Five for Friday

1.  Oh, this girl.  She looks so happy, doesn’t she?  Looks can be deceiving.

She had a hard week.  It was Tooth Eruption ‘O9 – she got four new ones.  Lucky for us she didn’t wake up in the middle of the night but her naps were choppy at best and she had a fever, runny nose, and didn’t want to have anything to do with a sippy cup.  Good news, she’s got quite an arm for a future in t-ball.

2.  I had a long week too.  I tried to be productive but with a moody toddler who never fell asleep, it was rather difficult to plan my day.  I felt disorganized and exhausted as I walked around in circles past laundry piles and stacks of clutter that didn’t entice me toward them.  Individual packets of Fun Dip, however, called my name every time I walked by Max’s Easter basket.  Yeah, I asked him to share.  He said “sure, you can have ONE”  I had several.  I don’t want him to get cavities.

3.  In spite of all this, it was a good homeschooling week.  I started writing up a simple schedule everyday while he does some sort of warm up activity.  This has been very beneficial and keeps him engaged.  He has to earn a sticker for each subject in order to get to play computer games.  Each morning I tell him one or two things I’m especially looking for in his behavior, i.e. listening the first time, slow and careful work, etc.  He likes this system a lot.

4.  I don’t know if it’s a great thing, but I don’t really plan all that much in our homeschooling.  I mean, he has a bunch of workbooks so planning isn’t required this year.  I’d like to do more unit studies next year, though.  At any rate, the good thing about not being a planning person is that when you realize it’s April 15th, you say, “hey, I have an idea.  Let’s learn how to count by 5’s today.”  And something really fun happens as a result.

Nickels become bad guys and they are taken to jail.  Then they become wayward cattle that are driven back into the farm.  Then they become…oh hey! I have an idea.  Let’s have a snack.  How’s Fun Dip sound?

5. The Easter Bunny heard that Max likes Legos and brought him his first Power Miners set.  A new obsession was born.  I took him to Target to buy another set with his own money and he was beside himself with joy.

He really was joyful even though this photo shows otherwise.  But at this point he was kind of mad at me for making him pose for a stupid picture and delaying his Lego-making start.  Oh, plus the sun was in his eyes.

Lego Power Miners are interesting and boy did I learn a lot about them this week.   When Max is really into something and wants to talk non-stop about it, he’ll say “Mommy? Can we have a little conversation about Power Miners?”  He delights in talking about every character, every tool, every machine, every whozit and whatsit in the whole ding dang Power Miner story.  He even quizzed me on this stuff.

I told you it’s been a long week.

6.  Okay, I know I’m done with my Five for Friday list but can I do one more?   Doesn’t Mini look cute in her little white headband?  I couldn’t believe that she tolerated it all afternoon.  Her outfit (a hand-me-down from my niece) was so cute today, I just had to show you a picture.

I love tulips and grape hyacinths that come up out of the ground year after year.  Maybe it’s because they require very little planning on my part.

Are you a planner? What’s your favorite garden flower?  Do you know what Power Miners are?  Like Fun Dip?

Can we have a little conversation?