balance

The Hero is drawing a picture of Samhain with a picture of Beltane on the back because they're opposites. He wanted to know how to spell the spring holiday, so I wrote it out, explaining how the crayon moves very intentionally in certain ways, and that E makes A say its own name. I'm just lucky he wanted to spell that one and not Samhain (pronounced sow-en). Now he's thinking he could be ironic by wearing a fairy costume on Halloween.

It is so much harder to parent a four-year-old, or get anything done, without the bigger kids in the house. (They are all three at a five-day flea market with the Partner.) This morning I momentarily panicked when the dog needed to go for a walk right then and the Hero was still asleep. Last night I had to banish him from the kitchen so I could sweep, and he and the dog stood at each of the two kitchen doors, both whining. The Hero crawled into my bed twice last night, missing the brothers that usually share a room with him. I have to make breakfast and lunch and dinner and all of the snacks. I have to do all of the laundry. I was unprepared for that. Today the little one and I had to put off grocery shopping while our clothes dried. Oops.

On the other hand, it's much easier to have kindergarten when I'm only teaching that. Little ones require a lot of attention. Eighth graders require a lot of attention. Until the Hero hits that sweet spot in first grade when he bursts into chapter book reading and can therefore work independently much of the time, I'm going to feel that I need to be two people.

That's okay. They work hard for me and I will work day and night for them happily.