The Third Child

When my firstborn was in pre-K, he pretty much never brought home any artwork. I'd wait outside his classroom to pick him up and admire all the adorable creations hanging on the line above so many of the other children's names, but by my son's name? Nothing.

He was too busy doing all the other centers in the classroom and skipped the art center, every day.

I'd prod and question him. "You didn't want to make a pumpkin picture?" "Maybe tomorrow you'll make something." "Daddy would be so excited to see something you made at school!"

Then 2 years later came my daughter into the same pre-K program and she pretty much camped out in the craft station for the entire 3 hour school day apparently, and brought home the following amount of creations EVERY DAY!
And she didn't want to part with any of them. They were all priceless keepsakes!

My house was so full of construction paper treasures and sequins that fell off and glitter and feathers and macaroni necklaces. I'd have to stage elaborate stealth operations to be able to throw away secret piles I'd squirreled away long enough that she forgot about them.

And now 2 years after my daughter's pre-K year, my youngest son is in the same pre-K program. And like his brother, he prefers not to do the craft activities, but instead builds zoos and museums and towers out of the blocks every day and fills his shoes up with massive quantities of sand on the playground.

But, my little 3rd child is blessed to have a momma with the perspective that only multiple children can bring. He gets no secretly judgmental comments from me about the lack of creations. I stand outside his classroom and smile at the other children's piles of artwork compared to the empty space beside his name. And, truthfully, I really am kind of glad. Yay! Nothing to take home! No wet paint or shaving cream getting all over our clothes and the car during the transport home! No figuring out how to display or store or trash the artwork!!!

And we all marvel at the affects of birth order on personality!

Find more Finer Things Friday.