What Time Reveals as It Passes

Today Annie graduated from Time for Tots (preschool).  It’s official: she is no longer a tot.  She’s a kindergartner. It is very hard to let the littlest grow.  Elisabeth said she can tell I am having trouble letting Annie grow up because I am still folding some of Annie’s laundry.  And she is FOUR YEARS OLD, for crying out loud.  To think I am still folding the tricky garments!

I can’t believe Annie could be a toddler much less a kindergartner.  I remember still swaddling her (with a queen sized bedsheet) and nursing her every three hours when she was fifteen months old, while her face just got wider and wider.  I think if Dan hadn’t surprised me with a trip, forcing me to wean her, her face might have popped.  But, if I’d had my way I would have kept her tightly bundled up like a big glow worm.  Alas, she came un-swaddled.  Now see what has happened?  Kindergarten.

And it’s not just Annie.  Miss P is seven, and in the words of Annie, “Miss P is a BEAST at musical chairs.” She is also widely known for her piñata skills.  While Elisabeth and Annie bemoan their lack of success in this particular area they declare, “Miss P gets A LOT of candy at a piñata.”  Which she does.

It’s true, Miss P likes candy, but she does not like eating it by herself.  Or doing anything else by herself, for that matter.  She has been known to set up the whole SORRY game in the bathroom and gather all the children (including Esme from next door) so she would have company while going “number two”.  In addition to candy acquisition, Miss P has a penchant for Elisabeth watching.

Elisabeth presides over Miss P, Annie, and Esme (from next door) like a little Queen Victoria with her ladies in waiting.  The three girls hover as close as they can to Elisabeth just in case she puts down her book and decides to let them watch her play or draw.  It is nice for her to have a gaggle of little ladies following her around, agreeing with whatever she says, giggling if makes a witty comment.  On her Birthday, we took turns saying something nice about Elisabeth.  The three little girls agreed, “She is so kind to us.  She lets us watch her!” What more could ladies in waiting wish for.

Charlie, at age nine, is working very hard, on whatever he is working on.  Last night I came down to tell him it was time for bed and he was frantically running in tiny circles, because he had not met his goal of steps for the day as measured by his pedometer.  He is very serious at school, and very studious.  Mrs. Gregg said he only lost control once this year.  He was looking through a microscope at a crystal and shouted, “This is AWESOME!” Who can blame him? Could you stay calm under those circumstances?  I reminded Mrs. Gregg that six years ago I called her to come take a professional look at Charlie, because his preschool teacher thought he might have special needs, due to his refusal to sing songs with hand motions during circle time.  At the time, Mrs. Gregg thought he might not find the hand motions challenging enough. We are thinking she was right.

“It’s funny,” Mrs. Gregg said remembering my concern about Charlie’s abilities, “What time reveals as it passes.”

Charlie has been writing poetry lately.  Sometimes, for a real good time, he writes poetry with his calligraphy pen.  He has written acrostics for the girls.  Annie’s included “Ant-like” and “Nimble”. He has written a whole collection of poems about popcorn, and also the Minnesota Vikings.  But I will leave you with my personal favorite: “Hooray, It’s May”.

Hooray It’s May

Among the joy and parties of May

there is beauty

the flowers, grass, trees,

the best month.

School’s almost over.

The kids say,

“Hooray! Hooray! It’s May.”