Geek in Heels - Page 22

Sep 12, 2013 • In Random, Tutorials

How to Really Moonwalk [Instructional GIFs]

We’ve all been doing it wrong!

Aerin’s First Speech Therapy Session

I really, really liked our speech pathologist. She was gentle yet firm. She was kind and patient. And most importantly (at least to me), she understood that all kids are different, and that they learn in different ways and at different rates.

Unlike the ladies who did our evaluations, our speech pathologist (let’s call her D) did not rush through our session. She emphasized the fact that she wants to take not only Aerin’s delays, but her personality, family members, and living situation into consideration when working with her. She told me that my input is very important to her, and I loved how she employed different activities to see which Aerin liked best, and to which she seemed most responsive.

D observed that Aerin already has four strikes against her:

She is exposed to 3 different languages at home (in the therapist’s experience, about 20% of children who live in multilingual homes have speech delays in these early years)
Her hearing was impaired, and is still in question (we won’t see the ENT again until the end of October, and we honestly can’t tell if her hearing has improved yet)
She has an older sibling with a strong, dominant personality
We, as a family, have spoiled her and babied her by regularly attending to her needs and wants in a prompt manner

“Can you blame her? It’s only natural that her speech is delayed!”

It was our first session so we didn’t get too much therapy done, but even after just a few activities, D noted that Aerin is a very bright little girl, and that her being able to say more than 20 words at this point is very encouraging. (She said that at 22 months old, this is on the low end, but definitely within normal range.) She gave us a bunch of tips and pointers as well as some “homework,” and that was the session.

If you can recall, Aerin is supposed to have speech therapy twice a month and developmental therapy twice a week. We still haven’t had any developmental therapy sessions yet due to scheduling issues, but after having had our first speech therapy session yesterday, I am more encouraged. And more motivated than ever to help my little girl as much as I can.

Awakening

Today, we remember.

Via StoryPeople.

3 Things That Make Me Feel Like an Asshole

One.

Sometimes, it’s really, really tiring being three people’s favorite person.

Oh noes! You’re so loved! Barf.

I know. I need to get over myself.

Two.

I’m so sick of being my parents’ translator (I have been so since before I turned 10). Phone calls, meetings, letters…managing your own adult life can be tough in itself, but helping to manage my parents’ on top of mine and my children’s has been especially burdensome lately.

You have parents who are alive and well, who love and support you. Helping them with this stuff should be nothing compared to what they have done for you.

Yes, and that’s why I feel like an asshole.

Three.

The girls are napping and I know that I should tidy up and vacuum, but I can’t stop staring at these animated GIFs of bouncing Jell-O. And it feels good to be sitting on my butt, wasting time.

(via io9)

Okay, maybe I’ll give myself this one.

Street Fighter Chronicles: What Happened After the Fights

What happened to Street Fighter characters après combat? This series of illustrations gives you the sometimes sad, and other times inspiring scoop.

“Blanka was overblown with joy after reuniting with his long lost mother. Seeing that she was
always anxious and concerned for his well being, due to his street fighting life style, he decided
to make a few changes. With the help of his mother’s boyfriend, who was a manager at the
Brazilian division of Hydro Quebec, Blanka got himself a job as an emergency power generator
for some of the hard to reach areas of the Amazon River. It was work perfectly suited to his
profile. While buzzing out voltage he casually sips on margaritas and has been known to indulge
on the occasional joint or two. Watching the local soccer team play as he powers up the beam
lights of the field late in the evening he feels happy and at peace.”

Anatomical Illustrations of Mythological Creatures

Egads! Have you seen these illustrations by E.B. Hudspeth? They’re admirably researched, meticulously detailed, and creepily fascinating.

Giveaway: Sephora VIB Celebration Bag 2013

Last month, when my Sephora VIB status was renewed, the cashier surprised me with a VIB Celebration Bag.

Did you know this is an annual thing? Because I didn’t. (And I don’t remember receiving a bag last year.)

Anyway, because I already have too many beauty products — and because I know y’all love giveaways — I’ve decided to pass this along to a reader.

This year’s VIB Celebration Bag comes with mixed reviews, the main complaint being that not everyone is receiving the same items. Some VIBs are receiving replacement products while others are straight-out missing an item or two from their bags!

I ended up in the latter camp: my bag was missing the L’Occitane hand creme.

I did, however, receive all the other items in the product page, and I must say that they’re pretty nice — popular items with good reviews that I would keep for myself if I didn’t already have other tried-and-true products in my arsenal:

Sephora Collection Colorful Eyeshadow, #56 (0.07 oz)
Benefit Cosmetics The POREfessional (0.25 oz)
Buxom Full-On Lip Polish, Dolly (0.07 oz)
Sephora Collection Age Defy Moisture Cream SPF 15 (0.17 oz)
Hanae Mori Butterfly Eau de Toilette (0.04 oz)
Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20, Nude (0.5 oz)
First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser (1 oz)
Stila Lip Glaze, Apricot (0.05 oz)

I’m not too sure about the Sephora Collection eyeshadow, but I do know that the Buxom and Stila lip glosses in this kit are their most popular shades!

And they all come in a chevron-patterned bag.

Now, for the giveaway.

I’m sorry to say that the rules for this giveaway — and all following giveaways — will be slightly different. I have decided to add some additional terms (which you can read at the bottom of this post) due to the high number of people who have tried to cheat my Rafflecopter giveaways in the past. But don’t worry. If you’re an honest entrant, you have nothing to worry about. 🙂

To enter this giveaway, simply use the Rafflecopter widget below. Not sure how to use Rafflecopter? Watch this 52 second video for a tutorial on how to enter a giveaway using Rafflecopter. There are 5 methods of entry, with the first method (commenting on this blog post answering the question “Which product do you like the best from this year’s Sephora VIB Celebration Bag?”) being mandatory while the third method (Tweeting about the giveaway) can be used once per day:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This giveaway will end on Saturday, September 14th, 2013, at 12:01am EST, at which point a winner will be randomly chosen and announced here. If the winner has won the drawing via a fraudulent or illegitimate entry (i.e., not commenting on this post, using different accounts to enter multiple times, using a Twitter account that is only used to enter contests on a frequent basis, using the same Tweet URL to enter multiple times) I have the right to choose another winner.

Sorry, this giveaway is open only to residents of the U.S. who are over 13 years old.

Please use a valid email address and/or Twitter handle so that I can contact you if you win! If the winner fails to respond within 48 hours of my contacting them, another winner will be selected.

Good luck, and thank you for entering!

Yahoo’s New Logo: Just ‘Meh’

What do you guys think of Yahoo!’s new logo?

Just in case you weren’t aware, this new logo was revealed after a 30 Days of Change campaign which announced the internet giant’s plans for a new logo and built anticipation by showcasing a different logo every day for — you guessed it — 30 days.

30 Days of Change expectedly received tons of press, and while the buzz died down after the first few days, it definitely got people to talk about Yahoo! again — an achievement in itself according to those who dismiss Yahoo! as a “dying” company.

The campaign also may have been designed as a preemptive warning to the millions of users who visit Yahoo! every day so that the new logo does not come as a complete shock.

But was the buildup — and the expectations that grew along with it — worth it? Continue reading »

Claire’s First Day of School

Today is our Claire Emmanuelle’s first day of preschool.

A couple of weeks ago, the school invited new parents for an orientation night. While the director was giving us tips on how to help our children adjust to attending school for the first time, she noted, “I see that many of the parents here are already tearing up, thinking about their children’s first day of school.” I looked around in surprise, because crying was the last thing on my mind.

I didn’t need, or want to cry. I didn’t have any thoughts of sadness or nostalgia for days gone by — I was too excited for my daughter!

LOVE that her class bulletin board is done with dinosaurs,
because Claire is currently going through a dinosaur phase.
(The second week of school has a dinosaur theme too!)

We had chosen this school for its excellent teachers and reputation. Its reading and math programs, in particular, are stellar and renowned throughout the state. (Claire’s started to piece together 2- and 3-letter words, so she’s super excited to learn to read.) I remember taking a tour of the facilities and being amazed at what these 3-5 year olds were learning — not only basic body parts, but specific ones as well (e.g., cochlea and dorsal fin). Worldwide geography. A music professor who comes in twice a month to introduce the kids to various musical instruments, music theory, and music history. An art historian who comes in once a month to talk about different periods in art and discuss a specific artist from that movement. (The artist of the month when I visited was Ghiberti — a name I doubt most adults would know.) Public speaking and character-building. Life skills. Technology. Basic Spanish. And much, much more.

But, most importantly, these children seemed genuinely happy to be there! They were having fun learning!

And the three times I brought Claire to visit the school? We had to tear her away each time.

The spectacular view from the school. The kids have outdoors time every day, in a big lawn or at
a playground. Even when the weather isn’t cooperative, they can play in a large, covered balcony.

I’m not worried it would be too overwhelming for her either, because the school embraces the Montessori philosophy of each child learning at his or her own pace. And although she will be one of the youngest kids in her class — she’s turning 3 at the end of the month and the class is comprised of 3-5 year olds — she’s always preferred the company of older kids and I’m confident that she will learn a great deal from her classmates.

So no, I was not a crying mess this morning. Nor was I sad to see my little girl grow up so fast. I truly was — am! — happy and excited for her because I know that this new chapter in her life will only help her grow as a person.

I was happy to see her kiss me and Aerin goodbye, holding her father’s hand as they walked out the front door together. (In true city dweller’s fashion, they will be taking a bus to school together every morning.) I remembered my own mother holding my hand as we walked to school on my first day of pre-K, and recalled how excited I was. I can’t wait to pick her up from school later today, to hear all about her first day, her teachers, and her new friends.

I know she’ll be just fine.

“Umma bye! Muimui bye!”