The Unbreakable Code

Long time ago I met some very sweet people. Some of them were guys and some of them were girls. With the girls I felt so welcome from the first moment, they were a little shy, and spoke and laughed with a hand covering their mouth, just like me and my friends from back in my little hometown, some where in Mexico.

Here I'm talking about my Navajo friends. I wish I was more eloquent in writing, then I will know how to write so many things about this friends, and I hope that when I said that I have very, very good memories of their friendship you let your mind wonder and imagine good things of what I'm talking about.

Since then, I have been trying to learn more about them. I heard about a movie called Wind Talkers. It's about the Navajo boys and men, that were recruited to help with communications in battle against the Japanese in World War II. But because there was a time when my little ones will follow me every where I went, and the movie is rated R, I never had the chance to rent it and watch it.

I found this book in the library, in the kids section. This was one of those days when the children were reading over and over, one book I'm not so happy about. And I was in a hurry to get going. So, since my kids are in to codes, hieroglyphics, and another languages I checked it out. I'm so glad I got a hold of this book! Its beautiful illustrated with paints of the canyons, and the Navajo territory, by Julia Miner.

It is the story of a boy that has to leave the reservation, because his mom has married someone from another state. The boy is very sad to leave his home. One of the things he is scared about is that, outside the reservation people won't speak Navajo to him. Or that he will forget it. That is when his grandfather, a Navajo Code Talker from World War II, tells him he will be all right, for he has something very special to take with him, the unbreakable code that saved the lives of thousands of Americans in the Pacific during World War II, invented using the unwritten Navajo language.

This is a true story, but don't be surprised if your children question it. It is too exciting and interesting! And be prepare, you might choke up at the time you read why the grandfather had to leave the Navajo Reservation.

And that is not all about this book! At the end of it, the very clever book's author, Sara Hoagland Hunter, has included the alphabet code, the Navajo Unbreakable Code, the same one used in battle in the World War II!

This story should not be unknown! Here is a link where you can read It. If you don't get a chance to put this book in your hands and your kids, like my kids, are into codes, hieroglyphics, and languages, you can go to the Unbreakable Navajo Code site and take a look at the codes words they used in World War II.

More Tips about YARD SALE!!

Hi! Here again, on more tips for YARD SALE!! From the expert. (Note: Only 1 yard sale on her entire life.) Tips for YARD SALE!!

• Don't get cocky! I think we got so excited from the first day turn out. The second day we sold only one item!



• If it looks like trash, it might be trash! I keep a lot of stuff, because "I can do something with it" but, don't expect other people to think the same way. I was trying to sale really funny old stuff, and nobody gave any pennies for it!

Well, that is all for today. See you on the next post on tips for YARD SALE!!

First post about YARD SALE!!

My Garden 2 days into Spring.

Here is how my garden looks with the daffodils blooming.

Orchids

Allow me to introduce you to my friend, Mr. Frog. This kind amphibian and some of his friends entertained my kids, while Mom enjoyed looking at the beautiful Orchids. Some weeks ago, after to much cold, gray skies, and the trees looking like a pile of dead sticks, I was really thinking that I was a citizen of Narnia.

Beware! The cold weather can really whack your brain!


But I found out this place called The Arthur and Phyllis Kaplan Orchid Conservatory in Old Dominion University, in Norfolk. They have many Orchids. I visited it, to get away from the brown view. The kids are not into seeing a bunch of flowers. For them It was a learning field trip.

Here are some pictures of these beautiful Flowers.

The kids liked to watch the frogs. And someone took them to a room where they have more frogs. In order to go in the back, we needed to make an appointment, we didn't have one, but this nice person took us, we went through it quickly, so pictures of my other colorful friends are not so good.

The kids got an idea of what it takes to cultivate these plants. Once in awhile their computer system will spread some type of fog. So, I think they learned something, And I enjoyed the colorful flowers. It was good for me, Now, I know, for sure, that I'm a citizen of Virginia!

Here is an article from the Daily Press. If you want to learn more about this place.

I read Tidewater Gardener blog, and that is how I found out about the conservatory. At the end of his post about it, there is a link to flicker, if you would like to see more pictures of orchids.

It is open free for the public from 10 A.M. to 2 P.M. But, if you go, make sure you get a visitor parking permit, before anything else! If someone goes to the University they learn something. Down there, everything is all about parking spaces. That is what I learned from ODU.

Then we went to the NEX. There we found out that these plants cost $44.00!

YARD SALE!!!

We had our first time ever YARD SALE!! People did stop and bought my stuff! We did soo good, now we feel like YARD SALE experts. Tips from a expert of how to put a yard sale.

Take the stuff out.

That's it! Once stuff is in the yard/drive way, people comes and buys it! In the picture above, it was early, the things in the boxes were not priced yet, but I had a like two custumers that came and bought something.

I must tell you that we did want to make some money, but most of it, we wanted to get rid of the stuff, so we priced it really low. Oops there is that thing you gave me!!

As I was talking with my friend Nishel, about yard sales. She told me something I didn't know, at all. We needed a yard sale permit! Here in Virginia is $5.00.

We also found out that it is Illegal to place signs advertising the yard sale on any property other that my own. And how come I seen many, many of them, on poles all over the place, in the weekends? And if I wanted to be a law breaker and they caught me, I would have to pay $100.00. I live in a busy street and for once I was soo happy about it!


I'm amazed how the times have changed. Ten years ago a friend and I used to go and pick up stuff that people put on the curb as trash. Then I wouldn't be talking about it, because "you don't pick stuff from the trash" was the saying. But now it's cool to do it "we need to recycle, we need to reuse" is the saying of today. And I'm glad of it. I picked these two things from the curb, they were useful for awhile, I don't need them any more. One was sold for $1, and the other for $2.



















Other things to consider. Put your guard dog in the leash!! Oreo spend the whole day barking with her back hair all sticking out.
Don't worries about the cat! He was so happy about all the attractions.

I have some things that I don't want to throw away,but I have no idea how much to price it. It might be useful for some one. I just need them to be gone. we put this sing on them.

Our Weekend

We had a very exciting weekend! It all began when we went shopping for some one's Birthday present because we were invited to a party! Out there we found out that one of our current favorite book was coming up with a movie! It is called How to Train Your Dragon.

We have been enjoying Cressida Cowell book series, the story of how to deal with being a Viking, to train your dragon, be a pirate and more... She has written like 10 books, they are really cool. Even Mom is into them!

The party was at some type of indoor course were kids can play soccer inside. This is a new thing for us! We have heard of our friends in the Midwest playing soccer inside, but never done it until Friday. God decided to pour Hampton Roads with water on Friday, right around rush hour, is was a challenge to drive to this party, but we made it!We are so greatful of being invited, we had lots of fun! One of the things kids are still taking about is the cupcakes in the shape of Lego blocks! They think that Jared's Mom's is the coolest Mom they have seen in a birthday party, because of the way she made and decorated his birthday cake.

Acronym PIG

PIG: Spanish Acronym for Perros I Gatos.

Hieroglyphics

Do your children ever pretend to speak another language? Do they make their own "hieroglyphics"? I don't think my children are the only ones that pretend they speak another language and have "invented" their own "hieroglyphics". I think children are fascinated, by another languages and another alphabets. I said this because of myself when I was a child. And the teacher taught us History. Then I wished he will keep talking more and more about the long time ago Egyptian's way of writing, or the way the Arabic and Chinese people write and speak. And he did, he explained much of it, but the History class was only for me to know that some people long ago had this very unique way of writing, memorize some dates/time periods and that's it. That's all I learned about hieroglyphics.My children spend long periods pretending with their stuffed animals, they called them puppies and animals. Most of the time they pretend they speak Ewokese, the language of Ewoks, the little characters from Star Wars, they try to make all those funny sounds.I just laugh at them quietly. I think it's cute and funny, that they do that, because I remember myself pretending I spoke another language, when I was a child. But I don't remember "writing/inventing" my own hieroglyphics. They are ahead of me!
Both of them like to read Archeology, History or books that speak of the way people communicated long ago. They have also made some time of scroll looking thing, but I kept it for memories, in a very safe place that I can't even remember.
Fritzy is for F, why? is for y. Remember Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade, how professor Jones said that X never marks the spot and at the end X did marked the X spot? Well here in this high sophisticated alphabet X is for X too. Very interesting!
We found some cool sites about Hieroglyphics. This one has other languages to look to. And this one lets you translate what ever is in your mind to hieroglyphics.

I almost forgot this one!

There are some scriptures that are mine, mine, mine, they mean so much to me! And In the middle of busyness the Lord has a way of bringing them back to my memory. I have probably hear this one here and there, but I heard it last Sunday, and it was as if I heard a very new scripture! As if this was the first time I ever heard of the Book of Romans.I don't know what are you going through, but please rest in peace and know that everything that is happening to you, right now, is for your good. His word says it.

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

Breaking News!! Inmate caught escaping!!

One of the things we learned about hamsters is, that they always are trying to escape. We have the evidence! Right here, in Friends in Virginia! And by the way, did you ever wonder if hamsters really have a nose? Well, take a look for yourself. That, right there, is not a dot, that is its nose! Yes, they do have a nose!And here is the international creemeeneeaal, almost out!

We never thought that it will learn to twist and push the little door of its cage.
Some how she pulled the door in, sorry I missed that shot.Look at that!Shes out! Somebody stop her!And as I'm here typing this news, the hamster-owner/hamster-expert came to inform me that hamsters are escape artists. I can see that lady!