He was selfish... or so fast.

Yesterday at lunch, one of my preschoolers (child 1) took a very large portion of oranges (our lunches are family style serving and for the most part our kids serve themselves). He easily took 1/4 of what was there and we had 7 kids left to take from the supply. I couldn't make him put them back but I talked to him about how that wasn't fair to the rest of the kids. Well, lunch went on and before I knew it, without asking, "child 1" had taken a second serving of oranges-this time cleaning the bowl. "Child 2" asked for seconds on the oranges and I when I went to pass him the bowl I saw it was empty. Before I said anything "child 1" proudly admitted to cleaning the bowl. I looked at him and said, "because you took all the oranges, nobody else can eat any more. You were selfish to take that many." Child 2: "Yeah, yeah. He was so fast. And now there's none for any of us. "

Overheard in the preschool classroom...

"I don't think my boots work on the stairs."

"My front teeth are long and sharp. Long like a snake."

Child: "I think my mom needs to get a new Christmas tree. Last year ours fired up."
Me: "yikes! Did anything else in your house catch fire?"
Child: "Nope. The tree just fired up one night. Nothing else. I slept right through it."

Sweetheart

One of the boys in my class has a little sister that he calls "KK." The other day one of the assistant teachers in my room asked him what his sister's real name was. He thought for a minute and then very seriously stated: "KK's real name is 'sweetheart.'''

Maybe we all could use a little more love...

It couldn't be more true. Every teacher knows it.

One of my preschoolers has really been giving me a hard time lately: behavior that is really tough to deal with and that wears my patience thin. Today I was tying the child's shoe when the child said, "I love you, Britta." And all I could think was that was exactly what that child needs from me: love. Some days it's just as simple as that.

All about lips

One of the kids in my class has had really, really chapped lips all week. This dialogue unfolded this morning in my classroom:
Child 1:  Hey, how come your lip is bleeding?
Child 2: Because I picked it off because there was too much lips.
Child 1: Yeah, when I was a baby I picked my lips off.
Child 2: Yeah, now you don't have any.

I feel the same way about driving across the midwest...

While driving to our farm location field trip today we passed one of the main interstates in Iowa and one of my preschoolers said: "That's where you go to get to Omaha. You get on that highway and it's a boring trip...for a few hours. And then you get to Omaha!"

And I completely understood what he meant about a boring trip - for a few hours. The midwest is a great place to live but it doesn't make for the most scenic of drives.

Hugs and country music

My favorite part of the day: One of my 4 year old boys started the habit of giving me a hug every morning. And it's usually an all out sprint to me when he sees me for the first time that day. Many of my other kids have caught on and I'm often mobbed with hugs in the mornings. Kids have the power to make you feel really good about yourself and what you're doing. They make me want to pull my hair out some days, but it's all washed away when they wrap those little arms around me.

On an unrelated note - a few days ago I was sitting at a table coloring with a few of my kids when I heard the girl beside me humming a familiar tune. And deep down I was very proud of her music selection. I listened for a few minutes before joining in singing "So rock me Momma like a wagon wheel..." She turned and looked at me with a giant grin on her face. It's a special bond that country music lovers share.