A to Z mysteries and Nancy Drew Clue Crew

We've been struck by detective fever these last few months. The kids love reading mysteries and there seems to be no end in sight to the stacks of A to Z mysteries and Nancy Drew (elementary school version) that they get from the library.

Though the "series" aspect of these books drive me crazy, I have to remind myself that series reading is a normal part of kids' reading development and that I was a huge series reader when I was younger. Nonetheless, I'm trying to get the kids to predict the oh so predictable story structure in each book.

Sometimes it cracks me up when I hear their predictions (of "who done it?"). David in particular makes me laugh (inside!). With a serious face, he'll guess that a character in a different book or even different series was the one who stole the stamp or who kidnapped the prince. Jacob tends to use the same 3 words when talking about the books: "robbers", "police", "bad guys". And Claire? When I read the books aloud to the three of them, she usually sits to my left and just stares at my face when I read.

Claire's Ramona party

It was wonderful.

We squeezed toothpaste out of the toothpaste tube. We pulled Kleenexes out of the box. We made fortune teller cards. We watched Ramona and Beezus.

Jon thinks I'm silly but I really do think that birthdays are pedagogical opportunities to help inspire kids to read and relate to characters in books.

Can't wait until David's Narnia party!

Because of Winn-Dixie

Claire, Jacob, David and I are reading this book together at bedtime.

I love the writing style. Not sure how much the kids will pick up from it but I've been feeling guilty about my "no pet" rule, not guilty enough to change it, but enough to want to continue reading stories about pets.

David and Jacob acted out Winn Dixie and Whidby (our friends' dog) today. They put socks on their hands for paws. They ran around the house chewing on bones. They didn't smell or shed hair or make a mess. It was lovely.

Mom - do you get lonely? and other Claire questions

I haven't posted for a long time.

But, writing short blurps on here seems like a great procrastinating activity for doing work on the dissertation. So, I think I'll start again.

Yesterday on the way to school, from way back in the van, Claire asked me,

"Mom, when you go away by yourself to write your book, do you get lonely?"

I told her that sometimes I did. That it's hard leaving the fun that they and dad often have when I leave. That sometimes I don't feel like I know what to write or that I just don't feel like writing. But, I also said that I need to do my work and I need to be alone so that I can do it and that I love what I'm learning about.

Her question fascinated me because I'm so curious how she (as my oldest) is making sense of this crazy year I'm having in trying to finish my dissertation. I've told her that I'm writing a book. "What page are you on now?" she'll often ask when I get ready to do my work. "Is the book about us?" she's asked.

I'm also thinking about how I'm sponsoring her concept of "writing" and how I can help my kids think differently about writing by sharing with them my process (i.e. that I don't start on page 1 but that I write lots of things and then after I write them down, I move them around and then figure out what my story is about).

Fun stuff.






Such interesting questions

He cried

We took down our Christmas tree the day after Christmas. We had good reason - we were leaving for a weeks vacation to Toronto. I just wanted the Christmas stuff down so that when we came back we'd be ready for school and regular schedules again (aka my tidy control nature coming through).

So, while the young ones were napping, we took the lights and decorations off the tree.

When Jacob got up from his nap, he came downstairs and saw the bare tree.

He cried. "Put it back on" he demanded for at least 1/2 an hour. "I want it back!"

I think it's my tendency to look ahead to the next thing. Jacob reminded me to celebrate something fully, to the end.