New year, new teacher

In a week and a half I'll be back in school! I'm excited but nervous, in that odd empty-feeling way. Paige is visiting her Yia-Yia (that's Greek for Grandma) outside of Chicago this week, and I really miss her, although I'm sure she's having a great time. She'll be back Thursday. She took a plane by herself! What a great end of Summer adventure. I'm happy for her, but I can't wait for her to come home.

Yesterday I was really bored, and I figured Paige's mom probably misses seeing my adorable face around the house while Paige is away, so I decided to stop by for a visit. I rang the doorbell, and finally Ms. Shepherd answered. She was cooking when I came to visit. She offered me a plate of cookies. They had raisins in them, and they were spicy. I ate them while we chatted. She seemed kind of lonely. Paige is her only kid, and the house seemed very empty and big. We got to talking about the new school year. I said I was happy that Paige and I are in the same class this year.

"Is Miss Reese nice?" I asked. That's my new teacher's name.

"Ah! You mean Mr. Reese." Ms. Shepherd said, smiling.
"He's very nice. This is his first year teaching at our school. You'll like him."

Paige's mom is the music teacher, so naturally she has the inside scoop. I trust her opinion. She's a very cool teacher, so I'm sure Mr. Reese will be cool too. I've never had a male teacher before. I think it'll be a breath of fresh air. I can only imagine the silly names Mason will think up for Mr. Reese though, because he's in my class as well. Last year, he got lunch detention for calling Mrs. Applebaum "Mrs. Applesauce." I think Mr. Reese's potential nicknames write themselves, unfortunately. I told this to Paige's mom, and she said;

"I'm sure he's heard them all, teaching elementary school."

Then, I heard my mom calling me from the porch for dinner, so I said goodbye, and left feeling a little bit better about the school year ahead.

Frankly,
Frankie