Todnem.com (beta)

300 (in theaters now)
It's a war movie about the Spartans (and later, most of Greece) against the Persian Empire. It's not overly bloody as war movies go but people do die. There are also some minor plots to it, so it's not all about a bloodbath. Overall, it was the manner in which it was filmed that made this movie really stand out.

The Holiday (on DVD)
It's definitely a chick flick, but I enjoyed it.

School for Scoundrels (on DVD)
A comedy that suites Billy Bob Thornton well.

Mom, I checked into that KP Duty lotion. It's only available online and I read reviews that were both positive and negative. The overall consensus, I think, was "try something a little less expensive first." It is 36 bucks for 4 oz. Several people suggested asking your doctor for Salex lotion. I think that's the brand name and they said there were generic forms that did as well but cost you less.

Lisa, I ran into these books while researching effective teaching techniques for Kadie. You might have already heard of them or even read them. I don't know if they cover what Zach has, but from the excerpts, it sounded like a good description of what he deals with.

Raising a Sensory Smart Child: The Definitive Handbook for Helping Your Child with Sensory Integration Issues by Lindsey Biel (Author), Nancy Peske (Author)

The Out-of-Sync Child series by Carol Stock Kranowitz

By the way, one of the books I got was Learning on Their Feet: A Sourcebook for Kinesthetic Learning Across the Curriculum K-8. I briefly looked through it last night when I got it and it looks like a good book to have for those who are raising Kinesthetic learners. I'll let you all know more once I get a better look at the material.

I want to mention a book that I think everyone with kids should read (whether the kids are going to school or not). In fact, even if you don't have kids, you should read it for yourself, just to better understand your own mind. It's called "Discover Your Child's Learning Style: Children Learn in Unique Ways - Here's the Key to Every Child's Learning Success" by Mariaemma Ms Willis and Victoria Ma Kindle Hodson. It is EXCELLENT! I was able to see myself in a lot of the examples she included on my learning style. I typify the "producer" with the very basic sum up of my school experience: "I got all A's but didn't learn a thing." My style is a teacher's fantasy (we learn best by seeing written words), but tests have shown that only a very small percentage of people actually learn that way - yet that's the "normal" teaching method. There are tests you can take that will help you identify the best way you understand, absorb and learn information. The tests are easy enough for younger children (maybe Violet's age) to take them themselves and there's a different test that parents can take for their preschool-age kids that I found to be very accurate. I found Kadie's style to be the "performer" - which is the style most likely to be labeled the ADD or "troublesome" child in school. I could go on and on about this book, but would never do it justice. Please, check it out. You'll be glad you did.

Another book mention for all you Janet Evanovich fans: Hot Stuff is coming out on April 3. It's a new series (co-written with another author) and it's in paperback. She has another book out - Plum Lovin' - that's a "between the numbers series" book, kind of like the Christmas book she put out (Visions of Sugar Plums), with Stephanie Plum. Word of warning: it's a shorter book than the normal number series books and it's only in hardback, so you'll be paying a little more for a little less story, but, hey...it's Stephanie Plum and she's always good for a chuckle.

I found a couple of new ones out there (not new as in just published, but new as in older ones that I hadn't heard about yet - she's up to #12 in her Number series, btw) and thought I'd share for all those J.E. fans in our midst - if you're not one yet, you should try her books out. They are light reading and her characters are a hoot (they're very much like real people, not impossibly fictitious).

Manhunt
Smitten
Full Scoop (part of her Full series)
Naughty Neighbor
Ivan Takes a Wife

Motor Mouth and Thanksgiving will be coming out shortly (Oct and Nov 06, respectively).
Plum Love comes out in Jan 07.