My youngest daughter really loves princesses. She's 2. She was a princess for Halloween and life, right now, is all things princess. Books, songs, dress-up, games of pretend... she wears sparkly red shoes every day and her old crocs with Dora on them have been left for dead in the coat closet for months.
One of our Princess habits has become a progressive journey through the viewing of all Disney princess movies. And we even have one DVD that has a variety of Princess songs and "videos" on it. That is the one that we all sing loudly to and dance around ballroom style with each other to. I mean, not me. Everyone else. Of course.
This past weekend everyone was sick and we stayed home and viewed the original Snow White. For information age kids it's less than captivating (like the credits at the beginning had them bored) although they were somewhat fascinated by the old fashioned animation and the evil witch. In any case... Snow White and the prince sing this song in the beginning called "one love". It's at a wishing well. And it got me thinking a bit about school. I know, just go with it. Minds work in mysterious ways.
So I've been wondering on this one love topic... is there one school per family or one school per person? Having four kids it is confessedly inconvenient to consider the later. That is, in my case, four thanksgiving feasts, four gift-wrapping fundraisers, four (gasp) school auctions, four book fairs. Seems extreme, I know. But here's the thing. I can't figure out a way around it.
You see, I have identified a lovely small school for my ailing second child. GASP. It's a Friends School and, as they say on their voice mail "brining forward 300 years of Quaker education". It's very groovy, loving, safe, quiet, small... My guy would be the 15th kid in with 2 full teachers. He spent the day there and felt peaceful and happy and secure in a way that he just doesn't with his current teacher. And his school will not change his class even though every administrator there knows it's an problem and that it's not a good fit or a healthy environment for him. So... even his current principal seems to think it's clearly the right move for him.
His big sisters school could be great for him to return to also, by the way - he has lots of friends and loves it there but alas, no space in his grade. Oddly, he seems to have lost his passion to go back too. He asked constantly for that school but recently his pleading has changed. It is now about a calm and peaceful school, I don't think he cares which school it is. I am at once both proud and terrified that he can so simply state his needs. I'm afraid it's my responsibility to meet those needs, to help him put as much as he can into his head as safely and possible.
At this stage in the game I can't help but think that things happen for a reason. Spaces seem to miraculously open when and where they are needed. Snow White seems to miraculously fall in love with a prince at a random wishing well while wearing rags and wooden clogs. Go figure, things seem random but are they?
And then there's this... 40 extra minutes of driving. One more tuition. One more fundraiser. One more set of homework norms. One more set of after school activities. One more time moving music lessons around. And one much happier and healthier little boy.
So, I'm in. One love per person. One school per person. I can take a hint. If only my car got better gas mileage...
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