School Visits

I have volunteered to be a material aide to the kindergarten at Watson.  I go in for about an hour every Tuesday and do paperwork Elias' teacher needs help with, like running copies or tearing out and organizing class worksheets.  The best part of doing this is the smile I get from Elias every time I appear at his classroom door.  He gets so excited to see me at his school.  Even his classmates get excited and loudly whisper, "Hey, Elias, there's your mom."  It makes sacrificing the hour worth it.  Also, I am getting to know his teacher and others in the school and they are getting to know me.  I think helping at the school is one of the best parts of being a stay-at-home mom.  Bella does pretty well while I am working and the teachers always offer to let her play with toys and puzzles, etc.  I purposely go during the kindergarten lunch and recess, so she is not interrupting instruction time if she talks.  It has all worked out well.  I know that when Elias and Bella get older, they may not enjoy seeing me pop in at their school, so I am soaking it in while it lasts.
I am so proud of Elias and how I see his character being tried already in school situations and him responding well.  It is so tough to explain that not all kids want to do what is right and to be nice to one another.  He has such a soft, just heart and I pray that he will be able to keep it as the harsh realities of life start bombarding him.  His teacher told him he was one the quietest boys in class.  If you know Elias, you will probably agree that quiet is not a normal trait for him, but when he is in class he obeys the rules.  When I look at him growing and changing, I already see glimpses of the man he is becoming even today.  Every day my kids are learning what it is to be an adult.  I have to make sure I am the adult that I would want them to be and that I remember that God can work even through pain and trouble.  Again this reminds me of a Sara Groves song. 

From the Album Station Wagon

 Prayers for This Child

by Sara Groves

I do not know how I am to pray for this child
as a mother I don't want my baby denied
but in the waiting in the waiting
I learned

Every instinct in me wants to shield him from pain
take the arrows of misery heartache and blame
but in the sorrow in the sorrow
I learned to hold on

I only have two eyes - be all seeing
I only have two hands - be everywhere
I do not know enough - to be all knowing
I give this baby up into your care

I do not know how, how to pray for this child
I want to guard her from everything wicked and wild
but in the trial in the trial
I learned to hold on

And in the trial, in the trial
I learned to hold on to the heart of God