Kindergarten Besties

Oh those silly kids. For almost the entire school year I've been bringing home a spare kid each day and dropping him in his driveway on our way home. The conversations from the cheap seats never cease to entertain. Topics range from school-related activities to weekend plans and toilets (always toilets) to horrid knock-knock jokes.

For weeks I've been hearing "Next time guys, we have to be way funnier. Way, waaaaaay funnier."
And I've heard it all.
"Knock knock"
"Who's there?"
"Interrupting cow"
"Interrupting co...
"Moo"

"What did the momma tomato say to the kid tomato?"
"ketchup"
(Because they were going for a walk and the kid was falling behind...)
That one took Ella about a month to finally "get" when she saw it on her own milk carton at lunch. Finally.

"How do you make a witch itch?...Take away the w!!!"
**Chirp. Chirp.**
(Again, I had to explain that one for a few weeks)

So yesterday they chatted about being the teacher and the teachers being the students.

Hilarity, my friends. Hilarity.

What really gave me a bit of the giggles was when they decided they would not let them have class everyday but make them take a field trip every. single. day.
Like a field trip is a punishment?
"So their legs would get tired too."
Oh yes, walking the zoo for a day is horrid.

So as I reflect on this year of Kindergarten convo-induced giggles I wonder how things will be now that they are headed on to 1st grade. They've discussed the matter at length, with deep-seeded concerns over the three of them losing each other. Or two of them being together and one being left out. Because, you see, next year they may not all be in the same class.

Ella-Barrett-Emma - Last week of Kindergarten - May 2015

The Three Amigos. B-E-E. Triple Threat. Barrett-Emma-Ella. Whatever you call them, call them tight. This trio seems to have clicked and it didn't take long. So now after a full school year of being a great group of friends they want to plan summer get-togethers. Sleepovers. Backyard parties and to be friends for all of life. To never forget each other.

So during their whole 70 days off from school for the summer I see playgrounds and backyards and tents and firepits and sleepovers in their future. Because each day, at the end of the day, I see hugs and loves and "goodbye's" and "see you tomorrow's" that are genuine and true. I see friends that want to be forever friends. And I want to help foster those relationships and help them grow. Because these kids are good kids. Their parents are good people. They are the kinds of kids I want my baby girl hanging with. Learning from. Being herself with. Because they are accepting of each other just the way they are.

I grew up in a town where you were always in the same class with the same people unless someone moved away or was new to town. My choices for friends were pretty limited. My husband grew up in Omaha and has had the same core group of friends since middle school. Middle school, ya'll. In a town this size??? I'm amazed.

Then I realized why. Do you know who my mother-in-law celebrates her birthdays with? The moms of those friends. Those relationships thrived not only because those kids enjoyed each other, but their parents did as well. They spent time together, they helped cultivate and then tended to those relationships. Our kids, at this age, don't have ample opportunity to get together with their friends until a parent organizes and transports. I've been slacking in this department for the last year. I was tired. I was tired of calling and asking and planning and transporting and scheduling and cleaning up and refereeing and doing. I was tired.

Now they've reached an age where there is a lot less action needed on my part. Ask, plan, transport. Pretty simple. Maybe feed a kid or two here and there. Easy-peasy. So this summer that's what I'll do. I'll ask and plan and transport. I'll supervise. And referee when necessary. I'll love and hug and feed and entertain. I'll do what needs to be done to keep these kids together this summer.

I want Ella and her friends to remember this as the greatest summer ever... until the next summer. The summer when they could get together with friends and continue to feed those friendships, hoping they will continue to bloom in the fall and winter when new friends enter and another school year might separate them. And if during the course of time she decides those relationships aren't the best for her it will be her decision, not mine. It won't be my fault that B-E-E doesn't exist anymore. I will have done what I could to foster and nurture those relationships she has found so easy and fulfilling and enduring this year.

Kindergarten is just the start and I know that next year there will be new friends. Next year there will be more discoveries and better jokes and deeper backseat conversations during carpool. Next year there will be 1st graders in my van. Next year they'll learn more about who they are and who their friends are. They'll grow into bigger kids and stronger individuals. They'll move forward and I'll be there to help maintain the friendships they value and cherish.

So here's to a wildly successful Kindergarten year full of backseat conversations that fill the entertainment quota for my afternoons. Here's to next year's 1st grade backseat conversations.

Knock, Knock
Who's there?
Boo!
Boo hoo?
Don't cry... it's just a knock-knock joke!

Giving Kids Creative License

I have a couple of creative types in my house.

Big Sister E is a true creative spirit turning anything into something. Tonight she interrupted my workout to let me know she could make water change color just by saying a magic word. What she'd done was paint the outside of a can, then gave her brother the job of turning on the water and plugging the drain while she ran the painted can under water. Voila! Purple water. Creative. Capital C.

Little Brother C is creative in the "I'm going to find a way to tinker with this to get it to do what I want" kind of way. Last week he was up on the playset with a jump rope and laundry basket. He came in asking for carrots. His plan? A bunny trap. Set the carrots on the ground, hide in the playset, attach the basket to the jump rope and lower it (silently) onto the unsuspecting rabbit as it noshed on the carrot buffet.

When these to minds get together, watch out world, something special is coming.

Recently I've been thinking about how much time I spend entertaining my kids. And the verdict? Well, not so much. Some may say I'm a lazy parent for not engaging in a multitude of activities with my kids. My response? I don't think they need it! Sure, they ask me to play tag, draw a picture, play a game, read a book, and the usual gamut of kid-type requests, and most often I am good with that. But sometimes, "I am disinclined to acquiesce to your request". (Thank you, Pirates of the Caribbean.) And they usually deal with it just fine. Most often, they don't ask for much in the Requires Entertainment department. They like to just make things up and accessorize with all of their stuff. Common activities include "Fluffy Fluff" (he's a puppy, she's the owner), picture-making and building bird-watching huts.

A few days ago they asked to play on the front steps. Not my first choice for a play location, but since I was in the general vicinity and could offer sufficient supervision I gave them the go-ahead. When I went outside to check on them this is what I found...

 Yup, you guessed it. That's a roly-poly house, ya'll! Complete with a play area and dandelion accents!

Dad gets in on the creativity action much more often than I do. He seems to have that extra store of energy specifically for entertaining kids that I just don't have in the evening. Barbies were the activity of choice this night and boy did those boys have fun!

Let me assure you, it was very manly fun. Full of battles and motorcycles and stunts!

He even made them an authentic pirate treasure chest, complete with false bottom for hiding treasure. Last summer they decided on their pirate names. This year Captain One Sock and Captain Butterfly are even more authentic.


Rainy days? They wanted to go play on a rainy Saturday a week or so ago. "Why not?" became my philosophy for the moment and I let them go...




And they had a great time! I didn't ever ask the thought-process behind taking the toy box lid, Hotwheels storage box, bandana and straw hat outside, but this is what they came up with...

a ship?
a pirate ship?
a pirate ship with bad guys and the cracken ready to attack?

Your guess is as good as mine, my friend. As good as mine.

This one. She gets all sorts of silly sometimes. Rain, bubbles and alone time and she's golden, let me tell you! She was singing and dancing and blowing bubbles and having a grand old time! 

What's the point of all this rambling? Well, I've noticed that sometimes kids don't need constant entertainment. No TV, no electronic games, no planned activities. Just time to play. Be creative. It seems that many of my friends that fall into my decade for age had similar experiences as children. We were allowed to make our own fun. Play in the dirt, splash in the puddles, imagine new worlds and pretend we were anything we wanted to be. Swings were rocket ships. Laundry baskets were bunny traps.

This last New Year's Eve we celebrated with a few other couples and all the accompanying offspring. Instead of planning out their evening's activities down to the minute, we let them enjoy each others company. There was a school full of students and teachers. Games of basketball and tag. Screaming, giggling, fighting and fun. Random, spontaneous, creative and imaginative fun. And they loved every second.

With the decline of importance being placed on the arts in our school systems I find it to be more necessary than ever to encourage authentic creativity at home. I'm so thankful E goes to a school where art and music are valued. Where theater club starts at grade four. Where creative licenses are issued to students on a daily basis. 

Last month I decided to undertake a major project in our storage room. I'm creating an art room for E to feel free to create as she pleases. While progress has been slow recently I know that once summer arrives I'll have the time to dedicate and the help I need from her to get it completed to her liking. A place for her. A room of her own with paints and crayons and markers and glue. Glitter and paper and stickers. Music and floors to spill on guilt-free. Walls to display her work and be proud of her accomplishments. 

I want to encourage the kids to put their creative licenses to full use. To realize their full potential and not be afraid of judgement by the outside world. To create and share and be authentic. To know that their original ideas are valued. 

My challenge to you is to turn off the tv, the electronics, the planned activities and encourage your kids to make their own fun for a week. I know that when summer break arrives my kids won't be able to get the back door open fast enough each morning to launch themselves straight into their own world. A world of endless possibilities limited only by their boundless imaginations. 

How will you encourage your child's use of his or her creative license?