End of the week...

Well, Bella ended her first week as a First Grader, and BOY is she tired. She has been melting down practically from the moment she walks off the bus - it's a huge adjustment from the lazy days of summer to actually using your brain for 8 hours IN A ROW. I'm getting little moments of sweetness, but a whole lot of sass, which comes on when she's tired. And she's been ravenous for dinner - last night eating a full plate of pasta, two pieces of garlic bread, and SEVEN meatballs. Tonight she was complaining of pain in her legbones, so I think that in addition to her brain cells being worked hard, I think we'll be seeing our little weed sprout up a little higher in the week to come.

Isaac has been in the midst of mindstorms as well this week: He's been sleeping poorly, having days of extreme emotions, has been VERY cuddly... Part of it is he's missing his sister, for sure. But also we've noticed that this week he's acquired some new language, and by tonight I was noticing some very distinct new turns of phrase. I think that a bunch of brain bits were working to realign this week, and clicked into place. He's a subtly different boy today.

Part of it may be that today HE got to go back to school too: He'll be at preschool 2 days a week (2.5 hours), and 1 day of playgroup. When he came home from class today he was BEAMING - he loved going back to school and being with kids. This is a social guy, and he loves the group dynamic. His teachers remarked on his changes too - they said that this spring he was "a blur of a boy" - always on the move. But now he's more focused and interested in detailed play.

And detail is what he likes: He's been taking blocks and building long lines... and then sorting them by color, then by size... he's capable of entertaining himself quite well.

Papa has taken over half of our dining room table with his projects: This time it's carpentry related. He has made two colorful wood robots that stand up, but can fall down and become zoomy cars. I think that he could sell these things, but when you factor in the amount of time he spends on each one, his hourly rate would be.... um.... a dime. He also has made the most incredible magic wand for Bella, splicing two twigs with gold wire, rubbing with inks, inlaying beads and orbs... this thing truly looks like a an object for conjuring, and I'm planning on waving it over a lottery ticket tomorrow.

This has been a good week: It has been fun to watch the kids going back to school The bus stop has been wonderful. Working in the house has been a treat. Visiting with PapaBam has been a dream. But Sunday night, I must return to Philly for meetings. All good things... as they say. But I have treasured this week and am grateful to have been able to do it.