Kid and Caboodle

For some reason, the Foggy Bottom Metro station is a popular place for people advocating political causes. Yesterday afternoon, one group set up a large sign labeled “Obamacare,” with a picture of President Obama marked up to look like Hitler. I found this offensive, but did my best to ignore the protesters, averting my eyes and refusing to take the pamphlets they tried to hand me. Everyone has the right to free speech, I believe, although I don’t have to listen to what is being said.

As I was busy dodging outstretched arms, I noticed a woman with a cane. Rather than ignoring the protesters as I did, she walked up to one of them and began to scold him, and he started to argue back. As I got on the escalator down to the subway, I heard their voices getting louder and louder. Suddenly I heard a “thwack!” followed by a loud yelp.

I’m not entirely sure what happened, but I think that woman got the last word.

I am really proud of my son today. This morning we did a test run of the schedule he will start next week, which will be a lot tighter than it is now. I have been getting him up around 7:15 every morning and getting him out the door about 8:45. This morning, though, my son got himself up at 6:37, ate all his breakfast, got himself changed after breakfast, brushed his own teeth, got his shoes and coat on by himself, and got in the car and sat in his car seat by himself. We got out of the house at 7:39, and got to his school by 7:52. I was very impressed and told him he had earned “two gold stars” for being so cooperative. (I don’t actually have any gold stars to give him, but I intend to go buy some ASAP.)

This evening my son also behaved very well. Due to a problem with the subway, my husband couldn’t pick him up before the school was scheduled to close. A co-worker and neighbor who works an earlier shift than I do — at least for now — offered to pick him up for me. My son, who is very wary of strangers, asked her to call me at the office so I could reassure him that it was ok for him to go with her rather than waiting for my husband. She reported that he continued to watch her warily, but did not make a fuss when she put him in the car. I am very proud that my son remained cautious and checked with me about this person who was a stranger to him before letting her take him away from the school. I am also very proud about how well-behaved he was with her after I reassured him that it was ok to go with her. (My husband ended up arriving at his car at about the same time my co-worker picked up my son from the school, so they simply arranged a location to meet.)

Things worked well tonight, but the next time the subway delays us I think I might ask a different neighbor, whom my son knows, to pick him up from school.