Learn fast kids, the grandparents are coming!

We are trying to power through a lot of schoolwork in the next two weeks.  After that we will start having Visitors, and I don’t think the children will be very excited about their math workbooks if they know grandma is waiting for them.  They will be even less excited about them than they are now.  And I don’t mind saying that is pretty darned unexcited. 

I think we are finally settling into a routine. Math is our big objective.  They read all the time under their own power, and we have been talking about what they are reading.  They are writing in their travel journals, and we are living IN ROME for crying out loud, so I think we have history and social studies covered.  Math is the one thing that worries me.  It is so easy to fall behind, and so very difficult to catch up once you do.

I also still have to work on the human body with both of them, and electricity and magnetism with the Princess.  Of course, I forgot our big science book so I guess we will have to cover those areas when we get home.  Although, we could get lucky and find a book in the English language lending library here.  

Yes, there is an English language library here.  It is in the Church of Santa Susanna.  That’s the American parish church in Rome.  According to their website they have a lending library, and you do not have to belong to the church to belong to the library.  I even think I know how to get there.  We will attempt that little adventure next week.  I think we have to take the bus and the subway.  This makes it a very exotic location indeed.  I think both children have read every single book they brought with them about three times by now so it’s about time we got them some new materials.

So I’m feeling better about school now.  I was kind of panicking about it before.  I am pretty sure I haven’t completely destroyed their chances to get into Harvard.  Yet. 

We have also met some other American families at the playground in the last few days.  It’s kind of odd to hear somebody I don’t know speaking English.  I find I am much more forward than I ever am at home about walking up to complete strangers and starting conversations.  I am not normally very good at that.  Fortunately everybody else seems very receptive to being walked up to.