August peanuts, part 2

• Isaac invented a game: climb the couch, get a kleenex, jump down, run to Corinna in the swing, wipe her nose, run to the trash can and throw away the kleenex, run back to the couch, repeat. Both Isaac and Corinna were amused.
  
• Isaac broke the PS3 again, this time by stuffing playing cards into the DVD slot. Rachel fished half a dozen out with a crochet hook but it wasn't enough. At least everything but physical media still works.
  
• Rachel took Isaac back-to-school shopping. She came back with Matthew and Melissa supplies, a Dora backpack that Rachel knew about, and an extra pencil box that Isaac snuck into the cart unknown to her.
  
• Matthew's bow and arrow arrived on the 18th and the next day he was already bugging me about a hunting license.
  
• Freshmen have arrived in Austin for Fall semester at UT. They're all really, really young. Realized I'm closer to Matthew going to college, than I am to having been in college myself.
  
• Rachel was skeptical about Braid but she is really enjoying it. Highly recommended for all of you who still haven't played it.
  
• A worker at the supermarket this morning heard me speaking French with Isaac and introduced himself. He and his wife are from Algeria; he has a master's degree in sociology; hers is in banking and finance. He stocks shelves at HEB; she is a cashier. "When we won the green card lottery we decided it was worth it to take the opportunity and find whatever jobs in the US we could."
  
• There's an international school about five minutes from my house that offers French immersion (even giving them the French standardized tests, which I'm ambivalent about). That would be fun for Isaac except their preschool is full-day-only. And $10,000 a year.
  
• 8/25: three days of school, three emails from Matthew's teacher. That's a filterin'.
  
• 8/29: after a week of being dragged out of bed for school, Matthew and Melissa woke up at 6:30 on both Saturday and Sunday. Today, back to dragging out of bed again.
  
• 8/29: A first: I totally made Corinna laugh making funny faces and noises with her. Not that I am bragging or anything.