Literatimommy

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Too Good To Forget

Now that we're settled in, I feel like I can possibly blog again. Plus, this is tooo good not to record. Yesterday was Jack's first day of school--sigh--sob--cheer. We LOVE his teacher: she's an ACU alum with many years experience and an MA in early childhood. She is calm and kind, which you notice immediately when you shake her hand through a tear-smudged kleenex. I thought we were in the clear: no more crying (mom of course, Jack went in and was seemingly fine). Yesterday, when I picked up sweet Jack, he informed me he wasn't staying at school because it is haunted; he thinks he saw a ghost. Jack is pretty full of imagination, so I just ignored him. Well, this morning, he confided in me his plan to make a break for it and head home to watch TV in his underwear. When you think about it, who wouldn't prefer to do this work? It is certainly my dream job. And, this coming from a boy who once asked me if his daddy went to work every day. When I said yes, he said "GreatI can stay home for the rest of my life and play video games." Hmm.
I had to rat Jack out to his teacher, who told the office and all her fellow teachers that they might have a runner today. I told her through tears. So embarassing. She probably said something like "here is Jack McCormack. His mother, an emotional wreck, has passed the trait on to her son who is planning to split and head straight for a life of education-free Wii games, ultimately culminating in owning his own comic book store in a seedy part of LA." Okay. Maybe not. But, I couldn't see what she was saying through my tear smudged Kleenexes. It was really hard to leave him looking kinda glum, wondering if he really was measuring the distance between his line in the cafeteria and the front door. This is a trait that was passed on through both the McCormack and Bain genes. I personally hated Kindergarten, and Jack's grandpa, Paul, actually made a break for it from 1st grade and made it all the way home. I hope he'll love it more and more as time goes on. I hope I'll quit the tears before I leave him when he is 21 and when owns comic book store in a seedy part of LA. Surely this gets easier.