School Pictures

I got warning last week that School Pictures would be taken this week. So that's 3 little forms to fill out, 3 checks to write, and 3 envelopes to send on the appropriate day. The hardest part for me is being consumed by the brain-clenching exertion of remembering stuff from the time I learn of a scheduled activity to it's arrival date. I have a huge phobia of missing stuff.

But I remembered this. I was feelin' good. On top of things.

So after her bath Monday night, Lily asked me to braid her wet hair so that it would be 'curly' in the morning. We've done this a couple times before on Lil and her sister. I'm not a big fan of the look, but they seem to like it. So the little guilty voice inside my head, the one that says 'I'm so bad at the soccer mom thing,' 'I don't read enough to my kids,' 'I let them keep their room like a pigsty too often,' etc., says 'Aw, let her pick her own hairdo for her 1st grade picture. What's the big deal? It'll be cool to hang out and braid her hair.' And it was. Listening to her ramble on and on about her 6 year old life was very engrossing. Her dad and I exchanged many a silent, stupified look.

Fast forward to yesterday morning. Time for the big unveiling! Braid after braid was unravelled until finally I had before me such a medusa's mess of frizz I could barely think or speak. I waited to see what Lil thought before I said anything, but it was immediately apparent she didn't like it either. I tried to pull up a little here and a little there to minimize the damage, but it was really no use. I had no time to wet and start over. The more I fooled with it, the worse it got. Why oh why did I agree to this?! Now three minutes before the bus was due I had no choice: One all encompassing ponytail. But even that was marred by the kinky frizz that was her hair.

All day I kicked myself about that ponytail. Should I have kept her home long enough to fix it and taken her to school myself? Should I call her teacher and request a do-over? Should I call the photographer? Should I take her to Sears and get my own photos? And worst of all, What would the grandparents think!!

This evening I asked Lil how her pictures went. She said 'oh, we're taking them yesterday.' I asked her if she meant 'tomorrow' and she said yes. Could it be true? Not quite trusting the most deceptive child we own (that's a joke, son), I casually asked her if anybody else in her class had their picture taken (trying to catch her off guard.) It even crossed my mind that the teacher herself had excused her from taking her picture because her hair was so ugly. Of course, she didn't, even though I would have been grateful if she had.

Lily says she had her picture taken today, but I will not really know until the pictures arrive. We'll see whether I'll always cherish a 1st grade picture of her in her cute, wavy bob or her mom-inflicted ponytail. Of course it'll be a sweet memory either way.