That's such a lie, this is hardly going to be a nutshell - more like the whole bin of loose mixed nuts. Ready for the collection of things on my mind tonight? Okay, good.
For dinner tonight I made up a box of Target's Archer Farms "Homestyle" macaroni and cheese and it was good. Slightly pricey, but the ingredient list is respectable, and since the kids seem to have sadly (happily?) lost their taste for the Kraft stuff this is a lovely alternative for nights when it's just us and I don't feel like making anything more exciting. Tonight I served it with some leftover chili and it seriously hit the spot.
I am in love with the kids' new haircuts. We went last week for some summer dos - Amy has been asking for shorter hair again and William was, frankly, in need of a shearing (he got my thick hair). Amy's new bob makes her look about ten years old, and William suddenly (and heartbreakingly) looks like a real big boy with his buzzed hair.
William has taken to riding Amy's 14" two-wheeler-training-wheel bike lately. She never rides it, preferring her balance bike, so it is usually free. William mastered the tricycle at age 2, and his own smaller balance bike well before his third birthday, so he's been seeking a new challenge and manages it pretty well. My money is on him riding without training wheels before Amy does.
Amy continues to dazzle me with her reading proficiency. She read to me the first three pages of a new chapter of Little House on the Prairie the other night, only stumbling over the word "anxious". I don't know what her kindergarten teacher is going to do with her next year.
This morning after watching Dinosaur Train and their "Dinosaurs A to Z" bit, Amy set out to alphabetize her stuffed animals. We did pretty well until the end, when we had to settle for a Q-uacking duck, a Y-ellow duck, a dragon who was deemed magical enough to represent the letter X, and a turtle who was suddenly named Zip. I think that was all we fudged. We have too many stuffed animals.
I'm considering getting more pretzel rods after the rapid disappearance of the chocolate ones. I need other snack ideas too - I've been relying too heavily on things in wrappers because they are so handy, but yeesh, these munchkins are hungry and we've been blowing through even the healthy-ish snack foods. Thoughts?
I've been car shopping.... gag me... always seems like it's going to be fun until remembering that, well, it's not. More on that in another post... might not act on anything right now anyway, or they might make me an offer I can't refuse. I hate car shopping.
Speaking of Little House on the Prairie - oh my, is Amy smitten! We read through Little House in the Big Woods over the winter, a bit slowly, but after finishing it I bought the unabridged audio version and that has been both kids' favorite going-to-sleep listening for months now. The night we went camping (oh, another post I have to write!) I brought along Prairie and Amy was hooked from the first chapter. William listens closely too, and most nights that has been all we read. I have read the whole series myself at least a dozen times, but had forgotten just how much action happens in this second book. Amy now has all sorts of material on Indians, malaria, digging wells, and camping on the high prairie and her world has exploded with all sorts of pioneering games. Looks like we'll finish the book tomorrow night, less than two weeks after starting it. I won't hide my glee over my children loving my all-time favorite books, too.
I have a secret I'm dying to share... but not quite yet. Next week I think. That's a tease, I know. Sorry.
Someone left a glow-in-the-dark slinky on my desk tonight. It is distracting me. I'm ready to wrap this up and head downstairs for some R&R before it gets too late.
I am enjoying the summer routine way more than I thought I might. When preschool ended I had a tiny fear that our weeks would be too empty without that twice-weekly routine of "school"... but surprisingly, none of us have missed it. Even Amy, who was at the peak of her school-loving glory when it ended has not mentioned it since. The only part I miss is the chance to have some quiet time with William, focusing on just him. Amy talks loudly and plentifully, and sometimes it is hard for him to get a word in edgewise. Otherwise, I have no problem with the leisurely pace of the mornings, the abundant time at home for us all to do whatever, the feeling of openness in the schedule, and the general lack of stress. Kindergarten will be a great opportunity for Amy but it would be untrue to say I haven't been thinking a lot again about homeschooling. I'm already dreading the early mornings and the relentlessness of the school calendar. But that's what we signed up for, after no shortage of thought on the subject. Anyway, we will cross that bridge when we come to it.
Realized I'm just over 250 posts on this here blog. I don't think that's a terribly impressive number, spread over 4 years, but I must pat myself on the back for sticking with this project, and thank you all for reading my thoughts all these years. It is an unexpected joy to practice my writing and share a bit of myself, and to read the work of others out there who are doing the same thing.
Aaaaaand I think that's all I've got. For now. Glad we could talk, look forward to doing it again soon!
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