The Pick-up Artist

One of our duties is to get our five-year-old grandson Noah to and from school each morning. Daddy drops him off around 7:15 after getting Lena on her bus and Noah snarfs down juice, two scrambled eggs and fruit. Then its into the car for the short trip to Keeley Elementary School, where he's in kindergarten. We make the loop around the back of the school and drop him  at the entrance. Safety-vested helpers open the car door and walk him to the door.

Pick-up is another story. Although dismissal isn't until about 3:10, one must get in line at around 2:25 to avoid having dozens of cars ahead of you. I bring a book along, make phone calls or play games on my phone. Finally, about 3:05, a teacher comes out and signals that the cars may advance around the back loop. I flash a little blue card that says Garcia 9 (Noah's number). The cars inch along, passing doors where fifth, fourth, third, second and first graders emerge. Finally, I get to the front, where Noah comes out with a helper, who opens the door for him. He hooks up his seat belt and off we go.

Middle school starts later, so we also have Cora, the daughter of Hannah's friend Jen, to drop off most mornings. She joins Noah for a quick cup of juice and a little something to eat. We pick her up from school some days, as well. When that happens, Noah and I have a 30 minute window to grab a frozen yogurt at Spoons, a local shop. When school lets out at 4:00, crowds of young teens stream out looking for their ride. Sometimes, we pick up our older grandson Booker if he needs a ride. 

Noah used to come to our house after school. but now we head to his, where his new black lab puppy Luke is waiting. We get Luke outside to do his business, run around the yard to blow off steam and get him back in to gobble down his kibble and get a drink. Then Noah gets a snack and plays with his toys. I come by the house mid-morning to do the same routine with the puppy. And so it goes. I know these days won't last forever, so I'm enjoying every minute.