What Happened to Fall, Y'all?

I know what happened: we were so busy making memories that fall got by us. We got our pumpkins from our favorite farm, celebrated Jen's Golden Birthday and enjoyed ourselves in piles of leaves, all while wearing t-shirts and shorts. Those t-shirts and shorts are a distant memory now having been replaced by flannel lined jeans and puffy down, and those piles of leaves will be replaced by piles of snow soon. Oh well, that won't stop us from having more fun and making more memories, will it Tom : )

Three Cheers for Benjamin Franklin

On Thursdays Maryn brings her reading book home so she can find the vocabulary words in the story. As we have moved further into the school year we have seen progress with the homework assignments in subtle ways, such things as she now knows what story to turn to when opening the book. Yay! We celebrate the small steps. On this occasion she opened the book to a story about Ben Franklin, and when I read the title I said, "Ben Franklin, I love Ben Franklin. When you get finished I want to read this story because I want to know more about Ben Franklin." Maryn said "I know, I know," and proceeded to tell us about a kite with a key, thunder, lightning, and Ben got a "shot" from it. She went on to say that he put things on top of houses to keep people safe. As I wiped the tears off my cheeks, I told her that was the most beautiful thing I had ever heard. Comprehension is a remarkable thing.

Hello There, Mr. Lincoln!

It would be cheaper to home school. At public school, when a tooth starts getting wiggly all the kids are talking about how much cash there is to be made. We didn't stand a chance when it was announced after school one day that the tooth fairy would be coming to our house and leaving $5! There went the opportunity to start out small with a structured plan allowing for yearly cost of living increases. I did the smart thing and wrote a big yellow sticky note so we wouldn't forget about her arrival. Fortunately, Maryn let us know that the tooth fairy would be visiting during the day while she was at school, so we didn't have to stay up at night to greet her. Maryn went right to her room when she got home and found her treasure. We captured her toothy grin - minus one.

She Can See Clearly Now

Maryn has a new look to her beautiful face. She started telling us that she couldn't see and things were "boory," so we took her in for an eye exam. Good thing they can tell by the shape of the eye what sort of correction a person needs because there wasn't much to be gained by the responses to the doctor's questions. She was able to see the rather large E, but when she said she couldn't see the next row down, after a few quick blinks of our eyes which were popping out of our heads, we knew the rest of the letters were just getting jumbled in a tangle of language and there was no cause for alarm. The optometrist was very understanding, especially since her family looks a lot like ours, and we departed after ordering the cutest pair of glasses with pink flowers on the side.

Maryn is very good about wearing her glasses, and, on the occasions when we get to the bus stop in the morning without them, the kids are very good about asking where they are. A short sprint back to the house takes care of that. Lucky for us she has not seemed to notice any more wrinkles on us now that she can see us more clearly, and we think her four eyes are the most beautiful we have ever seen.

The Wheels on the Bike Go 'Round and 'Round

Maryn learned how to ride a bike several weeks ago and has been spending a lot of time on wheels since then. Her bike was a little too big for her so we borrowed a tiny bike from Ame and that was the key to success. She was able to put her feet on the ground if she felt like she was falling, and she could become comfortable with the feeling of balance on her own. It was so cute to see the big smile on her face when she started to get it, and, as it is with every new bicycle rider, she never looked back. When she gets off the bus after school the first words out of her mouth are, "Can I ride my bike?" If we have something else to do after school, we have to keep the garage door down so we can get her redirected without disappointment. It didn't take long before she was putting her feet up on the bar while shouting out, "Look at me," and last weekend while I was gone, Tom said the boys next door showed her how to step on the brakes and throw the back end to the side. I haven't seen it, so maybe she's moved beyond that. I hope.

Back To School

Well, she went back just like we hoped she would. The bus is a big draw this year and continues to be. Some days Maryn has her backpack on ready to go 45 minutes early, and we have to break the news that it's not time to go yet. We practiced the morning routine the week before school started and that was a good move after a summer loaded with fun but lacking in routine. Her teachers are great and really putting a lot of effort into her education and socialization. We know we'll be watching her soar in second grade.

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