Bizzy

It's been over a month since I've darkened the doors of this blog.  And it's been a BIZZY month. Not BUSY. No.  BIZZY.  B-i-zz-y, because we are up to our necks in PHONICS and SOUND SEGMENTATION and WORD FAMILIES and a million other things that make learning to read possible and, thusly, make first grade a nightmare.

On day one, it was all smiles and joy:

Behold Penny in her First Day of School glory. Also, behold her "Victorious" backpack, because "Victorious" is the shizz around here.

Then, that shiny new backpack started coming home filled with SPELLING TESTS and READING HOMEWORK, and so much angst about short vowel sounds I can't even speak of it here.  But know that I'm slowly in danger of turning into ones of those moms who email the teacher about every blessed grade and that Orlando is giving me the side-eye more and more often these days, and God in heaven, FIRST GRADE SUCKS.

It reminds me of this moment in Adam Sandler's movie, "Billy Madison," except replace the words "high school" with "first grade."  Seriously kindergarten kids, CHERISH EVERY MOMENT.



Then there's this one, keeping me bizzy in other ways:

Who me?

Me?! You can't possibly be talking about me.

LOL. Yeah, you're right.

Mary-Blair is five and a half months old, and keeping me busy in new and interesting ways every day. The truth is, the kid is pretty chill.  She just wants to cuddle all the time.  And if you don't cuddle, she doesn't cry or wail or do the things that most babies do.  No, this one has a streak of evil genius about her.  She whimpers and her eyes fill with tears and she gives you her best, "Please, sir, can I have some more" look, and so you drop your work-in-progress, or your blog post, and you cuddle the bejeebus out her. 

No one is immune to this.  Even the dog snuggles up near her when she's sleeping on the floor. 

Proportionally speaking, Dante makes the perfect guard dog for a 5 month old.

But the number one cuddler, the one who falls prey to Embee's come hithers each and every time, is Penny.  Goodness, there has never been sisterly love like this ever.

Sometimes, the result of said affections looks like this.

Embee: I'm SO not feeling this hair bow. Or this kiss. Gawd.

Most times, however, it looks like this:

:)

 

There IS a lot of "Penny, be careful," and "Please put your sister down," and "She is not a toy," and "Who is the mommy here?" But there's just so much love between the two of them.  Both of them erupt in glee after school upon sighting each other, and in the mornings, too, upon waking, as if they hadn't seen each other in an age. When I'm out and about during the school day, Embee stares at her sister's place in the car, willing her to appear it seems. 

So yeah, we're bizzy.  A friend the other day sent me a message commenting on how blessed we are with these two girls, and she's right.  Bizzy and blessed and, despite first grade transition drama, grateful for both ways of being.