"Ok, so what are the letters of the alphabet?" I asked, having returned with the girls to the kitchen.
"A B C D E G I J K N M O P Q R S T U V Z!" they chanted.
"Close, but not quite right. Now, for the sounds of the letters." I went back through the list, sounding out each letter and having them repeat it. We did this over and over again, drilling the alphabet into their skulls.
Afterwards, to give them another break, I simply had them point things out or pick words and I would spell them. I would put sentences together using the simplest words I could and have them read them out. They were certainly fast learners; I couldn't remember how long it took me to learn to read when I was a kid but they had definitely swept past me. But once again, when it seemed like smoke was going to start pouring from their ears, I stopped.
"Ok, girls, now how would you like to help me prepare dinner? We're having meatloaf tonight."
Their tails stood on end and they jumped from their seats, wanting to do whatever they could to help hasten the arrival of dinner. After turning on the oven, I brought them over to the kitchen counter, where I had already set out the meat upon returning from hour walk. By now, it had hopefully warmed up.
"This time, the two of you will be making it, I'll just give you instructions. First, take all the meat out of their packages and put them in a big metal bowl. You can find it in the cupboard above the fridge."
Momo retrieved the bowl while Sonja tried to tear open the meat packages. Luckily the cat came over with the sense to use scissors. Ground beef, pork, and turkey were dumped into the bowl, the girls staring at them with their mouths watering.
"Oh, I almost forgot. The two of you need to wash your hands since you're going to be touching the meat."
They obeyed, ready to sell their souls if it meant getting close to all that raw meat. While they washed their hands, I got out some eggs and a small bowl.