MULTIPLICATION

I thought that teaching my child how to go potty was the hardest thing I would have to do. Then I had to teach her how to read, which was brain numbing and ridiculously hard. Surprisingly, she in now a reader. When I go in her room late at night, she is usually reading. It makes me so happy. I never thought she would enjoy reading. She does now. I am grateful every day.

Now onto the next hurdle, multiplication. It has been ridiculously long hours. If anyone has any tricks, besides flash cards and on-line games, I am ready and willing to listen. She doesn't like doing it and frankly neither do I but I don't want her counting fingers in high school, so we will plug along.

I have been thinking a lot about boy names this morning, which I haven't really done because all of our children's names have been compromises and I don't want to set my heart on anything, but here I go again. I have looked at the top names for 2013. Surprisingly, my nephew Leo's names was 75. I didn't think he would even make the top 1,000 names. There was nothing on the list that stood out to me.

I am not into different names, even though I wanted to name Madison, Ember.

I logged onto Nate and I's family history and these are the names that jumped out at me. I know some of them make the top 2013 names list but maybe because I felt a connection to the names they made the list.

First Names
Charles
Maxwell
Samuel
Jefferie
Benjamin Colton
Thurston
Henry
Nicolas
Alexander
Peder
Lage
Axel

Middle Names
William
Benjamin
Michael
Spencer

Yes, all of these names were either in Nate's family line or my line. I love Maxwell and Lage. We will see what Nate thinks. I told him the other day I liked the name Lucas and he wouldn't give me a nay or a yeah on it. Then a few days later he said, "I like Lucas!" I said, "You do?" He said, "Yes, because when he grows up I can say, Luke, I am your father!" Then he laughed and laughed and said, "I am not naming my son Lucas."

Nate you make me giggle but naming our children is almost as difficult as teaching our daughter multiplication.