Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Bandos, Baseball and Booths - Oh My!

The school year is winding down, but it always feels like a ramp up to me.

In the past week we watched Caitlin's final concert of the year during which she had a wonderful solo that lasted a full two and half measures. She nailed it. I really appreciate these concerts because: a) The high school auditorium is soooo much nicer than the bleachers/folding chairs in the junior high gym; b) I love classical music/orchestras and I don't often get to attend such events anymore as our cultural entertainment budget has dwindled to zero and c) I love to watch my daughter's joy as she taps her feet and bobs her head to the music.

Two different bands performed a total of nine songs. This particular event lasted over two hours so that dozens of graduating seniors could be showcased on slides, and they could break for not one, not two, but three separate awards ceremonies with speeches, hand-shaking and some hugging for juniors, seniors, band directors and parent volunteers. I'm sure in three years, I'll be content to sit for three plus hours when it's my kids' last high school concert.

Maybe.

Last night Ryan and his fabulous coach (aka my husband) doubled their wins with their second victory of the season. It was a really nice night (albeit a bit windy) and so good to see the boys bounce back again after being down 9-3 in the third. They won 13-11. Even better - they cheered each other on with real enthusiasm (or real enough to convince me and the other "sportmanship police" parents).

I didn't get to see the actual victory since I left a little early to pick Caitlin up from a Gifted Expo at another local high school. When I dropped her off (fifteen minutes late) all our frustration melted away as just 25 feet into the hallway we bumped into Caitlin's favorite former classmate from Magnet standing ready next to her display booth. A little ways further down the path led us to two more students who had been with Caitlin from third through eighth grade - at which point Magnet ended and all the gifted students from around the district landed at their respective high schools. Very few landed with Cait. Their reunion was sweet. The icing on the cake was getting to hear about the new student Caitlin met just before I picked her up. Another young lady with Asperger's Syndrome whose project was all about the condition and what it was like to live with it. Apparently, they really hit it off. I wish I had seen that.

I spent a lot of time the past couple of days driving back and forth to the same destinations for drop off and pick up wondering if it would be better to kill an hour or two and stay put with gas at four bucks a gallon - OR - catch the next kid at the next thing while sacrificing some transit time.

Today I got home at 2:35pm. Maggie and Ryan had already been home almost a half hour. They were lounging around, unmotivated, no homework to speak of (they are officially done "learning" for the year with a mere two and half days of school left) and hungrily looking for snacks. It occurred to me this is a preview of my home for the next ten or so weeks.

I'm looking forward to summer, but I can honestly say, the concerts, games and expos will be missed.



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