The Endlessly Picky Bear

Bear announced this morning that she doesn't like SYRUP anymore, and is really tired of cereal. Excuse me, Pod People? Could I have my kid back now? You know, the one that's basically survived on cereal since she was three?

Is This April Fools Day?

Yesterday evening:

Me: Hey, Daddy Shortbread. I found a really big snake skin by the refrigerator in the garage.

Daddy Shortbread: NEAT!


This morning:

Bear: I hope I get homework tomorrow. I really miss homework.

Me (speechless):

Debriefing:

BUG'S DAY:
Bug got home first this afternoon, pleased as punch with her new teacher, whom she describes as "awesome." She was pretty impressed by the Hershey's Hug and Kiss the teacher gave each of them. Candy! On the first day!

We chatted for awhile about what kids are in her class, etc., when Bug suddenly said darkly, "There's one thing I bet will happen again this year." She sighed, "Every year the boys don't ... you know, aim so well? in the bathroom? ... and the janitor has to come in and talk to them and explain how to do it. The girls have to wait in the hall, and it's boring." This is her biggest concern about third grade, so I'm thinking it will be a pretty good year.

BEAR'S DAY:
Bear arrived home about a half hour later, happy and relieved to be through her first day. She rates her day a 9/10, subtracting one point for when she forgot her schedule in her locker and had to go back to get it.

She is excited by all her teachers except her English teacher, whom she describes as "a little too sweet and happy." (Is this my kid, or what? I'll take sarcasm over sunniness any day.)

Her schedule of classes is:

Homeroom (10 minutes)
Per. 1 - Math
Per. 2 - Social Studies
Per. 3 - Reading (literature portion of English requirement)
Per. 4 - Gym (1st quarter only, then Music Appreciation, French, and Technology for a quarter each).
Per. 5 - Excel Science (accelerated, reading-intensive science class)
Per. 6 - Math Lab (all 6th graders have a math lab, where they do their math homework under the guidance of a math resource teacher)
Per. 7 - Study Hall (2 days per week) alternated with Band (3 days per week)
Per. 8 - English (spelling, grammar, and composition portion of English requirement)

Starting Monday, all sixth graders will be assigned BRAND NEW MACBOOKS, which they'll take to all classes and be able to bring home later in the year. I just want to point out that when I was in sixth grade, I got to work on an Apple IIC once a week for thirty minutes. Most of Bear's textbooks will be loaded onto her laptop, so she won't even need to bring her books home.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have a veritable mountain of paperwork to fill out that has to be returned to their teachers tomorrow pledging that we live in Winslow, will follow school rules, are OK with the kids going on field trips, are OK with the kids being videotaped for assesments, will encourage our kids to follow bus rules, are not migrant workers, do not need reduced price lunch, and will pay to replace the laptop if Bear trashes it. This may call for a glass of wine. Or a bottle and a straw.

Houston, We're Ready for Launch.

Our morning started at 6:00 am today. Nobody was very happy about that. Well, except for the cats, who aren't used to getting fed until more like 9:00 am. They're big fans of school mornings.

Bear and Bug got up without intervention this morning, probably due to first day nerves. "I have butterflies in my tummy," Bug informed me seriously, "The bad kind."

Chocolate chip scones helped.

Here's the new junior high school student, resplendent in her new school clothes, new backpack, new Trapper Keeper, and ratty pink flip-flops from the summer that she insisted were the perfect complement to her outfit. Some battles are not worth the fight, so I said nothing. An eyebrow might have gone up, but she held firm.Her new haircut makes her look so much older. Holy cow.

Yesterday she fell apart for a few minutes, worrying about getting a tardy or not being able to find her locker. I talked her down, and by this morning she was cool and confident, ready for this new challenge.

Six years ago, Daddy Shortbread took Bear to her first day of kindergarten. She had to reach UP to hold his hand.

Bug is wearing her new teal polo shirt, capris, and brand spankin' new brown Skechers. She is also sporting a new necklace, sparkle lotion, and lip gloss. She has approximately thirty glittery pencils in that bookbag.
She acted all flippant when I asked if she wanted to be dropped off or walked to her new classroom, but after a few minutes she said, "I guess I want you to walk me in," in a little voice. By the time we reached her classroom, she spotted a few friends and dashed off excitedly after a quick hug.

Another year - here we go...

The Lagoon & Even More Beach Pix

This is the saltwater lagoon at Reid State Park. It's popular with the kids because the water is calm, deep enough to swim in, and has a sand beach. It's less popular with the parents because it tends to be somewhat, ah, stenchy at low tide and has a plethora of mosquitoes, all of whom immediately hone in on me (The Original Mosquito Magnet, as Daddy Shortbread calls me). We put up with it for forty-five minutes or so while the kids swim and dig canals in the sand, then we haul our gear back to the beach side where the ocean breezes keep the bloodsuckers away.

Daddy Shortbread was pretty happy to be doing this on a Friday afternoon instead of working:

Buggy, after the requisite jumping over waves and shrieking, likes to lay on her tummy on the picnic cloth and doze.

Do you all appreciate that this water is positively GLACIAL and Bear here (she of zero body fat) just lays around in it for kicks? Anyone else see anything odd about that? Or just me?
We stayed until 6:00 pm, when there were only three or four other families left on the beach. The late afternoon sun on the sand and water is absolutely beautiful. I could have lingered much longer, but the newest Cheetah Girls movie was premiering on TV that night, and Bug and Bear were about to come un-fricking-glued if we didn't start heading for home. You know, it's not like it's going to be shown on the Disney Channel eight gazillion more times over the next few weeks or anything. And just so you can appreciate what truly wretched parents Daddy Shortbread and I are, look - we make the kids carry their own sand toys back to the car! Awful, aren't we?

Dante Got It Wrong

...because shoe shopping with Bug is actually the third circle of hell. We've been to four different shoe departments in the past two weeks. She has tried on at least thirty pairs of shoes, in sizes ranging from 3.5 kids to 5.5 womens. NONE of them fit. Among her reasons for rejecting shoes:

1. too squeezy
2. my heel slips out
3. too tight in the toes
4. the heel isn't made right for my foot
5. a weird bump in it
6. too squeezy, yet too big
7. not right, but I can't tell you why
8. can't get my heel in
9. WHOA - slips right off
10. so. tight. can't. breathe.