This and That (A Lot of It)

First, I need to laud my brother's praises. On short notice, he came to watch Danielle today while I volunteered in Tyler's class. While he watched her, he took her to Tyler's school, where they are having their gingerbread shop. (The gingerbread shop has lots of little inexpensive goodies where the kids can shop for mom, dad, siblings, etc.) Uncle Ron helped Danielle pick out presents for me, Ron, & Tyler. After they were done, he took her back home and helped her wrap all her treasures. When Tyler got home from school with his purchases, he immediately begged to wrap them, and Uncle Ron volunteered to help him, too. The kids were so excited, and I'm grateful those tasks are completed. Thank you, Uncle Ron!



To kind of continue last night's blog, Danielle had another funny one today. She was showing me how to sign the word friend and said, "I know how to speak Hand." You know, speaking Hand - it's like speaking French or German, except it's Hand. I thought that was pretty cute.

Tyler, on the other hand, was not quite as cute but he was funny. While he was getting his pajamas on tonight, he informed me that the boy he sits next to in class told him all about the "f" word, the "a" word, and the "b" word. This was our conversation:

T: "The b word is the worst. Do you want to hear it?!!"

M: I kind of did, only to see if he really knew it, but I was afraid if he said it and it really was the "b" word, he might not stop saying it. "Can you spell it?"

T: "I'm not sure if it has an e or an i in it, so I don't think I can."

M: I still couldn't figure out if he really knew it."What does it rhyme with?"

T: He thought for a second, said, "meaner" and pointed to his... well... you know.

M: Phew! "That doesn't start with a b, that starts with a w! And that's not the right word for it!"

T: "I know! It's kind of funny but the words don't always start with that letter. They just call them that. Like, do you know what the a word is? It's [he pointed to his rear end]"

M: "You mean the a word is butt?"

T: "Yep! It's butt. I can't remember what the f word is, though." He paused and then said, "Did you know all those words before I told them to you, Mom?"

By this time his pjs were on and we were ready to pick out bedtime books, so I nodded that I did and changed the subject. I may need to speak to his teacher about changing his seat. I think we can still claim innocence, but I can feel it slipping through my fingers.





And while I'm on the subject of school, Tyler moved up another reading level today. They have a program where the kids are tested and then placed into groups with other kids in the class who are at the same reading level. Each group works at their specific level, so all the kids aren't necessarily doing the same work, but they're all doing work that is challenging to them. I guess they are tested periodically and his teacher tested him and the other girl in his group today. Tyler bypassed the girl he was paired with, though, so I'm not sure how his teacher will handle that since they are the best readers in the class. I know that lots of kids can read well and lots of kids read earlier than Tyler did and better than Tyler can; however, I think it's pretty cool that he's as successful as he is considering he's a boy and also just because I'm his mom and I'm supposed to think his accomplishments are amazing. (So there.)





Finally, I leave you with these videos of Danielle rehearsing her songs for her upcoming Christmas program. I think maybe she enjoys performing?