Freitag!

Ella must have woken up with an earwig.  She went directly from her bed to the computer and started typing this in.  

Also, she recently discovered that she can make the computer speak using Google Translate.  Every once in a while, I'll hear from the office something along the lines of "Cheryl, this is the computer talking. I need all your cookies, Cheryl. Right now."  Classic Ella.

Mornings have long since ceased being any kind of a struggle--the kids have found their groove--but Fridays are downright easy.  Alex loves them because he has his favorite teacher, Frau Langen (who job-shares, one day a week) on Fridays.  Ella loves Fridays because she gets to go to handcrafts class, where, after a short stitchery unit, they're now back to woodworking, making some sort of Easter Bunny planter. And gets a good long session with Herr Frederick (her German tutor, who plays games with her), and she, too, has her favorite teacher on Friday, Frau Barmettler, the one who's more liberal with the paperclips.

But best of all, there's a movie night to look forward to.  The kids anticipate their oven-baked frozen pizzas and bowls of popcorn and 90 minutes of Hollywood magic all week long.


But first, there's school.

So the kids shuffled off, and Joey followed me around with his little dustpan while I attacked the house for a while. But there was construction outside our house that distracted my little helper. Until they drove off and Joey hatched a plan.  "Go see more-more trucks?" he asked me hopefully, bringing me a little pile of carefully selected dump trucks to help get his point across.

Why not?

I actually wanted to go downtown--I owed Ella a necklace from a store that was closed on her birthday, and I wanted to pick one up before they sold out of the little owl-shaped clock necklace charm that she had her eye on.  Oh, and if I timed it right, I could pick up dumplings from my favorite DimSum Restaurant/Water Closet!  Oven-baked pizzas might be my kids' favorites, but for me it doesn't hold a candle to reheated Dim Sum of questionable origin. This was looking better and better.  Saddle up, Joey!

Firecrackers and candy cigarettes...some unexpected offerings
at the train station store.

Recently, with Ella's and Alex's newfound economic power and freedom, the train station has, unexpectedly become a little more difficult for me.  Before, I could always tell Joey, "No no, no candy," and he would give me a little "Awww," and then would be on his way. But recently Ella's started carrying her purse and buying Joey little 10-cent gummy candies while we wait for our train. (She's a sucker for those pleading blue eyes and that smile.) And now Joey's come to see the pick-a-mix selection as his just desserts.  And, though I happily slather morning toast with Nutella, and dust corn flakes with sugar,  I still can't bring myself to give a kid a lollypop at 9:30.

So I did what any good and virtuous Berkeley-forged, Seattle-hardened mother would do.  I told him "Here's some granola. No-no. No candy."

And then, "Yet."

And then, "When we come back. Then. Then you can have candy."

But Joey's totally cottoned on the fact that delayed gratification is so much better than a flat-out no. And he also has realized that he's the one who has to remember to remind mommy that she promised him a sweet.  Every five or so minutes of his trip, he'd look up, checking. "Lol-ly-pop for Joey?" And when I'd nod, he'd grin, each time, and say "Givva five," holding out his hand.  Lollypop five...what up!

It got positively hot while we were doing our chores, enough that Joey was willing to take off his favorite monkey shirt (second only to his train sweater) before he practiced his scooter moves, working off his sugar rush.

Taking care of minor repairs

He loves this little ramp, and has perfected
breaking before running into the door.

For me? Aw, Joey.

I think Alex is having some sort of safety awareness week at school.  Today they had a dad come to the class to explain how to cross the street safely.  They gave him a coloring book, as well, which Alex hasn't let out of his sight.  After lunch, he took Joey by the hand, showed him the pictures in the book, and then practiced safe crossing on our treacherous living room rug.

Ella came racing home, out of breath, because she knew NochElla and Paul were coming to play and she was desperate to finish her homework before they got here.  She gave it a good go, but only half-finished.  You wouldn't believe the outpouring of gratitude when I granted her a playtime reprieve.  She went into high gear, setting up a gummy-worm snack for her friends out of her secret, seemingly unending, hoard.

Oh, and thank goodness her friends came over, because I learned from them that there's no school on Monday.  The free day wasn't listed on the teachers' calendar, and so I wasn't expecting it, although I was able to confirm it on the Stadt Zürich website.  Neat!

Alex couldn't believe his luck.

Ain't no party like my Ella's tea party!

When her friends left at 5:00, Ella surprised me by running right back to the computer desk, saying "I'd better finish this quickly so I don't miss movie night!" And, just like that, we were all done with homework for three more nights.  I think my relief might have rivaled Ella's.

Welcome, weekend!