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We hurried the kids into their clothes and smoothies into the kids this morning.  We had 45 minutes to get ready to go drop the van off for repairs and pick up a rental.  They used 30 of these minutes to watch Madeline and the Toy Factory and the other 15 to begin a game of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.

At the rental place there was a drink machine, a junk food machine and a candy machine.  Of course the kids decided that they wanted to spend their dollars.  I got them each the appropriate amount of change.  Cashel wanted candy so I pointed to the sign and said, “Oh, it’s 25 cents.  You need a quarter.”  I gave him a quarter and he got himself some jellybeans.  I asked Riesling what she wanted.  Much to my horror pointed to the Coca-Cola and timidly asked, “Could I get this?”  My soft reply was, “You can if you want, but I would rather you didn’t.”  She decided that she would get a water.  I asked her how much it costs and she read off “60″.  I asked her to get her dimes and count out enough 10s to make 60.  She counted 10, 20, 30….60, and then put them into the machine in the same manner.  She was delighted when her water clunked down and popped out the bottom.  Cashel decided that he wanted a water too.  I showed them that 2 quarters and a dime were also 60 cents and I picked him up so that he could put his change in the slot to send his water down to the chute at the bottom of the machine.  Riesling then got some jellybeans and then there was nothing to buy with 15 cents.

At home the kids played sword fighting and I read them The Philharmonic Get Dressed by Karla Kuskin and What’s in Oscar’s Trash Can and Other Good-Night Stories by Michaela Muntean.  They watched Madeline and the Toy Factory again.

After lunch they started The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe game again.  Riesling decided that I was to be The Wardrobe, Cashel would be The Witch and she would be The Lion.  She had everyone’s outfits picked out and put mine on first.  I had tulle wrapped around my torso and a small piece put onto my head.  On my right arm a purple bandanna was tied and a tiny pink pillow case was wrapped around my left arm.  I was told to stand very still while she practiced going in and out of the wardrobe (under my arms).  Cashel wouldn’t cooperate as The Witch, even though I had seen him wearing his outfit of a tiny yellow pillow case tightly fitting over his head for a very tall hat and a blanket wrapped around his shoulders.  Riesling even tried to convince him to be The Lion and to put her hula skirt on his head under a helmet.  He refused.  I asked what I should do about my costume and she said that she would take it off, which she did.

I went and made their snack and then left them with Joe since I had a Dr appointment.

When I arrived home, things were a mess.  Cashel had just wet himself, Joe was frustrated that no one wanted to cooperate in helping salvage the last of our vegetables from the frost last night and Riesling was alternating between lethargy and hyperactivity with a few crying jags mixed in.  I sent Joe out to the garden alone and got out the sensory box for the kids. They played in it and made me lots of cakes and other creations.  Then they looked at books until dinner was ready.

At dinner Joe conducted a wine tasting class.  We had a tiny bit of a bottle of Chardonnay left from a couple days ago and had opened a new bottle of Sauvignon Blanc so we decided to compare their smells and tastes.  We and the kids smelled each one and then we each had a taste.  Now before you Google Child Protection Services and the police for our area…their “taste” consisted of Joe touching the wine and then touching the kid’s tongue.  Cashel proclaimed that both tasted like “lemon berry” and Riesling thought that they both tasted like blueberries.

I hurried dinner along to get to bath and bed to avoid more grumpy kids tomorrow.

We only had time for one story tonight.  The children chose The Princess Knight by Cornelia Funke and it was off to dream land.

tags: air, art, Cashel, Riesling

Somehow the kids managed to squeeze the Madeline and the Toy Factory video in before we left the house for Funschool this morning.

When we arrived the 4 boys who were already there were tearing around the meeting place playing some sort of game of tag.  After watching them for a bit, Riesling and Cashel went outside to the playground.  When the leader was ready, we came back inside and Riesling made shadow puppets.  She drew an outline then cut out her butterfly and flower and decorated them (not that shadow puppets NEED decoration, but Riesling thought they should have some anyway).

After finishing her shadow puppets, Riesling quickly and easily completed a 63 piece puzzle.  She played outside with Madison (who starred in the Little Old Lady Who Wasn’t Afraid of Anything) most of the rest of the time we were there.  At one point I observed the boys (who now numbered 5) engaged in a very aggressive game of pushing and shirt pulling or something.  Riesling stood at their perimeter and just watched them.  I wonder what she was thinking…

Cashel started some puzzles and played in the sandbox.

At the end of Funschool, Madison and Riesling had their shadow puppets put on a little show without any adult scripting or intervention.

At home, the kids finished up their TV viewing for the day with Mr. Maker (the British crafting show for kids).

While I made dinner, their Dad decided to help them set up for a magic performance.  I could gather from the feigned hushed whisperings that Cashel was supposed to go into a box and then Riesling was going to make his body disappear and then reappear.  Things went as they usually do.  Cashel chose not to cooperate and Joe was more into making the trick happen than the kids were.  While he worked, they had lots of fun playing with the portion of the box that was discarded.

In between everything I read Riesling and Cashel The Nutcracker Ballet by Deborah Hautzig.

After dinner, Joe switched gears so that he and Riesling could perform a trick without her brother as their assistant.  Our dear gentle old cat Azrael would be his substitute and Riesling would make her disappear entirely.  So Joe put the cat into the box and put the pink Princess blanket over the opening while Riesling did her disappearing dance.  Joe pulled back the blanket and Azrael was out of sight.  Well mostly.  The cardboard box was held up off the floor on its ends, but didn’t have any support in the middle.  So as the box sagged under the weight of our tubby cat, Azrael’s feet and tail showed under the faux wall that Joe had put up in front of his unwilling assistant.  Joe covered the gap up with his arm while Cashel and I applauded wildly and made remarks of amazement.  Azrael took all the noise as a cue to escape and ran out from behind the wall.  The audience responded with more clapping and remarks of disbelief at how she so quickly reappeared.

At bedtime, Joe tried to give me a break from my Momma’s boy, but Cashel would have none of it.  So I read him The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson and Joe read and sang to Riesling.

tags: art, Cashel, Riesling

After I got up and made the smoothies, I cut Cashel’s hair while Joe held him on his lap and we all enjoyed yet another viewing of Return of the Jedi.

Afterwards, Riesling painted in a coloring book, trying very hard to stay in the lines.  She used a paper towel to wipe off any mistakes or excess.  Cashel painted as well, but opted to mix all the colors resulting in a muddy green or brown spread randomly over each page.  After lunch Riesling wrote down the alphabet, numbers and symbols needed for her font for her birthday card while I read Cashel Too Many Pears by Jackie French twice and then There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly by Simms Taback twice.  He wouldn’t go to sleep so he and Riesling dressed up, danced, and looked at books while I had a few minutes of quiet time.  I heard rumor that there was going to be a show after dinner and saw costumes carefully packed into show boxes, but alas, Joe didn’t make it in for dinner, Cashel wouldn’t cooperate and we ran out of time.  I will ask for a special viewing tomorrow.

After snack went outside where the kids rode their bikes around and Riesling climbed the oak tree to the second limb and no further.  They also practiced crossing 17th Street safely while I watched.  Then we went to the neighbor’s and the children jumped on their trampoline and ate the concord grapes growing near by (don’t worry, this didn’t happen simultaneously).

We came back home and cleaned up, had dinner, a bath and read books.  Riesling chose Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes and Cashel chose Blue’s Cool Idea by K. Emily Hutta and Anansi the Spider by Gerald McDermott.

…on to Monday.

tags: art, biking, Cashel, exercise, imaginary play, life skills, literature, painting, Riesling