Tuesday, November 29, 2011

The Sound of "S"

Mr 6 yo has really been struggling to remember his letters and the sounds that they make.  A couple of weeks ago I pulled out my yellow phonics flashcards and started teaching him from the beginning.  

No matter how hard he tried, however, he would never get the "s" card right.  For the longest time he couldn't even recall it was the letter "s", let alone what sounds it made.  Last week, slightly exasperated by my futile attempts to get him to remember this letter, I said, "Son, the day that I lift up this card and you can tell me the name of the letter and the two sounds it makes, I'll bake you a cake."

Okay, let me just tell you that you NEVER say things like that to someone like Mr 6 yo.  Today, a day when I had an unexpected appointment in the morning and an appointment in the afternoon, he decided to get it all right; and boy did he hold me to my word.

I tried to tell him that I didn't have a cake mix so I couldn't make him a cake.  He suggested pear pie (which we've never had before, but he claimed he loved it).  "Sorry," I said, "no pears.  How about some brownies?"  That didn't go over at all.

Next thing I know he's pulling out the cookbooks and looking through the dessert sections, occasionally pointing out a recipe or two.  Eventually he came to a recipe that I did in fact have all the ingredients for and could make before I had to leave.   God and he were holding me to my word, it seemed.

So I put together this chocolate banana cream pie and when I got a look at his face this evening, I knew it was all worth it.  Thank God for a boy who made his mommy keep her word!