Here's to the class of '05

I went to a graduation party for a girl who babysat for me, two summers ago. She watched the kids for me 3 days a week while I was at work. They loved her.

It's no surprise to me that she was salutatorian of her class. She's smart, and works hard. When she watched my kids, they got up, made their beds right after breakfast, and the house was always cleaned up when I got home. They did dishes, worked on a little workbook stuff now and then, and just generally kept busy doing useful things. I would have her work for me every summer, but she knew even then she wanted to be a pharmacist, and she works in the local pharmacy while she gets ready to go to college for the same this fall.

It was miserably hot here today - at least 95. Blah!!! We finally left the party around 7 and went to my inlaw's house which is very close by. My daughter was making such a big production about how "I'm too scared" to jump into the pool that after 15 minutes of "I'm going to jump I'm about to jump I can't do it" I finally got disgusted with the whole thing and pushed her in. Yes I did. What?? Mr. C was right there and it was NOT the deep end.

I'd love to say she happily jumped in over and over after that.... hah! I know that by the end of summer she will though.

It occurred to me recently that my daughter is not going to wear the same school uniform anymore. The little girls wear a little jumper over a blouse, and the bigger girls wear a different kind of shirt, with a pleated plaid skirt. She's growing up so fast. The moodiness is starting (what's wrong? nothing...) One of the kindergarten teachers told B that she should be a teacher because many times at recess (after lunch) she would volunteer to go down to help supervise the kindergarteners at their recess. It's supposed to rotate through all of the class but most of the other girls just wanted to play dodgeball with ....the boys.

I am looking forward to her graduation and dreading it all at once. It is 8 years away but I know that I'll turn around and it will be here. I can only hope and dream that she will turn out as wonderful as the girl we celebrated with today. And so I will push her into the pool when I think she needs it, because I want her to learn how to take a chance and see exactly how much she can do.