At loss for a title...

Can't think of one! I get tired of typing "update" in that field.

We have had some gorgeous blue skies again, at last. And the fires are more under control, though still burning, to the north and east of us. It was funny - the first day we had actual sunshine (not orange, and without the odd aqua shadows) was Sunday. I got up early, made some coffee, and wandered over to the window just in time for the Elf to run up behind me shouting "Mommy! There are blue skies! I can see the sky!" He woke the Fairy up, and they immediately got halfway dressed, enough for decency anyhow, and headed out into the backyard. They didn't come in for about 4 hours, not even for breakfast, and after gobbling down a few snacks, they were right back out there.

Speaking of the Elf, he has yet another loose tooth. I think he's finally running out of teeth to lose. I am still trying to get used to his larger adult teeth. He has a little gap between the top two front ones, and has discovered that in addition to regular whistling, he can whistle through the gap. So, it is fair to say, we have a lot of whistling going on these days. And I caught him reading again, in bed, with a flashlight - a child after my own heart. I think he wants the same deal Jenny is giving her boy. And that may be a very good deal, after he finishes his phonics stuff. The Elf is also big into music right now, with lots of unique piano and guitar pieces being composed on the fly, and he's addicted to How It's Made, so I am learning a lot myself through eager, spur-of-the-moment narrations ("...and Mommy, did you know...?").

The Fairy is also very, very busy. She has a lot of tea parties to give, and a lot of babies to care for. And guitar music to play, stories to have read aloud, Max & Ruby to watch, and much, much more. She has decided that since she is five, it is time for her teeth to start falling out, and so she checks them every morning. Nothing even a tiny bit loose yet, but that never deters her. She is also very impatiently awaiting the end of summer, when "real" ballet classes start up. And it's funny - she is learning to read a little here and there, but she's doing it whole word versus phonics. She'll ask what a word is, someone will tell her, and then she remembers it and can point it out elsewhere, like the word "tea", which oddly enough is on every box of tea we own (about 20 or so). And of course she found the word "tea" at the grocery store.

I too have been busy. I've cleared out some of the garage-turning-play-&-school-room, but still have more to do. And I have work. And I am trying to help my local homeschool association with switching email list formats. And then there are everyday things, like dishes, and cooking, and trying to bathe wild hooligans (or at least get them to take a quick shower here and there), and watering our jungle vegetable garden, and prepping the front yard for an overhaul. And blogging!