The Long Walk

In an effort to get my lazy butt off the couch, lose weight, make my kids burn off some energy before 8:00 PM become more physically active and therefore healthier, I have started walking the kids to school when it's not raining when we're not late when I'm not lazy every day.

Today we were running a little bit behind ("When I tell you to go upstairs, brush your teeth, and get dressed, I don't mean read a book and build with Legos first. No Wii today!") and had to sort of run/walk to make sure Primo got to school on time. This caused Bubba to get a stitch in his side and walk a little slower (Curly Sue was in the stroller). We were about one block from school, so I told Primo to run ahead a little bit so that the crossing guard could see him and start walking over to meet us. I slowed down to wait for Bub to catch up. This got me to thinking: We're almost there. Why not just let Primo go across alone with the crossing guard and then walk ahead to school by himself? He stopped at the corner fo two VERY busy streets in our neighborhood and I caught up to him (Bub still far behind) and said, "Why don't you just walk ahead by yourself? Give me a kiss." He gave me a nice kiss, I told him to have a nice day at school, and he walked next to the crossing guard the whole way. She had him turn to wave to me as they got a little further away and then as they got all the way across the busy intersection, she had him wave again and she walked him the rest of the way to the school building (about 250 feet) and across the driveway that the crazy drop-off parents use. I wanted to watch him the whole way, but a school bus blocked my view.

When Bub caught up to me, he asked, "Is Primo old enough to walk to school by himself?" "He's not old enough to walk the whole way yet (about half a mile on my pedometer), but he can walk this far," I said. "I'm watching him (cue the school bus). When I was in first grade I walked to school by myself every day."

And I did (I think maybe my mom walked me in first grade, I can't remember). School was only a few blocks away and I think we only had one car that my dad took to work. I walked in the rain, in the snow, in the freezing weather, in the hot weather--every day. I also remember from a young age walking to the playground near where I grew up (about half a mile away) and I think I was allowed to go there unaccompanied with my friends in like second grade.

So Bub, Curly Sue and I went home to bide away 15 minutes till we walked Bub to school. And it was a very good morning.