S-P-E-L-L

Well, I had to blog so that I would not forget these past couple of days. My first-grader, Bryson has REALLY picked up to reading lately and has gotten SO much better since he has been reading from the scriptures (we have been amazed at the words he has learned). For the past couple of days, every form of communication he has had with me has been in letters... (no words). He addresses me as, "M-O-M," and then proceeds to tell me what he wants to say in the form of letters - THE WHOLE THING! I have to admit that after about the 20th letter and fourth or fifth word, I begin to lose patience, not to mention I have a harder time following him, too. I just didn't want to forget this cute, but slightly annoying moment in my life. Where I am so proud that he is learning not only how to read, but how to spell and make sentences out of what he is learning. But, while being so proud, I am also so annoyed that everything he tells me is spelled (so, I have to be patient... and listen... and sort it out in my head... in order to understand what he is trying to tell me!)

Ahhhh! The joys of being a parent. However, I did catch him the other day with a slip up. He had asked, "M-o-m, c-a-n I h-a-v-e a d-r-i-n-k p-l-e-a-s-e?" and when I gave him one, he responded with, "M-o-m, t-h-a-n-k- YOU!" "Ah, ha!" I said. "You slipped. Instead of spelling you, you just said the word" (as if it was only one letter - u!) He just smiled his big jack-o-lantern smile at me and said, "Y-o-u- a-r-e- r-i-g-h-t."

I have been trying to teach my kids a little bit of sign language and they were all picking it up really well. Bryson learned the alphabet immediately and right away he was signing every letter, to spell out what he wanted to say that he didn't know the sign for. Boy, was that time consuming. Now he is still spelling, but he is talking instead of using his hands! I am definitely grateful that he is learning. And I am grateful for this moment when I can be grateful for his obsession with spelling! And... I am grateful for my new name, "M-O-M." It is a nice change from "Momma", which is what he has called me since he was little (reminds me of "Big Momma" -the owl- in Fox and the Hound).