181

That's it, you're done with Kindergarten. Despite the fact that you started the school-year in one district and ended it in another, there were still only 181 days in your school-year.

Words cannot describe how wonderfully proud I am of you. Not only did you grow academically and physically, but you grew emotionally as well. My shy little boy now has a gaggle of neighborhood friends that are constantly ringing the doorbell and you even warm up to adults more quickly than you did before. I can no longer *spell* things out when I don't want you to know what I'm talking about and you are now at least four-feet tall (probably closer to 4 ft 2 in).

I thought I would have more to say on the close of the school-year, but the truth is it's all right here and I don't need to make this long. You are pretty bummed that I don't plan on drawing you a picture every day next school-year, but this was a monumental task that I enjoyed doing for you and want to keep it as something special I did for you during your very first year of school. I am honored that you love the pictures so much and when I presented you with the final "book" of pictures, you went through every single one of them with me. That made it all worthwhile. I love you, baby boy; and congratulations on completing Kindergarten and becoming a big first-grader! (Because, you know, I always considered myself part of the next grade the day school got out.)

BenGwenTen

You and X sat and watched the newest Ben 10 episode tonight together and that was a really cool thing to see -two best friends watching their favorite show together. Yes, I think it's safe to say that X is your very best friend. I wanted to color this picture in, but I ran out of time and figured you could have fun doing it yourself.

Grandpa Max

Parents tend to think they know what their children will enjoy, and when you are very young(too young to really make up your minds on such matters), we tend to steer you toward Buzz Lightyear and other Disney-esque favs. You had a fabulous Buzz Lightyear costume that we recently gave to another little boy and a pretty cool dancing Buzz that's sitting in your closet; but truth be told, you never much cared for the Toy Story Scene. No, it was Power Rangers that first caught your attention and then Ben 10. Ben 10 is your first, full blown obsession and you are completely enamored. So enamored that you want to have ANOTHER Ben 10 birthday party this year. It's cute, really, and I love that you know the dates of the premiers and all of the characters (and there are a LOT of Ben 10 characters). I know I've said this before; but I think Ben 10 is a pretty cool show and totally get why you love it.

Goop II

I grounded you for the first time today and though it was a necessary step to curtail problems I could see coming; I still find it hard to believe my little rule follower required it.

I'm not sure if that's the kind of thing I should put in your kindergarten notes, but I think I'm almost proud of you (maybe proud isn't exactly the right word); like you are finally stretching the boundaries and that may be a good thing. Just as long as you don't go too far. Or do that too much. Because I'm likely to go bald if you do.

Like a Rock

I am glad you have an overall positive impression of the weekend, because it could have gone the other way. It should have gone the other way, and the only reason it didn't is because you are such a phenomenal, positive minded child. You are the bees knees, kiddo. I mean that.

What'shisname

Wow, it's been pretty warm here, huh? When I came home tonight, your friend X caught me on the drive up to our house and informed me that you were playing in his "Clubhouse" at our place. The "Clubhouse" was a large box that fit a six year old or two inside quite comfortably. Now you can't wait to buy your very own "Clubhouse" with your next allowance allotment.

Seriously, I LOVE that you are chillin' with kids your own age now.

Goop XLR8 III

When we gave up your tortoise (to a better home), I promised you a hamster; because they are much more manageable pets and I had a few growing up (Fluffy, Buffy, Muffy and Duffy - yes, your old mom was soooo creative). I know how to take care of hamsters and I felt confident promising you one of your own, but wasn't prepared to immediately buy you one so I waited a few months for you to call my bluff.

You've been doing that a lot these last few weeks (calling my bluff), so Saturday night I took you to the pet store to "look" and we were enamored with a super cute Robo Dwarf. I looked at the price and balked, "pfft! $15 for a hamster, where are the run of the mill breeds?" Nowhere to be found, that's where. And then I saw the price of habitats and balked even more knowing full-well that it was just a ruse; you were getting a hamster within 24 hours, but not that night. No, I had to cash in my super cool mom points, you see.

You went to your dad's Saturday night and Sunday I went back to that pet store and bought that very hamster as a surprise for when you got home (see reference to Super Cool Mom points).

You were and still are, tickled pink with your new pet. You just enjoy watching him and are terrified of losing him. He's like the Energizer Hamster, quick as lightning; this guy and his little legs move so fast that you can't even see them: like a ceiling fan set on high speed.

Goop is your favorite Ben 10 character, but you thought XLR8 fit his speediness better, so Goop XLR8 it is, with the "III" added on to make it sound official.

Upchuck

You know why I think Ben 10 is such a big hit? Because it is something most adults enjoy, too. When you can get me to sit down and watch one, I actually enjoy it and find the episodes quite funny. For instance, one episode was named the Con of Wrath (haha, hello Star Trek reference) and in another, Kevin delivers one of the most famous lines from The Princess Bride "Hello, my name is Kevin Levin..." Grown ups, at least most of the parents of your generation, can totally relate to that stuff. And who doesn't enjoy a little potty humor, such as an alien named "Upchuck".

Chromostone

You aren't the only one who looks forward to seeing what picture I've packed for you each day anymore; apparently, Mrs. C is quite enamored and some people have referred to me as an *artist*. An artist I will never be, but it's flattering nonetheless.

Ben 10 has grown on me, and the new Friday night Ben 10 episodes are something I now look forward to watching with you. The cartoon can be pretty funny. Ben's most recent new character, that tiger looking critter, had us both in stitches. LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHIN' KEVIN LEVIN!

Adjust

I know you like your new school now, even though you would never actually admit to it. When I ask you if you like your teacher, Mrs. S, you say simply say "yes" instead of "Yeah, but I still like my old teacher better".

Ben 10. Again

You did fine on your first day of school. Just fine. Your teacher said you fit right in and acted like you had been there since the start of the year. Yes, it is true, these things are harder on parents than they are on children.

Lazy Day - Sept 11, 2009

Look familiar? It's the start of the same picture I drew you for your birthday, complete with balloon and party hats. See, this picture was the original draft of the picture you actually got, but I decided not to use it because I had actually traced portions of the faces and because I am not at the point that I'm making you brand new aliens from my own imagination, the very least I can do is freehand everything. At least that's what I've convinced myself.

BUT, these little indiscretions become valuable when I've had a week such as the last one. Not only was I under the weather, but we had a lot of things going on and by the time Thursday night rolled around, I was so busy with other things that adding a freshly drawn picture on top of it seemed a little foolish when I had a perfectly good one ready made.

Besides, you weren't complaining, because even though you didn't get a fantastic lunch note on Friday, you got this on Saturday:

And this:

I drew you a Pin the Omnitrix on the Ben for your party. And colored it. With marker.

FYI, I owe you a new olive green scented marker.

Happy Birthday!

Six years. Time flies. It's hard to believe that it was six years ago that I first looked into those big eyes of yours and turned into a bawling bundle of happy mush. You had me wrapped around your itty bitty pinkie, right then and there.

Your grandma brought cupcakes for your class at school today and your teacher told her you are the best little boy. That's not surprising to me, because you are always so well-mannered, sweet and helpful; but it's always wonderful to hear someone else acknowledge it, too. In a class of unruly kids, you are the breath of fresh air. You are the studious student, and I think the fact that you are bigger than the rest of them helps you in this regard. You were accompanied home by a progress report today and you are doing well in all areas, but you are doing especially well in the behavioral aspect. I think that will lead to your success in learning. You are devouring knowledge at record pace, always asking questions, always wanting to know more. I've loved every age, but something about this age is particularly special.

Another little boy in your class shares your birthday, but he doesn't know it. He is the naughty boy, the one that gets time-outs for hitting and punching; the one who called the teacher a pig, the one who gets sent to *The Principal* on a regular basis. The fact that this little boy didn't even know today was his birthday speaks volumes and I feel bad for him. I hope that he enjoyed the cupcakes and I am glad that he got to celebrate it with you.

I love you, sweetheart, the day you were born was the best day of my life, and nothing will ever top that. Happy Birthday you big six year old!

Goop

Every time I think we've exhausted all of the Ben 10 Aliens, you remind me of at least three more; and with the new season coming up, I'll have a whole new set of creatures to draw for you.

GreyMatter

Please ignore the purple stain that looks suspiciously like wine on the left side.

Jetray

Diamondhead

Do you know what I drew as a little girl?

Unicorns. Pegasus'.

Princesses.

Roses.

Or some variation of those basic themes. Sometimes, I'd throw in a roller coaster if it was summer time and my days were filled with trips to our local amusement park. I enjoyed dreaming up my perfect coaster with lots of hills and no loops.

What I'm trying to say is that I never drew "boy" things, my princesses never had a prince, and you know why?

Because I couldn't draw anything remotely masculine. If I tried to draw a royal wedding, my grooms could have been the bride, because somehow, I just couldn't get the lines right. This was one of my major frustrations and likely the reason I ultimately gave up on one of my favorite past times. I didn't feel like I could progress.

And then I had you, a boy of my own, who doesn't much care for my unicorns and princesses and I had this crazy idea to "draw" you a note every day for your first year of kindergarten since you can't quite read them yet; and I HAD to draw boy things if I wanted you to actually like them.

And here I am, drawing superheroes and aliens and having a whopping good time of it, too. All of a sudden I can draw masculine faces even when I'm not plagiarizing someone Else's picture. I can freehand man faces and they actually look like men! Except for the dancing Elf I mentioned in yesterday's note. I must have temporarily lost my mojo somewhere and Thursday is probably not the best day to get creative.

I'm going to keep on it though, I'm going to keep drawing dancing elves until I get it right and hopefully someday soon you'll see something original in your lunch.

Cannonbolt

You really liked this one and so do I. These things are actually kind of fun to do and I'm looking forward to trying out some of what I've learned from drawing these guys on characters that actually come from my own imagination. Eventually.

I made a pathetic attempt at an original superhero today, the one we discussed, sort of like The Flash...well, a LOT like The Flash, but reimagined.

It came out looking like a dancing elf. Sorry, Mom needs a leetle more practice.

Monkeying Around

This guy is creepy, isn't he? Do you remember how we were playing the Ben 10 game on the Wii and we got stuck in that one spot with Spidermonkey over the waterfall and when we finally figured it out, we jumped up and down and danced like nobody was looking? Good times.

Brain Storm

Moving right along with Ben 10 aliens.