More Than 5 Seconds

Summer is HEEEERE! There were days in September and October I truly thought I would never say those words. And, now it is here. Hello old friend, how I have missed you!

So, at the end of our "End of the Year" party, all of my little friends were given ginormous lemon ices. They were delighted. They were huge. Texas sized. Sweet Bella was still carrying hers as she walked back to our classroom to gather her last goodies. I guess somewhere on the walk back it fell. Or, should I say, what was left of it fell. She ran to me and said, "I dropped mine on the ground ... and it was longer than 5 seconds!" Oh, Sweet Bella, thank you for one last funny line. How my blog will miss you!

And, that, my bloggy friends, sums up this year. Longer than 5 seconds. Still not long enough. I so want to ignore the "5 second rule" and scoop them back to me for another year. Every single one of them. (There were just gasps from my family! Did I forget to say it has been a tough year?!) I have loved, loved, loved these kiddos as if they were my own. Was it really 9 months ago that they were strangers to me? I may not have done everything right, but I sure did try. Years from now I will look back on this time and say, "I wonder how ..." I know that I will see them become amazing young men and women ... seemingly right before my eyes. And, I will instantly go back to when they were 5 and 6 and realize that "5 seconds" was enough.

Go forth, young grasshoppers, and make me proud!