Another Reader in the House

Will has been sounding out words for a couple of years now, but his journey to becoming a reader has been one step at a time. I think that is partly because of Ben's reading skills. Even though we constantly remind them that they are not in competition, well, frankly, they are brothers, and they are in constant competition. So even though Will can read, he has not had the confidence to step out and challenge himself (or allow me) to read harder things.

The other day I suggested he read Green Eggs and Ham to me. He is a huge Dr. Seuss fan, so I thought this would be good practice for reading in front of people more. Thankfully, it was a hit. I was so proud of how he was able to sound out words he didn't recognize and read the whole thing by himself. So proud, that I forgot to video it, which I had wanted to do for months.

Today he came home from school with a book from his reading group, so I asked him if I could video tape it. He was so pleased that I wanted to record it that he even said I could post it here:)

So here is Will, reading Rescuing Nelson. (Grandparents and other family, this one is for you - Enjoy!)

Washington, DC

We arrived in Washington late on Wednesday night, and on Thursday took the Metro to the Mall area. We walked around the area, visiting the Washington Monument, the World War II Memorial, and the Lincoln Memorial. We walked past the Vietnam Memorial and the White House, before getting ice cream and heading to the Museum of Natural History. On Friday we went to the planetarium, toured the Capitol, and had lunch at Union Station. Then Tim took the kids to the Air and Space Museum while I visited the Holocaust Museum. That night we drove around and showed the kids the monuments all lit up, including the Jefferson Monument.

It was over 100 degrees while we were in DC, but the kids were total troopers. Of course, the two littles were in the strollers the whole time, but even Ben, who was forced to walk all that way, didn't even complain. He was too busy asking lots of questions.

My kids ask a lot of questions. And there is nothing quite like a trip to DC to invite 243,687 questions. For most of our time in Washington, Tim pushed Kate in the stroller, while I pushed Will, and Ben walked along side me. Since Ben and I don't walk fast, he and Will had a lot of time to ask me questions. (Whether I could answer them or not is a different question.)

Questions like...

How do we know when to get off the subway?

Why did we fight in World War II? What is fascism?

What is the Holocaust?

Why did every picture I took of the Washington Monument turn out crooked? (OK, that was my question.)

When was the last war? Right now? What are we fighting about? Who are we fighting against?

Why can't we climb to the top of the Lincoln Memorial?

Is this where that Martin Luther King guy stood?

Why did we fight in Vietnam? What is communism? Did we win?

Can we go in and see the President? Why not?

What do you mean there is a garden at the White House? (Look really closely on the far left.)

What is a budget? Why can't they agree?

Can we eat lunch now?

Are we there yet?

The boys enjoyed Washington a lot. They already have a list of things they want to do next time they are there. Kate was much less impressed. She never complained, but when I asked her if she liked it, she said, "No, it was boring because I never got to play golf." I cracked up and asked her to explain. "You know, with the little sticks," she said. It turns out she thought that she would get to play mini-golf while there.

Being Miserable

I promise the Washington, DC, part of the tale is coming, but in the meantime, a bedtime story for you.

Tonight, after reading the boys two books, I tucked them into bed and gave them hugs and kisses. Will thinks I give Ben more hugs and kisses than I give him, so he always holds to my neck and says that he needs more. I kissed him again, then pulled away and went to my room. I came through the hallway a few minutes later, and Will had pulled his quilt and pillow to the top of the stairs and said he was sleeping there. Since this is obviously attention seeking behavior, I ignored it and went back to my room.

He calls to me, "Do you know why I am sleeping in the floor? I am practicing being miserable so I will be ready when everybody is mean to me!"

What do you even say to that? Me? I crack up and then run to my computer to blog about it.

Delmarvelous

Now that school is back in session, I realize that it is time for me to get back to blogging, lest I forget everything we did this summer. (Of course it is possible I am blogging because I putting off some folding clothes or changing a diaper, but let's all just pretend that I don't have anything better to do at the moment.) Who knows how many unfinished blog posts will get published, but I definitely wanted to write about our vacation this year.

One of Will's favorite pastimes is daydreaming about what fabulous city/beach/destination we will travel to next. He and I are always talking about it. This year he and I decided it would be fun to go somewhere we had never gone before, so we started talking about driving up the east coast. He wanted to go to Rhode Island and NYC. I was thinking Boston or Maine.

Before I got too deep into my planning, I realized that it is a long stinkin' way to drive to all of those places in a Sienna with three energetic children. So I started throwing around alternatives... Maryland, Delaware, North Carolina (where we have been, but love), Washington, DC. I did a little research and discovered that the funny little peninsula that sticks out over there is called Delmarva. (Get it? Delaware, Maryland, Virginia - DelMarVa? See, you learn something new everyday.) Better yet, none of us had been there.

First stop on our awesome Delmarvian tour (yes, I know I need to stop making up words) was Cape Charles, VA, on the southern tip. The hotel where we stayed had a small, private beach (it wasn't as fancy as it sounds) and a pool, which were the necessities.

Later that afternoon (Monday) we drove up to the public beach in Cape Charles. It is all on the Chesapeake side, so the water was very calm, which Kate loved.

On Tuesday we drove up Delmarva to Assateague Island. It is a national/state park with no development, other than educational buildings and some trails. It is on the Atlantic side, so there were lots of big waves, which the boys loved.

Assateague is also home to wild ponies. We were on the Virginia part of the island, where the ponies are owned by the Chincoteague Island Fire Dept. (Think Misty of Chincoteague.)

We stayed overnight on Chincoteague Island, where we had Build Your Own Cookie sundaes and played mini-golf...two more necessities. Ben especially loved Chincoteague/Assateague and still asks me when we can go back there.

On Wednesday we drove north to Ocean City, MD, where we had lunch and quickly decided it was waaaay to crowded for our taste (we couldn't find anywhere to park if we wanted to), and so we headed into Delaware to visit their state park beaches. Delaware isn't that big of a place, and there are 3 or 4 state parks along the coast. Unfortunately, none of them were allowing swimming because there was a heavy fog, and the lifeguards couldn't see. We finally ended up at a public beach in Lewes, located on the Delaware Bay. Again, smooth waters=happy Kate. The boys opted for sand castles, but at this point in the vacation, I was apparently taking a vacation from my camera.

That night we were able to meet up with some long-lost cousins of Tim's for dinner. They live in Delmarva, and have two kids, including a four-year old daughter. Who cracked. us. up. This is what her mother calls her crazy eyes.

This concludes the Delmarvelous portion of our vacation. Please stay tuned for Part 2: DC (I can't think of any clever ways to change DC, so we will leave it at that).

Back to School

Already?

Yes, already. Yesterday was the boys' first day back to school.

(Photo from the Official First Day of School Breakfast with Dad at Chick-fil-A)

Ben is officially a third grader. When I asked for a first day of school report, he said it was "boring," but later when he said the supper blessing, he thanked God for giving him a good teacher, Mrs. B. Apparently all is not lost.

Will is a first grader this year, which means that for the first time, he has school all. day. long. Yesterday, he was in full-on I'm-too-tired-to-function meltdown mode from 4pm until bedtime. Uggh. We may have to reinstitute afternoon naps if we don't make the adjustment soon. On the other hand, he has a teacher, Mrs. H, that we know and love. I think she is the perfect fit for my littlest man.

Kate doesn't start school for three more weeks, so she is staying home with me and the littles that I babysit. When I asked her how her day was, she said it was the "Worst. Day. Evah." According to her, "The boys get to do everything fun!" But when they are here, she changes her tune, teasing them, "I don't have to go to school," (said in a mocking, sing-song voice).

I on the other hand, can't decide if I am happy about school or not. On the one hand, I reached my summer allotment of patience about two weeks ago. On the other, I get to help two boys' who are easily distracted finish their lengthy homework each day, not to mention the getting up early that goes along with it. Hmmm.