Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Hey, who's the monkey here?

84 degrees, a sunny and gorgeous Sunday for going to the zoo with Nicole and Grandpa. She and I liked the monkeys best of all. The orangutans were most playful. They rolled themselves in sheets and climbed around and interacted with little kids on the other side of their glass compound.

This is a statue of the original Phil the Gorilla.  I used to visit him when I was Nicole's age. He has since passed away, but Phil was a famous resident at the St. Louis zoo. 

Happy St. Patrick's Day! There's no possible way you could have had as much fun today as my students. They played "inside" a rainbow of colored tinsel. They "swam" in it. 

The leprechaun left little green footprints and all of his treasure around the room. He even walked on our toilet tissue, the back of the toilet, and peed green! You should have heard the squeals of delight as the children scampered around the room discovering where the leprechaun had been (jumping on the trampoline) and what he left behind.
Sort of a bittersweet day, as this is my final St. Patrick's Day with students. One of my LASTS. 
 
I experienced another of my LASTS at the zoo. We were in the sea lion arena waiting for the show to begin. I reached over for 7 year old Nicole and asked if she wanted me to hold her. She looked around at parents with much younger children and said, NO.
I said, "Could I hold you for just a little while?" Torn between being a big girl and Nana's little girl, she agreed. I snuggled her on my lap, rocked her and said, " I guess this will be the last time you let me hold you and rock you, but I want you to know how much I love you."
As I held back a tear, she said sweetly, "Oh I know you do. You tell me all the time."
Well, brutal honesty is a positive trait, if you ask me.


9 comments:

Val said...

I love your picture with Phil. Looks like that was quite a tinsel party, too!

Bookie said...

Ah passages...they often hurt. But looks like you have been having your share of good moments too!!! Been so long...I think I need a zoo trip. The St. Louis one is SO big.

Connie said...

Ah, a bittersweet moment. It's good she knows you love her though. Not all kids feel loved like that.

Your class always sounds like so much fun. The zoo trip sounds like fun too.

Merlesworld said...

They all have to grow up sad isn't it.
Merle........

Debra Mayhew said...

I understand how you feel, Linda! Those kids have a way of growing up so fast. How wonderful that you have been such an important part of so many children's lives through teaching, though. Your classroom always sounds like so much fun! I'm going to try and remember the leprechaun footprints and green pee for next year. :)

Shelly said...

What great pictures! I understand well what you are going through. There are great things ahead, though!

Kathy's Klothesline said...

So sweet. I miss mine so much, when I do get to see them we rush so much into such a short time that I can only savor it later in memories!

Lynn said...

Wow, Nicole is getting so big. And I love how in the previous post she told Grandpa how she's part cowboy and human - Yee-haw. That's so funny.

Tammy said...

I think honesty is nearly always a positive trait, and it never hurts to remind children often how loved they are. Can't believe how tall Nicole is! Hope you are out having another wonderful memory on this beautiful day.