cute things

Zayne cracks me up sometimes and I just have to write about it. There are times when he does not speak like a normal eight year old with his word usage. Like this morning he was "transfixed" on his food. Sometimes he finds a situation "plausible." Once in awhile he mispronounces a word but uses it right. I think that it safe to presume that he gleans these words from his reading. Zayne likes to read a lot, an awful lot. If he gets in trouble we sometimes take away his reading privileges. Let it be known that the other side of this reading monster is a video game fiend. It is like his cocaine and there is never enough of it. But don't worry, we monitor the cocaine intake. I wonder why games and books can keep him rapt in attention while staying on task writing is so difficult for this cute little guy? Using the Institute for Excellence in Writing has helped tremendously with that challenge though. The program has helped him organize his writing details before putting them on paper.

Another thing about Zayne that makes me smile is watching and listening to him play. Watching children play in their very own fantasy worlds is always delightful, but adding sound to that just makes it even more endearing. Of course he does the typical guns blasting, bombs exploding and people yelling noises, but he also sings. It is more common to find Zayne playing by himself singing than playing quietly. What does he sing? Whatever is in his head be it of another’s composition or his own. He loves to rewrite songs to make the lyrics comical. It truly is adorable, especially because he has a higher pitch voice singing. He has done this for years. As a toddler he would often start singing in the mornings before even opening his eyes. That would melt any mother’s heart. For about a year we heard “Baa-Baa Black Sheep” and “The Farmer in the Dell” every day. Yet, he has no desire to sing in a choir or solo in front of others. I hope he keeps this wonderful singing habit for years to some.

I had a "Mommy Payday" yesterday. Its that little yet proud, warm fuzzy moment when your child shows you that he actually is internalizing your teachings, she is expanding on them and making them her own, you glimpse the adult they are becoming and all of which reinforces to your heart that your are doing a good job with your children. Zayne and I were talking about faith for a cub scout badge. When asked if he knows of anyone who has displayed faith he smiled, put his arms around my neck, sweetly looked into my eyes and said, "You Mommy. You have faith in me for when I grow up. That is why you do school and read with us. You know, for when I am older and on my own." My heart almost burst at his words. I hugged that adorable child like I hadn't seen him in a week. Those dear words came on a bad homeschooling day. I actually had thrown in the towel and opted to read books with the kids on the trampoline while basking in the sun rays of a rare warm winter day.

A few days ago I asked Zayne to eat something more filling than a piece of toast for lunch. He lovingly replied, "But Mom, I like to put Grammi Jam on my toast because I think of Grammi while I eat it. And it fills me with love." I let him eat the Grammi Jam and toast.

Joshi is my writer and always has been. She was "writing" books before she even knew all her letters. She has probably filled more journals in her 10 years of life then I have in my 34 years. We are still working on our spelling and grammar, but she too has improved with IEW. Her problem was opposite of Zayne's; she could write on and on forever. IEW has helped her focus her writing in a more concise manner.

Writing poetry is another one Josi's periodic pastimes. Yet, heaven forbid I try to give any pointers or teach anything about poetry writing. You might be wondering how we can homeschool with that attitude. Fortunately the attitude doesn't flow over to all subjects.

Joshi is into her horses, stuffed animals (all over her bed and snuggling her at night), tea parties and the Redwall book series by Brian Jacques. The audio books really hold her affection. Brian Jacques and his Liverpool cast do a fabulous job bringing his books to life with their creative voices, drums and songs. The only problem with this obsession is that she has begun to talk with the characters' accents and terminology and at times comprehending her is awkward. Yet, it still is adorable. Dan drew the line last night when she was talking like that during family prayer. She got into the tea party thing because Felicity from the American Girl book series likes them. I has ben rather nice having my mint tea brought to me.