So CJ was in bliss this morning - until he made a disturbing realization: There were three donuts in the bag. One was for him (he chose a chocolate frosted round donut), one was for Annabelle (she chose a chocolate frosted bar) and then there was a maple bar. Neither Ken nor I wanted the maple bar, which meant it sat there in its white bag, taunting CJ.
Seriously, the unassigned maple bar was totally eating at him. He wanted to know who would eat it. When would they eat it? How would we decide who eats it and when they eat it?
Finally, I told him that he could have half of it after music. (I did this suspecting that if I hadn't told him that, he would have spent the whole damn music lesson obsessing about the maple bar.) It satisfied him and he was able to get back to important stuff, like watching cartoons. Crisis averted.
FUN & GAMES: Today was the kids' last Musikgarten until 2010. For the last 10 minutes of class (the part parents are in on) they played a fun game of hide and seek. While the future seeker was hiding his or her eyes, another student would hide a small purse and the rest of the group would sing (to the tune of "Yankee Doodle"), "Lucy Locket lost her pocket(book), Kitty Fisher found it. Not a penny was there in it, just a ribbon 'round it." Once it was safely hidden away, the seeker would go looking for it, and while they were searching, classmates would pound on hand drums lightly or piano if the seeker was "cold," or forté if they were getting close. The closer the seeker was, the louder the drumming became. The game was a nice twist on hide and seek, and a great way to reinforce those two musical terms.
PORING OVER IT: I had to do a couple of things upstairs, so I asked the kids to take turns reading a story out of their new "High Five" magazine in my absence. I listened from afar as they read "Cow Food," an adventure of Tex and Indi and their cat named Cow. Rather than rushing back downstairs, I waited to see what they would do when they were done with the story. I was hoping they'd just keep on going, further perusing the magazine. Sure 'nuff, that's exactly what they did. They read a recipe for Mac and Cheese Muffins (and begged to make it), took turns reading another story, and did some word find and hidden picture puzzles.
IT'S BLITZ!: When the kids got back from music today, they were hungry, so I got them a mid-morning snack and let them watch the last half of The Price is Right for the first time in weeks. I'm working on stuff around the house and not paying much attention until the "Showcase Showdown" at the end got my attention. I glance over at the screen couldn't believe it - there stood the Seattle Seahawks' mascot, Blitz, on TPIR stage. Of course, I immediately recalled that TPIR host Drew Carey has a significant Seattle tie - he's part owner of the MLS team, the Sounders. Anywho, the showcase featured a trip to Seattle, tickets to a Seahawks' game, a VIP event with Warren Moon and a new SUV to use for tailgating. Nice! Unfortunately, the dude who bid on it was like $10k under - apparently he doesn't realize the value of some face time with Warren Moon. ; ) While we're talking prices, let me take this opportunity to report that for the last two days, every time we go into a store (which is a lot this time of year), CJ has been a price tag reading fool. He totally has the dollars-decimal-cents thing down. Excellent!
ROLLIN' ALONG: So, Annabelle decides instead of walking during our midday sojourn, she wants to scoot. I knew I'd end up carrying the thing, but went along with her request. Neither she nor CJ are quite coordinated enough on it yet to scoot uphill, and the sidewalks and streets in our neighborhood are typical for Seattle (translation: riddled with potholes, cracks, and poor drainage). So, of course, I wound up carrying the scooter 95 percent of the way. Oh well, more exercise for me. ;)
We'll be meeting a former classmate from kindergarten (and her mother) at Top Pot Donuts for a reunion. CJ hasn't seen his friend since last June. She's a super sweet girl who recently sent CJ a letter telling him she misses him. So tomorrow they'll have a chance to catch up.
Tonight I talked to CJ about some of the questions he might like to ask her (No, not, 'What's in your fridge?'!) and things the two of them might talk about. Hopefully he'll remember some of the "script" tomorrow. ;)
I've decided to leave Annabelle at home because if she comes along, she will dominate the conversation and try to direct every interaction. It's who she is, it's what she does. ;) I'll be the first to admit that often that is very helpful when it comes to CJ and social situations. However, he really needs to be able to go it alone, and not count on Annabelle for all of that "interface" stuff he'd often rather not deal with. And I know without a doubt that CJ can be conversant and engaging and outgoing - because I see him do it every day. I think the trick with him is he needs to learn that he doesn't always get to decide when he cares to engage and when he doesn't. Those darn societal norms need to be heeded!
Can hardly wait to hear how CJ's "date" went. Socializing is one of the big justifications for PS (and it's a good one). It's great that you have found Musikgarten, yoga, and Befriends.
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