Monday Reading Didn't Happen. Oops.

So.

It's not really an oops. It's actually an "Oh, Dear GOD HELP ME!"

I was SICK, SICK, SICK yesterday. Ugh. Let's just say it was a 24-hour bug, and it wasn't pretty.

So yeah.

Needless to say, Monday Reading didn't happen. I don't know if it will today, either, as things on the homefront have been a bit rocky. *Sigh*

So there may not be a Monday Reading this week at all. Argh! SO FRUSTRATING. Why does it seem like everything has to happen on Mondays lately?!?!?

However, I will share a couple of quick links to appease the crowd. 'Cause three's a crowd, right? Ha!

So, here you go.

How To Love Exercise, Washing Dishes, and Folding Laundry: Inspired to Action. Oh, I love Kat. I may have mentioned this once or twice. She doesn't know it. I'm sort of an internet stalker in that way (KIDDING... Maybe.). But anyway. She pushes me. She truly inspires me. And here, she makes a great point. I haven't moved into the world of audiobooks yet, but I'm getting there... Maybe just one more push and I'll make the jump.

The Unbearable Arrogance of Insurance Companies: Best of the Blogs. If you know me, you know that I have hefty dose of utter and complete LOATHING for most (let's just say ALL) health insurance companies. This author explains a lot of the why's, very aptly, in this well-written and pointed article. In a nutshell: Insurance companies are about profits first, health care second. And for the millions of somebody's out there just like me, we get put on the losing end of that deal every single time. It's a good read. A really good read, actually. Well-worth the time and its length.

The Ruinous Fiscal Impact of Big Banks: The Baseline Scenario. Another long, good read. Typically, I don't read stuff like this, but then, once in a while, I'll get on a kick and get all hyper-educated (for the moment) about politics and high-finance and all that muckety-muck. And then I go back to being me. But yeah. Good read. Sobering, but good.

A Small Gesture... A Big Effect: Treppenwitz. I just discovered this blog, and I love it. What he writes here is so, so true. It is such a blessed thing to notice, and be noticed, even in the small, seemingly insignificant things. Oh, and go read the post about the spider. It's hilarious!

One Way To A More Effective Day: Small Notebook. Ah, Rachel. So real! So true. And in this case, SO ME. I completely identify with everything she wrote in this post. *Sigh* I don't know if that's a good thing because it means I'm normal, or if I need *more* therapy.

Is It A Good Buy, Or Just A Bargain: Small Notebook. And then, she totally rips my chest open and lays ALL MY SECRETS out there in this post. Ack! I am TOTALLY that bargain-hunter. Definitely *not* normal. *Double Sigh* Must. Stop. Shopping. Even at the thrift stores. *Rending clothes* Ugh! Perish the thought! It's so sad. And yet, SO true.

Herbs For Kids. On a completely different note, KayKay has started a science unit on plants, botany, and mainly, herbs. This site has some fantastic links on it to resources for kids to learn more about herbs. We also got her this book for the holidays, which she and I BOTH love. AH-MAZ-ING. I will do a further review of it soon, promise! It's just great!

KnowPlants. This is another database that is chock full of resources for botany, gardening, and you-name-it. While much of it isn't geared toward little ones, I have found that I can point KayKay to certain sections of some of the "older" sites, and then let her loose on other stuff. She hasn't played any of the games yet, but I think we'll be doing that later this week, too. I'll let you know!

Then there's this. Whether you've seen it or not, it's utterly compelling, in my opinion! What a great teaching tool for children. The girls and I haven't explored this fully (we just looked at a couple of the pictures together, but didn't really talk about them), but I plan on turning this into a lesson at some point.

Giant Sidewalk Chalk In Se7en Steps: Se7en. This is an AWESOME project. We're totally going to do this! When it's warmer, that is. The girls will love it. And it'll be a great way for me to let go of some of my OCD tendencies regarding their cleanliness. Therapy, in chalk form. Maybe I won't need to pay for any more after all!

Okay, that's all for now! Hopefully, this makes up for yesterday's nausea and we'll all be right as rain this coming Monday for a real "Reading" post!