Volunteering

Posing with the kids.

Last week I spent two days helping out at Riley's school. I love that I can do this as it gives me a chance to put faces with the names that Riley is always talking about. Plus it makes me feel productive. Growing up, I don't remember moms (or dads) coming into the classroom to help. We had room moms who helped out for pizza parties and stuff like that, but never to come in and assist with day-to-day activities.

I went in on Wednesday to help Riley's teacher organize Scholastic book orders, sort through papers and work on my tracing skills. Her teacher is busy assessing the kids' abilities for the third-quarter report cards, so the kids spent most of the hour that I was there coloring, cutting, stapling and reading. They've all settled down into a pretty good rhythm seeing as there are just a few months left. (On a side note, I found out today that Riley's last day of school is May 28. May 28! That's just crazy to me.) Riley tried to get my attention during most of the hour I was there, and I had to remind her to be quiet.

When it was time to leave (the kids were off to gym), the kids all lined up at the door. Riley insisted on giving me a big hug and kiss, and it made me think about how much she's grown. (Forgive me, as lately I tend to be a tad emotional about the kids and how much they've changed.) She's blossomed during this year of kindergarten, more than I thought she would. I'm so proud of her, as she's learned how to read, tie shoes and make a bunch of friends (as evidence of her three impending birthday parties to attend).

Then on Friday I volunteered to help out with the school's Jump Rope for Heart campaign. It was a lot of fun, seeing the kids jump rope, although Riley was having problems and could only jump rope backward! I was in charge of counting the money for her class, and (if I can brag) she brought in the most money for her class. A special shout-out to the grandparents for helping out with that. Riley was just beyond excited to see me there, and I spent time with her and some of her friends watching her jump. And as a bonus I was able to catch up with one of the gym teachers at the school who grew up a block away from me and went to the same elementary, junior and high school as me. Small world!

There was another mom and dad there helping out for Riley's class, and I watched the little girl want her dad's attention during most of the 1.5 hours we were there. I told him that there will be some day when the girls won't want our attention and won't want us near them all the time. He said he has a 4th grader, so he already is dealing with that. It makes me sad that Riley won't always want me to kiss her and give her hugs. Guess I'll just have to enjoy it while I can. And volunteer as often as I can.