Stefan gives a thumbs up to hot chocolate and croissants for breakfast.
Category: CaSt
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another chapter from mrs. piggle-wiggle
At bedtime, after reading the chapter, “The Won’t-Go-to-Bedders Cure.” Stefan said, “What would Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle do for me, since I can’t get to sleep at night?” “Well,” I said, “First, I have to call all the other parents, and ask them what they do. ‘Ring, ring. Hello? Mrs. McGallicutty? Do you have a problem getting Drake, Carlotta or Bruchetta to go close their eyes at night and go to sleep?’
And Mrs. McGallicutty, says, ‘Oh no, as soon as the children’s heads hit their pillows they fall asleep, sometimes BEFORE their heads even touch the pillow. Why?’ ‘Well,’ I tell her, ‘Stefan has such a hard time closing his eyes at night.’ Mrs. McGallicutty says, ‘Have you spoken with Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle?’
And Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle says, “Have Stefan ride over on his bike to pick up the Can’t-Go-to-Sleepers kit.” But the kit is so huge you can’t ride with it on your bike. In fact, you have to pay a big African man to carry the kit back to the house on his head.
The kit consists of lights that we have GSO install in your room. Lights so bright, so colorful and twinkly that when you lay on your bed, you HAVE to close your eyes AND wear the sleep mask from Air France over your eyes.
And after three nights, you beg to have the lights removed. You say, “Can’t I just count sheep?” And I say, “Maybe, if you are good, you can just have the overhead light, and the hall light and the little bedside lamp.”
“The big bright lights are a good idea though.” says the Won’t-go-to-Sleeper, who has to find just the right stuffed animal to sleep with, and have a glass of ice water and have the mosquito net adjusted before he finally gives up.
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jazzi
Stefan is now riding Camille’s old bike, a light blue one with white tires and blue streamers on the handles, pink stars and “jazzi” painted on the side. At home I would have to teach him that he can’t ride that bike in public, it’s too girly. He rides it every day and is looked upon with envy, even by teenage boys.
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ceci pas une chouette
Camille is doing a report on owls so we’ve all been reviewing owls, the pellets, the fixed eyes, the round ping-pong ball eggs. In French they don’t call a barn owl an owl hibou, they call it a chouette, like it’s a different kind of bird. Also, as you know, chouette means cool, or neat. Camille and I think it’s funny that when you’re saying, c’est chouette you are saying, “that’s cool/barn owl.” In her report she talks about the difference between the chouette and the owl. Barn owls don’t have the feathers that look like ears.
Last week her class visited the zoo, and a visitor had something in a bag squawking. He pulled it out and here’s what it was:
I think he wanted to sell it to the zoo, all the animals in the zoo here are local animals, but they already have an owl. Three species of owls live in Niger, owls are quite a successful species!Last night I stayed up way too late stenciling this t-shirt dress for Camille to wear when she does her presentation: (although I’m not sure how cool it is to walk around wearing a dress that says “not cool.” I’m not sure how much 5th graders are into irony. Hmm, maybe I’ll do a chouette lower down that says, “c’est chouette.” Oh god, back to the freezer paper.)
Later. Okay, I added it and she loves it, although she had me cut it off so it’s a shirt, not a dress. I took that dress out of the hand-me-away bag anyway, so it’s least it’s having one more go-around. Of course Stefan wanted in on the owl love.
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penmanship
I love Stefan’s handwriting. I think it’s so nice for a first grader.
The other day he said, ” I want to be an animal scientist, but I also want to be a rockstar. Can you be more than one thing? Because I know this is a little weird, but I also want to be a cheerleader.”
“President Bush was cheerleader,” was my response, although MANY other questions have come to mind since then, but he doesn’t want to elaborate. Is it a way to meet girls? Or the spangly costume?
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evil twins
Every once in a while Camille decides she and Stefan should dress alike, so this morning she picked out their matiching ensembles. These two crack me up. They fight a lot, but right now they are doing a “rock star” show in Camille’s room with a hair brush mic and Stefan on the drums and keyboard.The car is here, I’m on my way to show the ambassador the movie!
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5 and 3/4
The weekend was a loss, but yesterday we drew pictures of elf houses and made strawberry smoothies and read Rosie’s Walk, and Stefan discovered that he can read it himself, which is pretty good for a kindergardener I think.Yes, our book shipment arrived on Tuesday’s Air France flight.
twenty-something years of "what have you been up to?" 