A Contradiction of Feelings...

I have to record this memory because it is so funny to me. It captures this stage of Piersen so, ummmm, nicely (?).

All the kids were loaded in the van for the morning drive to school. We were on time and everyone was happy. Reece asked if we could play the spelling game so we began.

I threw out words to Reece like "complicated", "quiet", "quite" and "disgusting".

Chase got simpler words such as "school", "happy", "mad".

And, as always, Pierce wants to be included, so I built his self confidence with "Pierce" and "stop" (since we were right in front of a stop sign).

We arrived at the school and dropped the big boys off to Kindergarten and 2nd grade.

The drive back home is when things got interesting.

Pierce wanted to continue the game. I gave him "Pierce" again. Taught him "mom". But then he stated that he wanted to spell "happy". I began to walk him through it but one look in the rearview mirror showed me a very UNhappy face. His arms were crossed and his lip just about down to the floor. I encouraged him - or tried to - and he just started saying "I am not gonna listen. I am so mad because I can't spell happy"

I told him again, not to worry, that he is right where he should be and will learn more about letters and sounds and spelling when he goes to preschool next year.

***sidenote: this kid cracks us up. He follows the leads of his big brothers in SO many ways. The school boys read at least 15 minutes each night for their homework. Pierce assigns himself the same task and if he doesn't do it, he gets onto himself :) He also feels like he is past reading story books - he's on to the the big stuff: chapter (or as he says: chaptew) books. He will sit for a long, long time, following the pages of black and white print - with his finger - and creating stories...sounding out words, and so on. It is entertaining!

So back to the UNhappy speller. I chose to let him sulk in the back seat, even after arriving home. He grumbled at me and hid his face under a blanket when I told him to unbuckle and come on inside. He just kept saying - "I am so mad that I can't spell happy."

I left him in the van (I know, mean, mean mother). But the door was open and he knows how to come inside :)

Before too long, he came stomping in. Still mad.

So he was sent to his bed to fix his attitude.

Within a few minutes, he came back to the kitchen, this time with big sad eyes, explaining that "it hurts my feelings really really bad"

WOW! I guess it is time to teach him spelling. Specifically H-A-P-P-Y!

This is the face he always makes as proof that he has "fixed his attitude" - it is the fakest, but sweetest smile. If I "encourage" him to fix his attitude, he always says, "I already did! Its fixed. See!!!"