In Spite of Me

Sunday mornings are always a bit chaotic, while we ensure that the boys have eaten a decent meal and dressed in something better than soccer socks, before heading out the door for church. As I was cleaning up breakfast dishes yesterday, Liam (4) rushed around me to get to the school room and said, "I'm going to spell 'ice' on paper." Honestly, I only half heard him and believed him even less, as my brain was focused on how much time I had left to get myself and the boys ready.

Sure enough, he sat down with pencil and paper and wrote out "ICE". I praised him and asked him where he learned to spell this word, assuming that he would say something about Noggin or Playhouse Disney, because my self-esteem is all wrapped up in my ability to properly teach my child to read. Surprisingly, he said, "At Kroger!"

And then it all made sense. I had bought groceries with all three boys on Saturday morning, a truly exciting event that everyone should try next Saturday. As I stood in the checkout line and fretted over how over-budget I was, Liam stood by the bagged ice freezer. At the time, I assumed he was fascinated by the ice's ability to stand frozen in time. But now I realize that he was studying the letters on the display case, which also explains why he wrote it in all caps.

I tell you, this boy will be ready for Texas A&M engineering school next year...in spite of me.