I said, 'Someone in this van has really good taste.' And Bethy said "Who, you and me?"
;-)
Friday, March 30
The Little Lepercon
by Elizabeth K. Meade
(all spelling, grammar and punctuation are original to the author)
One day a little lepercon named Lucky was looking for a good place to hide his gorld. He was defently, defently not goning to put it at the end of a rainbow! The last time he did some one stole it! He did not want that to happin agin. So, he set off to fide a plase. Now, after he had ben looking so, so long he finly fond a plase to hide it. Then...
he went back to his secrat cave to rest. When he wock up, he went back to his gorld, brot it back and, went to town. But Lucky forgot how to get thear. Can you help lucky get to town?
Hint: the right one has a fork. Take the left one. (Momma's note: the original story has a maze drawn here.)
Well, when he finlly go to town he went to a secret shop to buy some food, for his dinner. He had chang left so he bot ice cream for dsert. Then he went home, so he cold eat. It was a good diner.
The next day was veary difent. In the morny he had what he always had. Lucky Charms! They were good! Then he had his moring walk in the woods. He fond some gorld! He was in luck!
Lucky toke the gorld. He went to his cave and put it in his gorld mine. Lucky had a lot of gorld!
Bye that time he was ready for some lunch. It was good. He desided to read some tips form his Tips On How to Be a Leprechaun book. He was on tip #1,005. He LOVED reading his book. Well, this is prity much waht he did for the next 5 days. No one knows what hapened ater that. So you can see I cnat tell you what happed. So your going to have to fide that out from Lucky the little lepercon.
Momma's notes: I love the twins' stories. I can't remember a time that I didn't enjoy writing, but I certainly don't remember writing such elaborate stories when I was 7-years-old! I am very pleased with how much Elizabeth's spelling has improved since she started speech therapy in December. The obvious exception here is the r- before l- in "gold," but that's fairly close to how she says it. Some of her other misspellings, I think, are still a factor of a slight southern accent, e.g. "going to" often pronounced "gonna" becomes "goning" because she knows from reading how it's suppose to be spelled but that's not how she says it. "Finally" gets spelled "finlly" because the "a" is slurred or skipped. I also think it's interesting to note that she looked up how to spell "leprechaun" for the title of a book but not for the title of her story. I love, love, love watching my kids learn!
by Elizabeth K. Meade
(all spelling, grammar and punctuation are original to the author)
One day a little lepercon named Lucky was looking for a good place to hide his gorld. He was defently, defently not goning to put it at the end of a rainbow! The last time he did some one stole it! He did not want that to happin agin. So, he set off to fide a plase. Now, after he had ben looking so, so long he finly fond a plase to hide it. Then...
he went back to his secrat cave to rest. When he wock up, he went back to his gorld, brot it back and, went to town. But Lucky forgot how to get thear. Can you help lucky get to town?
Hint: the right one has a fork. Take the left one. (Momma's note: the original story has a maze drawn here.)
Well, when he finlly go to town he went to a secret shop to buy some food, for his dinner. He had chang left so he bot ice cream for dsert. Then he went home, so he cold eat. It was a good diner.
The next day was veary difent. In the morny he had what he always had. Lucky Charms! They were good! Then he had his moring walk in the woods. He fond some gorld! He was in luck!
Lucky toke the gorld. He went to his cave and put it in his gorld mine. Lucky had a lot of gorld!
Bye that time he was ready for some lunch. It was good. He desided to read some tips form his Tips On How to Be a Leprechaun book. He was on tip #1,005. He LOVED reading his book. Well, this is prity much waht he did for the next 5 days. No one knows what hapened ater that. So you can see I cnat tell you what happed. So your going to have to fide that out from Lucky the little lepercon.
Momma's notes: I love the twins' stories. I can't remember a time that I didn't enjoy writing, but I certainly don't remember writing such elaborate stories when I was 7-years-old! I am very pleased with how much Elizabeth's spelling has improved since she started speech therapy in December. The obvious exception here is the r- before l- in "gold," but that's fairly close to how she says it. Some of her other misspellings, I think, are still a factor of a slight southern accent, e.g. "going to" often pronounced "gonna" becomes "goning" because she knows from reading how it's suppose to be spelled but that's not how she says it. "Finally" gets spelled "finlly" because the "a" is slurred or skipped. I also think it's interesting to note that she looked up how to spell "leprechaun" for the title of a book but not for the title of her story. I love, love, love watching my kids learn!
Friday, March 16
Last night Wil and I dropped off Sean at the airport for his trip to DC and NYC. On the return trip from the airport, we played Clone Wars in the car. Sean was an Arc Trooper (?) leaving for battle. Wil's and my mission was to go pick up the princess. I was the pilot. Wil was the gunner. We had two "pretend" missile loaders in the back. The UPS trucks were on our side. We saw a lot of UPS trucks headed east on I-26 so that was fun. This morning Wil continued the game with a new mission of destroying the shield generators at the Leaphart base from the inside. I made a big point of saying that today was only a spy mission. They were there to collect data, not to draw attention to themselves, to behave, stay on green, and keep their undercover secret. It would really spoil the game to have Wil destroy anything at school.
Friday, March 2
Paidion hellainikon
(That's a HORRIBLE Greek translation for 'Greek children'. Anybody want to help out, I'll accept it :-)
We're into Greek Myths around our house these days. It started with the Disney 'Hercules', but happily progressed nicely into the real classics. It's sent me to the library to pick up some good kids' books and to Wikipedia, etc to refresh my own memory. And I found this cool site as a result: Theoi Project.
Eirainai ;-)
(That's a HORRIBLE Greek translation for 'Greek children'. Anybody want to help out, I'll accept it :-)
We're into Greek Myths around our house these days. It started with the Disney 'Hercules', but happily progressed nicely into the real classics. It's sent me to the library to pick up some good kids' books and to Wikipedia, etc to refresh my own memory. And I found this cool site as a result: Theoi Project.
Eirainai ;-)
Tuesday, February 6
I didn't mean to make Bethy cry.
I asked the twins last night at the supper table if they would still love me when I have robot hands...
It's just a nod to the fact that I use my hands and arms a lot, especially for computer work, and they alternately burn and hurt in different places from the shoulders down (especially across the backs of my hands these days). I think it's a live possibility, if not a certainty, that I will need surgery someday.
And I've said this to Christine before. She said 'yes'. ;-)
But it made poor Bethy cry. Of course, she'd had a big day, so maybe she was emotionally fragile.
She came and sat on my lap for a little while. Poor Bethy!
I asked the twins last night at the supper table if they would still love me when I have robot hands...
It's just a nod to the fact that I use my hands and arms a lot, especially for computer work, and they alternately burn and hurt in different places from the shoulders down (especially across the backs of my hands these days). I think it's a live possibility, if not a certainty, that I will need surgery someday.
And I've said this to Christine before. She said 'yes'. ;-)
But it made poor Bethy cry. Of course, she'd had a big day, so maybe she was emotionally fragile.
She came and sat on my lap for a little while. Poor Bethy!
Thursday, February 1
It's a big week for our second graders! Today was Bear Day. It started with a 2-hour delayed opening because of snow! Once at school, they had a teddy bear parade and snacks including Teddy Grahams and hot chocolate. They've been learning lots of bear facts and riddles. Wil's favorite - what bear does not need water its entire life and why? A teddy bear! Because it's not alive, of course.
Tomorrow is the big Habitat presentation. Wil studied beavers and Elizabeth chose sea lions. It's been frustrating at times coaching them through it, but in the end I am very proud of their work and how much they learned. Next up - famous Americans. Stay tuned!
Tomorrow is the big Habitat presentation. Wil studied beavers and Elizabeth chose sea lions. It's been frustrating at times coaching them through it, but in the end I am very proud of their work and how much they learned. Next up - famous Americans. Stay tuned!
Monday, January 29
Elizabeth received big news at ballet today. Her teacher would like her to start practicing with the next class up (D1) beginning next week. Her teacher said Elizabeth is progressing rapidly and that if she works hard over the summer, she could move up another level (D2) in the Fall. Elizabeth was quite overwhelmed by this development and isn't sure she wants to move up so fast. I told her she didn't have to do anything but try next week and see how she feels. It'll mean 75 minutes of ballet on Mondays with a 30 minute break between classes. I'm not sure she has the stamina at this point, but her teacher told her she could just start off with the barre exercises in the second class and go from there.
I suggested we go out to eat tonight to celebrate the good news. Elizabeth picked Wendy's chicken nuggets and frosty. Oh so glamorous.
I suggested we go out to eat tonight to celebrate the good news. Elizabeth picked Wendy's chicken nuggets and frosty. Oh so glamorous.
Monday, January 22
Saturday, January 20
Bethy was looking at Wikimapia over my shoulder and said 'I didn't know Canada was a country. I thought it was a state.'
I said 'It should be...'
No, not really ;-)
Then she said Daddy, who's the president of Canada and I said I have no idea.
Update: She's lying on the floor right now waiting on me and she said It would be fun if the house was upside down.
I said 'It should be...'
No, not really ;-)
Then she said Daddy, who's the president of Canada and I said I have no idea.
Update: She's lying on the floor right now waiting on me and she said It would be fun if the house was upside down.
Monday, January 8
Hands in pockets
Wil's got this incredibly cute new habit where he puts his hands in his pockets. It doesn't seem to be out of insecurity. It just looks like it feels comfortable to him. He does it so much that when I put my hands in my pockets, it reminds me of him. I *feel* like him. Makes me smile :-)
Friday, January 5
Thursday, January 4
Elizabeth's "Lightning Share"
At school on Wednesday: I have some good news, some more good news, some more good news, and some bad news. The good news is I finally got my room organized, yesterday was my Daddy's birthday, and I got another American Girl doll for Christmas. The bad news is that my Barbie mall is in the middle of my room and all the stuff fell out, so it looks like my room is messy, but it really isn't.
Update: The Barbie mall got cleaned up and put in the closet. Elizabeth's room is now the cleanest, most organized room in the house. It's inspiring. If she can do it, anyone can.
At school on Wednesday: I have some good news, some more good news, some more good news, and some bad news. The good news is I finally got my room organized, yesterday was my Daddy's birthday, and I got another American Girl doll for Christmas. The bad news is that my Barbie mall is in the middle of my room and all the stuff fell out, so it looks like my room is messy, but it really isn't.
Update: The Barbie mall got cleaned up and put in the closet. Elizabeth's room is now the cleanest, most organized room in the house. It's inspiring. If she can do it, anyone can.
Wednesday, January 3
Wil on Civ4
I was looking at the Civ4 manual the other night while lying in bed with Wil, waiting for him to fall asleep. He said 'Daddy, do you have rememorize all that to play the game? I said I knew most of it and was just looking for the stuff I didn't know...
Tuesday, November 21
We told the twins at the beginning of second grade that if they ever heard something they didn't know if they were suppose to say to please ask us before saying it. In general this has worked well for us. Lately we've been watching and listening to some of the early Harry Potter movies and books. Ron's language, particularly, is a little troublesome. He says "shut up" twice when we first meet him, and in the movies he says, "bloody hell" a number of times. The twins know "shut up" is frowned on, but we weren't sure what they thought about "bloody hell" until tonight. While listening to an audiobook, I casually mentioned that Ron says some things we don't say in our house. Wil whispered to me, "I think one of the things he says is 'bloody owl.'"
Tuesday, October 31
NFL week 8 wrap-up
I've got good news and bad news. Let me give you the bad news first:
The Vikings got their clock cleaned by New England. I searched the internet and found a radio station out of Kansas City that was broadcasting the game live on the web and listened to the first half. The Patriots owned them. It was never close one time. They knew the Vikings might could defend the run, so they turned Brady loose and he went berserk. Went to sleep after the first half. Ugh.
The good news is that I have Brady on my fantasy team and his 4 TDs + yardage equaled 29 points. Add to that 6 for C Jackson, 2 for C Taylor, and 6 for the Vikings defense and I came back from a huge deficit and beat my brother, Cory! Woo hoo! Takes the sting out of the Vikings getting obliterated.
Interesting side note: The twins are kind of interested in my fantasy football league. They like the Yahoo interface, especially when someone customizes an 'avatar'. They want to know who that's supposed to be. Kyle and Cory, especially, have interesting ones. They're interested in the team names and who those represent. They're interested in the voting system (who do you think will win?). They're interested in the 'smack' speech bubble feature.
For example, during the second half of the Indy game I kept chanting 'Reggie! Reggie! Reggie!' and I put it in my 'smack' speech bubble. They thought that was funny.
I exclaimed this morning at breakfast about my victory and said I could put 'Brady! Brady! Brady!' in my 'smack' bubble (which I have since done ;-). Bethy was kind of hovering around and I told her she needed to go get dressed. She actually got dressed and came back and said 'We can talk more about fantasy football now.'! Shortly thereafter she said 'What if you could send a speech bubble just to Uncle Cory and say 'Reggie! Reggie! Reggie!'.
When they're not exasperating, second graders are fun! :-)
The Vikings got their clock cleaned by New England. I searched the internet and found a radio station out of Kansas City that was broadcasting the game live on the web and listened to the first half. The Patriots owned them. It was never close one time. They knew the Vikings might could defend the run, so they turned Brady loose and he went berserk. Went to sleep after the first half. Ugh.
The good news is that I have Brady on my fantasy team and his 4 TDs + yardage equaled 29 points. Add to that 6 for C Jackson, 2 for C Taylor, and 6 for the Vikings defense and I came back from a huge deficit and beat my brother, Cory! Woo hoo! Takes the sting out of the Vikings getting obliterated.
Interesting side note: The twins are kind of interested in my fantasy football league. They like the Yahoo interface, especially when someone customizes an 'avatar'. They want to know who that's supposed to be. Kyle and Cory, especially, have interesting ones. They're interested in the team names and who those represent. They're interested in the voting system (who do you think will win?). They're interested in the 'smack' speech bubble feature.
For example, during the second half of the Indy game I kept chanting 'Reggie! Reggie! Reggie!' and I put it in my 'smack' speech bubble. They thought that was funny.
I exclaimed this morning at breakfast about my victory and said I could put 'Brady! Brady! Brady!' in my 'smack' bubble (which I have since done ;-). Bethy was kind of hovering around and I told her she needed to go get dressed. She actually got dressed and came back and said 'We can talk more about fantasy football now.'! Shortly thereafter she said 'What if you could send a speech bubble just to Uncle Cory and say 'Reggie! Reggie! Reggie!'.
When they're not exasperating, second graders are fun! :-)
Wednesday, October 25
Wil's creative brain has been working overtime.
Wil's creative brain has been working overtime.
Bethy picked Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone for our family movie night saturday. They really got into it and have been playing HP a lot.
Plus, Wil has been talking about Wizard's Chess (I've almost got him cured of saying 'chest') a lot. He recently got a new Lego catalog that has a Lego Vikings chess set that he has enjoyed looking at. A couple days ago he said to me
'Daddy, I have an idea for chess. We could make a Star Wars chess set.'
Then he really likes to think about who would be each piece.
Last night we were talking about who we thought should be the pieces for a Lord of the Rings chess set. I said I thought the rooks were easy: Orthanc and Barad Dur, Minas Tirith and the Hornburg. I wanted Shelob to be the black queen, but he didn't like that idea. He picked the Witch King of Angmar (the Morgul Lord, Chief of the Black Riders), based on the premise that the queen doesn't have to be a girl and can be the king's strongest servant.
(Ooh! I just had a good idea! The ring could be the black king (slow, more vulnerable, you capture it and win) and Sauron could be the black queen! Hmm...)
He picked a Harry Potter robe for his Halloween costume, though he doesn't (didn't - maybe it will change) want to pretend to be HP. We're going to watch Chamber of Secrets sometime this weekend to continue to get ready.
Bethy picked Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone for our family movie night saturday. They really got into it and have been playing HP a lot.
Plus, Wil has been talking about Wizard's Chess (I've almost got him cured of saying 'chest') a lot. He recently got a new Lego catalog that has a Lego Vikings chess set that he has enjoyed looking at. A couple days ago he said to me
'Daddy, I have an idea for chess. We could make a Star Wars chess set.'
Then he really likes to think about who would be each piece.
Last night we were talking about who we thought should be the pieces for a Lord of the Rings chess set. I said I thought the rooks were easy: Orthanc and Barad Dur, Minas Tirith and the Hornburg. I wanted Shelob to be the black queen, but he didn't like that idea. He picked the Witch King of Angmar (the Morgul Lord, Chief of the Black Riders), based on the premise that the queen doesn't have to be a girl and can be the king's strongest servant.
(Ooh! I just had a good idea! The ring could be the black king (slow, more vulnerable, you capture it and win) and Sauron could be the black queen! Hmm...)
He picked a Harry Potter robe for his Halloween costume, though he doesn't (didn't - maybe it will change) want to pretend to be HP. We're going to watch Chamber of Secrets sometime this weekend to continue to get ready.
Tuesday, September 19
Tuesday, September 5
Wil wrote this essay at school. It's for the "Greatest Grandparents of South Carolina" essay contest.
Here's the translation:
My GranPaul is the best. He played the Princess Game with me and Elizabeth. He put on a crown. We thought that was funny, then... I put on one. He used to drive a school bus. I got to ride the school bus. Now he drives a tour bus. We are good friends. Sometimes he calls me "Buddy." I like that. He is the greatest. Sometimes my family drives to the farm. I get to play in the sand box. The end.
Here's the translation:
My GranPaul is the best. He played the Princess Game with me and Elizabeth. He put on a crown. We thought that was funny, then... I put on one. He used to drive a school bus. I got to ride the school bus. Now he drives a tour bus. We are good friends. Sometimes he calls me "Buddy." I like that. He is the greatest. Sometimes my family drives to the farm. I get to play in the sand box. The end.
Thursday, August 31
Wil and I and FotR
[I started this on August 22nd. Let's see if I can get it posted...]
I started reading Fellowship of the Ring with Wil last night.
I'd grown tired of re-reading comic books. I liked 'em fine the first 3 or 4 times. Time to graduate to chapter books like Momma and Bethy.
I gave Wil a choice of Prince Caspian, The Book of Three, or Fellowship of the Ring.
Then, when the book came home, I said 'How about if we read some of the book, and then [your reward will be to] watch that much of the movie.' He thought that sounded like a great idea.
Then Christine said 'Maybe we [girls] would like to get in on that!' Bethy said yeah!, but she only wanted to watch the movies. She doesn't want to read all together.
(I think there's at least 3 things at work here:
1. She thinks it would be more boring than her books.
2. She want to do the choosing.
3. She wants to keep Christine to herself.)
So, at bedtime, Wil came and got me [working on my laptop] and said it was time to read our book and then watch the movie. Whoa. Come to find out, he thought we were going to watch some of the movie each night. I said 'No way. You'd get too excited and not be able to sleep.' He promised me he wouldn't, but I insisted he would and that we'd watch some friday night or over the weekend and he accepted that.
As we settled down, I asked him if he knew The Lord of the Rings is my favorite book in the whole world (he said no) and that I'm so happy to be sharing it with him.
So I started reading the 'Concerning Hobbits' part of the Prologue, and Wil was really busy with his stuffed animals and blankets. I thought about asking him if he was paying attention, but his comments showed me he was paying attention:
+ He thought I was talking about Hobbit ladies called 'madam', but I was talking about 'mathoms'.
+ When reading the history of Hobbits and how some lived by rivers and fished and swam, he knew (from watching the movies) that that's where Gollum originally came from.
+ And a few more I don't remember...
Then he started telling me about the hobbit apartment he was building with his blankets and stuffed animals and what the different rooms were and where they got their water. I'd even go so far as to say that he was imitating my reading cadence a little :-)
[I think I was originally going to write more, but this is going to have to be a good enough start for now...]
I started reading Fellowship of the Ring with Wil last night.
I'd grown tired of re-reading comic books. I liked 'em fine the first 3 or 4 times. Time to graduate to chapter books like Momma and Bethy.
I gave Wil a choice of Prince Caspian, The Book of Three, or Fellowship of the Ring.
Then, when the book came home, I said 'How about if we read some of the book, and then [your reward will be to] watch that much of the movie.' He thought that sounded like a great idea.
Then Christine said 'Maybe we [girls] would like to get in on that!' Bethy said yeah!, but she only wanted to watch the movies. She doesn't want to read all together.
(I think there's at least 3 things at work here:
1. She thinks it would be more boring than her books.
2. She want to do the choosing.
3. She wants to keep Christine to herself.)
So, at bedtime, Wil came and got me [working on my laptop] and said it was time to read our book and then watch the movie. Whoa. Come to find out, he thought we were going to watch some of the movie each night. I said 'No way. You'd get too excited and not be able to sleep.' He promised me he wouldn't, but I insisted he would and that we'd watch some friday night or over the weekend and he accepted that.
As we settled down, I asked him if he knew The Lord of the Rings is my favorite book in the whole world (he said no) and that I'm so happy to be sharing it with him.
So I started reading the 'Concerning Hobbits' part of the Prologue, and Wil was really busy with his stuffed animals and blankets. I thought about asking him if he was paying attention, but his comments showed me he was paying attention:
+ He thought I was talking about Hobbit ladies called 'madam', but I was talking about 'mathoms'.
+ When reading the history of Hobbits and how some lived by rivers and fished and swam, he knew (from watching the movies) that that's where Gollum originally came from.
+ And a few more I don't remember...
Then he started telling me about the hobbit apartment he was building with his blankets and stuffed animals and what the different rooms were and where they got their water. I'd even go so far as to say that he was imitating my reading cadence a little :-)
[I think I was originally going to write more, but this is going to have to be a good enough start for now...]
Friday, August 25
Favorite Lunchbox Food
I asked the twins to name their favorite lunchbox treat. I thought the answer would be Hershey Kisses of some variety. Instead, Wil wanted to tell me all the things he liked best in his lunch, so here it is:
peanut butter & jelly sandwich - he once told me it tasted like cake
grapes and apples
carrots
chocolate, any kind
Elizabeth's was similar:
peanut butter & jelly sandwich
apple slices
chocolate
cheesestick (string cheese)
water
I was surprised by the last one because Elizabeth is a big milk drinker, but she gave up buying milk in the cafeteria back in Kindergarten.
I asked the twins to name their favorite lunchbox treat. I thought the answer would be Hershey Kisses of some variety. Instead, Wil wanted to tell me all the things he liked best in his lunch, so here it is:
peanut butter & jelly sandwich - he once told me it tasted like cake
grapes and apples
carrots
chocolate, any kind
Elizabeth's was similar:
peanut butter & jelly sandwich
apple slices
chocolate
cheesestick (string cheese)
water
I was surprised by the last one because Elizabeth is a big milk drinker, but she gave up buying milk in the cafeteria back in Kindergarten.
Friday, August 18
The Secret in Mrs. Clytus' Class
After school today, Wil was excited to tell us the secret in Mrs. Clytus' class. If you get on yellow, he explained, but then have good behavior the rest of the day, you get to change back to green. "That's what I did today. I'm going to do that every day!" He was so pleased, I had a hard time explaining it's better to stay on green all day. We're still very proud of his effort.
After school today, Wil was excited to tell us the secret in Mrs. Clytus' class. If you get on yellow, he explained, but then have good behavior the rest of the day, you get to change back to green. "That's what I did today. I'm going to do that every day!" He was so pleased, I had a hard time explaining it's better to stay on green all day. We're still very proud of his effort.
Thursday, August 17
The First Day of Second Grade
Momma: What was your favorite thing about the first day of 2nd grade?
Wil: I stayed on green all day. That was better than recess.
Elizabeth: Recess, and... (thinking) that Momma had homework and I didn't!
What was your least favorite thing?
W: Assembly was talk, talk, talk, boring. Except for "Why Gator Hates Dog." (The new principal is from Louisiana.)
E: Computer lab was pretty much talk, talk, talk, boring.
What do you want your teacher to know about you?
E: That I wasn't supposed to get a Barbie until I was 6 years old, but I started getting them when I was 5.
W: It's fun to be a kid.
What do you want to learn this year?
E: More about Louisiana.
W: I don't actually know yet.
What was one of your favorite things about this summer?
E: Hershey, Carowinds, getting snorkle gear.
W: Peeling skin off Mommy. Swimming lessons.
During the summer, what did you miss most about school?
E: Mrs. Wertz.
W: Mrs. Janus, Mrs. Wertz, Mrs. Adair, and I think her name is Mrs. Church.
Daddy: Was anyone else besides me tired today?
All: Yes!
Momma: What was your favorite thing about the first day of 2nd grade?
Wil: I stayed on green all day. That was better than recess.
Elizabeth: Recess, and... (thinking) that Momma had homework and I didn't!
What was your least favorite thing?
W: Assembly was talk, talk, talk, boring. Except for "Why Gator Hates Dog." (The new principal is from Louisiana.)
E: Computer lab was pretty much talk, talk, talk, boring.
What do you want your teacher to know about you?
E: That I wasn't supposed to get a Barbie until I was 6 years old, but I started getting them when I was 5.
W: It's fun to be a kid.
What do you want to learn this year?
E: More about Louisiana.
W: I don't actually know yet.
What was one of your favorite things about this summer?
E: Hershey, Carowinds, getting snorkle gear.
W: Peeling skin off Mommy. Swimming lessons.
During the summer, what did you miss most about school?
E: Mrs. Wertz.
W: Mrs. Janus, Mrs. Wertz, Mrs. Adair, and I think her name is Mrs. Church.
Daddy: Was anyone else besides me tired today?
All: Yes!
Tuesday, August 15
My boy, the budding philoligist
+ Wil discovers the Law of Velar Villainy: 'Daddy, I just realized something: Lord Vladek (from Lego Knights of Morcia) and Lord Vader have the same letters!' Bonus: 'velar' has some of those velars, too! ;-)
(Incidentally, the search led me to this great old languagehat.com thread where Jason, Jaq, Dorothea and I debated the attractiveness of the word 'blog'. Unfortunately, some famous internet dude showed up at the bottom to tell us he'd coined the term and that pretty much killed it ;-)
And then, Jaq, I discovered your old comments are still out there on the web: http://rateyourmusic.com/yaccs/commentsn/b=90000033403_and_e=112232750340001842 . Crazy.)
(Incidentally, the search led me to this great old languagehat.com thread where Jason, Jaq, Dorothea and I debated the attractiveness of the word 'blog'. Unfortunately, some famous internet dude showed up at the bottom to tell us he'd coined the term and that pretty much killed it ;-)
And then, Jaq, I discovered your old comments are still out there on the web: http://rateyourmusic.com/yaccs/commentsn/b=90000033403_and_e=112232750340001842 . Crazy.)
Monday, August 7
I can't believe Summer Break is almost over and school starts in 10 days. That means I'll have 2nd graders in my house! That seems too big for words.
I can't let the summer go by without a note about swimming lessons. The twins had a week of private lessons in June. Elizabeth did beautifully, started swimming freestyle by the end of the week. Wil only learned to doggie paddle, but at least he had fun. They complete two more weeks of lessons last Thursday with the same company, different instructor. Wil is a totally different child in the water now. He blows bubbles, he goes underwater, he crawls, he backstrokes, and he's even learning the Butterfly stroke with dolphin kick. It's amazing. Elizabeth continued to progress, but similarly to riding a bike it was too much too soon and she developed all kinds of anxiety about swimming. She can side-breathe and backstroke well enough to pass "Level 2," her instructor hung that carrot out for her the last day of class, but she's not comfortable in the water. She'll have enough to do this year with ballet and Brownies, but I hope we can find an opportunity for Wil to keep swimming. He loves it and is a joy to watch!
I can't let the summer go by without a note about swimming lessons. The twins had a week of private lessons in June. Elizabeth did beautifully, started swimming freestyle by the end of the week. Wil only learned to doggie paddle, but at least he had fun. They complete two more weeks of lessons last Thursday with the same company, different instructor. Wil is a totally different child in the water now. He blows bubbles, he goes underwater, he crawls, he backstrokes, and he's even learning the Butterfly stroke with dolphin kick. It's amazing. Elizabeth continued to progress, but similarly to riding a bike it was too much too soon and she developed all kinds of anxiety about swimming. She can side-breathe and backstroke well enough to pass "Level 2," her instructor hung that carrot out for her the last day of class, but she's not comfortable in the water. She'll have enough to do this year with ballet and Brownies, but I hope we can find an opportunity for Wil to keep swimming. He loves it and is a joy to watch!
Tuesday, July 25
Birthday
Pretty sure the twins had a good birthday. A couple of notes:
+ Saturday morning Wil was singing 'all things go, all things go' repeatedly (from Sufjan Stevens' 'Chicago').
+ Christine put up a spread of photos called Big 7 over at Picasa Web Albums. Warning: only go look if you like excessive cuteness, including toothless wonders ;-)
+ Saturday morning Wil was singing 'all things go, all things go' repeatedly (from Sufjan Stevens' 'Chicago').
+ Christine put up a spread of photos called Big 7 over at Picasa Web Albums. Warning: only go look if you like excessive cuteness, including toothless wonders ;-)
Thursday, July 20
Speaking of Bethy...
Speaking of Bethy, she and I have been having a conversation about my going bald (which I don't think I am, lest you worry). She said she saw some bald spots on the top of my head. I said good. She asked why. I said because if I lost my hair I wouldn't have to cut it any more. But she said she didn't want me to go bald because she wanted me to win the best looking daddy contest (something she made up, but you get that point), and she didn't think I'd look very good without hair.
Then, last night she was looking over me shoulder (or maybe I was looking over her shoulder if she was on my lap) while I read Lifehacker. She asked what the picture was of and I said cigarettes. She asked... all together now... 'Why?' ;-) I told her it was an article about how to not get cancer. She asked what cancer was and after that explanation, asked what the other ways (besides not smoking) were. #2 was Don't weigh too much.
I told you all of that to tell you this: She asked if I was losing weight so I wouldn't get cancer. I said no. Then she asked if I was losing weight to win the best looking daddy contest. And I said... 'Something like that.' ;-)
Then, last night she was looking over me shoulder (or maybe I was looking over her shoulder if she was on my lap) while I read Lifehacker. She asked what the picture was of and I said cigarettes. She asked... all together now... 'Why?' ;-) I told her it was an article about how to not get cancer. She asked what cancer was and after that explanation, asked what the other ways (besides not smoking) were. #2 was Don't weigh too much.
I told you all of that to tell you this: She asked if I was losing weight so I wouldn't get cancer. I said no. Then she asked if I was losing weight to win the best looking daddy contest. And I said... 'Something like that.' ;-)
Wednesday, July 19
Bethy's playlist
I sang 'So And So So And So From Wherever Wherever' by Built to Spill at Bethy (I say 'at' because it was pretty loud, as I am wont to do ;-). She started singing it, then asked if we could listen to it on the computer.
(We sing it 'Sorry, so sorry, so from wherever, wherever' because we didn't know until this minute that it was 'so & so so & so from wherever wherever"! When I pointed this out to them, Bethy said we could still sing it the old way. That's right, baby!)
Then we listened to 'Car', and she started singing that: 'I wanna see movies of my dreams.'
(Features a great verse:
I am very proud...
(We sing it 'Sorry, so sorry, so from wherever, wherever' because we didn't know until this minute that it was 'so & so so & so from wherever wherever"! When I pointed this out to them, Bethy said we could still sing it the old way. That's right, baby!)
Then we listened to 'Car', and she started singing that: 'I wanna see movies of my dreams.'
(Features a great verse:
I need a car. You need a guide who needs a map.
If I don't die or worse I'm gonna need a nap.
At best I'll be asleep when you get back.)
I am very proud...
Monday, July 17
The only bad part about listening to music...
The only bad part about listening to music as I work here in the office (I was listening to Built to Spill on MySpace) is that I can't hear Wil singing in the kitchen while he draws. He was singing 'Life in a northern town', which had me thinking that I have done all the fathering I need to do. Then he was singing something else I couldn't identify. When he came in here for more paper, I asked him:
Me: Whatcha singing Mr Buddy?
Wil: The music from Magmoor Caverns [in Metroid Prime, for GameCube. He doesn't play it. He just watches me play it, but it's been two weeks, at least...].
Then he proceeded to sing a few bars for me.
In the words of Ben Gibbard, 'Be still my heart!'.
Needless to say, I'm no longer listening to music in the office. I'm listening for strains of Wil...
Me: Whatcha singing Mr Buddy?
Wil: The music from Magmoor Caverns [in Metroid Prime, for GameCube. He doesn't play it. He just watches me play it, but it's been two weeks, at least...].
Then he proceeded to sing a few bars for me.
In the words of Ben Gibbard, 'Be still my heart!'.
Needless to say, I'm no longer listening to music in the office. I'm listening for strains of Wil...
Friday, June 23
I've been too depressed about the World Cup to post about it. I watched the whole match last saturday. Ugh. The best parts were:
1. Wil watching the first half with me. He was very interested in the red card for the bloody head and the own goal (and recounted them to his grandparents last night).
2. Bethy falling asleep in the recliner with me while I watched the second half.
Apart from that, it was pretty lousy. The ref in that game, obviously, totally sucked. You spend years and millions preparing for this think and two red cards can ruin the whole shooting match.
Not that I think it did for us. Could we have beaten Ghana with those two guys back? I doubt it. They're on fire and we're not playing well. We scrapped with the Italians, but...
Ugh.
1. Wil watching the first half with me. He was very interested in the red card for the bloody head and the own goal (and recounted them to his grandparents last night).
2. Bethy falling asleep in the recliner with me while I watched the second half.
Apart from that, it was pretty lousy. The ref in that game, obviously, totally sucked. You spend years and millions preparing for this think and two red cards can ruin the whole shooting match.
Not that I think it did for us. Could we have beaten Ghana with those two guys back? I doubt it. They're on fire and we're not playing well. We scrapped with the Italians, but...
Ugh.
Monday, June 19
Bethy's Spiderman Dream
"I had a good dream last night. Spiderman was dressed up like a bad guy and he had this girl. She was saying, 'Let me go! Let me go!' But her mother knew it was Spiderman, so she said, 'Not until you're down safely.' Then when the girl was down safely, I... I mean Spiderman took off the disguise. The End."
"I had a good dream last night. Spiderman was dressed up like a bad guy and he had this girl. She was saying, 'Let me go! Let me go!' But her mother knew it was Spiderman, so she said, 'Not until you're down safely.' Then when the girl was down safely, I... I mean Spiderman took off the disguise. The End."
Monday, June 5
Bethy's turn to have irrational biking fears. What's even more frustrating is that she was riding by herself. We took a little break from riding because she had a busy week with her ballet recital. Went back out and she had to lay the bike down, but didn't get hurt, and now she's too scared to even try. Total regression.
It's a little less frustrating this time (ie, with her instead of Wil) because I know what to do: take the pedals off her bike, lower her seat, make her practice that way until she gets comfortable again, and then ramp back up.
It's a little less frustrating this time (ie, with her instead of Wil) because I know what to do: take the pedals off her bike, lower her seat, make her practice that way until she gets comfortable again, and then ramp back up.
Monday, May 29
Time to brag on Bethy for a bit. I've been amazed and really pleased with how far the twins' reading skills have come in the last three months, but Elizabeth has surpassed everything expected of her. Her teacher said in our last parent-teacher conference that in both reading and writing Elizabeth jumped ahead of students who started out the year ahead of her. She's reading at an end-of-third-grade level and has been willing to tackle some tough little books already this summer including a retelling of The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse and The Little Mermaid, (not the Disney version.) We picked those because the story is familiar but there is a lot more detail and a larger vocabulary than the versions she's read before, plus it gave us a chance to explore some of the themes in The Little Mermaid including not always getting what you want and what happens when there isn't the happy ending you expected. Good stuff.
Wil's turn -- my boy can read! I'm so pleased. He's been cruising through 3-6 books a day. He agreed yesterday that some of the ones we borrowed from the library were too easy, but even a month ago he couldn't have said that. Yesterday he read to me for over half an hour and probably would have kept on reading except that Sean came home with the movie Sky High. (That's a post I'll save for later.) If he's up to it, I'm going to have him try some of the Henry and Mudge books that Elizabeth brought home. They're not particularly challenging for her, but she's enjoying reading them without my supervision. That's fun. Mudge makes Wil laugh. That's fun too!
Wil's turn -- my boy can read! I'm so pleased. He's been cruising through 3-6 books a day. He agreed yesterday that some of the ones we borrowed from the library were too easy, but even a month ago he couldn't have said that. Yesterday he read to me for over half an hour and probably would have kept on reading except that Sean came home with the movie Sky High. (That's a post I'll save for later.) If he's up to it, I'm going to have him try some of the Henry and Mudge books that Elizabeth brought home. They're not particularly challenging for her, but she's enjoying reading them without my supervision. That's fun. Mudge makes Wil laugh. That's fun too!
Saturday, May 27
Go, Wil. Go!
Wil rode a bike with petals without training wheels for the first time this morning! He's been practicing coasting, balancing and steering on his bike without petals. He'd liked it when I counted, "1, 2, 3, whee..." and gave him a push, but his favorite thing was the "Daddy Slingshot." Sean can push a lot harder, faster and farther than I can, so Wil got more practice that way. Now he's ready to go! It was a joy to watch. His face showed his delight. We went to Chik-fil-A afterwards to celebrate with chicken mini biscuits.
Wil rode a bike with petals without training wheels for the first time this morning! He's been practicing coasting, balancing and steering on his bike without petals. He'd liked it when I counted, "1, 2, 3, whee..." and gave him a push, but his favorite thing was the "Daddy Slingshot." Sean can push a lot harder, faster and farther than I can, so Wil got more practice that way. Now he's ready to go! It was a joy to watch. His face showed his delight. We went to Chik-fil-A afterwards to celebrate with chicken mini biscuits.
Thursday, May 25
Our first day of Summer Break.
The twins and I are having a wonderful day together. I'm going to try to provide a better balance of structure and free time this summer. They mostly played "beach" this morning with the new beach towels spread out on the living room floor. Also Elizabeth set up their umbrellas to provide shade. They've got big plans for a "beach party" this weekend if one of them wins the Goblet of Choice tonight. They have both been extra good helpers today trying to earn points.
We also went to the grocery store together - something I've avoided as much as possible the past two years. It went surprisingly well. Wil was in charge of the coupons and Elizabeth crossed items off our list. I'm so pleased with their reading skills! After lunch we spent more than half an hour reading together for the library's Summer Reading program. As I write, they are writing in their Summer Journals. It's something their teachers recommend they do daily. Both teachers set home a variety of suggestions of things to do over the summer so "their brains don't get rusty" as Wil's teacher put it. Should be mostly fun!
The twins and I are having a wonderful day together. I'm going to try to provide a better balance of structure and free time this summer. They mostly played "beach" this morning with the new beach towels spread out on the living room floor. Also Elizabeth set up their umbrellas to provide shade. They've got big plans for a "beach party" this weekend if one of them wins the Goblet of Choice tonight. They have both been extra good helpers today trying to earn points.
We also went to the grocery store together - something I've avoided as much as possible the past two years. It went surprisingly well. Wil was in charge of the coupons and Elizabeth crossed items off our list. I'm so pleased with their reading skills! After lunch we spent more than half an hour reading together for the library's Summer Reading program. As I write, they are writing in their Summer Journals. It's something their teachers recommend they do daily. Both teachers set home a variety of suggestions of things to do over the summer so "their brains don't get rusty" as Wil's teacher put it. Should be mostly fun!
Saturday, May 20
The boys: Sean, Wil, and Mario
Wil's playing Super Maro Sunshine in the other room. Then I hear him yell: I jumped!
I say 'Wil, do you need help?'
'No, I totally know how to do this.'
I say 'I hear ya.'
Then follows more 'I jumped!' and some mumbling.
I'm proud of that boy. Like father like son ;-)
Finally, he accepts my offer.
Then I kill off all of his Marios trying to get through that screen. Not the plan :-(
Oh, well, not even Daddy as Mario can win 'em all...
I say 'Wil, do you need help?'
'No, I totally know how to do this.'
I say 'I hear ya.'
Then follows more 'I jumped!' and some mumbling.
I'm proud of that boy. Like father like son ;-)
Finally, he accepts my offer.
Then I kill off all of his Marios trying to get through that screen. Not the plan :-(
Oh, well, not even Daddy as Mario can win 'em all...
Sunday, May 14
Wil got C-3PO first on the Star Wars quiz, which he hated. So we retook it, trying to answer like Luke would, and got:
Your results:
You are Luke Skywalker
(This list displays the top 10 results out of a possible 21 characters)
Click here to take the Star Wars Personality Test
Then Bethy got C-3PO, but she didn't hate it as much as Wil. Christine got Qui-Gonn Jinn. That's a pretty good one, too. Better than Han Solo, really...
Your results:
You are Luke Skywalker
| You value your friends and loved ones, but can sometimes act recklessly because of your emotions. Occasionally you resort to whining. You look ahead to great things for yourself.  |
(This list displays the top 10 results out of a possible 21 characters)
Click here to take the Star Wars Personality Test
Then Bethy got C-3PO, but she didn't hate it as much as Wil. Christine got Qui-Gonn Jinn. That's a pretty good one, too. Better than Han Solo, really...
Friday, May 12
Then Wil wanted to take the quiz as himself. He got:
Your results:
You are Spider-Man
Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test
Like father, like son. I am, of course, very proud. :-)
Your results:
You are Spider-Man
| You are intelligent, witty, a bit geeky and have great power and responsibility.  |
Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test
Like father, like son. I am, of course, very proud. :-)
Then Bethy wanted to take the quiz as herself, but she didn't like the results, so here is what she got when we answered like Wonder Woman:
Your results:
You are Wonder Woman
Click here to take the "Which Superhero am I?" quiz...
I could have told you about the beautiful princess part. She has a lot of willpower, and we're working on the character part.
Your results:
You are Wonder Woman
| You are a beautiful princess with great strength of character.  |
Click here to take the "Which Superhero am I?" quiz...
I could have told you about the beautiful princess part. She has a lot of willpower, and we're working on the character part.
Wil wanted to take the Super Hero Quiz, and he wanted to be the Hulk, so that's how we answered the questions. Result:
Your results:
You are Hulk
Click here to take the "Which Superhero am I?" quiz...
Your results:
You are Hulk
| You are a wanderer with amazing strength.  |
Click here to take the "Which Superhero am I?" quiz...
Tuesday, May 2
1. Wil, especially, went through this funny phase of weird pockets of modesty. For example, I bathe him all the time, but he'd want to be in his room to change his shirt.
2. Wil, also, at the same time, went through a couple of weeks of asking me after we had laid down if we'd locked the doors. For awhile, I had to get up and check or have him go check. I even got to where I'd have him check before bedtime, like when I went to lock the door, I'd call him so he could confirm it. He didn't seem really afraid and didn't have nightmares or anything. Then he hasn't been asking lately. Maybe we satisifed him on that one.
3. Something I've struggled with is thinking Wil needs to learn to ride a bike in the spring of 1st grade because I did. Not that I'm trying to push him, per se, but that I don't want him to be behind. And his seemingly irrational fear is frustrating to me.
But, on the other hand, I was 7 that spring and he's only 6. Maybe he'll learn to ride this fall. Or after. Kids are different.
2. Wil, also, at the same time, went through a couple of weeks of asking me after we had laid down if we'd locked the doors. For awhile, I had to get up and check or have him go check. I even got to where I'd have him check before bedtime, like when I went to lock the door, I'd call him so he could confirm it. He didn't seem really afraid and didn't have nightmares or anything. Then he hasn't been asking lately. Maybe we satisifed him on that one.
3. Something I've struggled with is thinking Wil needs to learn to ride a bike in the spring of 1st grade because I did. Not that I'm trying to push him, per se, but that I don't want him to be behind. And his seemingly irrational fear is frustrating to me.
But, on the other hand, I was 7 that spring and he's only 6. Maybe he'll learn to ride this fall. Or after. Kids are different.
Sunday, April 30
Sunday, April 9
We read the Palm Sunday story this morning at breakfast including the part where Jesus cleans out the temple. Wil had a lot of ideas and questions. He wanted to know just how many people had to stop praising Jesus to get the rocks to cry out. And he thought maybe Jesus let the animals out of the temple because they were "God's children that Noah saved on the ark." But the one that tickled me was when he said, "Now the churches pass a bowl." It took me a moment to realize he was talking about collecting offerings. He was satisfied with our explanation of the difference between the people selling animals for sacrifices in the temple and offerings given to God for a church's work, and he added his own point that churches give money to help poor people.
Wednesday, April 5
Sunday, April 2
Re: April Fools Day Edition
I did not know until this morning that April Fools Day could also be called National Holiday for First Graders. Bethy started working on her project last night (rocks on our dining room chairs). Unrelatedly, Wil woke up before 6 and would not go back to sleep. So he and I got up at 630. Then Bethy got up. I think she was too excited to sleep any more. So Christine had to get up to get 'fooled', she who stayed up late scrapbooking.
I did put one of my favorite April Fools on Wil before I got up: Did you know it snowed last night? He wasn't aware it was April Fools Day yet. Ha! Gotcha!
But the joke's on them: there will be mandatory naps this afternoon.
I did put one of my favorite April Fools on Wil before I got up: Did you know it snowed last night? He wasn't aware it was April Fools Day yet. Ha! Gotcha!
But the joke's on them: there will be mandatory naps this afternoon.
Thursday, March 23
Friday, March 17
Bethy and Wil have been working on leprechaun traps for school. We were surprised today to learn that Wil's made The State newspaper today! Here's the link to the story:
Here's the pic of Wil's trap (with caption):
We're proud of Wil and happy for him. Bethy gets recognized a lot at school, so this is fun for Wil. Plus, this kind of creativity is something he cares about, so it's good reinforcement.
THEY ‘LOVE RAINBOWS AND GOLD’
Tricky traps for leprechauns
Leaphart students need a little Irish luck to snare the elusive creatures
Here's the pic of Wil's trap (with caption):
Will [sic] Meade’s creation is engineered to catch a leprechaun when he goes for the coin on the yellow paddle. The paddle turns, and the leprechaun falls into the box.
We're proud of Wil and happy for him. Bethy gets recognized a lot at school, so this is fun for Wil. Plus, this kind of creativity is something he cares about, so it's good reinforcement.
The twins and I were talking at lunch about the Bible being the best-selling book of all time. They wanted to know what was the best-selling children's book. Their vote was for Beatrix Potter's The Tale of Peter Rabbit because they've been learning about her at school. According to a Publisher's Weekly article in 2001, (that was the most recent list I could find,) The Poky Little Puppy was the best-selling children's book in hardcover and Peter Rabbit was indeed second. Smart kids. Charlotte's Web was the best-seller among children's paperbacks. All four of the Harry Potter books published at that time were in the top 20 on the hardcover list. I wonder where they are now.
Tuesday, March 14
As I've written before, we've got the old-school, free version of Hero Machine on our computer. So far, Wil, Elizabeth, and their friends on occasion, have created about 35 different super heroes. Unprompted by me, Wil came up with this Hawkeye uniform on Sunday.
(The black and gold looked much better/truer in Hero Machine. Maybe it was the Paint.net translation to PNG. Go figure.)
(The black and gold looked much better/truer in Hero Machine. Maybe it was the Paint.net translation to PNG. Go figure.)
Thursday, March 9
Yes, it is nice to be brilliant
I have never liked that oh-so-popular 'If you give a pig a pancake' book. Then it came home as Wil's reading assignment for this week. I'm supposed to listen to it every night? Couldn't face it.
So last night I hit on an ingenious scheme: I bribed them.
We have this thing Christine started called 'The Goblet of Choice' (she got it from some magazine or website or something). You can earn points throughout the week for good behavior. You can also lose points. The Goblet of Choice is awarded (sometimes) on thursday night. The winner gets to pick friday night dinner, dessert, and family activity.
So I asked them after supper last night (and Christine at work), if they'd like to earn a point each. They said yes. 'Wil can earn a point by reading to Bethy while I take a shower and Bethy can earn a point by listening and helping Wil.' They said they'd do it, no problem.
As far as I know, they did. I do know they each marked down another point.
So last night I hit on an ingenious scheme: I bribed them.
We have this thing Christine started called 'The Goblet of Choice' (she got it from some magazine or website or something). You can earn points throughout the week for good behavior. You can also lose points. The Goblet of Choice is awarded (sometimes) on thursday night. The winner gets to pick friday night dinner, dessert, and family activity.
So I asked them after supper last night (and Christine at work), if they'd like to earn a point each. They said yes. 'Wil can earn a point by reading to Bethy while I take a shower and Bethy can earn a point by listening and helping Wil.' They said they'd do it, no problem.
As far as I know, they did. I do know they each marked down another point.
Friday, March 3
Now that the weather is so nice, we're trying to walk home from school 2-3 times a week. Yesterday Wil was noticeably tired. He walked right into me without seeming to notice. I asked if he was okay. He explained, "My brain was napping." Later at home when I misspoke he asked, "Momma, is your brain napping?"
Wednesday, March 1
[double audio files cross-posted from 'interact']
I was going out to the kitchen to record Wil singing the next selection when I caught him singing this one. Decided to capture it with audioblogger and my cell phone instead of Audacity on the desk top. I will, of course, cross post it to 'twinlog'. He's such a sweet boy!
In Bethy news, she said she wanted something about love next, but she wanted Wil and me to sing it...
This is the one Wil sang in the big bed this morning before we all got up.
(The messed-up schedule last 'night', in case you're interested:
I was going out to the kitchen to record Wil singing the next selection when I caught him singing this one. Decided to capture it with audioblogger and my cell phone instead of Audacity on the desk top. I will, of course, cross post it to 'twinlog'. He's such a sweet boy!
In Bethy news, she said she wanted something about love next, but she wanted Wil and me to sing it...
This is the one Wil sang in the big bed this morning before we all got up.
(The messed-up schedule last 'night', in case you're interested:
- Everyone, including Momma and Daddy who are lying down with the twins, falls asleep by 9pm.
- Momma wakes up ca. 2:30am. Does laundry and dishes while listening to 'Pride and Prejudice'.
- Momma goes to sleep in her own bed ca. 4:30am. Wakes up Daddy, who gets up and works for awhile.
- Wil wakes up ca. 6am, goes to the big bed.
- Daddy returns to the big bed ca. 6:30am to snuggle with Momma and Wil
- Wil sings 'Erie Canal'
- Bethy comes to the big bed ca. 6:35am
- Everyone up by 6:45am
- Daddy, Elizabeth and Wil leave for school and work before 7:30am.
Tuesday, February 28
Wil's watch
I was eating at Burger King last month and picked up one of those Star Wars watches for Wil. We held it for him until Valentine's Day. He liked it pretty well. The first day or so he was so cute, giving updates on the time as often as every minute, especially when we were laying down reading before bed. It's too big for his little arm, and fairly uncomfortable, so I think he noticed it a lot. 'Daddy, it's 7:53.' 'Daddy, it's 7:54'. He's a sweet boy.
[cross-posted to 'interact' and 'twinlog']
[cross-posted to 'interact' and 'twinlog']
Monday, February 27
A follow up from Feb. 16 - Elizabeth told me recently that she sometimes finds quiet time for thinking during Independent Reading. I was surprised at how much thought she'd given the matter, although I guess I shouldn't have been. She's reading Chapter books now. Her first is Frog and Toad Are Friends by Arnold Lobel. I'm really looking forward to reading with her this summer. Working at the library, it's been hard to resist bringing every ER (early reader) chapter book home that I think she'll be interested in. We're having a good time reading the American Girls books aloud, and we've discovered that the Groovy Girls dolls have their own series as well. Elizabeth is very into Groovy Girls these days and is already planning a Groovy Girls swimming party for her birthday in July. Fun!
Thursday, February 16
Here's a little insight into Elizabeth's emerging personality: "Mommy, can I tell you something? I wish there was a time at school to be quiet so we can just think about things."
I told her that was a good thought and suggested that there might be more thinking time in 2nd grade. She thought about that a minute and countered with "There will probably be more quiet time, but it will be for more writing in my journal or math or more quizzes."
I told her that was a good thought and suggested that there might be more thinking time in 2nd grade. She thought about that a minute and countered with "There will probably be more quiet time, but it will be for more writing in my journal or math or more quizzes."
Wednesday, February 8
Proud parent of rock stars
Listening to my flash player on the way home with the twins today. They were rocking out a little to 'One for the mockingbird', then asked me to play it again when it finished, rocking out even more. Then they rocked out some to 'Owner of a lonely heart'. I am understandably proud.
Monday, January 30
Bethy's allegiances
A couple weeks ago I explained the local high school's symbol to Bethy (you see it on cars a lot).
The Irmo Yellow Jackets . Stylized. Sorta' ugly. Hard to figure out for a first grader. Anyway, she asked.
Yesterday, on the way to church, she saw one of their logos and asked if they had a football team and if we liked them. I said yes they had a football team and they're probably our favorite high school team. I didn't point out that we've never cared enough to go see them play.
Well, Christine was frustrated by this (though, in the interest of full disclosure, she was already on the verge of crabby ;-). We both agree that Bethy has enough 'pert opinions' as it is. Christine wondered why I was contributing to that. We obviously don't see eye-to-eye on athletic partiality, but I didn't really say much.
Still, I thought about it some more. And after a little while, I told Bethy, 'You know, Iowa City West is probably actually our favorite favorite high school, and Irmo's second.'
Christine didn't say anything.
Go Trojans! ;-)
And I see in Iowa City news that the Northwest Junior High Knowledge Master Team:
> claimed its third-straight first-place finish in Iowa and a fourth-place finish out of 776 middle schools that competed
And my 7th grade Language Arts teacher, Rhonda Marshall is advising them. Go Vikings!
Footnote: I have to add West's stats because it's such an amazing school:
The Irmo Yellow Jackets . Stylized. Sorta' ugly. Hard to figure out for a first grader. Anyway, she asked.
Yesterday, on the way to church, she saw one of their logos and asked if they had a football team and if we liked them. I said yes they had a football team and they're probably our favorite high school team. I didn't point out that we've never cared enough to go see them play.
Well, Christine was frustrated by this (though, in the interest of full disclosure, she was already on the verge of crabby ;-). We both agree that Bethy has enough 'pert opinions' as it is. Christine wondered why I was contributing to that. We obviously don't see eye-to-eye on athletic partiality, but I didn't really say much.
Still, I thought about it some more. And after a little while, I told Bethy, 'You know, Iowa City West is probably actually our favorite favorite high school, and Irmo's second.'
Christine didn't say anything.
Go Trojans! ;-)
And I see in Iowa City news that the Northwest Junior High Knowledge Master Team:
> claimed its third-straight first-place finish in Iowa and a fourth-place finish out of 776 middle schools that competed
And my 7th grade Language Arts teacher, Rhonda Marshall is advising them. Go Vikings!
Footnote: I have to add West's stats because it's such an amazing school:
- West High teachers average 16 years of experience.
- More than 70 percent of West High faculty hold advanced degrees.
- West High annually leads Iowa in National Merit Scholars.
- Ninety percent of students completing AP exams earn college credit
- Jazz Band has won Iowa State Jazz Band Championship.
- Math Club has won Iowa State Math Championship.
- Iowa State Athletic Championships have been won by many athletic teams.
- West High annually achieves large numbers of All-State Musicians in Orchestra and Jazz Band.
- Graduation rate is over 98 percent.
- Average daily student attendance rate is over 96 percent.
- Overall 65 percent of seniors completed the ACT scoring at an average of over 24.0; Iowa state ACT average is 21.0.
It has begun, already
Lying in bed this morning, Wil said 'Daddy, why do I have to go to school today? I don't want to go. Why do I have to learn that stuff? I already decided in Kindergarten what I want to be.'
I couldn't believe it. 6 and a half is awfully early to be coining that argument. I tried to explain that I didn't really want to go to work, either, but that I had to, and that we learn things we're not sure we'll need because it's good for us and because sometimes our plans don't turn out the way we expect. But I don't think he really bought it.
Covered it some at the breakfast table. Christine was less gentle than me. She asked him if he already knew everything he needed to know about reading and writing and he said yes. She said 'Maybe to be a garbage man.' It sounds harsher in print than it was. Wil wasn't really paying attention anyway. I think he was looking at the comic on the back of the HoneyNut Cheerios box.
I couldn't believe it. 6 and a half is awfully early to be coining that argument. I tried to explain that I didn't really want to go to work, either, but that I had to, and that we learn things we're not sure we'll need because it's good for us and because sometimes our plans don't turn out the way we expect. But I don't think he really bought it.
Covered it some at the breakfast table. Christine was less gentle than me. She asked him if he already knew everything he needed to know about reading and writing and he said yes. She said 'Maybe to be a garbage man.' It sounds harsher in print than it was. Wil wasn't really paying attention anyway. I think he was looking at the comic on the back of the HoneyNut Cheerios box.
Sunday, January 29
Recent twin stories
+ I was washing Wil's face thursday night when I stopped and said 'Wil, does Mrs J. ever stop class to tell you how handsome you are?' and he said 'No.' I said 'I wonder why.' and he thought about it for a moment and said 'Maybe she has too many kids to teach to concentrate on my handsomeness.'
+ We took the twins to 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' yesterday. Their pick and it was a really good movie. We all enjoyed it (though it took Wil to the edge of his scared and sad emotions a couple of times). I'd also played some GameCube with them. I'm telling you that to explain the lack of perspective when, around 4, Bethy asked me to play baseball with them. I said 'I'm sorry, honey, but I have to work.' She said, very matter-of-factly 'Daddy, I don't like your new job. It affects me a lot.' I said 'Do you like having more money?' and she said 'I don't get to spend any of it.' Sheesh.
+ We took the twins to 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' yesterday. Their pick and it was a really good movie. We all enjoyed it (though it took Wil to the edge of his scared and sad emotions a couple of times). I'd also played some GameCube with them. I'm telling you that to explain the lack of perspective when, around 4, Bethy asked me to play baseball with them. I said 'I'm sorry, honey, but I have to work.' She said, very matter-of-factly 'Daddy, I don't like your new job. It affects me a lot.' I said 'Do you like having more money?' and she said 'I don't get to spend any of it.' Sheesh.
Friday, December 2
Wil's hit points
Wil and I have been playing some Battle for Wesnoth (as I mentioned before). Wednesday he asked me from the other room what 6+9 was. I told him and didn't think much about it. Then I heard him saying he had 15 hit points. I wondered where he came up with that number. He had put on his soccer shirt, which was #6, and added 9 (6 upside down, naturally). Fun...
Saturday, November 26
Monday, October 17
When we were lying in bed friday night, Wil started talking about 'Obi Two Kenobi' who's related to 'Obi One Kenobi'. How cute is that? :-)
(cross posted at interact)
(cross posted at interact)
Saturday, October 8
Wow, are you ever in luck!
We recorded the twins (and their dad) singing Schoolhouse Rock's No More Kings last night, and you can hear it, too:
No More Kings, by Elizabeth and Wil (and their dad).
lyrics (in case you can't make out our words real clearly ;-)
Of course as Bethy noted, sometimes you can't hear either one of us over Wil's exuberance.
(Anti-procrastination note: this link will only be good for a week. If you need the file after that, email me.)
No More Kings, by Elizabeth and Wil (and their dad).
lyrics (in case you can't make out our words real clearly ;-)
Of course as Bethy noted, sometimes you can't hear either one of us over Wil's exuberance.
(Anti-procrastination note: this link will only be good for a week. If you need the file after that, email me.)
Saturday, October 1
Nap jerks
When Wil was falling asleep tonight, he turned toward the wall, then kicked it. He rolled back over sleepily and told me that he'd been dreaming about soccer. I told him that's something I used to do when I played soccer. Sweet connection point for the boys :-)
(cross-posted to interact and twinlog)
(cross-posted to interact and twinlog)
Monday, September 26
Bethy said the sweetest thing to me last week, sometime wednesday, thursday, or friday (can't remember which). She said 'Daddy, can you wait 'til monday night?' Now I had no idea what she was talkiing about, so I asked her. She replied 'That's when Wil and Momma go to Cub Scouts and we stay home.' So that's tonight. My daughter makes me happy. I told her to be thinking about what she wants to do...
Wednesday, September 21
Wednesday, September 14
This morning in the car Wil said, "I wish it was Monday." I couldn't believe my ears. Who wishes for Monday? Especially as he and Sean had been wishing earlier that they could stay home today. But I asked, "Why do you wish it was Monday?" "So I could go to Cub Scouts again," he said. I'm so glad Wil likes Cub Scouts. It's more work for parents than Girl Scouts has been so far, but I think it will be worth it for him and for us.
Tuesday, September 13
Bethy and I had some nice time together last night, also around Tolkien. Christine took Wil to Tiger Cub Scouts and Bethy and I stayed home. She decided she wanted to watch The Fellowship of the Ring, which was fun, laying on the couch together.
Another fun Bethy story: this weekend, maybe sunday, I was singing Smashmouth 'I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed', and she asked me about that. Eventually she asked me what the sharpest tool is in out shed. I showed her my new Aluminum-Tim-Nickel plated utility knife. Bethy is fun!
Another fun Bethy story: this weekend, maybe sunday, I was singing Smashmouth 'I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed', and she asked me about that. Eventually she asked me what the sharpest tool is in out shed. I showed her my new Aluminum-Tim-Nickel plated utility knife. Bethy is fun!
Last night I read most of the chapter Inside Information, Bilbo's encounter with Smaug, to Wil. He really got into Bilbo's riddles to Smaug, which I hadn't ever given much thought to. He had me repeat them one by one so he could 'solve' them. Then, this morning, he recounted almost all of them to Christine. It makes me really happy, yes that he's smart, but moreso that we enjoy the same things.
Saturday, September 10
twinlog update
twinlog now has an Atom feed, and Christine, especially, has been updating pretty regularly. You might want to check it out and/or subscribe.
2 stories about Bethy from today:
1. She has told 3 or so relative strangers that she's going to Disney World on the 17th. She's pretty excited.
2. We went to El Chico for lunch. She asked me 'How do you spell 'Max'?' and I told her. She asked 'How do you spell 'Barker'?' and I told her. Then I followed her eyes. She was looking at some writing on the wall that said 'Where Tex [break] Mex Began' and she thought that looked like the name of one of the students in her class. Smart cookie!
1. She has told 3 or so relative strangers that she's going to Disney World on the 17th. She's pretty excited.
2. We went to El Chico for lunch. She asked me 'How do you spell 'Max'?' and I told her. She asked 'How do you spell 'Barker'?' and I told her. Then I followed her eyes. She was looking at some writing on the wall that said 'Where Tex [break] Mex Began' and she thought that looked like the name of one of the students in her class. Smart cookie!
Friday, September 9
Perhaps you wouldn't guess it, but Elizabeth is incredibly savvy when it comes to playing games, especially board games. I picked up a copy of Careers on clearance at Target this week. It's marked ages 8+, so I thought we'd play a modified version by just playing for the money instead of trying to earn all the necessary hearts and stars to fulfill the "Success Formula." Silly momma. Elizabeth quickly realized that the fastest way to make money in this game is to get your salary up and then go around the board, skipping the career paths, as quickly as possible. When we quit today she had $689,000 and I had a measly $245,000. We're scheduled for a rematch tomorrow, only this time we're going to play by the rules to give me a fair chance.
Recently a couple of people have commented on what a good helper Elizabeth is, and the music teacher stopped me after school yesterday to tell me how nice the twins are. Wil's teacher wrote on his progress report, "Wil is a great student! He has lovely manners and a good work ethic! He is a talented artist." I read it to him twice. It's nice for us all to have affirmation from outside sources once in a while.
Saturday, September 3
Sunday, August 28
Lunch on Friday was fun. We invited Elizabeth's friend Rachel to sit with us because Elizabeth "promised." She also promised Brooke that she could sit with us next time. She has entered the age of making promises to her girlfriends. The sweetest part to me is how seriously she takes her promises. After school Rachel and her twin William stop by to play. Total chaos, but fun. Elizabeth further solidified their budding friendship by giving Rachel one of a pair of necklaces that say "Best" and "Friend." I was proud of her act of generosity.
Elizabeth loved showing me around her classroom. Notable moments included puzzling out why there is a picture of a fox with the letter X, and explaining to me about fiction, non-fiction and poetry books.
It took Wil a little longer to get into the spirit of showing me around his classroom, but then he had a dozen things to say. He also had a funny story about morning greeting. He was paired with Will White. "Hello, Will. Hello, Wil," seemed pretty silly to them. At lunch they were still smiling about it whenever they caught each other's eye.
Elizabeth loved showing me around her classroom. Notable moments included puzzling out why there is a picture of a fox with the letter X, and explaining to me about fiction, non-fiction and poetry books.
It took Wil a little longer to get into the spirit of showing me around his classroom, but then he had a dozen things to say. He also had a funny story about morning greeting. He was paired with Will White. "Hello, Will. Hello, Wil," seemed pretty silly to them. At lunch they were still smiling about it whenever they caught each other's eye.
Thursday, August 25
No one wanted to go to school today. Wil said, "I wish we could all stay home together." But they did pretty well getting ready, and Elizabeth was consoled by my promise to join them for lunch tomorrow. We'll try to finish eating ahead of her class so she can show me around her classroom while it's empty. We like that.
Thursday, August 18
Me: Wil, what was your favorite thing about school today?
Wil: Math.
Me (surprised): Did you say Math?
Wil: Yeah, we did 1 and 2.
Me: You mean you wrote the numbers 1 and 2? Did you add them or anything?
Wil: We practiced writing them, and we drew pictures of one thing and then two things....
Aha, now I understand. Drawing is the key to Wil's heart or at least the way to capture his interest.
Wil: Math.
Me (surprised): Did you say Math?
Wil: Yeah, we did 1 and 2.
Me: You mean you wrote the numbers 1 and 2? Did you add them or anything?
Wil: We practiced writing them, and we drew pictures of one thing and then two things....
Aha, now I understand. Drawing is the key to Wil's heart or at least the way to capture his interest.
Monday, August 15
Friday, August 12
Thursday, August 11
First Grade
To Elizabeth,
You were so bright and confident this morning on your first day of First Grade. Despite lack of sleep, maybe from excitement or nerves, you hopped out of bed this morning when I began our "Good Morning, Princess" song. It was a day for hopping, as you wiggled into your new school uniform. You know you look adorable in it. You jumped out of the car at the entrance to Leaphart, all ready to go. I smiled as I watched you chat with the aide that was helping us unload. Yes, you can carry that heavy bag of school supplies. Yes, you know where to go. You didn't even turn around to say 'good-bye' as you headed inside. Back at one of your favorite places. Back where you belong.
To Wil,
I was so proud of you this morning on your first day of First Grade. You woke up cheerfully - you knew today was a special day. You got ready for school with little complaining and we were all ready early. At school, you kissed me good-bye as we said "I love you." I will always remember your pinched little face as I drove away. You were trying so hard not to cry. I shed a few tears myself. You are so full of hopes and dreams. And I am full of hopes and dreams for you.
Tuesday, August 9
Mission Organization
Mission Organization
Elizabeth to Wil: I've figured out something. Momma is more interested
in the organization part than the decorating.
--
Friday, August 5
Last night
This morning at 5:45
This came out of a dead sleep, such that I wasn't even sure he was awake. But he was, and this was the first thing he thought of, poor boy. I have to take Bethy to an organizational Brownie meeting tomorrow morning and he doesn't want to stay home.
Wil: Daddy, do you think Secret Agent Barbie is cool?
Me: (thinking fast) Well, I think the 'secret agent' part is cool, but I'm not so crazy about the 'Barbie' part. [Pause to bask in the glow (and relief) of my great answer.] Do you think Secret Agent Barbie is cool?
Wil: Well, I think the 'secret agent' part is cool, but I think the 'Barbie' part is eek!
This morning at 5:45
Wil: Daddy, why can't I go to that Brownie meeting?
This came out of a dead sleep, such that I wasn't even sure he was awake. But he was, and this was the first thing he thought of, poor boy. I have to take Bethy to an organizational Brownie meeting tomorrow morning and he doesn't want to stay home.
Tuesday, July 26
Monday, July 25
Today we finally had a summer day like the one I dreamed about before school ended. We did a few housekeeping chores after breakfast, ran errands, ate lunch and then played in the pool until almost 3 pm. Now the twins are going to play while I get a few more things done. Then it will be time for Sean to come home and supper. Maybe we'll get back in the pool after that!
Sunday, June 26
More multimedia twin goodness:
OK, OurMedia didn't work more times than it did. So I'll use YouSendIt and you can get the file for up to a week. After that, if you come around here and want to hear it, email me.
Wil doing Edna Mode from The Incredibles
Bethy doing Edna Mode
OK, OurMedia didn't work more times than it did. So I'll use YouSendIt and you can get the file for up to a week. After that, if you come around here and want to hear it, email me.
Wil doing Edna Mode from The Incredibles
Bethy doing Edna Mode
Time to warmup this Blogger Images rig!
Ever since I showed the twins (and especially Wil) the UGO HeroMachine there's a constant queue to create more heroes. Here are the ones we've done in the last 2 days (Some of these are copyrighted by Marvel. Hope I don't get cease and desist-ed):
Now this next one is a Wil special. He's mostly designed based on Disney Tarzan.
In Wil's milieu there is also Naked Man, Naked Baby, Naked Woman, Naked Girl, and Naked Dog.
Ever since I showed the twins (and especially Wil) the UGO HeroMachine there's a constant queue to create more heroes. Here are the ones we've done in the last 2 days (Some of these are copyrighted by Marvel. Hope I don't get cease and desist-ed):
Now this next one is a Wil special. He's mostly designed based on Disney Tarzan.
In Wil's milieu there is also Naked Man, Naked Baby, Naked Woman, Naked Girl, and Naked Dog.
Sunday, April 10
Thanks to the twin miracles of Audacity and Ourmedia, I have some new sound files of the twins to post for you:
Wil singing 'O Leaphart' (their school song)
Elizabeth singing 'ZYX'
Wil singing 'Take me out to the ballgame'
More to come...
Wil singing 'O Leaphart' (their school song)
Elizabeth singing 'ZYX'
Wil singing 'Take me out to the ballgame'
More to come...
Thursday, February 10
Tuesday, February 8
Elizabeth is a list maker. I found these two lists after she and Wil were playing shopping. Taking care of Wil's dog Freckles was a major priority. Here are the things they needed:
Gosrey lits (Grocery list)
1. peycoo (pizza, originally spelled peesoo but then she erased it)
2. kani kugry (Kanine Krunchies)
3. doGy biGis (doggy biscuits)
4. vegtabro (vegetables)
5. fots (fruits)
TRGit (Target)
1. magi (matches)
2. soov (stove)
3. dusp panre (dust pan)
4. fmondinre (thermometer)
5. medsi fwh (medicine for Freckles)
When asked, the twins disagreed about whether fwh spelled Freckles or his initials: Freckles Rescue Hero. Regardless, I think Elizabeth's spelling is brilliant. She has also begun to enjoy word searches and filling in the squares on Sean's crossword puzzles.
Gosrey lits (Grocery list)
1. peycoo (pizza, originally spelled peesoo but then she erased it)
2. kani kugry (Kanine Krunchies)
3. doGy biGis (doggy biscuits)
4. vegtabro (vegetables)
5. fots (fruits)
TRGit (Target)
1. magi (matches)
2. soov (stove)
3. dusp panre (dust pan)
4. fmondinre (thermometer)
5. medsi fwh (medicine for Freckles)
When asked, the twins disagreed about whether fwh spelled Freckles or his initials: Freckles Rescue Hero. Regardless, I think Elizabeth's spelling is brilliant. She has also begun to enjoy word searches and filling in the squares on Sean's crossword puzzles.
Tuesday, January 11
I'm not going to get this exactly right, but hopefully you'll get the gist of it.
Wil was playing last night and half talking to himself and half talking to me. He was talking about fighting The Bad Guys. Then he said something like 'But Jesus said we should love our enemies [or The Bad Guys, I forget which]. So how can we fight them and love them at the same time?' He thought about it and said 'I think if we put them in a cage, we could fight them and love them at the same time.'
I told him that was really good thinking.
Smart boy.
Wil was playing last night and half talking to himself and half talking to me. He was talking about fighting The Bad Guys. Then he said something like 'But Jesus said we should love our enemies [or The Bad Guys, I forget which]. So how can we fight them and love them at the same time?' He thought about it and said 'I think if we put them in a cage, we could fight them and love them at the same time.'
I told him that was really good thinking.
Smart boy.
Saturday, December 18
We're having an afternoon snack the other day and Wil very sweetly brought some crackers over to the kitchen. I said 'Oh, no thank you. I've already had my crackers, but it was nice of you to offer.'
I warmed up some pot roast vegetables for myself, and asked him if he wanted some, as a joke, because I knew he didn't like them. He said, sweetly and sincerely 'No thank you, but it was nice of you to offer.'
I love that boy.
I warmed up some pot roast vegetables for myself, and asked him if he wanted some, as a joke, because I knew he didn't like them. He said, sweetly and sincerely 'No thank you, but it was nice of you to offer.'
I love that boy.
Tuesday, December 7
We went to Irmo Middle School for "Lunch with Santa" on Saturday because Wil has asked repeatedly to meet Santa. He knows it's just someone pretending to be Santa, that Santa doesn't exist, but he's still enamored with the idea. The middle schoolers performed some songs, solos and a dance. Elizabeth really enjoyed it. But, of course, meeting Santa was still the big attraction. Wil told him he wanted Rescue Heroes for Christmas. Elizabeth said she wanted the My Little Pony Castle. (Translation: she saw a commercial for it on television that morning. Then she surprised me by repeating the wish at Daisy Girl Scouts last night.) But the bigger deal was explaining to them about not telling other kids that Santa isn't real. The twins know the story of St. Nicholas, and the only Santa-business we've ever done is buying presents for less fortunate children. So I explained that even though we know the truth about Santa, we have to keep it a secret. They were very impressed by having such an important secret, so hopefully they won't be the bringers of bad tidings to their classmates. However, it made me hope very much that there aren't many more times in their lives when I have to tell my kids not to tell the truth.
I've missed posting some good stuff lately, but here's a funny little conversation Elizabeth had with one of Sean's students at our InterVarsity Christmas party on Saturday night: They were discussing our Christmas decorations and how there will be more decorations at GiJi and GrampAl's house when we go there for Christmas. The student asked if Elizabeth was going to get anything in her stocking, referring to the stocking hanging on our mantle. Elizabeth said seriously, "Now that is a problem. I have two stockings. There is another one at GiJi's house because that is where we are going to do Christmas." We couldn't help laughing.
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