Beginning Portuguese

Puck woke up that morning in a good mood. After breakfast, he helped Mom sort the laundry.
The world was green and deep gray that morning. There were still more errands to be run, especially as Carrie was preparing to leave on her trips, and as Mom began the fascinating process of learning new recipes in order to cook healthy meals with her waterless cookware.
At Costco, Francis and Linnea grazed over the samples, which included waffle fries. Collette remembered doing the same thing back at Sam’s when she and Carrie-Bri were kids. And if Dad brought them, there was always that bag of double cinnamon bread loaves with packages of white icing for Saturday mornings. Those were the days…
By the early afternoon, Collette was experiencing a sugar crash from Whoppers and Junior Mints while she endeavored to teach Francis his first lesson in Portuguese. Efforts weren’t so great.
“Francis, how many times do I have to say it for you? It’s A Menina. Not Memima.”
“I know! A Memima!”
“Francis!”
And after a three week break, it was time to bring out the old algebra book, once again, for Francis. Despite the fact that he almost fell asleep, he had not forgotten as much as Collette had initially feared.
Later, Linnea packed up for another spend-the-night with Collette and Puck. Carrie was leaving to rock climb with a new friend, Dorian Gray. And Mom was possibly watching the three little girls next door.
Back home, Linnea wrapped herself up in the soft purple blanket and watched Andy Griffith while Collette made her grilled cheese and sliced cantaloupe and Puck smiled and patted his mom’s nose and rested his head on her shoulder after he had finished his bottle.