Happy Valentine's Day!

Gaz is intensely into Valentine's Day, and has been for at least a year; last year, she was building the buttons for her Box Batmobile, and she had a heart button that would tell her it was Valentine's Day, although we broadened its function to cover all holidays.

In any case, so I bought both of my ladies cards on the way home from work, and let me tell you, there's nothing sadder than a Walgreens Valentine's card display late on a Valentine's Day afternoon. But I found perfect ones, anyway. So, they, the two ladies in my life, realized I'd gotten them something, and they hadn't gotten me anything. So they "secretly" set out to make something for me. "Refrigerators!" they claimed. "Lasagna!" "Baby Poop," Gaz insists, though LovelyWifeGeorge vetoes this. "I'm right over here in the chair, people," I keep wanting to say, but I'm too amused by the whole process.

Well, at one point in this event, Gaz turns to LovelyWifeGeorge, and says "Mommy, can you cut out my heart?"

...

I admit, both of the adults in the room lost it a little bit there. I mean, immediately, I go to the Aztec place. I can only imagine LovelyWifeGeorge does the same.

And then Gaz follows up with "Oh! I mean refrigerator! Can you cut out my refrigerator?"

It's a laugh a minute, in this house.

Briefly: Literacy

I'm under deadline, but wanting to post this before I forget again.

Gaz is reading, with little to no help from us. Every day so far this week, her Roberto tally starts with a book that she's read aloud to us, and finishes up with what we've read to her (another visit to The Voyage of the Basset and our first foray into The Wonderful Wizard of Oz). She wrote some simple words on her homework last night (it was "extra homework for smart students only," so Gaz said) and not only did I not have to give her any help, she was off and writing before I could even offer assistance.

Last weekend she read The Monster at the End of This Book to Gabe, and I suspect she will read to him again after his baptism on Saturday. She is really looking forward to reading a story to Trixie, and also to giving her some hand-me-down dress-up clothes.

This morning I also attended the awards ceremony for the kindergarten and first grade kids, and Gaz got the only two awards kindergarteners can get: perfect attendance (in your face, winter!) and good citizenship.

Basically, we're all glowing with pride over here, and working to keep the good momentum going.