Dippy the...dippy...kitty

Our kitten Pheidippides has really lived up to his nick-name, "Dippy." Yes he is a real dip. Well, he seems to have some sort of sensory issues. For instance, Taylor frequently grabs at the cat, pulling his hair, ears, and tail; the cat just lies there and takes it! He does not respond. It's horrible to watch, it really makes my stomach turn.

 Another example: this evening as we were playing a board game, Dippy comes along and decides to take a nap right then and there, right in the box.

So I thought it might be fun to decorate him.... (would he wake up? would he let us?)

...He slept right through it....

..Even when he stirred, he didn't realize anything was amiss.....

Here we are decorating with some background. Perhaps the makers of Skippity will want Dippy as a mascot?

In Which Rychen P. Shoots his First Gun

We have a "no gun" rule in our house. I have wondered how long it might last, knowing how futile this sort of thing can be when it comes to little boys. Somehow we did make it 7 years without Rychen P. playing with any toy guns (except for nerf guns at Grandma's which were immediately frowned upon by Dad) ...and then reflecting on this, today I suddenly found myself watching him shoot a BB gun

and apparently he's not bad at it. Here's one of his several targets, for 5 shots. Notice 4 holes on the target, one only slightly outside of the Bull's Eye.

This was at a cub scout festival today. No, he is not in cub scouts yet but I am a leader so he got to come with me!

We also did archery. This is what he was really interested in, the whole reason we went at all. He's been talking about archery for months and I myself was just tickled to get him the opportunity to go shoot some arrows!

Bull's Eye!

and my own game  (don't you love how its on the ground?? haha)

Reading Chapter Books

When my mom was in town a month ago, she pointed out some ways Rychen P. was struggling with his reading. In the conversation she also mentioned how kids this age usually have homework of reading about 20 minutes a day aloud to a parent. I realized I hadn't been working on reading as much as I should have been--I had let is slipped, as it wasn't something Rychen P. preferred to do.

Well I am happy to report, we have read 20 minutes a day since then and Rychen P. has improved dramatically! Now he reads much more smoothly, without mixing up little words, and with proper intonation too. But even more of a change is that now he enjoys reading - he will pick up a book and begin to read on his own! I was totally shocked to catch him on the couch reading a chapter book of his own volition. As a matter of fact, one day when his dad asked him to do a job he replied, "But I want to read!" I was never happier to hear my son whine in disobedience.

He is reading the 3rd book in the Fudge series right now. He read the first 2 aloud to me, and now this one he has been reading on his own... although I know I have to keep him reading aloud so he can learn words he doesn't know.

Anyway Elisabeth didn't want to be left out of course, so she is reading chapter books to me too! The wonderful second child phenomenon! She is reading Junie B. Jones kindergarten books, and it just amazes me how she knows big words. This girl is a reading rock star!