To Believe, Or Not To Believe- That Is The Question

Em campaigned hard to play outside yesterday. She finally got bundled up & went to run with the usual kiddie posse. About 30 minutes later she is coming thru the front door drooping. "My throat still hurts and I'm too tired to play." She looked ghostly and wait, her throat STILL hurt?? I had no idea it hurt at all. Low fever and exhausted, she spent most of the rest of yesterday looking something like this:

At one point she was wearing popcorn because B thought it was funny to cover her with it while she slept. Last night she perked up a bit & right before going to bed she says to me:

"Does Ralphie really move or is he just a doll and YOU move him all over the house?"

Oh crap.  It took her long enough to figure it out considering she is 8 going on 18 but still...

I didn't skip a bit while disinterestedly dismissing her notion. Reminded her that if I touched Ralphie he loses his powers and some crap like that.  Did she believe me? Doubtful! But being 18ish in her head she knew enough to form her own opinion and just walk away!

A Few Moments of Value

Last week when we baked a zillion cupcakes, that morning Emmy lost a front tooth. (The Tooth Fairy really works overtime here!) Maya was kind enough to call her a hillbilly & that was it- they couldn't stand each other all day long.

See?

Emmy momentarily forgetting that she's a hillbilly & decorating her cupcakes. Those are the ones that actually made it to school unscathed- at least those are some of them!


These were not so lucky.


B with Fluffy Bear


B acting normal.


She got Bella for Valentine's Day and only parts with her to go to school.


A new girl started in B's class, her name is Mackenzie. She gave B her phone number today which I ASSumed was not legit. They are 6 for cripes sake! For 2 hours I heard, "Can I call her?? Can I call her now??" Finally I said yes, dialed the phone & handed it over (telling B exactly what to say) as it began ringing. I figured it would be a wrong number. I hear:

"Hi this is Bridget can I talk to Mackenzie?" Then comes a big grin as she & Bella skipped off to talk on the phone. "Isn't it cool that you can pick up the phone and I'm there??"


So cool that within a one hour period B called her twice & Mackenzie called us 3 times. I suspect the novelty will wear off. I also fear this will be like making popcorn for B. Miss Independent likes to do things herself. She'll ask me for things but if I hesitate she takes over. Like making microwaved popcorn. She has put the plastic covered bag in the microwave & set the timer for 22 minutes. If I hear that little door slam I RUN. She crawled up onto my bed when I was sick a few weeks ago, looked me in the eyes while rubbing my head and said, "Can I make you soup?!"

My response was to hold onto her tighter.

Speaking of...

Em & B sleeping a few nights ago. Both snoring, hand in hand.




(Cell shots suck, no?)

Happy Heart Day

Jammie Day

Ok, maybe for once they aren't lying & this storm is NOT going to miss us or magically shift direction. I say that & feel it's safe to say it now that the snow has been falling for hours. Yes, I believe it now that I see it. They predict 25 hours of straight snow and from what I'm seeing, I think it could happen. School was canceled last night & I wonder if we'll have any tomorrow. We only have school til 11am & I'm supposed to be there as homeroom mom at 10 for the Valentine's Day party. So THAT is my biggest dilemma of today: Do I need to bake 50 cupcakes or not in time for tomorrow?! I'm armed with my Valentine's Day Funfetti cake, heart sprinkles & Valentine's Day M&M's to decorate- but do I NEED to??

I had two teacher confrences yesterday & they went wonderfully. First up was Em. I've mentioned her tough, drill sargeant teacher. Mrs. C is older & piles on the homework. I have talked to her at the door on various occassions & have come to really like her. I get it, she yells to get control of her class. She pushes them because they really do their best then. She loves the kids & Emmy has thrived with her. Emmy was ready to be pushed this year. She wanted it & in return she gets great marks. Straight B+'s because as her teacher claims, in the 2nd quarter, they don't deserve A's yet. They haven't mastered 2nd grade. So she gets mostly 100's & is reading at just under a 4th grade level. I asked what area to help her in & Mrs. C said, "Honestly, she works hard & she needs help with nothing. Just do whatever you are doing because she is amazing & a joy to have.".( We also discussed next year & how I'd like her to have Bri. B is a fab student now, much better than Em was last year so I think B would do great with her as well. She told me she'll check the school's policy about requesting & put a request in for B next year.) Music to my ears.

Then I went on to see Tracey, Bri's teacher. You know, the one whose class I constantly visit?? I love Tracey to pieces. She's a year younger than me & has 4 kids of her own, the oldest being 8. She is in the trenches with me & gets it. And she loves her class. OMG you walk in & just feel it. The kids loves her just as much. So I walk in & up on the projector/smartboard is a huge pic of B from the Pumpkin Patch. She had just slide down one of the slides built into the mountain, popped out the opening & Tracey got the absolute joy on her face. I looked at it & my heart melted. She told me she had to show it to me & will FB it over to me as well. We commiserated on how B is the sweetest thing ever. The first thing she said is, "She is always happy, like, EVERYDAY happy. I love her so much & I'm so glad I have time with her." I'm so glad that people see her as I do because I always say, B is a rainbow. I'm glad she is like that with everyone. Her confrence was a breeze. A string of tests, reviews, Vocab assessments, etc. that were 100's or 95's. No more than one wrong on anything. Her report card is a string of A's. We wrapped up with me coming in next week to do a solar system project. I get to introduce it to them because then it's their next science chapter. Have NO idea what I'll do but I get to spend time with them :)

It's 10am and I think Valentine pancakes are calling.

Something I Never Thought I'd See

My 7 year olds teacher added me as a friend on Facebook. Emmy took over the message when I left it open by accident. She wanted to send Mrs. Butka a note. This is what I have seen today:

Today at 6:42am
Emily is a sweet, funny girl and I am glad she was in my class. Hope her health stays steady over the summer. Tell her to make sure she visits me next year!

Today at 11:12am
dear mrs. butka thank you for helping me and do we need to wear school close tomorrow
love emily

Today at 2:17pm
Hi Emmy! I'm going to say no uniforms since we're only there for 20 minutes - they can't really send you home :) See you Friday


Today at 5:19pm
i'm glad you were my teacher. love emily