How many breakfasts can a breakfast eater eat?

Rory is a breakfast eater. Since school started, she's had quite the variety of breakfasts- cereal, pop tarts, toast, waffles, yogurt drinks (that I make from yogurt + juice). We have gotten a nice routine down where the girls get dressed, Rory feeds the dogs, eats breakfast, gets her hair done, etc., etc. until we leave for the bus stop.

So one day last week Rory came home announcing that she had "eaten two breakfast-es." Which basically means she went into the school early and got breakfast at school with her meal card. I explained to her that if she eats at home, there is no need to eat again at school, as it costs us money and we've already spent money on the food she's eating at home. Her response? "But Mom, Mrs. Bousselot just gives us a free ticket. It doesn't cost any money!" Okay, so about 15 minutes of explanation later, I think she understood she was not to eat breakfast at school.

I really thought I had it cleared up. Until last night. I went to a meeting at church, and Mrs. Barr (who works at Rory's school) mentioned that she had seen Rory that morning at breakfast. Oh, really... Turns out Rory's had breakfast almost everyday at school.

So I came home and asked very nicely if she had been eating breakfast at school. At first she silently denied it (is it not really lying if she just shakes her head "no" and doesn't actually say "no"?), but then fessed up when I reminded her to tell the truth. It seems that the $1.75 breakfast we've been buying has consisted of one thing and one thing only....cinnamon toast.

From now on we'll be having something more "treat-like" with breakfast pretty much everyday. Maybe cinnamon toast, a donut, a danish to go with the cereal/waffle/peanut butter toast. Apparently Rory's sweet tooth wakes up in the morning with the rest of her!

Work of the Week Wednesday!

Introducing Maricle Mom's newest feature.....

Work of the Week Wednesday!

Its only kindergarten, but Rory brings home an amazing amount of "work" every week....things she's cut, pasted, printed, taped, painted, stapled, etc. Soren brings home some stuff, but its mostly pictures she's drawn during center-time. Soren's "work" is generally things she does at home while Rory is practicing her requisite skills. Each Wednesday we will feature Rory's pick-of-the-week from her school folder, and a piece of "work" that Soren has completed.

A disclaimer: This week, I picked the Work of the Week, only because I had a meeting at church last night and got home after the girls were in bed, and then had to solve a breakfast issue with Rory (check back tomorrow for that story) before she went to sleep, so I didn't have time to let her go through her folder. Next week they'll pick their own, I promise!

This week, Mrs. Bousselot (Rory's teacher - a sweet, soft-spoken woman who has already dealt with the Maricle Mom phone call/email issues of spilled-milk-in-a-book-bag and my-daughter-wants-no-gravy-for-hot-lunch), sent home a packet explaining how we can help our kids practice writing their name consistent with how they are learning it at school (i.e., "the kindergarten way"). They use a program called Handwriting Without Tears. This was also used in preschool, and it starts out teaching them how to write in all capitals, then switches them to lower case, hence "the kindergarten way." (Its crazy-confusing to switch them like that, if you ask me, but whatever.)


Rory is pretty good at writing her name, but has had trouble adjusting to keeping it on a line (they never had to put it on a line in preschool...isn't that weird?), and has had a bit of trouble getting the slant of the "y." So we practiced. Rory instructed me on how the practice session should go.

It sounded like this:

"First you draw these happy faces with a line after them."

"Then, you write my name with a yellow marker on the top two lines."

"Then make dots where I should start my letters."

"Then I trace your yellow marker, and do the rest by myself."
She had an example that Mrs. Daniel, the classroom associate, had helped her with, so I could see how it was done.

But Rory also dictated how the reward/praise system should go:
"Then when I'm done, you ask me which one I think I did the best on."
"Then you put a little sticker next to the one I say."

She likes consistency, I guess!

Scroll down to the bottom for pictures of how they came out in the end. Not bad. I have Soren trace the yellow highlighter as many times as she's willing (I think the most she's done at once is 10 or 12). She also does not do too badly. And you can see, I'm starting Soren out with the lower-case letters on a line, just to see what happens. If she ends up in military school, you can say "I told you so."

She's catchin' on!

Today Chris was giving me a hard time because I have a stash of food in a Rubbermaid container in the basement. (His actual words were, "I saw your bin of food in the basement, Bert!")

He was referring to my Grandma Bert, the original couponer and bargain shopper. Her "back bedroom" is literally filled with goods she's purchased on sale, for free, etc. over the last who-knows-how-many years. At one time (I'm not sure what the current status is), you really couldn't walk more than a couple of feet into that room. Chris has made it clear that if my bargain shopping goods ever begin to take over a room, he will take away my coupons and newspapers.

Anyway, he made the comment about the bin, and I explained to him that all the food in there was stuff I got for FREE, and why-oh-why would I leave it in the store if it was FREE?!? Rory overheard this conversation and pointed out,

"Mom, you always want to buy stuff that's free. You won't even buy anything if its not ON FREE!!"

You are correct, my child.

Thanks, Sara!

My best friend Sara sent me to a nice site to get this background (Cutest Blog on the Block). Her blog is also very cute. (The link is on the right.... three to get ready....) I somehow feel that I need thunderbolts to replace the pretty flowers. But they didn't have that option. I may still look for something more super-hero-ish. When you look at my blog, I would feel better if you could just imagine the flowers are thunderbolts. Will you do that for me? Please? I'd be oh-so-appreciative!