school!

dear boys,

to preserve my sanity, we decided you would go to school the last week before Christmas holidays.  we rushed around to get shots scheduled and evaluations finished and registration completed.  the result?  you weren't crazy about the idea...until you came home the first day.  you LOVE school!

december 17 was your first day of school.  i walked you guys to your classrooms and you were so happy and excited you barely had time to turn and wave goodbye!  when i picked you up, all your teachers said you did so incredibly well.  you were all very obedient, very good listeners, and you were so friendly to your classmates.  that night you were all so PERFECTLY behaved.  so happy, so thankful, so loving.  this school thing is a GOOD thing.  auntie leslie laughed and said, i guess we take school for granted.  american kids sometimes dread it, and you guys are so thankful!  when i think of the school you came from, i can understand why.  while TRS has a great school and wonderful teachers, it just will never quite be up to american standards.  that would be impossible.  you sit on benches you share with at least 1 or 2 other kids.  no textbooks.  no markers.  no crayons.  no colorful wall decorations or carpets or even electricity!  i think i know why american school is heaven for you.

on the second day, december 18, i got an email in the early afternoon.  nathan, your teacher mrs. neese had given you a big accelerated reading test.  she just wanted to see where you stood compared to other third graders.  well, she ran out of things to test you on because you ACED the reading tests.  like, scored PERFECT on the tests until she got to the end of third grade and she couldn't test you anymore.  so basically, you are the BEST reader in class and you are ahead of most kids your age!  i'm in awe.  dad and i were so proud of you!  we celebrated and danced and shouted and sang!  such a smart boy.

edwin, your teacher said you are the best listener.  that you sit very quietly in school.  she also said you already have SO many friends!  we told her your name edwin means "rich in friendship," and that was reaffirmation that your name is a perfect fit.

bennett, your teacher says you are very sweet.  the sweetest boy in your class!  i tell her to treasure that sweetness because that sweetness may merge with energy, excitedness, and sometimes inability to listen.  :)  she loves you, though, and you love her!

i am so grateful for Harpeth Valley Elementary.  SO grateful.

love, mom