Atta Boy!

Here we are,just 2 weeks after this minor tragedy in the lives of the Twinkies.  We've been talking a lot about both hard work and disappointment. We made it to the pool a few times over break. During pool time, two little boys splashed and floated while the other little boy worked and worked. We tried to find a good balance between work and play in order to avoid frustration.

When he felt overwhelmed and wanted to give up, I would gently remind him that just playing for a while was fine, but his teachers said he hadn't  mastered these skills, and he wouldn't move on if he couldn't do them.

His response looked a bit like this:

Last night was swim class. The first one since the level tests. As soon as we went in he wanted me to make sure his teacher knew he had been practicing with the goal of passing.

His form is lackluster (even humorous -- somehow his little hiney sticks straight up in the air when his face is in the water), but his drive is powerful.

And the look of pride in his face was unmistakable when, as soon as his lesson was done, he shouted, "Mommy! My teacher said I passed the test! I get to move up to the next level!" Even if he did follow it up with, "What's a test?"

To persevere, trusting in what hopes he has, is courage in a man. ~Euripides