When The Third Child Goes to Kindergarten

I often wondered what it would be like when this 3rd baby of mine went off to kindergarten.

The one who was so smothered by his 2 close-in-age older siblings that big sister even climbed right into his pack-n-play to put his pacifier back in . . .

The one who took "getting into stuff" to a whole new level by literally crawling into the kitchen cabinets . . .

The one who could sometimes be found walking around the backyard with a bucket on his head . . .

The one who had his crib filled with tons of random stuff by his older brother and sister one day during naptime . . .

The one who was somehow always dirty, even 5 minutes after a bath and clean clothes . . .  

And not just a little dirty, check out those pants. . . 

The one who could be found entertaining himself in all sorts of crazy places . . .

 The one who swept the backyard in only his diaper . . .

That child from all those pictures went off to kindergarten this school year and now, several months into it, he's doing really well, truly he is, but the one message I've been constantly lecturing is for him to take kindergarten seriously.  "It's not just about having fun, it is your job."  I've said several times.  

Only recently did it hit me, the irony.  One of the things I love most about my 3rd child is his ability not to take life too seriously, to not only jump into the puddle with both feet, but go ahead and shower in it, too.

I sit with that child as he starts his homework packet and on the line in the middle of the cover page where it says "name", he correctly prints the letters in his name but when he gets to the "d" in the middle he makes the stick extend all the way from the middle of the paper up to the very top edge.  He laughs and laughs at the silliness of his "d".  His sister, 20 months older, is appalled and tells him the "d" is wrong and he needs to erase it right away.  He refuses and she is truly distressed.  "It is not right!"  "You are going to fail!  You're going to get a zero!" she tells him.  I really couldn't help but laugh with my 3rd child.  It was just a cover page and the "d" did look funny.  I stared at it and thought, "Yup, this is what happens when the 3rd child goes to kindergarten."

And you know what?  He didn't fail that homework packet, got a check plus plus smiley face, as a matter of fact!

(with all other letters hidden, I give you the "d")

Find more Wordful Wednesday here.