I just have to record a few things from my day today.
Curtis and Cece and I joined Phaedra at the kindergarten picnic today. The school is close enough to a nice park that they can walk the kids over for a picnic at the end of the year. Curtis was so excited when I told him we were going. I love when he is happy and excited; it always rubs off on me.
When we were driving to the park for the picnic, Curtis told me from the backseat, “Mom, you’re the best mom ever!” And then he continued to tell me how he chose me at the mommy and daddy store, and he chose daddy who is the best daddy. He also said that we chose him and Eleanor and Phaedra at the kid store. I had to ask him if we also chose Cecilia. He kind of laughed and said, “Oh, yes.” He said we chose them at the kid store with all the boys and girls lined up on the shelves. And we chose the best kids and not any others.
Curtis enjoyed eating lunch with the kids. He got to choose some chips, some type of cheesy Doritos. I had some classic potato chips. He was telling me how he had the best chips. I offered to let him taste one of my chips so he could be sure which chips were best, and I tasted one of his. After crunching the chip I gave him, he concluded, “Too salty. Mine are the best because my chips are orange.” It cracks me up how competitive he is about little things.
When the picnic was almost over, the teachers brought out the treats: fruit-by-the-foot and many various cookies. No one had to announce dessert. Word spread quickly, and the kids came flocking. Curtis came running with Phaedra and lined up with the kids. He got a fruit-by-the-foot and a small pack of Oreos. He happily went back for other cookies when teachers were distracted.
A little later, a parent brought out bottled waters for the kids. Curtis got in line for those, too. Luckily, even though there was a limited quantity of water bottles, they had enough to share with Curtis. He thinks it’s such a privilege to have his very own water bottle. He quickly went over to the teacher who was using a sharpie to write kids’ names on the bottles and asked her to please write his name. It was adorable.
Phaedra wanted to come home with me instead of walk back to school, so we hung around the park for a while after the other kids left until it was time to pick up Eleanor. Cecilia, who spent much of the time sleeping in the baby carrier or being spoon fed, finally got a chance to swing in the baby swing. I was so happy to experience seeing her swinging for the first time. It was her second time swinging, but I missed seeing her the first time because Grant took the kids to the park without me last Saturday. She had the biggest open-mouthed grin as I pushed her, and she giggled now and then. I loved every second of it!
Soon, I had to catch up with Curtis who had followed some other little boys onto the tennis courts. I tried to visit with some parents who were nearby when I noticed a scuffle starting between Curtis and another little boy his age. The other boy, Parker, I think, was trying to take Curtis’s water bottle, and Curtis was shouting, “It’s mine. It’s MINE!” I started to go around the fence to get to him, so I didn’t see what happened next, but things escalated so quickly that I ran back toward them even though I was still on the other side of the fence.
I started saying, “Hey! Hey! Hey!” to try to get their attention. All I saw in the end was poor Curtis, wet, screaming, and furious, shaking out his entire water bottle towards Parker (but getting hardly a drop on him). That got the attention of Parker’s parents, and we all went to find out what happened. As far as we could tell, Parker tried to grab Curtis’s water bottle, and when Curtis wouldn’t let him take it, Parker squeezed it and made it spray all over Curtis. The name on the water bottle confirmed it was Curtis’s.
Curtis was so distraught, to say the least. But Parker’s parents were proactive and immediately made him apologize. He (Parker) was pretty shaken up over the whole thing, too, and he cried when he said sorry. Curtis’s main concern was that he wanted another water bottle. Of course, they had all been packed up and taken away. All I could do was tell him I would get him a water bottle the next chance I got (couldn’t even tell him we had some at home because we don’t). Even though I wasn’t at all upset at Parker, I was so sad for Curtis.
We went back to the picnic tables so I could give him some hugs and talk him through the whole thing. He kept saying Parker was a bad boy. I told Curtis that he wasn’t a bad boy, he just made a bad choice, and it was our job to forgive him. After a bit, Curtis went back to the playground while I stayed at the table for a bit.
Phaedra was on the playground and quickly noticed Curtis’s drenched shirt. She asked him about it, and he told her the whole story. The next thing I know, Curtis came to me with a mostly full water bottle and told me Phaedra had given him her water bottle. He was so happy. I was even happier.
I told Phaedra how happy and impressed it made me that she gave her water to Curtis. She told me she knew it was what Jesus would want her to do. Phaedra can be my challenging child sometimes, but she can also be so caring and giving. She often will give something up if she knows it will make someone happy, and she is often my first child to offer up a solution when there is a disagreement and I ask for someone to be a peacemaker. I was so proud of my little girl today.
Some moms wanted pictures of the whole group. I tried to convince Curtis to stand on the sidelines with me, but he really wanted to go be with Phaedra. I decided it didn’t make much difference if he was in there, so he quickly wedged himself right next to her.
