On The Invention of Weeks

Shhh!  Don't tell!  I'm breaking the "No Electronics" rule for a few minutes.

On our way to swim practice, Madeleine made a poignant observation.

MADELEINE: Hey.  Mommy!  I think I figured out how WEEKS were created!
ME: Oh yeah?
MADELEINE: Yeah.  I think, like, the people who predict the weather realized that they could only predict the weather for the next seven days, so that's how weeks were invented!

Um, yeah.  That's...not it, but...A for effort!

Weekly Schedule

Madeleine made a weekly plan to try and stop global warming, and tomorrow is supposed to be "No Electronics" day.  She expects the rest of the household members to adhere to her plan, but Julia isn't having it.  Now the girls are in a big fight because Julia is insisting that Madeleine can't decide for her whether or not Julia can watch tv tomorrow, and Madeleine is adamant that everyone in the household has to abide to her arbitrary rules.  I, as a loving mommy, am offering to do no electronics along with Madeleine, but that's not helping.  Also not helping is a big sister who could possibly make a *few* concessions (or at least pretend to.)

JULIA: How about I just use my phone, my computer, and the tv?

So, you mean, like everything?

At the moment, the girls are separated and Madeleine is sulking around the house, getting ready for bed, utterly wounded that we're not all jumping for joy over her plan.

I tried to go and talk calmly to Madeleine about her feelings, but she had to go take Luna her pet rock dog out to pretend pee, so I was left alone and unappreciated in her room.

So, if all goes according to plan, I guess you won't be hearing from me tomorrow, since I'm not allowed on my computer, so...'til Monday!

The Awkward Grade

Walking home from school with Madeleine, we chatted about friends, classroom behavior, and the general elements of school.

ME: And you're behaving in class, right?
MADELEINE: (solemnly) Yes.
ME: I figured.  I just know that some of the kids in your class can get wild, so I wanted to make sure you're not getting pulled into that.
MADELEINE: (as if stating the obvious to an outright dolt) Mommy.  It's FOURTH GRADE.  Besides, everybody knows that's the AWKWARD grade.  Because...you're getting HORMONES.  And...it's close to FIFTH GRADE.  And FIFTH GRADE is the worry grade.  Sixth grade is the ADJUSTING grade.  Third grade is the STRESSED OUT grade because you're in the upper level classrooms for the first time.

Oh, okay, well now I get it.  Those pesky hormones making fourth grade so awkward, right before you're about to enter the Worry Grade.  I can't believe I was such an ignoramus about something that EVERYBODY knows.

Night Time Fears

So, Julia came into the bedroom at 2:30 am to tell me she thought she's seen an intruder in the yard.

JULIA: I think I saw a person out the window in our backyard.
ME: You did?
JULIA: Yeah.  And he was wearing a Plague Doctor mask.
ME: Okay, no, I'm sure there's no one in a Plague Doctor mask in our backyard.
JULIA: But it really looked like it.
ME: Well, just make sure the back door is locked.
JULIA: (gripping my hand in terror) Come WITH me.

We went and looked out the back door.  I saw nary a Plague Doctor.

ME: I don't see anything.
JULIA: It looked more like it when the LIGHTS were off.
ME: Okay.  (turning off the kitchen lights) Let me see.
JULIA: (clutching my hand in terror) Stay with me!
ME: Let's look together.
JULIA AND I: (peering into the blackness of the backyard)
ME: Um.
JULIA: See?  Doesn't it look like it?  Behind the grill?
ME: No.

I sent Julia back to bed but it took many more assurances that there was not a Plague Doctor in our backyard before she could leave my side.  I mean, even if there was a Plague Doctor out there, what was he going to do?  Cure us all of the plague?

I guess Julia might not be able to wear her costume on Halloween because she might scare her own self.

The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance

We Rowes have been watching the new series "The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance" as a family, and today we finished the first season.  Three of us watched the series only when the whole family could sit down together; Madeleine was too impatient to wait for us, so by the time we got to the finale this afternoon, she had seen the entirety of the season probably 5 or 6 times.  She has been absolutely OBSESSED with the show and the fantasy world of Thra.  As someone who was totally obsessed with the original movie as a child, I can kind of relate, except that I didn't grow up with the technology to binge-watch a show/movie repeatedly, the way she can.

Madeleine has decided that she wants to be her favorite "Age of Resistance" character, the Gelfling Deet, for Halloween.  Because there are no actual costumes of Deet for sale, I have been ordering a hodge-podge of things to try and put a costume together.  Most recent to arrive was the Gelfling ears.  Now Madeleine can turn herself into a Gelfling when she's doing any old activity around the house!:

Bedtime reading.  (I guess she was so excited about her Gelfling ears that she put her pajama top on backwards, because there are supposed to be graphics on the front of it)

Doing arts and crafts.  Why not be a Gelfling while you're making a cardboard dollhouse??

Eating tortilla chips and watching tv.  Because, let's face it: you HAVE to dress as a Gelfling to fully enjoy "The Dark Crystal" viewing experience, amirite?


With all the effort put towards Madeleine's costume, I should be able to count on Julia to pick something totally generic and easy for her Halloween costume, right?  So, she wants to be a plague doctor.  But with a red robe and a white face mask, not the standard black that one can find in catalogs and online. 

Halloween 2019: Deet the Gelfling and Plague Doctor Julia, because my kids have totally normal and mainstream interests like the cult classic "The Dark Crystal" and the bubonic plague.

Settling Into School

Middle school parents have been notified that their child's advisor will be calling over the next week or so to check in about the first few weeks of school.  Julia's close friend just got her check-in, so Julia is awaiting the phone call to me with her usual abundance of self-confidence.

JULIA: But what if she only has BAD things to say about me?
ME: I think that'll probably be the case, because that's how it always seems to go with you and teachers.

She decided not to respond to my sarcasm, but I must have rattled her, because she then proceeded to eat a blueberry lemon muffin with the wrapper on, then drop the muffin on the floor when she was halfway through, letting out a shriek and scrambling out of her chair to snatch it back up.

Meanwhile, Madeleine decided to give an obnoxious response to her teacher when asked what she'd be doing over the weekend.

MADELEINE: I didn't really know what we'd be doing over the weekend, so I said: "Breathing AIR and saying hello to people."
ME: That's what you answered to your teacher?
MADELEINE: (proudly) Yes.
ME: Great.


So.  Madeleine better be saying hello to people this weekend or I'm calling her out on it.

Insomnia Entertainment

MADELEINE: I woke up at TWO in the morning.
ME: Uh-oh.  Did you fall back asleep?
MADELEINE: Yes.  Mommy?  It took me a long time to fall back asleep.  I was laying there and I was like, "maybe I should play a game on my computer."  But...that's not very RELAXING.  Then I was like, "maybe I should read," but then I thought, "No, I'm too TIRED."  So THEN I decided to play with my FEET!
ME: Oh.  Okay.
MADELEINE: It was FUN!

Yeah.  I so wish I could know what it's like to be in Madeleine's brain.

The Kids Run a 5K

Every year since its inauguration 6 years ago, I have run a 5K road race that my friend put together as a fundraiser for Alzheimer's research.  This year, for the first time, the girls ran too!

Given that this was their first time running a race longer than one mile, the girls understandably had some concerns and questions.  Julia, however, decided to go all Worst-Case-Scenario with her worries.

ME: Okay, do you girls have any questions about how the race works?
JULIA: Yeah.  What if I get dehydrated and PASS out?
ME: You won't.  They have a water station on the course
JULIA: What if somebody PUNCHES me in the FACE?
ME: Um...they won't.
JULIA: What if I pass out and DIE?

Our Q and A session started to feel a bit unproductive.

As it turned out, their worries were for naught.  Julia managed to run the whole thing without issue.  She finished in 26:50, at an average of 8:38 mile pace, which is pretty darn respectable.  Madeleine did a run/walk combo, but when I saw her at the final hill leading up to the finish, she was running energetically, not in the least discouraged by the incline.  Here she is at the finish line!:

I have to say, I am pretty impressed with these two first-time 5K runners!

ME: I can't believe you girls ran 3 miles!
MADELEINE: We did 5K.
ME: Right, you did more than 3 miles.  You did 3.1!
MADELEINE: No, we did FIVE!  Five miles!

I had to burst her bubble and explain what 5K means.

Regardless of the distance, I'm proud of them for trying something new, despite their nerves, and making it to the finish.  Madeleine, however, appears to be less impressed with me.  This afternoon, Ethan did a treadmill run while the girls had a swim workout. 

ME: So Daddy ran on the treadmill, you girls swam, and I sat on my butt and played games on my phone.  I was like, I already ran today, I'm gonna be lazy.
MADELEINE: Yeah.  Mommy.  We ran the SAME amount as YOU this morning, and WE did a workout and you did NOTHING?!?

Ugh, I'm such an underachiever.  Good thing I always have Madeleine to tell me like it is!

Curriculum Night

Tonight was Curriculum Night at the Elementary school, so I attended a presentation by the 4th grade teachers and got to explore Madeleine's classroom.  My favorite display of work was the Hopes and Dreams wall, listing what each child hopes to accomplish in 4th grade.  Madeleine has a very lofty goal:

"My goals are to get faster at reading and to stop global warming."

Now THOSE are some hopes and dreams!  Atta girl, Madeleine!  Let's hope she can stop global warming this year, whether she becomes a faster reader or not!

School Morning

Madeleine was reading in her room this morning before school, and upon seeing the time on her bedroom clock, she jumped to attention.

MADELEINE: Oh!  It's 7:50.  I better get ready.  Besides, I need to go pee, and that usually takes TWO MINUTES.
ME: Okay, go ahead and get ready.
MADELEINE: Well, actually, more like ONE minute and FIFTEEN SECONDS.

Impressive.  I can say with total honesty that I have absolutely NO idea how long it takes for me to pee.  I'm clearly not bringing my A game here.

Luna

Madeleine brought home a stone from the Mediterranean Sea, which I thought was going to simply be a souvenir.  Not so, however.  Madeleine decided that Luna is her pet rock, which in itself is even more complicated that it sounds.  Luna is a pet rock but she's ALSO a pet dog, a stand-in for the real dog that Madeleine is convinced I'm going to let her get after I see how well she takes care of Luna.  Madeleine regularly takes Luna out, which consists of either taking the rock outside, putting it down on the lawn, picking it up, and bringing it back inside, OR putting the rock on a paper towel, thus wasting a paper towel.  Madeleine also feeds Luna, taking a handful of some of our human food, putting it up to the rock, then asking the rest of the household if anyone would like to eat the food.  We even took Luna on a walk with us, which resulted in this situation, in which we crossed paths with two different neighbors, each with dogs.

DOGS: (barking wildly at each other)
MADELEINE: Aww, the doggies are barking.  I think they realize that Luna's a doggie, too.

Madeleine is convinced that her plan will work; she will be SO responsible with Luna that I will allow her to get a dog. 

First of all, I don't think she realizes that a rock is a TOTALLY different situation than a dog.  When Luna goes outside, she DOESN'T PEE OR POOP.  There is NOTHING to clean up.  Secondly, I have ALREADY been asked to take on some of Madeleine's Luna responsibilities, and this is a ROCK.

ME: Okay, honey, you gotta leave for your play-date.
MADELEINE: Okay.  Wait.  Mommy.  While I'm gone, can you, like, just put Luna on a paper towel, and put a few balls of paper down to clean up?

I didn't do it.

Anyway, I guess it's time to introduce you to our newest pet.  Here is Luna, the rock dog:

If anyone is interested in pet sitting, let us know!

First Day of School

These kiddos started the new school year today!

How is it possible that they are in 7th and 4th grade?!?

Julia, on her experience riding the same bus she rode last year: "I felt like a cool kid 'cause I was in 7th grade!"  She had a good first day, discovering she had friends from swim team, from her cluster last year, from her elementary school, AND even from preschool in various classes.  Perhaps the highlight of the day, however, was the boy who mistakenly tried to pee in the girls' bathroom, only to be told "This is the GIRLS' ROOM!" by Julia's friend, leaving Julia and her friend cracking up in the aftermath.

Madeleine enjoyed her first day as well, although the thing she's REALLY enjoying is the new tv series prequel to "The Dark Crystal."  Apparently, at recess, she named one of her friends Brea, after one of the tv show's main characters.  As we walked home from school, her friend announced wearily, "Madeleine kept talking ALL ABOUT The Dark Crystal at recess!"  Madeleine could barely sleep last night over her excitement about the show and her idea to be one of the Gelflings for Halloween.  So I suspect there will be some school writing about the characters - or some thinly veiled plagiarism of the story - in the days to come!

Happy 1st day, girls!

School Preparations

The new school year begins tomorrow, so the girls have packed their bags and finished up their summer homework.

Here is the Reading Log Madeleine will hand in, complete with all the honest details of her Summer reading: