Malcolm Benjamin - 5th Grade

September 28th, 2008

Fig Newtons?! What was she kidding? Danielle will never get it right. I used to always get the cafeteria hot lunch. I’d grab a tray and they’d give me something good like cheeseburgers, pizza, hotdogs! But SHE said it was “unhealthy.” Danielle’s probably sitting in her office now, wearing some fancy gray suit outfit, thinking about what an awesome new step-mom she is, packing my lunch, in my lunch box. But actually she just took away something I reallllly like and gave me these crumbly Fig Newtons and lame sandwich everyday instead.

October 14th, 2008

I LIKE staying up late. And I don’t even get tired in the morning when I do. SOME people (Danielle actually) don’t get this. Before her I could play Wii as much as I wanted and go to bed whenever I wanted. (I got really good and could even beat the Rulands anytime they came over to play.) I’d ask dad to order Papa John’s and then I’d take it up to my room and play tanks or Nintendo for hours. But those days are over. Now at like 10pm I hear a knock on the door and that’s supposed to mean I go to bed. 

Sometimes I turn it off, wait until she’s gone, and keep playing though!!

October 30th, 2008

Tomorrow is Halloween and I’m going to be a zombie from the movie I Am Legend with Will Smith. Danielle was surprised that I’ve seen that movie and asked me if I thought it was too scary. I didn’t think it was. I actually really liked it so much and it wasn’t scary to me at all. Even when there’s the fire and everyone is dying and even though I watched it alone at night. So I told her that’s why I wanted to be a zombie and she just actually laughed and said tomorrow she’d drive me to the Halloween pop-up shop at the mall and we could buy my costume. I’m excited for a real scary costume from the real store! Mom never liked holidays and dad has been so quiet the last few years.

October 31st, 2008

My costume is sooo scary!  Danielle put black paint around my eyes and got candy for her and my dad to pass out to all the kids and my dad put up spider webs all over our house! That’s what’s cool about not living in an apartment anymore is you can put up the spider webs and do the candy.

November 11th, 2008

Dad started running. He never used to do that. When it was just me and him after work he’d watch TV in the living room and I’d go to my room to watch TV always. But last week he and I went to Modell’s and he asked the guy what the best ‘long distance’ shoes were. He shaves everyday now and looks less tired all the time.

December 26th, 2008

Yesterday was awesome. WE GOT A PUPPY!!!  Danielle told me I could name it and I can’t decide between Bowser or Luigi. Right now we call him both. And my dad and Danielle even had a stocking hung up for him and it was filled with tennis balls! Danielle said I should take Bowser Luigi out every morning before school and after and I woke up really early to take him out this morning and he’s so fast at getting tennis balls. We’ll go out again in a few hours. Also my mom sent me like six Nintendo games.

April 1st, 2009

Tonight at dinner Danielle asked me and dad what our favorite “family traditions” were. Dad said since he and I moved and things had changed so much we didn’t really have anything we did every year. 

She said hers was April Fool’s and that we shouldn’t try the mashed potatoes!

May 7th, 2009

Dad had to go to Montgomery County Circuit Court today because of something with mom. I couldn’t go over to the Rulands because Davey is sick, so I just went with him and Danielle. I don’t think she’d ever been there before but I showed her the really cool ramp I had played on before and how they have a set of checkers in the waiting room. They didn’t have all the pieces so we ended up just playing Game Center on her Iphone while we waited.

August 25th, 2009

Today I woke up early and took Bowser Luigi (we never picked which name so we still call him both) out in the morning and in the afternoon like always. It was a good day and I went to the pool with the Rulands. Then me and dad and Danielle went out to dinner because they’ve been married for one year. (They actually let me pick where and I picked Outback Steakhouse because I saw all the commercials and it looked really good.) Dad said we should do it again every year and make it a tradition. We all agreed it was a good idea.

November 27th, 2009

We did Thanksgiving yesterday and the Rulands came over. When we all said what we were thankful for my dad said ‘stability.’  

I said “my dog and also what my dad said.”  When everyone left Danielle made a ‘special acception’ (spelling?) and let me play Wii. I stayed up so late!!

August 19, 2016

I’m currently on the Megabus, taking off from my dad’s and Danielle’s and headed over to my mom’s. I’m going to her place so she can ‘help me move in’ to my freshman dorm at Villanova University. That just means spending one night at her apartment and letting her drive me 2 hours to drop me off on campus in the morning. Maybe I’ll see her over Christmas break or next summer. 

I’m excited for college. It’s funny writing about this in my fifth grade notebook and reading through the entries! I went through a lot by the time I was in middle school, but life’s honestly been pretty standard since then. 

Dad and Danielle took me to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to buy new bedding and helped me pack two duffles. Danielle ordered me a study lamp on Amazon, let me log her Netflix password into my laptop before I left, and she even put little dryer sheets in bags so my clothes “wouldn’t smell like bus.” 

Getting into Villanova wasn’t easy, but my parents helped me out. Danielle asked me if I wanted to take SAT classes and signed me up for them when I expressed I thought they’d be helpful. She had one of her friends, who’s an author, review all six of my college essays to make sure they were perfect. My dad took me out to Top Golf the day I got the acceptance letter. 

I hated all the big and small changes that were always happening in the first half of my life. But with Danielle came structure. I was just laughing reading and remembering how much I hated her that first Fall she lived with us! Now I know my dad and I are blessed to have her. 

When I got on this bus and opened my North Face I found this journal and you know what else? A freaking Fig Newton!