3, 3*, 3*, 3, 3

5th grade year in review:

I sorted a pile of Anna's schoolwork for the year into a big binder like I have for all the years before.  It's fun to go back and look at what she has learned and, especially, her writing and drawings.

She's a very good student, with all 3's and 3*'s on her report card (on a 1-3 scale).  Her writings are filled with flowery language, written just like she speaks.  When I read the things she has written, I can hear her voice, the inflections, the drama, the laughter and the quietness.

Sitting with smiles ebbing and flowing among all the giggles and face palming groans, I see the drawing of a classmate on the top of Mount Everest (labelled, of course) and again on the side in a hot air balloon also labelled "never ending" since she said she was "mad at him that day".  I guess she thought it would be best if he just flew away.  The mountain and balloon are scaling the side of the paper and a thin, green, shaded in line at the bottom of the page is labelled "ground".  There is a pie with a pretty face, girls with fancy hair, story problems that are filled with the names of friends and their adventures or misadventures as it sometimes is.

It's hard to believe that elementary school is over.  I remind myself that 6th grade was still elementary school back when I was her age.  On the other hand, I am also reminded that we started school when we were younger back then and I was also in middle school at her age.

Things change through the years but the evolution of self is fascinating.  I have found every stage of life to have its own unique sets of ups and downs and, more notably, joys and triumphs.  For 11 years I have gotten to be the mom of a smart, funny, unique child that has a perfect sense of who she is.  What a blessing!

Here's to putting elementary school behind (with veiled sadness) and marching towards the next new adventure.