Since I finally (FINALLY!) got around to making my family a decent, nutritious, oven-baked dinner tonight (honey mustard chicken, brown rice, steamed broccoli and carrots) AND since I can finally (FINALLY!) see my kitchen counters for the first time this MONTH (it's the last day of June, people, and I'm not kidding), I will NOW post about the last day of school, which happened the first week of this month, but let's just celebrate the fact that this post is happening at all. Was that a run-on sentence?
Anyway…
Caleb had the BEST year of Kindergarten. Not only was his teacher a girl that I used to live next door too (still reeling from that 10 months later), she was the sweetest and most loving Kindergarten teacher EVER. On the last day of school she played a slide show of her class to music and I stood in the back weeping (I had to steal a paper towel from the play kitchen!). I was sad because I love Kindergarten…where else can you dress up like frogs or decorate your classroom like a barn! But I was also SO sad to have to say goodbye to Mrs. Ann Marie Tennison as Caleb's teacher. She is so devoted and hard-working. She was creative and fun. She laughed a lot and gave lots of hugs. It was the perfect experience for my Caleb. She would take pictures with her IPhone and send them to us via e-mail during the day saying things like "Aren't your children precious?" or "Look how much fun we're having today." Priceless! She and I cried when we hugged goodbye. What a year!
Many of you might remember what a nightmare 2nd grade was for Jacob…and us.
3rd grade could not have been any more different. Jacob's teacher, Mrs. Rutter, was what I dream about for my children! I expected her to sprout angel's wings at any moment. She was even, calm, collected. She LOVED the children in her class. She recognized their strengths and tried to understand their weaknesses. She was able to give undivided attention to a child while having a group of five vying for her attention. She was creative and smart and delightful. And Jacob loved her…respected her mostly and wanted to please her. He certainly wasn't perfect for her…she would call and visit with me about his quircks and struggles. His impatience (and borderline disrespect sometimes) for the girls in the class. His tendency to ignore instruction because he thinks he already knows! His tendency to bury his nose in a book and ignore the outside world. We often brainstormed together about ways to help him with those things. And I loved the gentle way she approached me about him…always complimenting him first. She told me that she wrote in her personal notes that she thought Jacob would one day be President of the United States. She was sure of it – and wanted to have a record of it! She saw in him a tremendous capacity for leadership but also cautioned him that he would have to have compassion along with it if he was to be successful. Derek and I are so thankful for Melanie Rutter…for her patience, her kindness, her professionalism, her teaching style and her love for our son. It really was a great year.
*Big Deep Sigh* – Is it too much to ask that every year be this good?! I'll just relish it for what it was, and pray hard for a similar year next year.
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