The Birthday Girl Got Her Ears Pierced {LaLobe Dallas}

Rachel has been wanting to get her ears pierced for several years.  I always just brushed it off and said, "Maybe when you turn 10."  I never really thought it through or talked to Stuart about it.  It was just something to say to get her to stop begging me at the moment.  

…..Then she turned 10.

I asked for some recommendations for where to take her to get her ears pierced.  Some said to call her pediatrician's office.  Not all pediatrician offices will pierce ears.  I called Rachel's pediatrician and they do pierce ears for active patients.  However, she hasn't been seriously sick in a long time and we haven't had any concerns about her health so we haven't taken her to well exams in a few years so they no longer have her as an active patient.  I didn't realize that she was no longer active and I did ask for the lady to double check with her supervisor but they still refused to do it because she wasn't active.

I got my ears pierced when I was about Rachel's age.  I remember my mom took me to my pediatrician's office.  The nurse used a piercing gun which was spring-loaded to force the sharp-pointed earring into my ear lobe to make the pierce.  The first pierce was my right ear and it went great.  It felt like just a little pinch.  For the left ear, she pierced it with the piercing gun but the gun wouldn't release.  She tried to pull the sides apart but she couldn't.  She had to go get help and left the piercing gun hanging on my ear lobe!  That was painful.  Fortunately my mom quickly held it up until the nurse came back with help.  Eventually the two of them were able to pull and tug to get it to release.  My ear piercings turned out fine but I did have a lot of pain and even an infection on that left ear.  

Now that was probably 35 years ago so technology on those piercing guns has surely improved since then.  However, I did a little research and learned that the piercing gun is not the best way to pierce an ear.  The preferred way is to use a needle.  This allows for greater control on the placement and angle of the pierce.  It also allows for a more sterile environment because they use a single-use sterilized needle rather than a plastic piercing gun that can't be thoroughly sterilized.  Also I would prefer to have a piercing done with someone who is trained specifically in piercing the body and does nothing but piercing as compared to somewhere like Claire's that mainly sells inexpensive jewelry and toys and happens to also do ear piercings by someone who may have just started working there two weeks ago.  Ok, maybe I'm being a little harsh on Claire's but I did call our local Claire's to ask about ear piercing and the girl I spoke to sounded like she could have been Rachel's age and she was a little too bubbly for me to take seriously.

For ear piercings with a needle, several moms have used tattoo parlors because they typically do body piercings as well.  It sounds shocking at first but think about it.  These shops have strict sterilization regulations that they must follow and the artists there usually take a lot of pride in their work and many have studied the human body, circulation, etc. in order to provide the best canvas for their work and the best experience for their customers.  Stuart was a little hesitant when I first mentioned a tattoo parlor but we both agreed that it would be fine.  However, Little Bit didn't like the idea and I completely understand that a tattoo parlor might make the already scary experience even more intimidating for a child.  So I did some research and found LaLobe in Dallas.

LaLobe is a dedicated ear piercing salon that specializes in working with children.  And they use a needle instead of a piercing gun!  Perfect!  They prefer appointments but they also accept walk-ins.

They charge $39 for the ear piercing if you purchase earrings from them.  If you bring your own then the charge for ear piercing is $57.00.  They require that the first earrings used are 14K gold.  I got Rachel some opal birthstone earrings for her birthday but they are 10K gold so I let her browse their selection of earrings.  

October actually has two birthstones - opal and pink tourmaline.  Rachel thought it would wonderful to buy the pink tourmaline earrings for her first pair so she could have both of her birthstones.  But at $165 I had to say no.  I steered her to the basic $54.00 14K stud earrings. She was ok with this but she mentioned something about earrings on her Christmas wish list.  *sigh*

While I was signing some paperwork, Rachel watched two teenage girls get their ears pierced.  They made a big deal of acting scared before hand so I was a little worried about Rachel getting more scared but they calmed down once they were in the chair and neither of them cried when they actually got the piercing.  I think that helped her see that it wasn't too bad.  However, she looked very nervous as she waited for her turn.

To comfort her Rachel brought a squishy toy that she could squeeze if she needed to and of course she brought Pink Baby too.  She has had Pink Baby since she was an infant and it always comforts her when she gets upset.

The wait was short and it was time for Rachel to get in the chair.  She was so nervous but managed to give me a smile.  

They first measure and mark on the ear lobe where the piercing will go.  Then they use a specially designed "tong" to hold the ear lobe in place.  There is a hole in the tongs that they line up with the marking on the ear lobe.  They use a freeze spray on the ear lobe to numb it and then insert the needle.  Once they remove the needle they put in the earring.  She isn't supposed to remove those earrings for 4 weeks.

She was a little bit more relaxed on the second ear lobe but she still wasn't having fun.  She was brave though and I was so proud of her.


Rachel is so excited to have her ears pierced and Genesis at LaLobe did a great job with talking to her about the whole process and helping her to stay calm.

After care:  She had to turn the earrings every hour with clean hands just to help keep the skin from scabbing over the earrings.  After the first day, she just turns them 3-5 times a day and cleans them with a special anti-septic.  The cost of her ear piercing includes a follow up appointment at LaLobe in 4 weeks where they will check the healing process.  

Secret Keeper Girl

Dannah Gresh is the amazing Mom-inventor of Secret Keeper Girl.  The movement began as a book that she wrote called, "Secret Keeper Girl: The Power of Modesty" which is about keeping some special things secret until you find that special man to marry.  Dannah didn't stop with that one book though.  She realized that worldly advertisements and social media were causing anxiety, depression, and even early sexual debut in today's teen girls.  She has since written many more books and even created a live event that tours the country each year to remind girls that they are special and loved by Jesus.

Tonight Rachel and I went to our first Secret Keeper Girl live event.  This year's tour is called Masterpiece. It was an amazing mother-daughter experience.


The event took place at First Denton church and we had to buy tickets in advance.  I took this picture as the show was just starting but soon the seats were pretty full so I would guess that it might have been a sold out event.

The show began with a reading of Genesis and the story of Creation.  The girls were reminded that they are a beautiful creation by a good and loving God.  The theme scripture for the event was Ephesians 2:10 which we recited several times during the night to help us memorize it....sometimes in silly voices, sometimes singing it like an opera singer.

There was some discussion about what a masterpiece is.  We learned about several famous pieces of art, including the Mona Lisa.  We learned how a masterpiece must be protected and preserved because it is special.  The girls were reminded how they are each God's beautiful masterpieces.  It was a powerful message but it was kept fun with lots of singing and dancing.  Many times the girls were allowed to go up on the stage to sing along.

A cute souvenir that many of the girls just "had to have" were the light up flower headbands.  Rachel looked so cute in it that I just couldn't resist getting it for her.  She loves it.

The music performances were great and everyone was singing along.

My favorite part of the night was when they sang "Masterpiece" by Danny Gokey.  It was so perfect for this event and it is one of my favorite songs right now.

We learned about the Truth or Bare Fashion Test that we can use to determine if our clothes are too revealing.  We only covered three of the tests at the event but the website lists several more.  Then we watched a mother-daughter fashion show modeling outfits that were adorable yet modest.

The night ended with an invitation for girls to say a prayer to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior.  It was such a beautiful event.


If you would like to learn more about Secret Keeper Girl, please check out the Secret Keeper Girl website or follow Secret Keeper Girl on Facebook

Little Kid Art Supplies

Rachel loves making art.  She loves drawing, painting, pastels, and more.  She has been doing some art lessons online and I have let her use some of my nicer art supplies.  

As we were getting ready for the new school year, I had her help me clean out the art closet.  She was excited to find some supplies that had gotten buried and forgotten about.  But she also turned her nose up at what she called, "little kid art supplies".

While I'm always happy to get rid of stuff on my de-cluttering mission, I found myself actually sad about giving away these particular items.  It was a sudden reminder that my babies are growing up and we are getting rid of our last Crayola crayons and big foam stamps.  As a parent you don't usually know until after the fact when will be the last time your child will ask you to push them on the swing or the last time they will want to sit in your lap while you read a book to them. This was just one of those moments that stuck with me as we got rid of those "little kid art supplies".

Savor the days.  

Bucket List: LSU Game With My Dad

A few years ago, a friend challenged me to write a bucket list - a list of things I'd like to do before I kick the bucket.  Here is the Bucket List I wrote in 2014.  

Every year, for as long as I can remember, my dad has gotten tickets to LSU Football games.  I have such fond memories of going to the games with him.  I remember meeting up with some friends of his before the game and having so much fun tailgating.  I remember trying deviled eggs for the first time and loving them.  I remember sitting in the stands "watching" the game although when I was little that really meant watching people around me and occasionally watching what was happening on the field.   And asking Dad a lot of questions about the game, penalties, etc.

Last year, as Dad was talking about the football games for the season, I felt nostalgia for the fun I had had with him at those games.  They were such good memories and I missed that experience.  I realized that I hadn't gone to an LSU football game with him since I was in college and decided that I needed to add an item to my Bucket List - Go to an LSU game with my Dad (plus tailgate and eat deviled eggs).  

Unfortunately, we live about 9 hours away from him and we only travel home in July and December so we miss out on the entire football season.  Last year I tried to work out a way that we could visit on a game weekend but we already had conflicts scheduled on those weekends.  It was just too late to change things around and make it work.  So this year, as soon as the game schedule came out, I started talking to Dad to make plans to come for a visit on a game weekend.  He was a little hesitant to agree to it at first.  For the last couple of years he has been giving the tickets to my brother to use and he has just been watching the game on TV at home.  But he said if I came over there then he would go to the game with me!  I told him we also had to tailgate and have deviled eggs :)

With the game schedule and our kids' various activity schedules, we decided that it would be best for me to fly to Louisiana on my own.  Stuart had a lot going on at work and Nicholas had an important hockey game that weekend so it wasn't a good time for them to go out of town.  I was a little nervous about getting through the airport and flying by myself so I kept putting off actually buying the plane ticket but Stuart encouraged me on and helped me find the best itinerary.

The kids seemed excited to ride along to take me to the airport....

...until it was time for me to actually say good-bye and then this happened...

She broke my heart and it was hard leaving all three of them, especially since I was so nervous about just finding my way through the DFW International Airport on my own.  But I'm a big girl and managed to find my gate and get on the plane without a major incident.

The flight was nice.  It always amazes me to look down on the clouds!

I took this picture just to show the kids the way the gas and particles in the different layers of the atmosphere act as prisms to reflect and filter different wavelengths of light.

You know you must be in south Louisiana when you start seeing all of the curvy rivers cutting through the landscape.  

It was dark when we landed but I was able to snap this picture of the Baton Rouge skyline at night.

On game day, we had some breakfast and grabbed some deviled eggs from a local deli.  But somewhere along the way, we got a little behind schedule and ran into some heavy game traffic on the interstate.  We realized that we wouldn't really have much time to tailgate once we got to the stadium so Dad opened up the deviled eggs and started snacking on them while we sat in traffic.  He pointed out that it was just like tailgating.  We were eating in the car before the game and we were surrounded by other LSU fans.  Yep, just like tailgating....

We got to our seats just fine.  The weather was gorgeous.  The temperature was great.  And I was just giddy to actually be sitting with my dad in Tiger Stadium about to watch an LSU football game!

The LSU Golden Band from Tiger Land took the field before the game.  As usual they were amazing.  I teared up a little as I sang the LSU Alma Mater with my Dad but the rest of the music was just exciting!  Geaux Tigers!

The game was great and we won!  LSU 33 - ARK 10!!!

I am so glad that Dad agreed to go to the game with me and that we worked out the details to make it happen!  It was such a fun day and I had a great time with my Dad.  I love you Dad!

Internship for High School Credit by Apologia {Review}

Did you know that your high school student can get real world experience through an internship and count it as high school credit on their transcript?  I had not thought about that before but there is a great book called Internship for High School Credit: Practical Help to Explore and Direct Your Career Plans by Apologia Educational Ministries that helps walks students through the process.  This book was offered as a review product to the Homeschool Review Crew and I am very happy to review it.

Internship for High School Credit starts out by discussing what an internship is and how it evolved from the apprenticeship model of the Middle Ages.  Back in those days, young people would learn their skills and craft mostly from hands-on experience.  They would learn the ways of the trade and practice to improve their skills over time by working with a master or expert in the field.  When they were finally on their own, they already knew what was expected of them and what the day to day requirements of the job would be.  

But over time, that concept has slipped away.  These days, students go through the basic 12 years of school and are expected to know what they want to be when they grow up without having ever actually stepped foot in a place of business in their chosen career.  They then spend thousands of dollars to attend four years of college and still may not know what it is like to actually do that job every day.  

They graduate and they get their first job.  And sadly, many young people are shocked and dismayed after just a few years in their field. "Wait, what?  I have to do that in this job?  That isn't what I thought I signed up for!"  They are discouraged to learn that their career isn't all that they dreamed of and that it really wasn't what they were expecting.  At this point, they have two choices - keep on plugging away at a career that isn't a good fit for them or cut their losses and start over with a new career. 

The idea of an internship is a great way for young students to gain more experience in the career path they want to pursue.  They learn the ins and outs  of the day-to-day job responsibilities of the field BEFORE they invest thousands of dollars and years of their life to it.   They are better able to focus their college degree on the skills they really need to learn because they know where they are heading.  Plus, colleges are delighted to see students' applications that show they have some experience in their field because the colleges know that those students already know that this is what they want to do and are much less likely to drop out of school.  Not only are these all great reasons for pursuing an internship in high school, but also if the student 

So let's talk a little about Apologia's book, Internship for High School Credit.  The book is intended for the student to read and use on their own.  However, there is a section just for parents and it would certainly be most helpful for the student if the parent read the book and was able to discuss the ideas and concepts to help guide their student along the way.

After discussing the benefits of an internship, the book helps the student think through companies that they might be able to contact for an internship, how to write a resume and a letter of introduction, and how to interview for the position.  For parents, there is also good information about how to document the internship on the student's transcript including course title, number of credits, and grades.  

For the most part, the rest of the book is worksheets for the student to complete.  There are worksheets for semester goals then weekly worksheets to be completed during the internship.  These weekly worksheets help the student track days and hours worked but also include questions and activities for the student.  I really love these questions and activities because they challenge the student to learn more.  They have the student research specific element that may involve asking questions of their internship mentor or looking up information on their own.  They weekly activities include things like learning about the job titles for the people at the business, paying close attention to work attire, thinking big picture about the job they do, career specific language and technology, thinking about how the student's strengths and interests fit with what they are doing in this internship, researching companies in the field that they might could later work for, and so much more.


For more information on Apologia Educational Ministries, please check them out:

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The Homeschool Review Crew was given the opportunity to review either Internship for High School Credit or How to HOMESCHOOL with Stunning Confidence, Contagious Joy, and Amazing Focus (DVD and Coursebook).  If you would like to read reviews for either of these products by other members of the Homeschool Review Crew then please click the banner below.

Family Time at the Lake with the Bluebonnets

The bluebonnets were out this spring but our usual spot by Grapevine Lake didn't have many blooms.  The ground seemed extra muddy so maybe there was just too much rain.  But we still had a nice time going out and exploring the area and taking pictures.

Rachel found this dead tree to sit on and asked us to take this picture.  She is developing a good eye for setting up pictures.

Of course, a little play is always fun too.

We found a few patches of bluebonnets.  The kids stayed still and posed for us for a little while.  This is probably the biggest patch of flowers that we found.  We were also a little late in getting out here so there were probably more flowers a week or two ago.  

I can't believe how quickly these sweet kid are growing up.  I try to cherish the time with them but it still seems to just slip right through my hands.

This guy especially is getting too big!  I blinked for a moment and he now he will be starting eighth grade next year. How did that happen?

These two are so precious to me.  What a blessing it is to be their mom and to watch them grow and learn new and exciting things each day.  

Aww!  I was just going to pose with him and he surprised me with a kiss on the cheek!  What a sweet boy!

Stuart handed over the camera to one of our budding photographers so we could get a picture together.

We rarely get pictures of the two of us together.  This is shadowy and we were wind-blown but I love any picture with my sweet hubby.

Our kids are always discovering neat things in nature.  I never know what they will find but I love how they show each other their finds and they try to help each other identify them.

Nicholas found a little caterpillar.

I even found a pretty butterfly.

It's always fun to just explore around here.

My boy loves sticks so he is often carrying one around when we are outside.  This is the mack daddy of all sticks though.  Look how gnarly it is.  He was using it as a magical staff to shoot laser beams at things.

I love how there are still glimpses of a little boy in him.

Look how tall Nicholas is getting!  It won't be long before he is as tall as Stuart!

This little one is a sweet heart and she loves to give kisses.

She loves her Daddy.

Of course we can't go to the lake without Rachel bringing home some cool rocks and fossils.  She gathered them up in her dress to carry them back to the car.  She was a little sad when we made her go through her bounty and limit it to her three most favorite treasures to take home.

On the way to the car, Rachel fell and got hurt.  Big brother scooped in and saved the day by giving her a piggy back ride to the car.