He Does It Different Than Me

One of Adam's jobs today was to unload the dishwasher. How this is usually done is, I lay a towel on the counter top and the dishes are stacked on it. The cups are sometimes not dry on the inside, so I taught the boys how to make a pyramid with them to allow them to dry.

When Adam finished his job today, he came to me and said, "I made houses." I was very curious so I went to see these "houses".
The plastic plates...

The bowls and cups. However, you can see the pyramid on the left. They did get dry!

I would have stacked things differently, but Adam adds a bit of fun to a mundane job, and the job did get done.

Adam Has Big News...

...He has his first loose tooth.

We found it while flossing tonight. He kept asking, "is it this one?" He was very excited! Most of the children in his class have already lost a couple of teeth. I'm sure he will not lose it this school year, but by next year, he will have one down! :)

This is the tooth that has been a good indicator that orthodontics will be in his future. I'm very anxious to see how it all plays out!

New Art

At the end of the school year, I enjoy seeing huge folders come home. These folders have housed the boys art all year. I am always amazed at what I see. I tend to find a few pieces that I must find a place to display them.

This is Adam's-

All I can say is, aren't they beautiful?

Austin's grade did a bit more free art. Here are his pieces-

I really like this owl.

I love the maple leaves.

I think this is my favorite. I wondered if the lines were already there, but Austin said he free handed it!

I really like this one too!

I have decided to hang these in the stair well. I may have the most interesting stair well around! I will have original art, and I get to live with the artists!

When You Live With Adam...

...sometimes you find odd things.


Yesterday Adam was helping me fix dinner. I saw at one point he was playing with a paper clip that he found.



Then as I went to get the plates to set the table, I saw this...


...he made a "lock." Honestly, I never know what I might find with him!

It Came From a Book

We have book on our bookshelf. In one half of the book is the story of Alice in Wonderland, then if you turn the book over and upside down, is the story of Peter Pan. I remember this book being on the bookshelf at home as a child. I think I must have been under 3 when it was given to us, because inside it says to Carol and Amy (Lana must not have been in the family yet). As many years as this book was around, I don't think I ever read it.

Recently, my boys became interested in Alice in Wonderland. I found the book and read it to them. I wondered at times how much they really got out of the story. That is until yesterday...

Yesterday I was walking up the stairs from the basement. I could hear Adam saying, "Off with their heads!" I was pretty sure I knew where this came from, but wanted to check. Adam said, "That is what the Queen says in Alice in Wonderland."

I guess the positives are, 1. He was listening to the book 2. He got something out of the book 3. He took what he got out of the book and put it to play. (I know that sounds crazy, but I think it is a stage of learning)

Now, I only wonder, how long will I be hearing, "Off with their heads!" ?

An Afternoon in China...

...Kind of. This is an example of one of the many things that I love about public school. The teacher think of doing things that I would find overwhelming, or just not think of at all.

Austin's 2nd grade class has been studying China. To end this unit they had somewhat of a Chinese party. They had me pick up Chinese food (Lo Mien, dumplings, they made white rice, and, of course, fortune cookies) They had chop sticks for the children to use-no forks! They all did pretty well with the chop sticks.

The children then took their "firecrackers" and did a Chinese dragon dance down the hallway. I did not get to see this, but it sounded like they had fun.

When they came back the children got to make tan grams. They came up with some interesting designs.

I think the rule for the tan grams were that you had to use all 7 pieces, the could not overlap, and they were suppose to touch in some way. Not all of Austin's are touching, but you can get the idea of his picture.

It was a fun afternoon. It was really neat to see what they have learned about China, and then to have "lived" it for one afternoon.

Haircut

I took Adam for a haircut the other day. As he crawled in the chair, the girl asked, "what are we having done today?" Adam pipes up right away and says, "I want it short, so I don't have to come back very soon!" He got it hair cut and it looks really nice. Later, as we were showing this to Mamaw, Adam told her "this time I had a number 3 clipper, next time I will have a number 1 clipper."

A number 1 is very short! I guess we wouldn't have to go back very soon with that!