When I began married life more than 17 years ago, I weighed 118 pounds. After having two children, and years of ____21____ eating, I weighed 180 pounds. I was unhappy. I considered going on a ____22____, so I gathered information about it.
I ____23____ the South Beach Diet and how well it was ____24____ for some people in our area. I looked it up online and ____25____ for it. Even though I knew my husband loved me no matter how I ____26____ or how much I weighed. I decided that it would be a wonderful ____27____ for my husband to come home and see a new ____28_____, so I kept my South Beach experience a ____29____ from him. Later he left home for a two-week business trip.
I was surprised at all the ____30____ I could eat. It was great to have breakfast, ____31____ and dinner. The food was difficult to eat at first ____32____ I usually didn’t like such food. This made the daily menus hard, ____33____ I overcame (克服) the challenge.
The first two weeks there really ____34____ me change the way I thought about ____35____. It wasn’t chocolate or cheese or candy I ____36____, but fruit! Before my husband’s return, my children and I were amazed at how quickly the ____37____ was lost.
When my husband returned, I had ____38_____more than 30 pounds. When I saw my husband’s reaction at the airport I thought it was worth every minute on the diet! I have ____39_____ to lose weight and I am now less than 10 pounds from my final ____40____. I feel better than I have in years and I’m enjoying life much more!

We have two daughters: Kristen is seven years old and Kelly is four. Last Sunday evening, we invited some people home for dinner. I dressed them nicely for the party, and told them that their job was to join Mommy in answering the door when the bell rang. Mommy would introduce them to the guests, and then they would take the guests’ coats upstairs and put them on the bed in the second bedroom.
The guests arrived. I introduced my two daughters to each of them. The adults were nice and kind and said how lucky we were to have such good kids.
Each of the guests made a particular fuss over Kelly, the younger one, admiring her dress, her hair and her smile. They said she was a remarkable girl to be carrying coats upstairs at her age.
I thought to myself that we adults usually make a big “to do” over the younger one because she’s the one who seems more easily hurt. We do it with the best of intentions.
But we seldom think of how it might affect the other child. I was a little worried that Kristen would feel she was being outshined. I was about to serve dinner when I realized that she had been missing for twenty minutes. I ran upstairs and found her in the bedroom, crying.
I said, “What are you doing, my dear?”
She turned to me with a sad expression and said, “Mommy, why don’t people like me the way they like my sister? Is it because I’m not pretty? Is that why they don’t say nice things about me as much?”
I tried to explain to her, kissing and hugging her to make her feel better.
Now, whenever I visit a friend’s home, I make it a point to speak to the elder child first.
【小题1】The underlined expression make a big to do over (paragraph 4) means _____.

I spent two months with an American family last year when I studied in America.
It is said, “The best house is in America, the best wife is in Japan, and the best food is in China.” So I took pride （自豪）and __21__ to __22__ “the best food” for my American family. Each day, regardless of my poor skill of cooking, I would do something in __23__ way: changing the dishes’ colour, the meat’s type or the soup’s style. （风味）Thus, my American friends could discover the __24__ of eating Chinese food. Because of my “__25__” job, I was often rewarded （奖励） by their __26__ of appreciation （感激）such as “very delicious”, “excellent”, etc.
But the joke was here: Yesterday, I cooked Sichuan style __27__ for dinner. I was __28__ at my achievement.（成就）
When all the family members arrived at the table, they first looked __29__ at the fish, then looked at me. “Why do all the fish have their __30__?” they asked, “It’s terrible!”
Terrible or beautiful? I don’t know. But I __31_ know that fish heads are delicious. The __32__ is the best part of fish; in __33__ only the respectable （受敬重的）guest can have the special honour of __34__ it.
Another __35__ thing is: The American friends often said to me “__36__” as they __37__ fruits or other things. According to Chinese tradition I would simply smile in answer to their kindness __38__ actually helping myself to any of the food. __39__, I said “help yourself” to them whenever I brought home fruits. Dear me, no matter how much or how often I brought home food, as long as it was nice to their taste, they __40__ hesitated （犹豫）to use their hands to “help themselves” until all was finished

Driving to a store after a busy day at work, I saw a man standing near the store holding a sign that said, “Will work for food.” I knew at that moment that I was going into the store and   36  him something to eat.
As I   37   the car park, I saw in my car mirror a lady come out from a hairdresser’s and 38  the man. I thought she must be going to give him some   39   or something to help him out. In the store I was   40  to get the things I needed and also the chicken dinner and a soda that I wanted to give the man outside. I hurried out to my car and   41   that I was going to be able to hopefully help this man.
When I drove out of the car park, I couldn’t see the   42 . As I turned the corner I saw the man sitting in a   43  area away from the hairdresser’s and still   44  up the sign. I immediately  45  over and gave the man the dinner and soda and said, “  46  this will get you through today.” He looked at me and said, “Thank you so much!”
As I got back into my car, I looked in the   47   and saw the man swallowing the dinner like he hadn’t eaten for days.
I was so   48  that I was able to help him and at the same time I was so sad that the woman from the hairdresser’s,   49   , had asked the man   50   from her shop. It’s sad to say that   51  I live in a small city where homeless is not as   52   as in larger cities, people are uncomfortable with these people in  53 . All they need to do is lend a helping hand 54  and it could make a huge   55  in their lives

【小题19】

A．at times B．at the time C．at one time D．at a time

【小题20】

A．difference B．mistake C．decision D．living

Do you enjoy reading? Do you read newspapers or magazines? Chances are, if you do any of these activities, your pre-school child is on his way to becoming a reader.
The process of learning to read is complex, and one of the most important things to know is that parents can help their children learn to read. As children have conversations with adults, they hear both new and familiar words and their vocabulary grows.
There are many opportunities for adults and children to talk together, such as when riding in the car or in a bus, doing housework like fixing dinner, or bathing and getting ready for bed. A major part of conversation is listening. When children talk, adults listen and respond. Then children listen and respond, and so the flow of conversation happens.
Have you watched you pre-school child pretend to read to his younger sisters or brothers? Have you read his favorite story over and over? These experiences tell children that reading is fun. And when things are fun and they are repeated, your child will see letters. He begins to connect them to familiar words, especially the letters that make up his name. A natural next step for him to take is to write the letters.
When children see parents make a grocery list, they want to use a pencil and paper to make their own list. To encourage these beginning writing activities, have pencils, markers, crayons and scrap paper within your children’s reach.
The more children get connected with talking, listening, reading and writing, the easier it is for them to become active readers. While you as a parent have a big influence on these early behaviors, it is important to remember that opportunities for literacy experiences happen when you and your child share in the basic routines（日常生活）of everyday life.
【小题1】The third paragraph tells us that parents can talk with their children__________.