"Fallen Lotus Petals" by Jordon Papanier

I am stepping away from the genre of book that I usually review. The book I most often choose for myself is the latest and greatest development in autism intervention and treatment. In my past life (before children and before autism), I used to read for pleasure, and would choose books that took me away to another place and time, an escape from my work, grad school, and mundane chores. I miss time spent reading fiction that takes me away from autism for a brief escape, and I have enjoyed every book I've been given to review the past year and a half.

My usual review books and personal reading choices are marketed to either educators, parents, or both (and most often about autism), or novels of fiction written for a Christian audience. Fallen Lotus Petals is a novel for adults written for a general audience. This one's different in another way: I know the author. We worked for the same big-red-flash company when my husband and I lived in the Los Angeles area in the '90's. I recently discovered Jordon Papanier on facebook via another co-worker and am delighted to read that he's written and published a book (and did the artwork for the book cover, too) - impressive!

Fallen Lotus Petals, by Jordon Papanier, is a novel of crime and suspense, about FBI agent Tom Larson's personal and professional life, as he encounters drug and human trafficking, murder, domestic abuse, a cross country move, and the discovery of a new type of gun, made from plastic that isn't detected on scans coming into or leaving the country.

When I pick up a novel that I can't get into right away, I have a difficult time finishing it. If the plot and characters in the first chapter or two don't pull me in, I put the book down and don't pick it up again.

When I picked up "Fallen Lotus Petals", I read eight or nine chapters without stopping. Papanier hooked me from the beginning; I went to New York with FBI Agent Tom Larson, and then to Los Angeles with him. The storyline is engaging; Papanier's vivid descriptions take me to some places I've not been before, and some I have, and I can see them all in my mind. (I hadn't thought about Tony's Restaurant in years - what a fun memory. And I could see in my mind the spot where Tom was involved in a car accident. I haven't been to either place in years.)

In "Fallen Lotus Petals", Papanier writes about real-life events that members of our law enforcement encounter every day, including mental illness and murder, and including abuse of one human being by another. Papanier's main character, FBI Agent Tom Larson has a soft heart and a solid sense of right and wrong when it comes to tracking down criminals. Larson is is one of the good guys, protective of the weak, aggressive with the bad guys, a righter of wrongs, a man who is willing to risk his career and break the rules in a creative way in order to give girls imprisoned in human trafficking a chance to return home and start over. (That part of the story had me thinking about a ministry from one of our church organizations that's aim is to fight human trafficking.)

The book was an excellent escape for me.
(I wish I were on the beach reading it, though.)
I enjoyed the story.
Jordon's a fantastic writer.

Here's a trailer about the book:

"Fallen Lotus Petals" is a novel for adults. It contains adult themes, a little bit of adult language (not much) and two brief but descriptive scenes of intimacy between the FBI agent and a woman he has just met. (There are a few misspellings and some misplaced quotation marks in the self-published book - Jordon, I'll proofread your next novel if you would like for me to--you *are* writing another one, I hope. And I think you should blog more. Your facebook updates either crack me up or send me pondering, and either way, I suspect you'd develop a big blog following if you blog more often.)

Fallen Lotus Petals is available from Amazon in either paperback or electronic format, ranging from $10 - $16 in price.

Disclosure: Jordon Papanier sent me a copy of his first book, Fallen Lotus Petals, to review. I am not financially compensated for my reviews and am not obligated to provide a positive review.

Need advice from those of you who are organized

I just renewed my subscription to TOS magazine just in time to get the next issue (I know Heather Laurie has an article in it that I want to read), and spent a few minutes downloading the freebies - the planner modules look AWESOME! I see lots of summer work activities for us in those modules! (Link to the offer is HERE if you're interested.)

If I remember correctly, June 11 is the deadline to subscribe and get the next issue.

QUESTION: How do you keep up with what is IN your e-books, e-unit studies, e-modules, so that you are able to locate an item when you want it?

I see travel games in the July module that I'd like to print before we head by automobile 600+ miles south of here. I see some reading activities to go with books we own, but I'll need some time to find the story books, first. There are recipes, activities, games, items from each module that I'd like to bookmark somehow - how do you do it?

To add to my question and dilemma, I got a new book to review last night that is jam-packed with ideas for adapting material for a learner w/ unique needs. There are ideas from that book that I need to, want to have in place for late summer, as we begin school again, and ideas from another book of adaptations that I'd like to incorporate, too.

How do I organize all of these ideas and e-resources?

Suggestions welcome. (I'm begging.)

Vanessa Maltin's, "the gloriously gluten-free cookbook"

I received a copy of Vanessa Maltin's new cookbook last night. It's titled, the gloriously gluten-free cookbook, Spicing Up Life with Italian, Asian, and Mexican Recipes.

I sat down after supper and read the forward by Heidi Collins, read Maltin's intro, and read every recipe with my "we're-more-than-gluten-free-and-can-I-actually-use-this-cookbook???" perspective.

Oh, yes I can!!!

For those of you who are simply GLUTEN-FREE, I think you'll adore this cookbook. For those of you who are MORE than gluten free, I think you'll find (like I did) recipes you can use AS IS and some you can use with a substitution here or there. There are a number of recipes that have enough casein-based ingredients that I will not be able to make them at all for my daughter, (I don't have a good GFCFSF substitute for Parmesan cheese, for example) but will be able to make them for myself and friends with a wheat intolerance or Celiac.

I cook around so many allergies that I don't expect a cookbook to cover all of them. Gluten-free recipes are easier to adapt, because the gluten-free part of the recipe has already been adapted for me, allowing me to concentrate on substitutions for other ingredients on our lists at home. This cookbook is a good starting point for me.

I'm not a fan of Mexican food. I didn't grow up tasting those spices and I've never grown a taste for them. As an adult, I learned that I like Italian and Asian food, and gave up making those recipes when my daughter was diagnosed with a number of food allergies that include wheat/gluten, milk/casein, and soy.

I am delighted to see several recipes in the Asian section that do not use soy sauce!!! There are a few Asian recipes that use just a small amount of soy sauce - I may be able to recreate them with a mock soy sauce now that I have a solid "base" recipe.

My daughter (the one w/ the allergies) peeped over my shoulder a couple of times as I was reading recipes and said she would try this one or that one if I'd make it. Now that I've discovered a soy-free, nut-free mozzarella cheese substitute, I want to try some of the Italian recipes in the gloriously gluten-free cookbook. Who knows, maybe I'll even try a Mexican recipe, too.

The entire chapter, "Italian GLUTEN-FREE Cooking", is HERE.

The cover photo is the only photo of a completed recipe in the book. (I like photos in cookbooks, and I'm guessing omitting photos allowed the publishers to include more great recipes while keeping the price down.)

The Gloriously Gluten-Free Cookbook: Spicing Up Life with Italian, Asian, and Mexican Recipes

Vanessa Maltin

ISBN: 978-0-470-44088-9

Paperback

256 pages

April 2010

US $19.95

Disclosure: Wiley Publishing sent me a review copy of the gloriously gluten-free cookbook. I am not financially compensated for reviews and am not obligated to provide a positive review.

See Me Skate So Straight And Tall...

I have been video recording snippets from recent lessons, but have not had time to upload them. (hanging my head in shame)

These clips are from today's lesson.

My skating princess needs to work on her skating posture.

Coach had an idea.

It reminded me of a blast from the past, a song from the local tv show Romper Room and Miss Kay Roedemeier.

"See me walk so straight and tall;

I won't let my basket fall;

Eyes ahead;

And don't look down;

Keep that basket off the ground!"

"FIRES IN THE MIND, what kids can tell us about motivation and mastery"

Via Jossey-Bass, author Kathleen Cushman and the students of What Kids Can Do, bring us the book, FIRES IN THE MIND, what kids can tell us about motivation and mastery.

"Fires in the Mind" is a beautiful summary, both "big picture" and "zoomed-in-&-up-close" of what happens to create a master, an expert, in something. "Fires in the Mind" discusses the relationships among resiliency, habit formation, engagement and attention, practice, mentors, and social factors along the way to becoming good at something. It's not "light" reading, yet it is easy to read, uses terms a laymom like me doesn't have to look up in the dictionary or psychology textbook, and is full of insight. I am impressed by how of all of the factors as a combination work together to add up to mastery.

Parents and teachers are given insight about their role in a child's success toward becoming good at something. Students will, I suspect, relate to the rich descriptions and anecdotes from the students from What Kids Can Do, and gain encouragement from them. For a child who wants to be really good at something but doesn't want to develop a habit of deliberate practice, (sometimes my kids expect to be masters right away and can become discouraged - do yours do that, too?) this book may be eye opening and it gives words to students who want to articulate how they can be better supported by parents and teachers in their lives.

I have to admit, although this book is about school-building-schooled students, it has me pondering the possibilities of homeschooling all of my children and not just one of them. So many of the suggestions in the book are already common among homeschoolers (particularly in co-op settings, where the social factor is higher) and are more challenging to accomplish in a public school where teaching to the standardized test has become more common, leaving less time to build and grow those fires in the mind. Chapter Eight, "Is Homework Deliberate Practice?" raises a lot of the same questions my own children ask about homework (sometimes it's a waste of time, they wonder, what's the point of it). I'd wager to take a guess that a lot of public school teachers would like to spend more time focusing on growing mastery via the concepts in Fires In the Mind and less time on other stuff.

Homeschoolers, I think I hear Charlotte Mason here. Do you hear her, too?

Chapter One, "What Does It Take To Get Good" is HERE.

Kathleen Cushman's web site is HERE.

The Fires in the Mind web site is HERE.

Fires in the Mind: What Kids Can Tell Us About Motivation and Mastery by Kathleen Cushman, The students of What Kids Can Do
ISBN: 978-0-470-64603-8
Hardcover
208 pages
June 2010, Jossey-Bass
US $24.95

Wiley Publishing sent me a (complimentary) review copy of Fires in the Mind. I am not paid for this review and am not obligated to provide a positive review.

Friendship Circle: Imprint The World

My girls and I have had an interesting Sunday. A fun one! Mommy bloggers were invited to a Friendship Circle event today to help get the word out about a wonderful opportunity for families with children with special needs, and a wonderful place for anyone to volunteer their time or donate $.

Part of today's events included some disability awareness. Not all of the bloggers have a child with a disability. So, we were "given" a "disability" for part of the day, gifted $10, and given the task of navigating Lifetown. We learned a lot about disabilities and we learned a lot about ourselves.

Friendship Circle.

Lifetown.

I don't know where to begin to describe either one for you. I can start with the beginning, in the words of one of the founders HERE.
Bassie Shemtov glows with excitement when she talks about Friendship Circle and all of the activities that it provides. You can't help but want to be involved when you hear hear talk about it. Her passion for serving individuals with disabilities and special needs is contagious! She talks about the blessings, many unexpected, that the volunteers receive from stepping out of their comfort zone and becoming a real friend to an individual who falls into a group of folks who often don't have real friendships.

Imagine a whole bunch of teens and adults who welcome your child with a disability with wide-open arms. And imagine a place for them to meet, an incredible building especially made for individuals with unique learning styles and needs, physical needs, where those individuals are respected and loved for who they are, in a place where they may play, grow in friendship, learn life skills, take classes (like tap dancing or music), for starters.
The Shemtovs' see the whole person and not just the disability, they rejoice in who each person is as an individual, and they teach that perspective to others through experience in the Friendship Circle. It's a place to begin to 'normalize' disabilities, to replace awkwardness and fear with comfortableness and love, which will last long after all of the people have left the building.

It's a place for sibs of children with a special need or disability. It's a place for parents. It's a place for the whole family. (One of my pet peeves is charities and organizations that exclude the sibs and parents while catering to a special need. We don't need more divisiveness in families. We need more togetherness. Friendship Circle gets that, values that, honors that.)

And while it's a Jewish charity, the program is open to everyone who wants to volunteer or to sign up for services.

That's Friendship Circle and Lifetown. There are more than 70 FC's worldwide, so there may be one near you.

The "thing" they've created via Friendship Circle is the "thing" we need more of. Here's one family story: Have you ever been to a restaurant, trying to have a peaceful meal, and there's an annoying kid next to you...??? Click HERE for the rest of the story. We got to view this video and meet Jordon's mother today.

Friendship Circle families (which means families with a child w/ special needs as I am writing it) pay a small yearly fee to join, and rely heavily on fundraisers and donations to keep activities at Lifetown going. The most recent fundraiser was THIS ONE, where they were awarded $125,000. Today, Bassie Shemtov told us the story about how that came to be. Be sure to watch this video of one of the awareness strategies FC used to get votes. ;)

The upcoming fundraiser is the big walk: Walk4Friendship, scheduled for Sunday, September 5th, 2010. Another "freeze", a bigger one, for awareness is in the works.
Be sure to read Dani G's blog entry about the tree, and the girl, and the donor. (I didn't get a photo of the tree today). An excerpt: "If you have your doubts or you’re not sure it’ll be worth your while, let me tell you what you would be missing. Because if you had seen what I’ve seen, you would do what I’m doing. You would be there." Yes, it's that incredible!
We tried to get involved with Friendship Circle years ago, before Lifetown. They were building their list of volunteers for their Buddies at Home program, and there was no one nearby to be a buddy for my daughter. When the building was complete, the progams that were available for my young children conflicted with other activities on our schedule, so we put off getting involved. Several years passed. I embarrased to admit that I forgot about it until recently several friends told me about the activities and buddies there.
So, today, we returned. :) Please take a peek at how our day unfolded:
The Activity Wing is a child's dream! The Snoezelen Room and Water Room are so neat (who knew such a thing existed?!!!)!!! When we visited years ago, our favorite room was the Snoezelen Room - I'd like one in my house, quite honestly.
I did not get photos of every room; be sure to click through to see everything:

TACTILE ROOM

the purple sand is fun!

A room for pretend cooking...

...and real cooking!



Part of the tactile room
(this pic posted out of order):




The GROSS MOTOR room:
(Buddy Break got some ideas from this room for it's program across town.
FC gave them a tour to give them some ideas.)



Music and dance:




Downstairs, Weinburg Village looks like a movie studio soundstage. The first time I saw the village, I could feel my jaw drop. It is amazing. Weinburg Village is a little town, with streets (complete with street lights) and stores, a bank, a park, dentist, doctor's office, beauty shop, pet store, a workshop, and library. Individuals get to practice life skills in a real-life model.




The park

Inside the pet store

the drug store
Pet store


Movie theater and streets


Salon

Doctor's office

Bank

Library

The current gym (there's a new one under construction):

We were each "given" a "disability" for today's blogging event.

My younger daughter and I were hearing impaired.

My older daughter was assigned a physical impairment.

Interesting - a child on the autism spectrum is "given" a "hearing impairment" during a disability awareness exercise. Her mother (me) was "given" the same "impairment". (She looks like a radio announcer.)

Bassie Shemtov immobilized my daughter's writing hand.

My daughter had to figure out how to do everything with her weaker hand, from completing a withdrawal slip at the bank to steering a tricycle.

Others were assigned sight impairment or cognitive impairment.

Some were unable to speak.

We were told to start our experience at the bank, where we wer to fill out a withdrawal slip for $10. We were each given 10 one-dollar bills to spend throughout the town. We could buy snacks, shop in the drug store, buy a movie ticket, or pay for activities.

My girl spent a dollar on an activity in the workshop:

We had to follow the traffic laws or we risked getting a ticket.

Do not walk.
WALK!

We spent a lot of time in the pet store. We didn't have to spend any of our $10 there!

The police officer is watching to make sure you follow the rules!

The girls rented tricycles with their money.

Swingset Mamas performing Take a Walk In Someone Else's Shoes

My favorite photo-op of the day was this one: What an honor to spend the day w/ Bassie Shemtov and to get to meet my internet friend Dani G in real life!

If you're a family who happens to have a family member with special needs, and you're looking for a place to connect and fit in, check out your local Friendship Circle. If you're looking for a place to volunteer and make a difference, check out your local Friendship Circle. And if you're looking for a place to donate some money, consider Friendship Circle. You will make a difference!

The Among Friends Blog HERE. Yours truly blogs there from time to time.

Have you ever tried crock pot baking?

In, "A Year of Slow Cooking", blogger and cookbook author Stephanie O'Dea uses a crock pot to make gluten free recipes, including gluten free breads and cakes. We have more food allergens than simply gluten, which means if I try her recipes, I'll have to make adjustments for eggs or cow's milk or other allergens.

I've never baked breads or cake in the crock pot - not even before gluten free - have you?

This is one of the recipes I'm considering:
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/06/crockpot-coconut-cake-recipe.html

Bread is another:
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/03/perfect-gluten-free-bread-baked-in.html

What is your experience with allergen-free *baking* in a crock pot?

Birthday Gift Idea Suggestions Needed

My dad's birthday is fast approaching.

I am the child who has developed a knack for buying a thoughtful gift that turns out to be a complete flop, a gift that everyone else makes fun of.

When my dad began to need to walk with a cane for stability, I bought a cane with a crank-powered flashlight on the handle. No batteries needed! Nice idea. Except the crank was a challenge and the flashlight didn't work. The cane became the newest family joke.

Everyone made fun of my gift-buying skills for a long time.

About the time I thought they forgot the ridiculous light-up cane, I did it again.

For Christmas a couple of years ago, I bought Mom and Dad matching scarves made from alpaca wool. They were so incredibly soft! Ah, they felt so nice to touch! And they were deep red. Blood red. And apparently alpaca wool scarves shed. The power went out at Mom and Dad's house and Mom decided to throw Dad's scarf around his neck to help keep him warm. A few minutes later, she had a moment of horror - she thought his nose was bleeding. Little pieces of deep red alpaca wool fabric were clinging to Dad's nostrils and at first glance, it looked like blood.

I got a phone call (in fun) telling me how "wonderful" that scarf is. And when they had snow (unusual for their neck of the woods), they used it for this:

Hmmmph.

What do I buy my dad for his birthday? And for Father's Day?

Sibling Conference

An FYI from Sibing Support Project's Don Meyer:

ARI, The Sibling Leadership Network, and The Kennedy Center proudly present the

INTERNATIONAL SIBLING CONFERENCE:

EXPLORING THE REWARDS AND CHALLENGES OF HAVING FAMILY MEMBERS WITH DISABILITIES

Saturday, Aug. 7 & Sunday, Aug. 8, 2010

The Hyatt Regency Hotel, 1800 East Putnam Ave.
Old Greenwich, Connecticut

Featuring keynote speakers:

Don Meyer
Director of the Sibling Support Project

Chris Burke
best known for his role as Charles "Corky" Thatcher on the hit ABC-TV show "Life Goes On”

Dr. Tamar Heller
Professor and Director, Institute on Disability and Human Development, and of the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Aging with Developmental Disabilities at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC);

and

Tia Nelis
Vice President of Self Advocates Becoming Empowered and Self-Advocacy Specialist, UIC.

The International Sibling Conference will provide the siblings of people with disabilities, individuals with disabilities, parents, spouses/partners and professionals in the disability field opportunities to share stories and information, gain insight on sibling experiences, and to learn more about current research and best practices in the disability field.

To register for the International Sibling Conference or for more information, please visit http://www.facebook.com/l/92acc;www.siblingconference.org/ or contact Dr. Robert J. DiDomenico, Conference Coordinator, at 203-324-9258 ext. 3014, or didomenicor@arict.org.

Summer Reading

Eldest and I went to a big chain bookstore over the weekend. During checkout, I picked up the 2010 Summer Reading Double Dog Dare coupons for my children.

Eldest's younger sister, who is my homeschooler is (I believe) about to make the discovery that she is a reader. Reading has been aversive to her because it involves so many processes, I think. She knows a long list of sight words and is decoding new words better and better. However, her listening and speaking vocabularies are miles apart, and her experience bank needs more deposits. Listening, speaking, and experiences are factors in comprehension.

She went through a variety of emotions and reactions to this summer reading coupon. It has 10 blanks for readers to fill in the titles of the 10 books they read. At first glance, 10 books seemed like no problem. We listed a book we had just read. And she became upset, partly, I think, because she thought she needed to rush through 10 books in one day, and partly, because all of a sudden, 10 books seems like a LOT to her. Overwhelming. She was able to calm herself, and became frustrated again. What a cycle! She's got to learn, got to experience, working on this list over time, being successful stretching out the task, watching her list of books read grow. That's not something I can explain to her; she must experience it.

I asked her if she'd like us to read, Knucklehead, together. I suspect that it is outside her ability to read ndependently, yet, I suspect it is something she and I could read together. The chapters are short, the stories are funny, the adventures are often something she can relate to. So we began. She and I read two chapters together, and her big sis helped her with a third chapter. We're on our way.

I let her choose a book and she chose one that she is able to read independently. She finished it and we added it to the list. Woo hoo! :)

When I was cooking, she chose two books that are too challenging for her as an independent reader, and she became frustrated again. I have to sort through our books and create a basket of just-right books for her to read on her own. The basket I sorted a while back has been dumped and mixed up with too-challenging books.

This reading program offers quite a few learning opportunities. One that I hope to accomplish is, "ten seemed like a lot at first, but it wasn't, and I did it!". Another is an appraisal of what is a "just-right" book. Yet another is a discovery of "I am a reader!". And another discovery that, "Reading with Mom is fun!"

And what about me? Ever wonder what's in my book bag?

During the school year, reading review books and reviewing homeschool resources is a priority. Reading and researching about all things autism (which includes auditory processing, receptive language, expressive language, allergies, biomedical, diet, recipes) is another priority. Reading for pleasure - whatever that is (sometimes I want to read about autism, and maybe that sounds crazy)- comes last on the priority list.

Penny has a list of un-required reading, reading for pleasure, for summer. (Summer for me may last about four weeks, as the new review year begins again in July.)

Here's the list:

Fallen Lotus Petals by Jordon Papanier. I met Jordon when we worked for the same technology company in the 1990's. I am delighted to learn that he's a published author and look forward to reading his first novel.

Captivating by John & Stasi Eldredge. I want to get all the way through this one. I've read, oh, maybe half of it. I need to begin it again and read it from cover to cover. I'd like to journal with it as I read it, but that may not happen.

Sarah's Promise and Sarah's Escape by Jim Baumbardner. I read the first book in the series recently as a review. The fourth book in the series, The Making of a Spy - Sarah's Quest, goes into production today (June 1st) and should be available at the end of the year. Maybe it will make my Christmas reading list.

Callous J. Disregard by Andrew Wakefield

Send In The Idiots by Kamran Nazeer. I bought this one a couple of years ago and haven't had time to read it.

Born on a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet. Another one I bought a couple of years ago and haven't had time to read.

The RDI Book by Steven E Gutstein, PhD. Yet another one I want to finish from cover to cover. Seems I always get interrupted when I read this one.