Together Or Apart

28. M&M's

I'm sitting down on the black sofa in Harry's dressing room. Sydney is asleep in her pram and London is beside me, reading Dr. Seuss' One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish. This is part of her homework tasks for next week. London insisted that she should start her homework early so that she doesn't forget everything that she has learnt in school so far, whilst being in London.

"Did you e-v-e-r fly a k-i- mummy, what's this word?"

"Great sounding out. That word is kite."

"Did you ever fly a kite in bed? Did you ever w-a-l-k w-i-t-h ten cats on your h-e-a-d?" London chuckles to herself before turning over the page. I place my hand over the book to hide the next pages that London will read.

"What do you think will happen next?" I ask, wanting her to use prediction as part of her book analysis, rather than simply just reading the words on the pages. I think it is super important for kids to analyse the story so that they demonstrate a higher order of thinking, as well as increasing their understanding of the book.

"I think that they will write more jokes and be so silly. Maybe having ten dogs on their head next, or something about the fish."

"Ooh, good thinking. Shall we find out?" I ask her and she nods excitedly. London continues reading and I am so proud of the expression that she is using. Her teacher has been impressed with her reading skills and placed her in the top reading group. Many kids in her class can't read yet, but London sounds out her words and most of the time, can read simple books like this one.

"What colours do you see Londy?"

"There's so much red and yellow on these two pages."

"Yeah, there is. Why do you think the illustrator used yellow and red?"

She shrugs her shoulders. "I don't know. Maybe because they are like colours of the sun? The yellow sun and the red is what happens when you get sunburnt."

I smile, holding in my laughter because of how vivid this girls imagination is. I quite like her answer, to be honest. "So do you think the little people in the picture are being burnt by the sun?"

"Yes."

"Alright, keep reading."

No response. Her head is facing in the direction opposite of towards me.

"London." I lean forwards to see her face. My daughters eyes are fixated on the table in front of us. "What are you eyeing off baby?"

"Nem n nems mummy!" London slides off the leather couch and walks over to the coffee table. She dips her hand inside the bowl. "Mum, can I please have one?"

"Good girl for using your manners. How old are you?"

She stares down at her hands and uses her left hand to put up four of her fingers on her right hand. She holds four fingers up at me. "I'm five."

"Well you can have five m&ms for now because you have to eat your dinner. Then you can have more later."

London leans over the bowl and carefully picks out of it.

"London, don't put them back in once you have touched them, that's gross."

"But I don't like the yellow ones mummy."

Harry walks into the dressing room and looks straight at his daughter. "London Anne Styles, what do you think you are doing?"

She quickly puts the m&ms into her mouth. "Eating nem n nems."

Harry frowns and looks over at me before looking back at Ava. "You have to eat your dinner first."

Harry, it's only five m&ms. It's not going to make her full but I know it's not good to let her eat snacks before dinner. We don't usually let her but tonight is a one off. There's a show tonight, it's a special occasion.