like riding a bicycle.

     Want to watch some of my foibles? Just go to The Morning Blend’s website, click on “Past Shows,” and choose the links under Friday, August 19, 2011. I’d love to hear your feedback!

     A special thanks goes out to everyone at The Morning Blend for welcoming me!

     First, let me briefly tell you how the event was laid out. It began Thursday night with a roundtable discussion in which 24 board members and USS staff were onhand to answer questions from the general membership. Friday was devoted to committee meetings, where proposals were debated and eventually voted on to either die in committee or advance to the board. Saturday was when the board made the final votes on each proposal, either denying them or turning them into law. How’s that for PoliSci 101? I think Marquette U. should give me an honorary degree.

     So what are the changes? There were 25 that I thought would most interest my readers. You can find them HERE.

     Here you see me setting up with a bucketful of blocks. These blocks are rubber lane markers laid out along the turns and sometimes the straightaways to clearly mark lanes. I also acted as a corner judge (watching that skaters not cross too far to the inside), finishing line judge (watching that skaters not kick out their skates and are ranked according to their finishing place), and heat box caller (getting the right skaters checked in and onto the ice). The latter was very easy, as adult skaters know where they are to be and when.

     I had two fabulous assistants in my youngest children, whom you see here. They are preparing to put red and white armbands on the skaters. The armbands indicate in which lanes the skaters start. The kids also checked racing numbers and order at the starting line.

     I learned a lot from officiating. Some rules that were fuzzy in my mind are now crystal clear, which should assist my own skating, and we all had a great time.

     I am so happy to announce that the latest of my husband’s books has been released and is now available to buy!

     Thumb Wars: The Ultimate Guide is the world’s definitive guide to that favorite let’s-decide-who’s-right fight, the thumb war. This activity book details rules, recommends conditioning exercises, and even comes with the niftiest anti-cheating glove ever — the Sleeve of Doom! Scholastic’s motto — “There’s no going back once you enter the Sleeve of Doom.”

     Jeff did every illustration in the book, the cover, and even a lot of the layout. You can find more of his art here.

     The book is already available online (If you go through Amazon, please leave a review!) and is slated to hit bookstores in February, so please go out and buy it!

     Here’s a picture of one of her starts. She’s the second from the left in the green skinsuit.

     Her competition was fierce, and she performed magnificently, even getting a personal best. That’s not easy on an outdoor rink in -12 degree temps with gusting winds. Even an extra layer of spandex doesn’t help. I mean, it’s spandex, after all.

     And here’s a photo of the Master-class gals that I skated with. We just love this sport!

     A special thanks goes out to my daughter Corina and son, Armando, for their help at the meet and to my husband, Jeff, for his constant support.

     The U.S. Speedskating National Marathon distances are 25K and 50K. My daughter, who skated along with me, surpassed the 25K distance by skating 100 laps. It’s a fun distance that our club does to celebrate the end of the year, and it’s pretty excellent for an 11-year-old. She did it last year, too! Way to go, Antonia!