Not a baby anymore

Suzanne is officially a school girl. At 9:15 a.m. on Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri she gets on the bus to go to Hathaway Elementary Preschool. At 12:40 p.m. she comes home. So, for 3 hours I can do stuff. Get a pedicure, go shopping, read a book. I haven't actually done any of those things, but I could...I suppose.

In fact, during Suzanne's first 4 days, I went to the dentist twice, grabbed breakfast with a friend, and had one morning to myself. That was a little weird because Suzanne is either with me, with Greg, or a family member. To have her be with little kids who are (there's no way to say this gracefully) not like her is strange. She has been going to the PRIDE Center for 2 years, but that is a pre-preschool for kids like her. At PRIDE the playing field is even and all kids are nurtured, protected, and given the opportunity to grow by teams of specially-trained, caring professionals. I can see the benefit of her being in a regular school, but it's hard to not want to keep her in a protected environment. She's my baby, after all...

On the bright side (it's all bright for Suzanne), she loves the bus. She thinks the bus is the best part of the day. Since she is so small, I had them put a car seat in for her. She gets to sit right up front and high enough to see out of the window. The bus drivers can't help but smile when they see her dash for the bus door--she likes to be first. The neighbor girl, Karissa, goes to the same preschool and they are so cute together. To give you an idea of how small Suzanne is, she and Karissa have birthdays only 2 weeks apart. Karissa is 3 inches taller. I've got a beanstalk and a peanut for kids...

If you are interested in why we have Suzanne so deeply entrenched on the education trail, click on this link... Karen Gaffney Foundation She is Suzanne's role model and a great example of why parents should be their child's best advocate. We believe so fiercely in this young woman's purpose that we invited her to speak at the Camas-Washougal Rotary Club and then meet the superintendent of Washougal Schools. I'm a matchmaker at heart!

Now, all we have to do is get Suzanne to keep her shoes on while she's in the bus. I've got to find a shoe that she can't take off. Any suggestions?