Talk about nothing...

The preschool has planted a garden. Watermelons, tomatos, things like that.

So all the kids were standing around looking at it, pointing out what had been planted, big discussions and plans going on. When there a was a lull in the chatter, Damon takes a step back from the fence, sits down, and very deliberately says:

"I'm just going to watch them grow."

For the Fish

With kids, it pays to be specific:

Damon comes over to where I'm sitting with Emma on my lap.
D: Is this a lemon?
Me: Yes Damon, it's a lemon.
D: Ohh. Do you want a bite?
Me: Yes please. [chewing sounds] Yum. Thanks Damon.
D: Emma, do you want a bite?
E: No. [totally uninterested]
D: [holding it up to her mouth] Emma, do you want a bite?
E: No!
Me: Damon, I don't think she wants any.
D: Ohh.
Me: Maybe if you put it on some fish.
D: Ohh.

[holding his hands together at ground level with the lemon in his palms.

D: Here, little fishies, do you want some?

A is For ...

A is for Apple, right? Maybe A is for Ant. But no, these kids have to be smart. Not only can Damon tell you what his name starts with, (a D, in case you were wondering) and recognise every letter of the alphabet, he can also tell you a word beginning with every single letter. None of this boring A is for Apple, B is for Ball crap either.

A is for Anchor.

Too many cooks

In this instance, I'm referring to people who are employed to do a specific job and then think they can have a say in the running of the whole operation.

So far, they've consulted us (me, A, & T), the special school guy, the speech therapist, the pediatritian, the psychologist, themselves, and the postman. Ok I made the last one up, and I'm all for having a good research base, but once you've worked out a system, let us use it and stop giving us all the subsequent opinions you've collected like trading cards.

Especially when one is the speech therapist, who (a) doesn't have a normal accent, and (b) knows nothing about any situation except speaching.

Birthdays Pt 2

Checked out Ysobel's book. Turns out it's her birthday next week. T and I, being the greedy pigs that we are, were going "Yay, cake!" Took a time out from all the drooling to check the day - yep, I'm away that day. Checked again - yep, so is T. No cake for us.

Birthdays

Jack just had his birthday. He's a big kid now. The conversation the whole day was about his party, and the other kids' plans for theirs.

It started out ok.
Jack: It's my birthday!
Me: Really? Wow etc
Nicholas: I'm going to your party hey Jack?
Jack: Yep.
[Followed by all the other kids checking to see if they were coming. Jack going around the table saying everyone's names and that they could come.]
Me: Can I come?
Jack and Nicholas exchange glances: No. [Cheeky grins.]
Me: [Very disappointed.] Why not?
Jack: [Searching for a reason.] Cos no girls!
Me: What about T?
Jack: No, she's a girl.
Me: What about A?
Jack: No, she's a girl.
I refrained from telling him I was having a girl's only party and he couldn't come, so there.

Clearly I missed a bit, because when I came back from my break, they were all at late afternoon snack, and Jack and Nicholas were telling everyone they saw that:
"Sexy boys and sexy girls are coming to my party."

I really should have asked for a definition.

Gets Everywhere

I am also really sick of sand. Really really sick of it.

Yesterday as soon I got there, I got a great big hug from Emma. It was very nice. Until the sand (which covered about 90% of her body) became ingrained in the lipgloss I had applied about ten minutes before. Yum.

Not to mention the sand has completely ruined my Kayanos.

A day without...

It wouldn't be a normal day without...
{Also entitled, Things I Am Really Sick Of Saying}

Would you like milk or water?
Slowly, and up to the line.
Walking on the concrete!
5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0...
Pack away first.
Plate on the trolley.
Cup on the trolley.
Chair away.
Did you wash your hands?
Soap, this time.
Where's your hat?
Hat on your head.

On a side note, I have never seen Kaitlyn or Ysobel with their hats on their heads. Never ever. They are also somewhere lying on the ground.

Reading

It is interesting the different ways the people (children in particular) choose and respond to books and reading.

Hugo only likes ones with some sort of repitition eg We're Going on a Bear Hunt, We All Went on Safari or pattern, like the counting or alphabet books. Also, inexplicably, the big world altas, maybe as it has lots of pictures, and a lot of them are in oval frames (one of his fav shapes).

One of Jack's fav's (one which I don't like and never read to him) is one about the phases of the moon. I don't think he knows it's about the moon. It has a cat looking up at a moon, and I think he likes it for the cat, with the moon being a bonus.

Em currently likes one of the new ones, Where is the Green Sheep? which I'm sure she has at home. When we get to certain parts, she always tells us the same thing, putting herself into the story.
Em: I climb up that ladder and splash into the water [pointing to the bottom of the page].
Also I'm not sure if she knows it's all about 'sheep'. She can recite almost the whole thing, but I don't know if she knows all the fluffy things are sheep.

Mark, Damon, and Samuel all love the Space and Spaceships books. They will read it to themselves, with great discussions, and also enjoy us reading it them, asking a lot of questions. I had a big discussion with Mark the other day about listening to what the book says, then asking things he still doesn't understand.

They really do know their space stuff.
T tried to argue with one of them, Mark again I think, about which planet had rings, and which was 'the big planet'.
T: The biggest planet is called Saturn.
Mark: No [turning to the right page and obviously repeating from somewhere] Jupiter is the big planet.
T: No Mark [fully believing she was right] Jupiter has rings.
Mark: Jupiter is the big planet. Saturn has rings around it.
Me: Um, yeah he's right.
T: [Actually looking at the book] Oh yeah. You're right Mark.

When it comes to these boys and space, that's a given.

It's Contagious...

Cos cos cos cos cos.

She says it all the time. Annoying, not to mention doubly so as it's contagious. T and I always find ourselves doing it too on the days Molly's here.

Also her never-ending "My mum's coming to pick me up?" which she's got some of the other kids asking too. It's not like she doesn't know the answer either. I think she just wants the reassurance.

I had to laugh though. I think it was something like her second day here. First day we'd let her sook a bit as she was new. This day though I wasn't going to go through a whole day with her crying so I went the the day's schedule with her:

"First we're going to have a play outside, then we'll go inside, then we'll have lunch and a sleep, then you'll wake up, then we'll all go and have a play outside and a snack and then... you're mum's gonna come and pick up!"

She seemed happy with the plan.

"So you wanna go on the swings now?" Hopeful of me I know. Unfortunately, it was not to be.

"Can you tell me that story again?"

Gotta love it.

Everything in Nothing

Children find everything in nothing; men find nothing in everything.

- Giacomo Leopardi, Zibaldone Scelto.