"I saw your face, and I knew it was a sign
And I still think about that moment all of the time"

Love You for a Long Time by Maggie Rogers

Hi Reader,

We are more than halfway through American Indian Heritage month! I want to share some inspiration to talk with your kiddos!

Quick tip: if you know the name of a person's tribe, it is always preferred to use the name. If you're speaking generally, then it's often preferred to say American Indians, Native Peoples, or Indigenous Americans. The term Native American is falling out of fashion.

Notable American Indians

Rep. Sharice Davids and Deb Haaland: The first American Indian women elected into congress (2019). Davids represents a district in Kansas. She's a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation in Wisconsin. Deb Haaland represented New Mexico and is part of the Laguna Pueblo tribe. Davids is still in office. Haaland went on to become the Secretary of the Interior.

Jason Mamoa: Yes, Aquaman! He is Native Hawaiian and Pawnee. Mamoa is known for his acting career portraying Aquaman among many other superheroes. He's also in the upcoming Minecraft movie.

Link Wray: A famous guitarist known for using distortion and tremolo in rock music. His song "Rumble" is known as one of the best guitar riffs of all time and inspired many musicians (worth a listen!). Link Wray was half Shawnee.

Jerry C Elliott High Eagle: It's hard to list all of high accolades, but he is best known for being on the mission control team during the Apollo 11 moon landing and part of the team that saved astronauts during the Apollo 13 mission. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest award the president can give to civilians. In 1976 he wrote legislation to Native American Awareness Week, which has since evolved into American Indian Heritage Month. Elliott is Osage-Cherokee.

What's New?

🍁 Blowing Rock, NC: Last weekend I went to the mountains with a group of girlfriends. We had 8 girls, no cell service, and a campfire. It was a blast to disconnect and reconnect with my friends. If you're looking for a cute cozy Christmas town I encourage you to visit towns in Western, NC. I got so many great Christmas presents. They could really use the tourism to recover from Hurricane Helene.

🦃 The Thanksgiving Story: Last year a I made a video about talking to kids about Thanksgiving. If you feel like you're telling an outdated version of the story, this video is a great guide to retell the story.

🎥 Coming Up: Thank you for all your suggestions on what I should create for Primary Focus! I've got some fun vids in the pipeline for November and December. You asked for content for older kiddos. In January, I'll start on a series of videos breaking down content for each grade level. Now my only debate- am I starting with 3rd, 4th, 5th, or 6th grade first???

Things I Love

📚 OK Ready!: I am so excited to partner with OK Ready! Empower your preschooler with the new "more than books" subscription box, by Scholastic. Each book comes with a plan, mini activities, and conversation questions to ensure your child has a strong foundation in literacy. Get your monthly box for as low at $24.99 a month and free 2 day shipping.

🛍️ Support Western NC: I want to highlight a few of my favorite locally owned businesses in Western NC. All of these places make great hostess gifts: Poppy Popcorn (Asheville), High Country Candles - the maple butter smells amazing (Blowing Rock), The Chocolate Fetish makes the best truffles (Asheville). If you've got more suggestions, please share and I'll post them in a few weeks.

Have a great week and take care,