Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Pajama Day?????

Tay, Payte, Dak, and Tagg in their NY nightshirts.
I LOVE these kids!

Well, yesterday was pajama day at school . . . allegedly. I don't know what might have been going on in our minds to simply rely on Payte's loose recollection that yesterday was the day. We have certainly been around with her long enough that it should have occurred to us to verify her info - not to mention the fact that Tay did not remember it the way Payte did . . . and frankly when Tay tells us something, you can bet on it. Nonetheless, we blindly moved ahead with full faith in Payte. As you can imagine, upon mounting the bus it didn't take long for them to notice that strangely they were the only ones participating in the pajama party. Upon arrival at school, it was clear that there was no pajama party. That's when the fun begins. Tay was mortified. She had a cute little pair of blue bottoms with a little blue top and her pink robe. It wasn't long before she was in tears and completely embarrassed. They took her to the office to see what they could do. They eventually found some clothes in the lost and found that they gave her - of course there was nothing close to small enough but with a few rolls to cuffs it would do, and she actually felt pretty cool in her new-found duds, especially when they said she could keep them.
Meanwhile, across the building in the Kindergarten, Payte's experience was unfolding as one might expect. For her, the pajama party was certain to go on. She couldn't have cared less that she was the lone kid in PJ's, in fact she was feelin' pretty good that while all the others had to wear their uniforms, she was chillin out in her PJ's - the fact that they were bright green flannel pants and a loud Christmas tee with a big dog in a Santa hat simply didn't phase her. With her confidence I'm sure that her class envied rather than teased . . . kind of like Tom Sawyer and whitewashing of the fence. That's ol' Payte for you.
I am constantly in awe at how different two kids from the same chromosomes can be. Tay a strict rule follower, proper in every way and determined to be perfect. The only day she got an average grade she could hardly bear to go back to school the next day she was so upset. At the same time, she's tender and maternal, a real care-giver; loves to help others. Payte is not completely oblivious to rules, she just isn't sure she's not here to simply have a good time, and any rules should take that overall goal into consideration. I don't know what it would take to embarrass her. She takes life as it comes, not trying to be anybody's hero, and is totally at peace. What a pair. The amazing part is that they can play together peacefully for hours; Tay running the show, Payte just happy to be there and let Tay do it.

Thought I'd throw this in. They love to play in the rain when it's not thundering.