Sophie has been waiting for these all summer!

 We babysat for the neighbors across the street.  We won’t do it again.  That kid just does not hold his alcohol very well.

 Last weekend saw the end to the three week State Fair in our town.  I live six blocks away, and in that three week time period all semblances of normal life cease.  Streets are clogged with exhausted families trying desperately to have fun, but really just getting hot, dusty and grumpy.

Anyone with space in their front yard parks cars for money.  Being six blocks away, we can only eek out a paltry $5 per car…but I can shove 11 cars in my lawn and driveway.  It pays for us to go to the fair.  The ridiculously expensive monstrosity that it is.

And I love it.  I love the rides, the animal barns, the barking sales people selling Sham Wow!’s, air-brushed T-shirts and green lipstick.

Maya had a social studies project that asked her to pick a location and do a photo essay on “Human Interaction with the Environment”.  She picked the fair.  She packed up her camera and off we went to discover it anew through the lens of a seventh grade sociologist.  She got some amazing shots.

I love this one.  It shows the supply/demand of parking.  The removable numbers will go anywhere from $5 to $20, depending on the crowds.

And this sign, with its blatant direction and lack of patience….

The Extreme Scream ride is the center point of the fair.  You pay $15 to be taken up 20 stories and dropped into a freefall only to be sucked up again and dropped a few more times.

The Midway is just filled with gut-busting wonders.

This is Sophie’s favorite….the Skydiver.

And Maya’s favorite (and mine)…the giant swings!

We did not use the “People Mover” that is mentioned in the picture below.  Our feet were ready to fall off by the end of the day.

I can’t wait until next year!!!

I realize that I am letting my children write for me lately.  They seem to be doing a better job than I am!  I found this little gem stuck in an old notebook.  This is from last fall when Sophie was in fourth grade, but the tricks still work and make me laugh every time!

Maya is adjusting to Junior High so well. Her kind and gentle nature overrides any tendency toward biting sarcasm and violence.

As part of her English class she described a new Roller Coaster design that she would like to build for the sweet little children.

I am so proud.

Remember the mystery of the Scooter Thief?  If not, please read this post.

We have been hit again.  This time, it was Sophie’s bike.  This wasn’t just any bike.  It was a 1970’s – ish Schwinn cruiser, spray-painted red with chrome fenders and whitewall tires.  It was beat up, but it was cool.  We procured it at a garage sale down the street and she loved it very much.

It was parked alongside my house…far from the street…and I was home all day today working.  When did it disappear?  Who is the little bastard that took it?  I wish I knew so I could chase him down in my car.

She is crying, so sad that she is the only kid on the block without a bike.  A bike is not in the budget. 

I’m pretty sure it is the little fucker Justin down the street.  He steals everything from everyone and the entire neighborhood has been up in arms about him.  I called the cops and they are going to his house to take a look around. 

We’ll see.

He’s a seasoned thief now, and probably hid it pretty well already.

I have called everyone on this street, and there are more than a few of us running reconnaissance missions past his house tonight and in the upcoming days.

This kind of thing just sets my hair on fire.

<insert some sort of crazy jingle here>

Busy, busy, busy…but not too busy to teach my dog another language!!!

Boy, this teacher is JUST ASKING for more frowning flowers….

Washington State has an assessment test for its students called the WASL (Washington Assessment for Student Learning).  It is your standard assessment test – with its standard problems and controversy surrounding it.  Do the teachers teach only to the test and ignore everything else?  Does the test measure one group well and another not so well?  Are standardized tests even necessary? 

There is much discussion.

This year the WASL will be replaced by yet another type of standardized test that, I’m sure, will not measure up. 

All that said, I got the girls’ WASL scores from last year.  Maya’s were great.  She “Exceeded all Grade Level Standards” in her two tests (Math and Writing I think).  Sophie had tests in three areas last year, Reading, Writing and Math.  She also “Exceeded all Grade Level Standards”. 

Of course, whether I believe that the WASL is a good or a bad thing, this made me very happy.  But I was astounded to find that out of 475 points possible on the Reading part of the test Sophie scored…..(drumroll)…..a 475.

That’s pretty damn good!

Not surprising after you have heard her retell any story that she has ever read, or any incident she has ever witnessed.  Not only will you get every stinkin’ detail, but you will also get the color of the shirt of everyone involved and whether she believes they might have got that particular shirt on sale the previous weekend at the store because, don’t you remember?  There was a 50% off sale on that rack of shirts by the front door?

The girl has scary recall abilities.

And I’m proud.