Punky started her pre-K class the beginning of this month. So far, she is doing really well. She is so proud to be one of the big kids, and I love hearing her daily report on all the fun things they do in class. She has her own tool box stocked with crayons, pencils, glue, scissors, and other miscellaneous craft supplies. She has learned to write her name on all her papers. She absolutely beams when she gets to be the line leader or the one who passes out papers to the class.
There's no doubt in my mind that we made the right choice by letting her move to this class a year ahead of schedule. She's definitely holding her own with the older kids, in fact the teacher told me Punky is currently helping her teach the others the letter sounds. Even though there are only eleven kids in the class, they added another teacher in the room which really allows for individual attention. It's especially great news for Punky because a teacher has time to take a lesson a step further for her since she already knows much of the core material. And, as always, she's soaking it all up like a sponge.
Punky is now at the age where she's asking to do things, and the hardest decision for us will be deciding what, where, and how we can even pull it off. She wants to take karate. She wants to take dance lessons. She wants to be a gymnast. She wants to learn how to really play too many instruments to type. She wants to go to friends' houses and have them visit ours. All of those things take time and/or money, neither of which we have very much of these days.
Enrolling her in any activities will be especially challenging given where we live. We are at least twenty minutes away from anything, and most of those activities would require a good half-hour drive. On weeknights, I'm lucky to be home by five-thirty. Getting her to a dance class that starts at six will be nearly impossible. Not to mention that we're heading into winter and bad roads will only further complicate things. I told her to wait until after her birthday in December, and then she can pick one activity to try. I think karate will be her first choice. We'll see come January.
There is another new phenomenon in her world: TV commercials. Ninety-nine percent of her television experience thus far has been commercial-free kids channels, but now she's getting into shows on other networks that don't have the same policy. Plus, her favorite channel of all has recently abandoned its pledge and now suddenly allows advertisements. What this means to Punky is an eyeful of toys and games she never knew existed, and a Christmas list a mile long with months yet to go. I guess it was bound to happen sooner of later, and I guess it's good for us to have an idea of what she's thinking so we aren't speechless like last year when it's time to write her letter to Santa.
We managed to sneak in one final trip to Knoebel's two weeks ago. I found an envelope full of ride tickets, and my sister brought a cooler full of food, so it didn't cost us much beyond the gas to get there. Punky was so surprised, especially since I told her the park was closed for the season. It wasn't a lie, honest. I really thought it closed after Labor Day. She was thrilled to have one more day at an amusement park before winter arrives. She's a ride junkie, no doubt about it. I really hope she's tall enough to do some of the bigger rides next year. She's dying to tackle a real roller coaster. That's my girl.
Sometimes I look at her and simply can't believe how fast the time has gone. She seems so grown up, so independent, so damn smart. Like she hardly even needs me anymore. She can feed herself, dress herself, wipe herself, and entertain herself. When she wants a drink, she gets it. When she's tired of TV, she turns it off. When she's bored she bounces from one activity to another, destroying the house and leaving a trail of toys in her wake. But eventually something happens and she wants or needs my help, and all seems right with the world again.
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