Today when I went to work I knew we would be short. I don't remember how I knew this, but I was trying to prepare myself for a very busy day and I remember thinking that my goal today was 130 calls. That is a ridiculous goal, and I didn't get that- I got 141.
It was a long, exhausting day and the boys picked me up and were shocked at how many calls I had. We stopped at the store on the way home and they drove the cart and admired my skill with coupons. We went home and Chris had just enough time to get ready for work.
After Chris left we were trying to clean up the kitchen while having various scattered discussions. At some point I referenced Bill Gates, then paused and asked him if he knew who that was. He said he did. Ok, then who is Bill Gates?
He sputtered for a minute something about a discovery, then asked:
"Wasn't he one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence?"
Oh, no! This is terrible!
He must have known something was wrong by the bits of horrified expression he could see through the hands that were covering my face.
Backpedaling, he blamed the movie National Treasure. I told him that character was supposed to be related to Benjamin Franklin.
"Ohhhhh, yeah."
So then I asked him who else had signed the Declaration of Independence.
"Abraham Lincoln?"
Ok, I need to stop playing this game. I sent him over to our new collection of educational placemats, purchased by Chris and I immediately after Ant told me he couldn't remember which one was a planet, Venus or Uranus.
We have the solar system, the presidents, a map of the world, and the periodic table. Ant checked out the presidents and successfully named Thomas Jefferson as a signer of the Declaration. Whew.
So then we talked about this year and how he could be successful. He seems much more interested in applying himself, which is neat because he's starting to see a little longer term as he gets older. Of course, adolescence is going to barge in and ruin all that.
We switched placemats over dinner and started refreshing our memories about the planets. What's nice about these discussions is that they bring up questions and current events. We talked about the Mars rover and did an algebra problem to figure out how long it would take to travel around Jupiter.
After that, Ant mapped out his schedule and talked to me about his classes. He's excited to have the easy classes after lunch- he said last year it was hard to concentrate on math at the end of the day. I warned him that science might be tough right before lunch when the fuel is running out, but he told me that his science teacher is strick and I had the opportunity to explain that strict ends with a t.
"My teacher is really strict," he said. "There won't be any problems paying attention in her class."
After all, he knows what that's like. :D
So then we went on a walk and it was through lots of green, freshly watered grass and sidewalks and weirdly angled loading docks for Ant to skate on. Jasmine chased her monster and Riley chased birds and bunnies and eventually we sat down for a water break. Among other things, we talked about how he wants to become an architect. We also got on the subject of Disneyland dads, where the term comes from, why it's negative, and how it's pretty much unavoidable. He said it makes the dad look like a jerk and makes the mom look... like a mom. Hee hee hee. He wasn't being derogatory at all, just very thoughtful. Ant told me that when he's a dad, he's going to make sure that both he and his wife each have one day a week that's fun for them and the kids.
"I am wiser than Yoda," Ant said on our way back.
"You are wiser than Yoda?"
"Yes. Well, no because he's got the Force. But I am still wiser than Yoda."
He resumed skating down the sidewalk, then turned to wait for me.
"Be cool," Ant said in Yoda speak. "That is not you must."
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