The Emerald Atlas Questions and Answers

Chapter one: Mrs. Lovestock's Hat


Questions:

1.  Mrs. Lovestock loved all things related to _______?
2. What did Mr. Lovestock do on his annual vacations that prove to be quite ironic?
3. Mrs. Crumbly, the mean headmistress of the orphanage, likes to eat ______?
4. What is so special about the book, "The Dwarf Omnibus"?
5. Why did the children leave St. Mary's with Sister Agatha?
6. Ten years have passed, how old are the kids now?
7. In the past ten years, how many orphanages had the kids been living? A) 8, B) 6, C) 10, D) 12
8. Ms. Crumbly's orphanage is named, "Edgar Allan Poe Home for Hopeless and Incorrigible Orphans".  What does the highlighted word mean?
9. Why do the children refuse to consider themselves orphans?

Answers:

1. swans
2. hunts swans
3. candy
4. This book was tucked into Michael's blankets Christmas eve night when they left their parent's.  Their mom had given it to their dad as a Christmas present.
5. Sister Agatha burned the place down smoking in bed
6. Kate is 14, Michael is 12, Emma is 11
7. D
8. can't be corrected or made to do/act correctly
9. The children do not believe that their parents are dead.

Chapter two: Mrs. Crumbly's Revenge

1. On their way to the new orphanage, what did Kate and Emma learn that Michael had stolen by sneaking into Ms. Crumbly's office?
2. What promise did Kate make to her mother? 
3. Michael and Emma tried to think of possible ideas hoping that their suggestions would help Kate remember what?
4. On their way to Cambridge Falls, who picks the kids up in a horse drawn wagon?  
5. What do the kids discover that comes out at night in Cambridge Falls that causes them fear and Abraham to worry?
6. As they approach the huge orphanage, Kate realizes that she first dreamt of the orphanage when she fell asleep where?

Answers:

1. A bag of candy 
2. Kate promised to take care of her brother and sister 
3. Their last name that begins with a P
4. Abraham 
5. Wolves 
6. On the train to Cambridge Falls

 

Chapter Three: The King and Queens of France

1. Who is the character described as the "old crab-backed housekeeper and cook?
2. Their first night after the best dinner they'd had in years, what did Abraham give to the children and why?
3. Kate had many questions about Cambridge Falls, but what worried her most? 
4. What was Abraham's warning to the children? 

Answers:

1. Miss Sallow 
2. Abraham gave them" an old black-and-white photograph" that "showed A wide lake and, in the distance, the chimney – Peaked roofs of houses rising above the trees". He wanted them to see how the bleak place used to look. 
3. Kate wondered why there were no children anywhere.
4. Abraham warned them not to roam around. 

The Emerald Atlas: Prologue

Here are some questions about the Prologue of the book. The answers will follow.
Feel free to check behind me.

1. The book begins on what holiday night?
2. How old is Kate?
3. Vocabulary: What does the highlighted word mean? "Then the man said something Kate couldn't hear, and it was as if a heavy curtain was drawn around her mind, obliterating the man in the doorway, the light, her mother, everything?"
4. Who was it that the tall man had told him that he had seen and was now dead?
5. Sister Agatha tells the tall man that the children will need a new surname.  What's a surname?
6. What surname did the tall man give the children?

Answers:

1. Christmas Eve
2. 4 years old
3. erasing
4. Devon McClay
5. last name
6. P

The Emerald Atlas

My son, who is in the fifth grade, is participating in a reading competition.  I decided that I was going to read some of the books with him.  Well, I read the first book and in the time it took me to finish the book, he had read six of the books!  So much for reading along with my kid!

Anyway, the first book was "The Emerald Atlas: The Book of Beginning" by John Stephens.   I really enjoyed the book.  I can't believe how enjoyable the reading experience proved to be.  I was totally engaged.  While I'm sure that one could read the reviews and the synopsis of the book, here is my stab.....

The book opens with the recollection of a long ago Christmas eve night by four year old Kate.  The child recalls how she and her siblings were taken from their parents for their protection.  I felt the angst of the mother saying goodbye to her children who had been tucked in bed Christmas eve night.  The young girl describes the smell of gingerbread on her mother, feeling her mother's tear fall on her face and the emotion of her mother fastening a locket on her daughter's neck.  A mother's emotion: the author had me from the opening. 

The children, for eight years, travel from orphanage to orphanage and learn quickly that they can only count on each other.  Even though Kate is only two years older than the middle sibling, she fully embraces the promise that she made to her mother, to take care of her siblings.  The reader will easily forget that Kate is only twelve and her siblings are ten and nine years of age.  During their struggles and longing for their parents, the reader learn of their personalities.  Twelve year old Kate is protective and carries the weight of the world on her shoulders.  Michael, at ten, is vulnerable, intelligent and fiercely interested in books and dwarfs.  Emma, at nine, is a fighter and is feisty.  The children will discover that they are chosen to find a magical book and will journey through time to possibly change the past and the future.  Their journey will allow the reader to witness the alliances they must build, the love that has been missing from their lives, their hurts and their dedication to each other.   This novel is part of a series and is a must read for both the youth and their parents.

So, reading this book has proved to be an opportunity for me to connect with my kid.  I enjoyed his daily question of what part of the book I was currently reading.  Of course, though, I want him to succeed in the competition, but don't want to take the joy out of the journey...... so here I go: I have put together some questions and answers to help my kid remember the book.  Don't read the chapter posts unless you don't care about spoilers.  Maybe,  this will be useful to other kids.  I, in no way, profess to have any analytical, literary nor education experience; this is all in fun.
Until next time....

Not quite so sure about this nursing career change

My last few night shifts were pretty rough.  I was tired, we were short staffed and I had some patients with high acuity.  Add all of that to the fact that I have been on the floor less than six months, I had seven patients and work with some nurses and auxiliary staff who can be challenging (to say the least) and you have a recipe for a swift exit from this career. 
One morning,  after the midnight shift, I arrived home, showered and plugged in my computer to look for healthcare, IT jobs.  I figure that I can   combine both my careers and escape with more money, a desk (my feet are killing me), more autonomy (I'm so sick of relying on less than helpful people) and less dangers (needle sticks, combative patients, combative family, exposure to communicable diseases).  I filled out a couple of applications in another healthcare system.  There!  I did it.  That was a big step for me as I am the one that stayed on board with EDS until after the shift sank.  I am a loyal employee.  But, for my sanity, I reasoned that I have to change.
Don't get me wrong, there are many positives about nursing.  Money, would be one of them, had I not already earned more doing something else, but the money is decent.  The money is very good when I consider that I am part time.  Where else can I work 24 hours a week and get paid $26.01 base pay per hour?  I earn $28.31 for midnights and $30.31 for weekend midnights.  I still, however, long to earn close to what I was making as a consultant.  Next, I like that once I leave for the day, my work is done.  It was never like that when I was working for HP.  There was always something to do and something to try and figure out.  There were conference calls, meetings and off hour maintenance windows.  The final perk is the patients.  I have met some people that I will never forget.  Many have touched my heart and far outnumber the ones that have gotten under my skin. 
People keep telling me that it isn't nursing that I don't like, but rather where I am working.  I am not sure where I will be led but I am taking some steps and that is a plus for me rather than my usual complain and "stick it out" attitude.  I will just take it day by day and try really hard to like the person that I become when I am around such chaos and negativity.  We shall see.....

Am I giving them what they need to be successful students?

I write this in exasperation!  I spent my day off helping/doing homework with my third and fifth graders.  Of course, they would have rather spent the entire day "plugged in".  By that, I mean sitting on the couch, in the family room, with the I Pad on their laps, the TV going and the laptop nearby with the game of Minecraft going.  I don't allow this normally during the week, but if there is no school, this is exactly the happenings in my family room.  When I look in there, I swear that I can the brain cells being sucked right out of their ears!   Because of this, we have the "no power button" rule: "If you went to school today and the day of the week is not equal to Friday, do not dare touch anything (with the exception of the microwave) that has a power button".

In fact, this "no power button rule" was put into effect for my male, fifth-grade, child.  He has been unreasonable since he was in pre-kindergarten.  There is no balance with this guy.  If there was any form of entertainment, he was never obliged to defer to homework or studying of any kind.  Because of him, my daughter suffers.  She studies with no complain, even doing extra just because.  She is the first to try and get her homework done and out of the way.  She makes a point of trying to understand and hates to get anything wrong.  She reminds me of myself academically.  She is a self starter and a rule follower.  I see a mathematician in the making!!  Be still my heart.  But, back to my boy.

I realized during the first social studies exam prep of the fifth grade, that my kid did not know how to study.  Totally my fault!!! How can you just stare at and reread a "study guide" and expect to pass the test?  I pulled out my laptop and we made a real study sheet.  This was the old fashioned, fold the paper in half, write the definitions on the right side and the vocabulary words on the left.  Well, it was updated and created on a laptop, but you get the idea.  I told my kid, "the way you study for an exam, is to test yourself first.  If you can pass your exam, you will surely pass the teacher's."  How did my kid get this far and not know this?  My fault.  Then, I wondered who gave me this example?  Was it my parents?  I swear, I have not one memory of my parents even helping me or telling me to study.  They even admit to not having to help me.  Maybe it was God blessing them as I was the fifth and last kid.  If I had two kids like my son, I don't know how I would do it.  Anyway, my son passed that test with a B.  The questions we missed, we had not put on our study sheet.

My son is surely the kid that you have to stay on top of.  There are tears (mostly his) each time, we sit to study or do homework.  They are usually of frustration , but mostly because he would rather be doing something else.  I have to tell myself not to lose it because, hell, I'd rather be doing something else to.  He becomes surly and rude and it fuels my anger.  Tonight, however, I never yelled and I never let it get to me.  I, however, told him that if he would let me help him, he'd surely get it.  Tonight, our battle was with math and with science.    I keep telling him that you must have the foundation.  If your house is built on a shaky foundation, it will surely crumble.  For example, all your rounding problems are incorrect, when you don't know place values.  You can't round 4.73 to the nearest tenth, when you think that the 3 is in the tenth place! This is how I taught him to remember: After the decimal point think of zeroes.  The first place is the tenth place because there is is one zero in ten.  The next place (second place) is the hundredth place because there are two zeroes in one hundred and so on.  Before the decimal point think of ones.   Where is the one in the number one?  In the first place before the decimal point.  This is the ones place.  The one in ten is in the second place before the decimal, this is the tens place and so on.  He got it!

I just realize that I have to make the sacrifice and work with my son a little more than my daughter.  It will give him the confidence to start using the tips and tricks that I give him, on his own.  I just need the patience and time.  Until next time.......

Wish I was Claire Huxtable

I wish that I was Claire Huxtable.  She would know just what to do, what to say and whatever crisis was currently plaguing her clan, would be resolved in 27 minutes.  In my parenting, I focus on honesty.  I started this when they were toddlers and always rewarded them for the truth.  I think that I focus on them being honest because I was such a liar when I was young.  It became such a problem for me that I didn't really "grow out of it" until well into adulthood.  As a child, I lied about so much.  I didn't just lie about events. I even made up the characters!  For example, my first kiss was not only fabricated but so was the lucky boy.  I used to have the hardest time keeping the lies straight.  There are things that I even told my husband when I was dating him that I'm sure that he'd be surprised to find out were fabricated.  Anyway, the point is that I worked very hard to stop the lying and I never want my kids to be like me.  I had lied so much that I found that I wasn't even being honest with myself.  Life is hard enough to process but when you can't have an authentic look at yourself, it's even more of a challenge.

Enter, my ten your old son: My kid is really honest.  We've even established that omission of details is the same as lying.  I wish that his dad would understand that!  The principal of my kids' elementary school called me today and was very upset about what my son had said to the lunch aide.  He continued by asserting that he was sure that my husband and I would be appalled at such behavior.  I listened, calmly, but never allowed him to tell me what my son had said.  I didn't actually say that I didn't want him to tell me.  I just steered the conversation back to scheduling the requesting parental meeting and acknowledged the possibility of suspension.  My intent was two-fold: (1) In the past, I feel that I've made mistakes by reacting to what someone tells me that my child has done and while supportive of the consequences, have appeared to be less supportive of my child and (2) I want to get the facts from my son and allow him to tell me what had occurred.  After talking to my son, I'm really glad that I did not hear the details from the principal.  My son's comments were rude and disrespectful.  It is embarrassing!  I would have been as emotional as the principal and so embarrassed that I might have regretted my reaction.  I saved the emotion for my son: when he told me what he said, we both cried.  I'm trying to keep these lines of communication open.  He told me everything he said and we talked about it.  I went hard on him.  I told him that he was headed down a dangerous path and asked him if detention centers, jails, and finally prisons were in his future!  I know that's a bit extreme but I'm trying to make a point of respecting authority and good citizenship.  This kid has been grounded and spanked in the past and he will be grounded over this one.  I've seen improvement in him taking responsibility for his choices.  I just wonder if I'm dealing with him correctly?  I'm so afraid that my children won't know authenticity and I try to balance that with the knowing accountability and responsibility.  Claire Huxtable would have a resolution by the end of the episode; for those of us in the fraternal order of parenting, we just try our best and pray that we get most of it right!  Peace and blessings.....until next time

Just read: "Rizzoli and Isles: Ice Cold"

I have been enjoying being out of school and able to read for pleasure. I just finished Ice Cold in two days. It was a mystery with a little bit if CSI and enough character development to still tug at your heart strings; just like my beloved Law and Order:SVU.
I read the book electronically on my Iphone and it seemed like a quick read. I have to say that I was surprised but left wanting more when the book ended.
I felt like the author reached a page quota. There was so much build up and then we are left wondering what happened. The jacket of the book (electronic) indicated that there is a TNT series based on the lives if the main characters. So, back to my SVU comparison, I felt like the ending was an episode ending where, with the next episode/case/book we find out what becomes on the supporting characters. Other than that, a good read. 4/5 stars.

Wild

I just finished reading the book, Wild, by Cheryl Strayed and it was a very good read. I did not know that it was an Oprah Winfrey book club selection until after I'd finished it as I downloaded it from my local library.
I found myself dreaming about this young woman's journey and cheering her on. I felt her loss her mother and while feeling blessed to still have mine, I wondered how my life might have been so very different if I'd lost my mother at the tender age of 22; an age where we pretend to be all grown up but had so much left to learn, do, fear and appreciate. I would recommend this book as it tugs at heart strings, is appropriate for those who love a bit of history, and for those that appreciate another's journey. Something for everyone.

Okay, so I've been away a while.  I have a lot of catching up to do.  Anyhow, my post today is about pancakes.  I try to treat my kids to a McDonald's breakfast twice a week.  I don't know how much a treat it is.  How you seen the calorie content of those breakfast menu items?  Anyway for Lent, I decided that we should limit the amount of money that we give to Mickey D's and instead donate it to the poor.  So, I went in search of a pancake recipe that claimed to taste like McDonald's fluffy pancakes.  I found one and made it this morning for the kids.  They both gave two thumbs up.  We had an extra package of McDonald's hot cake syrup here so to have the full recreation.
The recipe was from Kaysie at http://fullofcrock.wordpress.com/2013/01/20/how-to-make-mcdonalds-pancakes/
I have to give credit where credit is due.  The recipe calls for Bisquick and sprite.  It will be my goal to one day make a gluten free recipe with baking soda that tastes just as yummy, but my concern about gluten and soda pop is a different blog.  So, if you are ever in the mood for McDonald's pancakes, now I can attest that Kaysie found a good recipe that works really well. 

I over browned them a bit.  You will have to be careful; I found that it was best to turn my griddle down to 350 degrees and let them cook slowly.