i do too, mary... i do too

I've been really lucky to get to help out in Zach's classroom some lately, and it's been such a blessing to get to see him in his element, to get to know his friends, and to see how excited he is to have me involved. Last Thursday his excitement bubbled over as he saw me walk into the classroom... as I got about halfway to his desk, he couldn't wait another second, flashing a pink piece of paper at me, he proudly proclaimed "Look what Mary gave me!"... no sooner were the words out of his mouth and the little note was already stashed back in his desk. Mary has been a friend of Zach's since preschool, in fact he started calling her his girlfriend not long after they met. I was curious as to whether or not Mary knew of this (after all, that happens alot in the single-digit crowd), but her mom quickly confirmed for me that she heard just as much about my little man as I did about her little girl. Relationships among five-year-old are of the fickle sort, however, so I didn't give much thought to it.

Until a couple of weeks ago in the classroom. We were making turkeys on that day, and Joseph said "hey Becky, you better help your daughter"... smiling I informed him that Zach was my son and I didn't have a daughter in that class. As I walked away to get some supplies I heard Mary say "that's not my mom" and he informed her that he thought Zach was her brother. She promptly put him in his place "we are boyfriend and girlfriend, not brother and sister!" I could barely contain myself it was so cute!


Anyway, last week we got busy with papers, math bingo, centers and preparing to go home. The little note all but forgotten by yours truly.


But not so by Zach.

As soon as we got home, he pulled it out and asked me to read it to him. I have to be honest, the first two lines were a little tricky to translate (Mary is, after all, in kindergarten). The third however, was clear as can be...

I like the green color

I like the green color

I like the ZACH

-Mary

(note also the picture of the little Zach and Mary,

complete with two little hearts)

Honestly, you are melting right now aren't you? "I like the ZACH". Mary's obviously not your "do you like me, circle yes or no" kind of girl. She knows what she likes and she's willing to go for it. I like her already.

We hear a lot about Mary. We have a Mary Mii on our Wii. We have her school picture pinned to Zach's bulletin board. And now we have this proclamation of affection pinned right next to it. It makes me smile to see Zach coming into his own. Establishing friendships, being confident in his own skin, being Zach. I'm not quite ready for the world of girlfriends... but if he has to have one, I'm glad it's Mary. We have obviously have similar taste... because I'm pretty fond of the Zach too.

Mary and Zach at Preschool Graduation. May 2008.