Teachers' Days Off

Since I’ve been home these teachers have cut their teaching time in half in order to conference with parents about their student’s progress. This means the kids are only gone from home for 90 minutes a day if they’re in kindergarten. This also means more together time with grandma or maybe the computer. Lucas loves to play games so he would stay with that the entire day but that would make a grandma feel too guilty. Anyway it has been an eventful week. When I complained that I needed to buy groceries, my walking partners just said, take him along, he’d love it. He did love it for about the first 10 minutes and then he was ready to leave. We did but not before I’d purchased a coconut, two tiki torches and a gallon of green berry rush.

On the plus side I won’t have to ever buy a coconut again. Lucas announced that the liquid inside tasted like hair. And he spit out the chewy part. I still need to buy fuel for the tiki torches so it will be awhile yet before we’ll have fire in our back yard.

My mom and I played cards Saturday. When I walked into her residence she was sitting in the living room area and she smiled when she saw me. She says, “Will you take me where the others are going?”

“Yes,” I answered. “As soon as I get the cards?” “Do you want to play cards?”

“Yes,” she says and I hold her under her arms as she tries to get up off her chair. She needs help getting to a standing position and then begins to shuffle toward a chair at the table. I show her each suit of cards and say the names, hearts, clubs, spades and diamonds.

I deal eight cards to her and eight to myself and we play my altered version of Crazy 8. She doesn’t know the difference between hearts and diamonds but she does match colors to the discard pile and she does like to put things in successive order from 8, 9 to 10 and then perhaps 9 again, followed by an 8. She does not get frustrated but seems to enjoy the passing of cards and just the feel of the cards in her hands. And I enjoy the pleasant feeling in the room and the friendliness of the residents as one comes up and asks me how she can get the next train to her party.

It is great that you have your plans made for Memorial Day. Also I need to remind you that you need photo posing lessons from Linda the next time you see her. Several photo viewers have mentioned my favorite cousin’s glum look in the Greece photo album and I know you had a smiley time there. And another thing, where is the dancing video?