Good Week

This is the second full week of school and I've finally gotten back into my groove with extra activity.  Having a couple of hours without the girls I've found myself hitting the gym a few times a week during the "down time".  I still have MiniMuffin for one day so its really four days that I have the chance, but that's definitely more than before!  The girls have been having good school days.  Ballerina has been so sweet.  The second week of school she befriended a new student who was, in her words, "very shy and doesn't speak English".  Yesterday she came home with a sticker on her dress and I asked her about it, and her day.  She told me about accompanying a classmate to the nurse's office.  She really is a kind girlie.  She is learning so much in school too and informed me that she will learn to read "really soon".  At the rate she is going, she's not wrong.  I'm grateful that her speech is finally getting some special attention at school.  Up until now Ballerina's speech wasn't "a severe problem" to warrant speech therapy.  Since there are some sounds that she didn't quite outgrow beyond Pre-K, she is now going to have speech twice weekly - Hallalujiah!  She is upbeat about getting speech.  She was slightly jealous that her little sister, Songbird, saw a whole pack of therapists this past year, including speech.  She knows exactly why she has speech and is proud of her progress.
As for Songbird, she seems to be doing well at school.  Its so hard to tell because when I pick her up after three hours she seems pretty tired and quiet.  I wonder if she's quiet all day.  The teachers tell me she knows all the words to all the songs/rhymes.....that's for sure!.....but I wonder if she just perks up after I leave and then wipes herself out on the playground right before pickup.  I don't know.  The cute news on the school front is that Songbird has a little "boyfriend".  At three years old she hasn't really played WITH other children in a cooperative way, just yet, mostly near them.  However, in Songbird's class there were two boys who started with her, and one apparently has become quite attached to her prescence.  LittleMan's mother was leaving the school when we arrived late the other day.  She said, "Oh Good, Songbird's here!"  She told me that LittleMan didn't want her to leave until Songbird came.  When we picked the kids up in the afternoon the teachers were observing that LittleMan only wants to play with Songbird and is her little "protector" on the playground - so SWEET!  As for her interest in LittleMan, she often talks about his toy truck.....  I guess she's broadening her horizons....she's usually just interested in the "pretty dress" as she calls outfits that she admires.  Our little fashionista!
Today I drove past the little church in downtown and was surprised at the sight....a little Kris Kringle looking man dressed to the hilt in his bagpiper finery playing away on the front lawn which was crowded with people on folding chairs.  The tiny front lawn is surrounded by an old fashioned wrought iron fence which was draped with the banner "Concert Today".  Usually their concerts are held INSIDE the church....but when it comes to bagpipes, outside really is best.  It was a great day for a farmer's market, which is where I was headed after finding a parking space.  In the garage a very nice woman pointed the way to her spot, which was close to the entrance and then handed me her ticket stub with four more hours left.  Very nice!  I only needed two and tried to find someone to pass the favor along to when I left - post farmer's market and gym.  Alas, nobody else was looking for a space around that time....another time!
The farmer's market is really different when I'm not toting around two kiddos in a stroller.  I was really glad to not have to maneuver the orange beast through the narrow rows today, the place was packed.  I like to do a circuit around the market once before I start to make my purchases.  This gives me a good idea about what's for sale, and who's got the best deal.  I'm noticing that there are many more baked goods tables and even more nut tables - what's up with that?  The farmer's market is getting a little upscale with the guy who only sells gourmet olive oils and all the prepared foods, but there are still lots of veggies and fruits - the basic farm stuff!  While I duck the tables with the cheap magnets and plastic toys and slide past the stands with fake purses and knit hats, I also have learned which food tables must be skipped.  There is one table where it seems like the fruit "fell off the truck."  I'm not implying that its stolen fruit - but that perhaps the fruit actually fell off the truck and the vendor put it back on, intending to sell it all! 
Well, tomorrow I have a tight schedule.  I'm still planning to hit the gym but I can't linger and take my time getting home to hit the showers.  I am watching MiniMuffin for an hour and need to be home to play with her!  BakerBee is participating in a focus group, and MiniMuffin will hang with me for a bit.  So, its off to bed for me.  Songbird will wake us bright and early!
Heather