I feel like we were just preparing for the first day of kindergarten, and somehow, June has already arrived. It looks as though our household will survive its inaugural year of school, and Will thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It took a while to get into the groove of those early mornings, but somehow we managed to escape without a single absence or even a tardy (and for anyone who knows me, you know that this had much more to do with my husband than with me). Will was fortunate to have an excellent teacher who not only taught the kids a great deal, but also seemed to genuinely care about each and every one of her 26 (yes 26!) Students. What the budgets have done to class sizes will have to wait for another column.
Though I wrestled with the options of how to help out at the school and in his class, it turned out to be a wise decision to leave the job of room mom to others. I enjoyed reading to Will’s class once a month in the library, and I even got a kick out of helping out with Roots ‘n Shoots, the class gardening group. But a crafty gal I am not, and I just don’t seem to have that natural ability with other kids that many other parents have. It was fascinating, however, to watch all of my little boy’s classmates evolve throughout the year though, and now they can actually read to me!
Now it’s on to summer, our first without our year-round preschool. There is a dizzying array of summer activities for school-aged children these days, far more than when we were kids. Back then, at least in my world, the options were: 1. Go to the pool. 2. Play outside. 3. Watch TV (not nearly so taboo back then). 4. Repeat. The boys will surely enjoy a break from the structured routine of the school year, although there are arguments to be made that getting them out of that routine will make September a million times harder than it needs to be. I think I’ll take my chances.
June is also, of course, the month for Father’s Day, and RFM will be celebrating with dads all over town on Sunday, June 10, at Ukrop Park and Collegiate Aquatics Center in Chesterfield. There will be totally free fun for all ages, and don’t forget your towels and bathing suits – the new pool is fabulous and all yours for the afternoon!
I’ll be in on a plan to help Will and Scott celebrate their father, but I’ll also be missing my own dad on Father’s Day. He lives 3,000 miles away from us in his retirement, but oh how I wish my boys had more chances to be around him. He is the smartest person I will ever know, fantastically irreverent, witty to a fault, and at almost 80, still an amazing singer of opera, folk, and anything else he can pair with his beloved ukulele.
Happy Father’s Day, to you, D.O.D. (his signature signature, aka dear old dad) and to all of the RFM dads out there. We moms couldn’t do it all without you!!
