Cakewalk

We spent this afternoon at teacher/parent conferences. Three of them. It is no end of nice to go into your kids' classrooms and hear teacher speak so kindly about them.

Heck, we have to love them. We are genetically pre-programmed to think they are the bees' knees. These teachers are paid to spend six hours a day with them, but you can't pay them to like them...they have to do that part on their own. It is a relief to hear such positive words combined in sentences that also contain our kids' names. Phew. Bottom line: we are a pair of proud parents.

I have to share one funny side story, though.

Finny and her brilliant and caring teacher were discussing her goal of memorizing multiplication tables. Her teacher was reassuring her that it would be easy, she just had to put in the time.

"Don't worry, Finny," she said. "It will be a cakewalk."

Finny's face fell. She went from hopeful optimism to dismay.

"Oh no. I am terrible at cakewalks."

I had to explain to her puzzled teacher that we had gone to a school fair in Kelowna this summer and Finny had tried (and failed) five times to win a cake at the cakewalk. She was so bitterly disappointed. And now she was being told multiplication tables were like that...?! We talked her down.

Correction, Finny. It will be a piece of cake, instead.