14-12

Many thanks to my good wishes, the Seahawks won what is being touted as the weirdest ending in NFL history. (No, I did not violate the media policy to watch football.) And even more thanks to my good wishes and the fact that I wore my special shirt on my evening walk, my mom won her first and only bet thus far of the season.

And the play on the field stands as called.

I just hope Mike didn't give up on our beloved Seahawks and leave the game early!



Note: I had to crop my dad out of this photo because he was saying thumbs down to my team. Censorship at its finest.

lazy Sunday

We are excited that fall is here. And the mornings have finally felt like fall. We are getting back to being able to spend our weekends how we best like them: my dad and I take a long walk in the morning while my mom makes something hearty and warm for our breakfast. Then it is nap time. 

My dad and I pretty much wanted to sleep the entire afternoon away. My mom tried for hours and hours and even more hours to wake us up. My dad was only interested in getting out of bed if my mom made cookies for us. We didn't have all of the ingredients for our favorite (peanut butter chocolate chip) so I whipped up a batch of banana bread instead. another perfect loaf.

Since I have displayed my culinary expertise, my mom has already had the talk with me about when I will start making dinners. Trinity, who began subscribing to Martha Stewart Living when she was quite young, was a masterful chef and baker at an early age. (What couldn't she do?) I guess the same is expected of me. We do love to bake. Not only do I enjoy my treats, but baking also serves as a good math lesson (for my mom) . . . especially when we have to calculate half of 1 3/4 cups when making a smaller batch of bran muffins.

After nap and baking and snacking, my dad and I went to the lake. My mom had a pot of potato cheddar soup waiting for us when we got home.

The best part is that I seem to be in the midst of another growth spurt so I can eat 50 servings of yummy food each meal. The downside is that I cannot wake up.

visitors

My guests, Grandma Betty and Papa Geary, were just arriving from California this time last week. They drove all the way here just to see how cute I am. It was a short but busy visit. We ate. (It turns out that they also love pecan pie and ice cream.) We played. (Building, I am always building.) We swam. (Brrrrr. It was a chilly 92 degrees. But I would gladly swim in the Arctic Ocean.) We played a bit of golf. (Mini golf at Barton Creek Resort.) And then they departed just as suddenly as they arrived. This is a photo of me saying goodbye to Grandma Betty.

I am still adjusting to my school schedule and, most days, I am sleepier than anything. Like clockwork, I have gone back to crying upon arrival in the morning. They warned us that I would have three joyous weeks of school and then the tears would start again. Well, I am delighted to be there; I just don't like getting there in the morning.

My dad has taken me to school a few times lately because my mom has had one appointment after another. But he sticks closely to our routine. Arrive at 8:09. Turn the car off. Read to me while we wait for Mary to come out promptly at 8:15 to escort me into school. I was a bit disappointed one day this week when my mom came to pick me up instead of my dad. My dad can very easily be talked into a trip to Central Market for snacks after school. My mom will sometimes surprise me with a bagel from Central Market but mostly she takes me directly home to make lunch and so I can sleep all afternoon.

milestone

Today marked a milestone in my Montessori career.

On my first day of school, there were no tears. The following days, once I wised up and realized that school means four hours away, I cried. I tell people that I cry because "I didn't want to be away from my momma." All weekend I resolved not to cry once I returned to school after Labor Day. On the way yesterday, I told my mom "actually, you know what? I am going to cry." And I did. It might have been my worst bout of tears.

Today, however, I did NOT cry. When I was retrieved from the car, I hopped out and asked no one for a hug. I was ready to walk by myself.

In my class, we like to get wrapped up in one another's drama and I return home each day with tales of who cried, and why, and for how long. Samuel is the happiest. Elowyn is the most sorrowful.

I opted not to nap today. Instead, we went to the library after lunch and stayed until dinner. Here is a photo of me reading. I am on the verge of being able to read fluently. Give me three more months . . .

the first day

Yesterday I made it through my first full day as a student. I spent much of my time working with the pink tower. I commented to my mom that Montessori is lonely. My previous program was play-based and, because I was the most popular student in the class, everything revolved around me. At Montessori, the materials for my stage of development are designed to be worked with by one child at a time. The collaborative work will be introduced later. 

We had crackers and organic pears for snack (but I skipped the pears) but I ate 11 crackers. One child, NOT ME, dropped a plate and it broke. 

I put my shoes on all by myself when it was time to go home. You might notice in the photo that I have them on the wrong feet. That doesn't matter though. 

I made careful note of what indoor shoes all of the other children have. Isabella wears pink shoes that have a slight squeak when she takes a step. January wears green shoes and wore a green shirt. No kids have blue shoes. My sister would have made a note of these important details too.  

Below is a photo of me getting lined up for departure. As soon as I got into the car, I said to my mom,  "ask me if I want to go to Starbucks." We all know the answer to that question and, sadly, I was deprived of a trip to Starbucks. We do, however, have a date for Friday. Since I am only supposed to have sweets twice a week, I need to plan my indulgences carefully. 

Instead of Starbucks, we came home and had organic fruit smoothies. I am obsessed with straws this week.

And then I snored for the next four hours. I ate three sandwiches when I woke up.

Adjusting to the new routine is exhausting. My mom started steaming spinach for my scrambled eggs (delicious, by the way) at 5:30am. And the traffic is worse than dreadful.

my favorite life

Today I enjoyed the last playdate of the summer with my St Michael's friends. Last week was supposed to be our final visit but we opted to squeeze just one more in. We met in the same lovely Westlake park where we had our first playdate of the summer. Over the past few months, we have grown from classmates into the best of friends. Mid-morning, I declared "this is my favorite life."

We stayed to play for several hours until I had to go home to bathe and get ready for my third and final Montessori orientation.

When we arrived at the Montessori school, Elizabeth was sitting outside waiting for me. I told her the story of my dad's fall and how he tore a ligament as though it had just happened yesterday. This is a story I can tell for years! I thoroughly enjoy the sympathy I rightfully get (nevermind my dad). This detailed sob story charmed Elizabeth. Not many toddlers can speak in such detail about broken bones, torn ligaments, and the surgical procedures needed to repair them.

My dream came true today. I learned how to work with the pink tower. Then Elizabeth decided that I could start school tomorrow instead of waiting until Wednesday. (Three children start per day and there are only ten of us in the class and two are vacationing in India.) I am excited about this but we had planned to use tomorrow as a practice to see how long it would take to get ready in the morning. According to the policies, I need to eat a full high-protein breakfast before school. I normally like to be awake for a while before I eat my breakfast (but I have water and a light snack before my meal) so this is all going to take some adjusting. And my mom needs to get her sleep schedule on track. Big changes!

We have our alarm set for hours before dawn so we can get out of the house in time to sit in traffic at the Y for hours. (And by the Y I don't mean the YMCA . . . I mean the dreaded Y at Oak Hill. Worst traffic ever.)

weekend chores

Perhaps I have been influenced by the very short time I have spent in the Montessori classroom already but, boy, did I ever have the urge to work on Saturday morning. I scrubbed the outside of the oven, dishwasher, and fridge.  I wiped the inside of the fridge. I carried the clean laundry into the bedroom. I swept up the bits of dogfood Remus has scattered about. I wiped the window sills in the kitchen. And then I stepped outside and washed the back window.

Next project: washing the baseboards.