Accomplishments At The Speed of Light

My kids aren't babies anymore. They aren't toddlers or preschoolers. They're kids. Just regular kids stuck in the blurry ages between circle time and driving. And while I don't stay up all night with a baby or spend all of my time chasing a two year old around, these years carry a different kind of parental exhaustion. And if you aren't careful you can miss the sweet milestones in the speed of it.

These days seem to be moving faster than when my kids were little. I swear a month goes by in a weeks time. It's harder to capture the big moments because they happen so fast. With three kids things happen one right after the other. In one week we can move in and out of ten or so different places and activities; school, dance, art, piano, football, soccer, clubs, and more. I try to limit their activities, but it's still a whirlwind of a life. A whirlwind that comes to an abrupt stop on June 10. That's the last day of school when summer begins and the extracurriculars take a break. That means that May is a rush of trophies, recitals, tournaments, and tests. Our living room bears the brunt of it. There are pom-poms and tribal masks, trophies and tap shoes just randomly thrown into the usually mix of May mess. My bedroom also sees its share. That's where I store costumes and uniforms, frame art for the studio Gallery Show, and make books for the school. Yesterday I tripped over a pile that contained a mouth guard and cleats, a plaster giraffe and zebra, a pile of books, and a box of duct tape and fabric. Really.

I have two days before the rush of the last week of school hits. So I wanted to sit down and share what happened this month. Yes, the entire month. There is so much to share from the last few weeks. If I don't write it down, all of the sweet milestones and moments will be lost to the exhaustion of the age. And that's just completely unacceptable. They work hard for these moments and my heart swells with pride at their accomplishments.

First there was the fourth grade production of School House Rock. During the song Interplanetary Janet Chris was Pluto. He held a sign that said, "who's calling me a dwarf?!" which is funny because if you look closely you'll see that he's the tallest kids in the fourth grade. Even though it was the last thing in the universe he wanted to be doing (exaggerated like a 10 year old) he did a really great job and even smiled a little.

Then there was the science fair. This was something he felt much more comfortable doing. He studied the effects of food coloring on carnations and got a 100%/A. On top of that, his teacher is keeping his presentation to show next year's class as an example of how to do it right. That made the fact that he turned my entire kitchen into a flower covered science lab worth it.


After that there was Sicily's soccer tournament. Even though she showed a strong disinterest in soccer at first, her true competitive spirit came out toward the end. She ended up liking it and playing really well. She even wants to play again in the fall. I told you, she's a feisty little sprite, this one.


And just to prove that she can't be pegged, she easily kicked off her cleats and slipped on tap shoes to rehearse for the end of the year recital. Two trophies in two weeks. As if this child needed any more of an ego boost. She sleeps with them sometimes. Pure feisty mess I tell you.

Now throw football into the mix. Flag football to be specific. Flag football in neon yellow cleats. That has all-star written all over it. This was his first season. He really enjoyed it and played really well. Now he's asking to play tackle in the fall. Oh my. Is my baby really about to play tackle football? With his hair, that has ladies man written all over it.

Music, science, football, and art. He's a regular renaissance man. And he's not just any artist. Now he can say he's a performance artist. This year we had some of our artists perform live during the dance recital. He drew a cityscape while girls tapped around him to New York, New York by Sinatra. *Swoon* Seriously people with his cool, calm personality added into the mix I'm going to have to hide him away in a few years!

The recital and gallery show rounded up the to-do list for May. And it was wonderful. As a teacher, I have to say this was our best show ever. As a mom, I have to say my babies performed beautifully. My little ballerina was perfect in her big black tutu. And all three of my artists got to shine through their work. Especially my Analiese.

She's naturally creative and artistic. She's in piano lessons, has taken drama, and, of course, art. She didn't have much of a stage for her talents this year. She didn't have a piano recital and there weren't enough kids signed up to do a play this year. She goes to all of her brother's and sister's activities and cheers them on. She's got a good heart that does it willingly. But she needs a stage too. She needs to be cheered on. So having her artwork on display was her moment. That's why I love the gallery show. It's a time for those kids who usually shy away from the mainstream spotlight to shine. And my baby shines bright.

I'm so proud of all of them. For all they have accomplished this year. For all they have left to do in the coming year. They're my babies. I love them more than life.