Homework and bedtime

Laura's in the kitchen reading a story one more time before her reading test tomorrow. She's in the fourth grade, and suddenly her homework has become very time intensive (and a lot harder). We've been arguing for two days about whether she'll be doing her first social studies project about a Native American culture by writing a booklet (manageable) or by building a village (not manageable).

I love that she wants to build the village, but our lives seem to me a little too complicated for building Indian earth lodges with toothpicks and the tops of two-liter bottles. We've about compromised since I've promised her two sheets of my special woodbark paper--really made of bark, I think--and leather cording to bind it with. I'm going to go read off her spelling words to her one more time in just a minute.

Will is patiently sucking his fingers and playing with his sweet horsie's mane, waiting for us to finish. So I'd better get to it, cause it's bedtime.