Crazy is our new normal. With two teenage boys and three little boys, our family is restless- to the baseball field, track field (田径场) and piano lessons. Even though we've limited（限制） each boy's activities and try our best to spare some time for the family, it seems that we're always in a hurry.
"Accept it. Roll with it," my husband, Lonny, says, "It's going to be like this for a while."
He is right. It's likely that life will continue to go forward before it slows down. But I remembered the peaceful, quiet days that our family used to enjoy. I missed long walks through the park when we held the boys' little hands. I wished for lazy Saturday afternoons under the tree in our backyard. I wanted to go back a few years, when busyness was the exception and not the rule（惯例）．
One night, after a particularly ful day and evening games, our family gathered on the porch (门廊) for ice cream. Two parents, two teens, and three small boys sat on one old swing and a couple of rocking chairs. We were together, in one place, for a short period of time.
The moon was full. The Mississippi River, flowing past our home, was smooth as glass. I put my own arms around the son who sat on my lap and breathed in deeply his little-boy smell -dirt and sweat. My heart was peaceful and satisfied.
I realized that though crazy is our new normal, happiness is as usual. They may look different from before, but they are still there - even if they're in the form of a single moment on the porch. Maybe I just need the eyes to see.
【小题1】What does the writer mainly talk about?

Crazy is our new normal. With two teenage boys and three little boys, our family is restless- to the baseball field, track field (田径场) and piano lessons. Even though we've limited（限制） each boy's activities and try our best to spare some time for the family, it seems that we're always in a hurry.

"Accept it. Roll with it," my husband, Lonny, says, "It's going to be like this for a while."

He is right. It's likely that life will continue to go forward before it slows down. But I remembered the peaceful, quiet days that our family used to enjoy. I missed long walks through the park when we held the boys' little hands. I wished for lazy Saturday afternoons under the tree in our backyard. I wanted to go back a few years, when busyness was the exception and not the rule（惯例）．

One night, after a particularly ful day and evening games, our family gathered on the porch (门廊) for ice cream. Two parents, two teens, and three small boys sat on one old swing and a couple of rocking chairs. We were together, in one place, for a short period of time.

The moon was full. The Mississippi River, flowing past our home, was smooth as glass. I put my own arms around the son who sat on my lap and breathed in deeply his little-boy smell -dirt and sweat. My heart was peaceful and satisfied.

I realized that though crazy is our new normal, happiness is as usual. They may look different from before, but they are still there - even if they're in the form of a single moment on the porch. Maybe I just need the eyes to see.

1.What does the writer mainly talk about?

A．Her tiredness of her busy life.

B．Her family's struggle for a better life.

C．Her new feelings about the present life.

D．The pleasure of staying with her children.

2.Which of the following could best describe the writer's present life?

A．Busy and boring.                        B．Busy but happy.

C．Crazy and terrible.                       D．Normal but exciting.

3.Which of the following is NOT true?

A．The writer has five sons.

B．There is at least one child learning to play the piano.

C．The husband likes the present life.

D．The writer used to live a peaceful and quiet life.

4.Which of the following might the writer agree to?

A．Happiness is everywhere, but we have to discover it.

B．Life is nothing but sadness, busyness and hurry.

C．Parents should do more for their kids' better life.

D．Life in the countryside is attractive, wonderful, and sweet.

Crazy is our new normal. With two teenage boys and three little boys, our family is restless- to the baseball field, track field (田径场) and piano lessons. Even though we've limited（限制） each boy's activities and try our best to spare some time for the family, it seems that we're always in a hurry.
"Accept it. Roll with it," my husband, Lonny, says, "It's going to be like this for a while."
He is right. It's likely that life will continue to go forward before it slows down. But I remembered the peaceful, quiet days that our family used to enjoy. I missed long walks through the park when we held the boys' little hands. I wished for lazy Saturday afternoons under the tree in our backyard. I wanted to go back a few years, when busyness was the exception and not the rule（惯例）．
One night, after a particularly ful day and evening games, our family gathered on the porch (门廊) for ice cream. Two parents, two teens, and three small boys sat on one old swing and a couple of rocking chairs. We were together, in one place, for a short period of time.
The moon was full. The Mississippi River, flowing past our home, was smooth as glass. I put my own arms around the son who sat on my lap and breathed in deeply his little-boy smell -dirt and sweat. My heart was peaceful and satisfied.
I realized that though crazy is our new normal, happiness is as usual. They may look different from before, but they are still there - even if they're in the form of a single moment on the porch. Maybe I just need the eyes to see

1. 1.

   What does the writer mainly talk about?

   1. A.
      Her tiredness of her busy life
   2. B.
      Her family's struggle for a better life
   3. C.
      Her new feelings about the present life
   4. D.
      The pleasure of staying with her children
2. 2.

   Which of the following could best describe the writer's present life?

   1. A.
      Busy and boring
   2. B.
      Busy but happy
   3. C.
      Crazy and terrible
   4. D.
      Normal but exciting
3. 3.

   Which of the following is NOT true?

   1. A.
      The writer has five sons
   2. B.
      There is at least one child learning to play the piano
   3. C.
      The husband likes the present life
   4. D.
      The writer used to live a peaceful and quiet life
4. 4.

   Which of the following might the writer agree to?

   1. A.
      Happiness is everywhere, but we have to discover it
   2. B.
      Life is nothing but sadness, busyness and hurry
   3. C.
      Parents should do more for their kids' better life
   4. D.
      Life in the countryside is attractive, wonderful, and sweet

July 21^st, 2007 was a typical English summer’s day – it rained for 24 hours! As usual, I rushed home from work at midday to check on the house. Nothing was amiss. By the time I left work at 5 pm, however, the road into our village was flooded （淹没的）. Our house had never been flooded but, as I opened the front door, a wave of water greeted me. Thank God the kids weren’t with me, because the house was 5 feet deep in water. We lost everything downstairs. And the plaster had to be torn off the walls, ceilings pulled down.

At first we tried to push on through. We didn’t want to move the children out of home. So we camped upstairs. We put a sheet of plastic across the floor to protect us from being wet. But after three months, we felt very sick, so we moved to a wooden house in a park. The house was small, but at first we were all just happy to be in a new place. Unluckily, things took longer than expected. What surprised me most was how much I missed being part of a community （社区）. We had lived in a friendly village with good neighbours, and I’d never thought how much I’d miss that. Although our situation was very bad, it’s difficult to feel too sorry for yourself when you look at what’s happening elsewhere.

We moved back home in August. With December coming, there’s reconstruction（重建）work to be done, so it’s difficult to prepare for Christmas. But I can’t wait- I’m going to throw a party for our friends in the village to say thanks for their support. This year, I won’t need any gifts-living away from home for months has made me realize how little we actually need or miss all the things we have. Although we are replacing things, there’s really no rush-we have our home back, and that’s the main thing.

53 What does the underlined word “amiss” in Paragraph I mean?

A. Wrong.                    B. Missing.                   C. Right.               D. Normal.

54. We can learn from the passage that the family _____.

A. was sick of staying downstairs

B. stayed away for nearly 10 months

C. was happy to live in the wooden house

D. did not deal well with the trouble during the flood

55. What does the writer mainly want to express by telling her story?

A. She valued human feelings more than before.

B. She realized she almost didn’t need anything.

C. She found Christmas gifts could be replaced easily.

D. She thought her own home was the most important.