School days, school days- here they are again! This year, both girls are fortunate to attend the Child Development Lab on campus at OSU. We LOVE the lab and are so impressed with what they do to educate and inspire children.
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| My gorgeous Pre-K girl.. |
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New Backpack-   I really have mixed feelings this year- I am so excited for them to learn and love school, yet I am sick about how fast they are growing up. My friend Angie sent me something that sums it up perfectly- from Jack and the Beanstalk- adapted to me, Laney & Haley... Once upon a time there were little girls named Laney and Haley who were about to climb their very first beanstalk. They had fresh haircuts and a brand-new book bag. Even though their friends in the neighborhood had climbed this same beanstalk almost every day last year, this was Laney & Haley's first day and they were a little nervous. So was their mother. Early in the morning she brought them to the foot of the beanstalk. She talked encouragingly to them about all the fun they would have that day and how nice his giant would be. She reassured them that she would be back to pick them up at the end of the day. For a moment they stood together, silently holding hands, gazing up at the beanstalk. To the girls, it seemed much bigger than it had when their mother had pointed it out on the way to the store last week. Their mother thought it looked big, too. She swallowed. Maybe she should have held them out a year... Laney & Haley'ss mother straightened their shirtsone last time, patted their shoulders and smiled down at them. She promised to stay and wave while they started climbing. Laney & Haley didn't say a word. They walked forward, grabbed a low-growing stem and slowly pulled themselves up to the first leaf. They balanced there for a moment and then climbed more eagerly to the second leaf, then to the third and soon they had vanished into a high tangle of leaves and stems with never a backward glance at their mother. She stood alone at the bottom of the beanstalk, gazing up at the spot where the girls had disappeared. There was no rustle, no movement, no sound to indicate that they were anywhere inside. "Sometimes," she thought, "it's harder to be the one who waves good-bye than it is to be the one who climbs the beanstalk." She wondered how the girlswould do. Would they miss her? How would they behave? She fought down an urge to spring up the stalk after the girls and maybe duck behind a bean to take a peek at how they were doing. "I'd better not. What if they saw me?" She knew they were really old enough to handle this on his own. She reminded herself that, after all this was thought to be an excellent beanstalk and that everyone said their giant was not only kind but had outstanding qualifications. "It's not so much that I'm worried about them," she thought, rubbing the back of her neck. "It's just that they're growing up and I'm going to miss them." Laney & Haleys mother turned to leave. "Laney & Haley are going to have lots of bigger beanstalks to climb in their life," she told herself. "Today's the day they start practicing for them... And today's the day I start practicing something too: cheering them on and waving good-bye." How awesome is that story? The 2011-2012 School year at the CDL is the first of so many beanstalks- and I am SO lucky to be the one who gets to cheer them on, and give them wings to fly. I was so anxious to pick them up after school and hear about their day... |
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They loved it and were so happy to see each other and me! |
