I mentioned last week that we’re having a dry summer. The rain that came last Monday was nothing compared to the gentle, ground soaking rain we got most of the day Friday. We only mowed the yards two times in July, but we’ll keep the mower running now. The sad thing is that the ground was just as dry 24 hours after the rain as it was before.
SWIMMING PROGRESS. The kids had swimming lessons last week. They all did really well. Jenna’s instructor told her she could join the swim team if she wished (I don’t think this is one of her ambitions though). Ben came home each day excited about new things he had learned. But my favorite comment came from Nate after his first lesson. When I came home from work he enthusiastically proclaimed, “Daddy, I learned how to swim today and I did great!”
SUMMER READING. When I was a boy Moby Books published a series of illustrated classics. They were small with an illustration on just about every page. Each book was an abridged version of some literary classic--Tom Sawyer, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Heidi, Moby Dick, etc. I had about 25 of them.
Jenna loves to read. She didn’t get a summer reading assignment from school, but it wouldn’t have been a problem for her if she had. One of her favorite activities this summer has been trips to the library in Springfield. Well, I had to go up to her room for something the other day and got a good laugh. She had found all my illustrated classics and laid them out on the floor in the order she wanted to read them. Then she had taken a sheet of paper and cut it into individual bookmarks for each book.
CORRUPTED. Most parents have this list of words they don’t want their child using. This list will extend beyond cursing to include words that aren’t particularly vulgar but still impolite. Deciding what to call body parts like the posterior can be a challenge as you want to be descriptive while not making your kids the laughing stock of their peers. For our family the rear end is simply called your “bottom.” (Mom, a “settee” is a type of sofa or couch, not part of the anatomy!)
Well, in spite of your best efforts, you can count on the fact that your kids will be corrupted somewhere. Nate has been corrupted. We learned this as he was in the shower happily singing, “This is the way we wash our ‘butt’om, wash our ‘butt’om, wash our ‘butt’om,....”
WE’VE BEEN TO SEE THE WIZARD! We were invited to Riley Dee’s birthday party Saturday. Amanda had the coolest idea for hosting the party. She had discovered Street Productions, a small theatre company performing plays for kids in Bellevue Mall. The birthday girl came dressed as her favorite character, Glenda the Good Witch, and Grandmother Judy was wearing her own ruby slippers.
The cast works on a volunteer basis and they run a play for about a month. Right now they are doing The Wizard of Oz. They did a great job and we all enjoyed the show. We plan to take the kids back. Jenna and Nate especially enjoyed meeting the cast. The birthday party was starting, but they insisted on getting everyone’s autograph, down to the least munchkin. (Ben was content with three signatures.)
A-MAZED. After Riley’s party we went to eat at the Loveless Café which has been a Nashville favorite for about 50 years. Like many restaurants, their place mats had activities to keep the kids busy while waiting for their food. There was a maze in one corner which Ben tried to do. Unbeknown to him I was solving the maze with my eyes as he was struggling with my pen. When he gave up and returned the pen I took it and drew in the correct trail. When I handed the paper to him he asked incredulously, “Did you win?” Slow to believe he had to check my work and when he got done following my line with his eyes said with disbelief, “He winned it. He winned it!“
Joe
