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Yes, Drill sergeant!







So today we had K.'s Bootcamp birthday party.

What a perfect theme for fifth grade boys!

I can't begin to tell you the thrill it gave me to see all these squirrelly little prepubescent lads doing their best to please their sergeant. It was hilarious and sweet.

The sergeant is a true army drill sergeant who spent 15 years training recruits. Now retired, he teaches fifth grade at our school - so he knows these boys well. He knows how to keep them busy and he knows how to tease. He was the perfect combination of scary and funny and intimidating and entertaining. All in all, it was a perfect party.

K. and one of his best friends decided to get army style haircuts before the party. I think we cut at least five inches off of K. - his hair had gotten SO long. Every penny I spent on that silly party was worth it for the haircut alone. We had fun taking mid-cut pictures of the boys with classic bald-rings... so funny.

I love these boys - who are still young enough to sit and the floor and play with legos, but are developing into young men with sharp wits and classic boy dialogue... they are so many things bundled into skinny little bodies. Innocent, intelligent, eager, goofy, hungry, funny - I love their laughter and their camaraderie.

It was a party for the memory banks - I doubt any of them will forget running down the block with their drill sergeant calling out the cadence while the neighbors opened their doors to see what all the yelling was about. Or the scramble to obey his commands. Or the stories he told of his travels and adventures in the army.

He used nicknames for the boys all day. If he was teasing someone, he'd call them Sweet Pea. Whoever he was using to show the boys what he wanted was Demonstrator. Of course, he called them Private. And then there was Hero.

Who knows what these boys will become? It's hard to say. But I can bet more than one of them will become a hero. Because in these boys I see potential. Potential for the next generation of husbands and dads and workers. Potential to shine in whatever they choose to do.

Good boys, all of them. And I was proud of them today as I watched them stand at attention. Who knew discipline could be so fun?

It was a great party.

Comments

  1. Anonymous7:55 PM

    Cathy,
    This is such a great idea! How fun!! I will have to remember this for when Matthew is older :) Very cool!

    What a good mommy you are!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous5:08 PM

    What a hoot! Great idea for a party. You are an idea factory!
    Gotta run....off to scrapbook.
    Jan

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous5:51 AM

    WOW! What a fun party. And what a great theme for 5th graders. You are right, they will remember this day for years to come. You, my friend, are brilliant!

    ReplyDelete

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