Sayer at the gym ...

Not for class. For Duncan's class, actually, which meant she got to hang out with me in the lobby for an hour. Not bad for her at all, as this is the first class of their new semester in which Duncan has moved from the parent/child class to the independent class. Before this, Sayer was out in the lobby with one of the instructors (who has to do work-y things like answer the phone, return phone calls, paperwork, etc) and occasionally another older sibling of a child in Duncan's class. Generally I'd come out of the class and she'd hand me a sheaf of artwork she drew while she waited for his class to end and hers to begin. But not anymore. Now I'm out there with her.

Today I brought along a couple books so that we could read together. She picked Huggly's Big Mess. And she read the whole thing. By herself. With help on about one word every 2 pages. Holy wow!

Then she was tired of reading and asked the instructor for paper and crayons. She got them and then scampered around the room for a few minutes so I joked with her that that sure was a funny way to draw a picture :) She smiled and went back to the table and returned to me a few minutes later with a paper that had a line that had a hook on the top with an x at the end. There was also a small branch off of it with an x at the end, and another x near the beginning (bottom) of the line. She'd written 'finsh' near the top two x's and told me it was a treasure map and she'd hidden plastic fruit for me to find! I told her she'd left an i out of finish and asked if she knew where it went. She went back to the table and put it in the right place. Then when she came back again I said, 'well, now I know where we'll finish, but where do we start?' She pointed and I said, no, she should write start just like she'd written finish. She said she wasn't sure how to spell it and I said she could sound it out and ask for help if she got stuck. When she came back her 'map' was labeled with a START and a FINISH :) So I got up to look and got tangled in my knitting.

So I told her I'd finish the row I was working on and then I'd put it aside and get up. Then the woman next to me got up to go to the restroom and when she was halfway there I could see her finding something odd in the pocket of her sweatshirt. It was a piece of plastic fruit that Sayer had snuck in :) Sayer was disappointed that the piece of fruit had been discovered and went to cross that x off the map. Then I got up with her and followed the line on the map across the room and purposely turned the wrong way. She laughed. Then I went the right way and found a pear. I joked with her that I'd found it under a PAIR of shorts (it was in a bin in their shop with leotards and sports shorts and stuff). She thought that was hilarious! Then we followed the line a bit further and found the other pear. It was great fun :)

Then she drew Blue's house and I said it needed the tree next to it and the tire swing. She decorated the tree with apples and drew Steve on a ladder picking them. I told her she ought to write on the back of the paper to say what she'd drawn. So she wrote 'Blue s Hous by Sayer.' I had to help her with the ou sound in house, and then point out that there was a silent letter at the end and she fixed it.

Then Duncan had a melt-down in class (I did mention this was his *first* class without me in there with him?) and after he cried and refused to be consoled for several minutes they brought him out to me and we snuggled and blew noses (about 100x). Then Sayer (maybe feeling left out? maybe just having fun!) brought over a paper that said 'Momy hug me.' So I did, but then I told her there was another m in the middle of Mommy so she fixed it.

So, she read a book, and drew a picture with a caption, and wrote a note, and drew a map with a legend that was roughly realistic as far as where she'd hidden things (though she didn't add in any of the other features or fixtures in the room) in the hour we were there for Duncan's class. And I managed to knit 4 whole rows and watch about half of Duncan's class.

Not bad, huh?