Catch Up

I only teach one class with 25 students, but it seems like this tiny endeavor has upset the apple cart, broken the camel's back, made me drop all my oranges and bowling pins all over the place-- pick your metaphor.  The point is, maybe the idea of balance that I malign so often has merit because our balance?  Definitely wobbly.  The addition of this one more small thing has really screwed me up, and that is why I haven't been blogging more.  Also, the dog ate my homework.

Harry goes to the library on Thursdays at school, so Wednesday nights usually find us frantically reading his book so he can return it the next day.  He has been bringing home books that he can read to us, which is just so cool I can't even put it into words.  But a couple of weeks ago, he brought home a really advanced dinosaur book for us to read to him all old school like.  It was the story of Jane, an 11 year-old T Rex who was discovered by Illinois paleontologists in Montana.  Quite a coupe as you might imagine for a random Rockford paleontologist. We decided to go visit Jane, especially when  we learned that the museum also had a triceratops they are working on assembling.  I LOVE triceratops!  Plus, Jack's class has completed their study of germs and moved on to dinosaurs, so really, it was totally perfect (as, by the way, is a room full of snot-nosed 3 year-olds studying germs.  They looked at slides under the microscope and made germ models in art class out clay-- hint: they all look like poop-- ad sang songs about germs and shared them.  Boy did they share them.)

Anywho, some highlights:

To be honest, most days, we are just checking items off our list-- drop offs, pick ups, grading after the kids go to bed, cleaning the kitchen a billion times a day, doing sight word flash cards, helping Jack work through the alphabet, feeding the baby, feeding the baby, feeding the baby, playing, and we reach for the camera less and less often, especially since I started updating my family photo blog from my iPhone.  Here's a collection of a random post-dinner, pre-bath playtime that pretty much sums up our happy chaos:

Last night, Harry's school had a dance. Harry is at home on a dance floor. He walked right in and began dong the robot. Ben armed him with a selection of totally awesome dance moves like the lawn mower and the sprinkler. He did them all. He's going to be a great wedding guest some day. Jack liked snack (chips and gatorade, the horror!) but mainly wanted to go home and go to bed-- he walked in and said "Where are the chairs?" He's going to be like me at weddings, especially if he learns the art of placing himself directly in the path of passed appetizers.

And Cooper? Still snuggly. Still kind of a shitty napper. Still a messy, messy eater: