Hit me with your best shot

When I picked Lucy up from school Tuesday, Miss Barbara and I were chatting about the latest trend with the kids in the class

The trend?

Not hula hoops
Not Swatches
Not piercings or tattoos
Not even those silly rubber band bracelets that were all the rage a year or so ago

No, the latest trend with the kids is to only have one friend, maybe two, at a time

Like Lucy and I will be talking and she'll say

Jack is my friend, not Justin, just Jack
But Lucy, I'll say, when I picked you up, you were playing with both of them
Yeah but only Jack is my friend, tomorrow Justin can be my friend

Two days later, she'll tell me Mia is her friend and so is Kaia but not Jack and Justin

Barbara was telling me she and Danielle have been talking about this with the kids and in fact today, read a book to the kids about having more than one friend

She was summarizing the story for me and asking the kids, including Lucy, questions about the story coaxing them to tell me what happened

She kept trying to highlight the lessons of having more than one friend but the kids just kept giggling and telling me the brothers were throwing snowballs.....and then they'd start laughing even more and talking all at once trying to tell me what was going on.... but I had no idea what they were even saying as their giggles kept overtaking them

I looked to Miss Barbara for an explanation and with a loving roll of her eyes, she explained at some point in the story, the brothers were throwing snowballs at their sister and that was what the kids took away from the story more than the lesson of having friends (as opposed to A friend)

Barbara said the kids thought it was so funny the brothers were throwing snowballs she was not convinced the kids even remembered anything else about the story.......

Oh the patience these women have with our children!

 I like to reiterate with Lucy what I know she is learning in school, be it numbers, letters, or behaviors, so on the way home, I asked Lucy about the story Miss Barbara read to the class

Lucy, I asked, what did you think of the story Miss Barbara read today, about having more than one friend? Did you like it?

Yeah Mama, it was a good story.....but did you know the brothers threw snowballs at the sister?!?!

They did???

Yeah Mama, that was not nice, to throw snowballs at the sister!

No, it wasn't honey...so now tell me again, the bear was hibernating and which friend was sad because she thought bear was her only friend?

Mama! Wait! I just need to know, can you make sure I no have any brothers 'cause I don't want to get hit with any snowballs...and if sisters throw snowballs I don't want any of them either......I'll just have Ziggy Boy......OK Mama?

Uhhh, OK Lucy

Mama! Promise! No brothers and no sisters! I no want to get hit with a snowball! OK Mama?
Who wants to get it with a snowball?

She shakes her head in disgust

Hey Mama?

Yes Lucy

You have a brother?

I do honey, Uncle John

And you have sisters?

I do honey, Auntie Lulu, Auntie Flea, Auntie Lis, Auntie Cheetie and Auntie Mike...Mummy has 5 sisters

Lucy processes this for a minute and finally, with her head cocked to the side and a somehwat sympathetic look on her face says

Hmm...bet you got hit with a lot of snowballs huh Mama?

I sure did Lucy, I sure did....

Maria the Mum