Part Pirate/Part Caretaker

My son wishes he could be a pirate. Anything made of wood is fair game to become a sword or hook - rhythm sticks, train tracks, cooking spoons, twigs . . . the list could go on and on. "Arg!" is a common phrase you're likely to hear bellowed across the house for no good reason (that I know). This drives me absolutely crazy, especially when Little Sister gets too close to said pirate weapon and gets whacked. And then you'll hear ME holler "ARG!"

As we get closer to Kindergarten registration, I get more worried that we'll be sending a pirate off to school, not a good-natured, run-of-the-mill likable kid. Imagine what his teacher will think about US as parents when holds his classmates at pencil-point while warning them, "Back off, ye scurvy dog, or I shall make you walk the plank!"

No joke, that happened the other day when Little Sister tried to swipe his pirate puppet!

But then, when I least expect it (and most need it), Mr. Music's true nature shines through, and I know that he will be fine.

Yesterday was show-and-tell at preschool. His little friend forgot to bring her "e" item and was feeling sad. Without hesitation he said, "Don't worry! I'll take care of it for you." He found paper and colored pencils and proceeded to draw her a picture of an elephant so she'd have something to share.

The amazing thing about that little scenario is that it was totally unprompted and he did it in front of her father who was trying to problem-solve with her. Her dad was so impressed with Mr. Music that he had his wife be sure to share the story with me this morning. Last night at dinner we asked for a show-and-tell report, but all we heard was that his friend showed an elephant - with no details about how it was an elephant that HE drew for her.

While he totally saved the day for his friend, he was humble enough to just be satisfied with being a helper without tooting his own horn at home. In 4.5 years of parenting, it seems we have done SOMETHING right and I couldn't be more proud of him.

If this is the kid that goes to school, I think it will go just fine! Though having a pirate in class could keep things interesting for the teacher . . .

Oh - one more thing! If you haven't sent me your dog's bit of wisdom about running for my We Are Dogs Who Love to Run adventure, please be sure to do so by February 11th so I can compile the quotes to share with you all on Valentine's Day!