Mr. Cool goes to College!!!

Mr. Cool was on a waiting list, and then was accepted at a Charter school that is on a local University campus.  He will take HS and College classes and graduate with an Associates Degree and HS diploma at the same time!  I am super-psyched that he has this opportunity--It will save us at least $20,000.  Plus, he'll have an associates degree under his belt.  Yeehaa!

He just took the university's placement test and qualifies for the English and Math 101 classes as a HS freshman (Sophomore next fall)!    Oh, I am so very tickled!!!  (Dude, he's gonna have to work his brains out at this school!)

The school requires that the parents of the new students write a little paper about their child.  Hot dang!  A writing assignment.  So, of course I've been excitedly mulling it over--any excuse to write is a happy thing for me.  (Geek!)

Here's my parent letter to the new HS.  I've changed some identifying stuff in it to publish it in the blog.

April 10, 2012

Parent Letter for Mr. Cool

            As, I anxiously scanned the crowd, they caught my eye.  Five little old ladies, casually strolling down the endless expanse of airport as a frantic sea of humanity flowed around their unhurried island.  Then, whOPSie daisy!  Like a mini-wave at a sporting event,  they each threw their hands up in turn; and did a small, startled hop.  Their line broke, and a rogue pirate king disguised as a rumpled four year-old with a balloon sword emerged triumphant.  Mr. Cool.

 

            At 1st grade Parent Night two years later, his father and I stood reading the "Wall of Hopes and Dreams" created for the occasion. There's nothing cuter than invented spelling, and we chuckled as we scanned his classmates' illustrated goals for the year.  One kid wanted to get a new kitty, another hoped to learn to skip.  Barely legible, there was a lopsided illustration of two computers hooked together with the words, "Systems integration with classroom Mac and home PC."  Mr. C.

           He was the preschooler who couldn't walk past a peer without roughin' 'em up; the Kindergartener who could tell you how many seconds were in 5 minutes, or how many boxes of band-aids we should buy to total 450.  He has an amazing sense of humor, and uses it to get out of scrapes.  Plus, he's cute as a button.

            I would have to say that one of Cool's greatest strengths is his ability to immediately size up a situation and instinctively know how best to handle it.  He can play a football or video game and later describe in great detail the positions and actions of even incidental players.  He anticipates his opponents' next moves and uses his quick reflexes to control the situation.  He can also glance at his brother or one of his six sisters and know the most effective way to make them squawk. For several years, I feared that this quick ability, along with his inborn fascination with weaponry, would result in mass destruction.  Fortunately, he is learning to channel his impulses.

            Last year our family moved from ___ to ___.  My husband began his new job here in Utah and left me in Idaho with the kids to sell the house and tie up loose ends.  Mr. Cool stepped up as man of the house, and not only did the heavy lifting stuff, but he helped to keep the peace, and organize the troops.  Incredibly, he also finished up his Eagle project at the same time.  (For his Eagle project, he worked with a Special Education teacher and his troop to provide a classroom set of "Balance Stools" for the children with special needs.)  He has since earned one palm and is close to another one.

            School comes easily for my son, and he usually has a 4.0.  He is a dependable, hard-working kid;  yet he is most productive if there is a fire under his butt.  (Fortunately, I am an expert nag.)   Because he has had absolutely no homework this entire year, Mr. C has had time to volunteer at a local auto repair shop, working with his uncle.  He has currently logged more than 35 hours of service, while learning some basic automotive and other manly skills and working with an awesome adult mentor.  I am excited that he has this opportunity to work hard and become even more self-sufficient and knowledgeable at _____.

            He has the ability to succeed and excel--the next few years should be an awesome experience for everyone involved.

 

            My life has been exciting, entertaining, and exhausting since the day he was born.   The world is a better place because Mr. Cool is in it.