We're Going Green, Baby!

Well, as much as many of you would like to think that I've turned into a tree-hugging, whale-saving, environmentalist, that's not the 'green' I'm talking about.  

When, I say, "We're Going, Green!"  I mean really green.  Green as in a big ole green circle.

LIKE THIS!

And, we're celebrating it!  We're celebrating the green....and the boy who has made it happen.   

None other than our rambunctious, non-stop talking, energy-filled, A.J. 

For weeks now, he's been struggling at school.  He's a straight "A" kid, so academics is not his issue.  It's those darn tickets.  His classroom has a green, yellow, red set-up for behavior.

Green is good.  It's a make-Mama-smile, kinda good.  Yellow is Meh.  A warning.  Treading thin ice.  Then, there's the infamous RED.  That's a dark place.  Thankfully, we've never gone there.

However, that yellow ticket...oh, how that boy seems to bask in the glow of that yellow ticket. 

Man, how I adore that little face!

We've talked, cried, and lost many a privilege over that yellow ticket. Thankfully, things have been improving.  Slowly.  Two steps forward.  One step back. For a while, we had 2 or 3 yellow tickets coming home every week. Then, they began to wither down to maybe 1 or 2 a week.

But, this Friday, before he stepped out of the car to go to class,  I gave him the final day of the week "RAH...RAH....You can do this!" speech.

In the afternoon, I waited with baited breath as I saw him walking towards the car.  He walked slowly, with measured strides.  Head hanging.  Eyes staring at the ground.  

Then, he arduously hopped in the van and made his way to the back, where he plopped down his book bag and pensively looked out the window, without uttering a single word.  

My heart sank.  I said nothing at first.  I began driving away from the pick up line, and then found the courage to muster the words he so often hears. "AJ, how'd you do today?  Did you get a green?", I asked.  He looked down at his feet, contemplating what he would say to me, when all of a sudden, he looked up again! A huge grin had broken out across his adorable little face, and he blurted out, "YES!!!!  I did it! I got a green today!  I got a green every day this week!  I did it!"

We all clapped and cheered and rejoiced.  

Oh, it's the little things in life that sometimes are the biggest, and this was big, indeed!

Just had to throw in some more cuteness for ya!

Congratulations, beautiful boy.  We knew you could do it!

Keep it up!  Go green, baby!  Go green!  Mama and Daddy are proud of ya!