Weekend update

The day has begun with a mix of gold and still-sleepy shadows. There are still a few crickets in the cool grass, and the world is rubbing its eyes perplexedly. Where did all of these people come from? Vehicles are zooming toward weekend destinations, and I am in disbelief over the number of trucks and SUVs that race by. For every car that passes, five full-size trucks follow. Geese are flying overhead, and I can't help thinking that they have a far superior mode of transport. It's mid-August, but fall has been in the air for more than a week. Even the birds can feel it. The dog days of summer are breaking rules left and right, and I have no complaints.

David's first week of school was quite successful. On the first day, he pointed at his teacher and told her “No” in an authoritative manner. I sighed and began to worry. Despite repeated speeches and various reprimands concerning the appropriate way to speak to adults, David persisted with rude comments and official tones. In fact, it seemed as though he were becoming worse. I had horrible visions of my son being labeled a behavioral problem before entering kindergarten. On the second day, however, his attitude had dissipated. The next three days presented a noticeably changed David. He cheerfully met me at the door and began recounting the events of the day. David informed me that the other children were mad because he cried at nap time, and I couldn't help laughing at this admission. He proudly showed me a scraped knee and told us the names of his teachers. He is already speaking in more complete phrases and has been much more cooperative in general. In ways, it is frustrating to feel that our efforts at home were not enough. It was apparent that David was missing something in his little life, and it appeared to be something that we weren't giving him. In all honesty, I think that he had become too big for his world. He is a very bright kid and has already mastered reading and writing. No doubt, he was bored out of his mind in his everyday environment. He was simply ready to move on and ready for the companionship that baby sisters can't provide. I'm not foolish enough to think that all problems stop here. We will certainly continue to have bad days...angry days, but things have been undeniably better. It's a change that can be sensed as well as seen, and I feel as though someone has opened a closed door. I still work the same number of hours and come home to the same household, but something has changed...if only for a time. I have been very proud of my boy. He's a good kid.

Emily has learned that kisses are like rewards. She seems to think that her kisses are golden and bestows them whenever someone does her bidding. She'll kiss my leg or cheek and nod gravely as if to say, “Good job, Mommy. You finally got it right.” She's headstrong and frustrating by spells, but ridiculously sweet in between times. Her new words are “no”, “nose”, and “ow”, and I'm pretty sure she's trying to say “more.” She's already saying, “Ma, Da, duck, dog, ball, bowl, and uh-oh” and frequently attempts “David, brother, and cup.” She gets very excited over small things and laughs a great deal.

David and I are drawing clowns together as I type this. It's shaping up to be such a nice day that I think we'll spend some time on the playground.