Oh Baby

I was in the mall today, occupying Miss Peanut whilst the WCM was enjoying his football in relative peace. It's like that, you see.

Anyhow, I was following Miss Peanut around, dipping in and out of the various stores - KB Toys, the Disney Store (what she calls Disney World), Baby Gap - a girl's got to have her threads, you know - when I saw two of my former students and their baby.

Ok, so I know I've been teaching for a while - since 1992. My former students could be the parents of teenagers by now. A few of them are, actually. This particular couple, however, just barely escaped 8th grade last year. Yeah, really.

I couldn't avoid running into them, as they'd seen me. So I chatted for a while, held the baby, cooed with genuine enthusiasm - I love the smelly, squirmy little boogers - all the while thinking, you poor little thing. Mommy was a constant discipline problem who came into our school wearing an electronic house-arrest ankle bracelet. She'd been sent away to an alternative school for several months before coming back to us. Daddy was constantly suspended for fighting, and had almost been expelled. Neither of them are what you'd call emotionally stable model-parent material. Poor innocent little baby.

I'd had both of them separately in my 8th grade "French for the Gormless" class. I honestly like both of them, as neither of them gave me a hard time, and were well-behaved in class - much to their other teachers' surprise. Mommy is a real hard worker when properly motivated. Daddy is completely led by Mommy, so maybe he'll develop a good work ethic.

I hope that they can pull it together for their own sweet little Peanut.