It's always a treat to see what Dale will come home from school with. On this day it was clear the teachers were trying to pay the parents back for something.
All the mothers sat quietly waiting. Some had already picked up the art their child had made, while others pretended not to notice it. I couldn't ignore it, that messy green pile. There it was, with Dale's name written on it. It was all I could do just to keep little sister from destroying it in the five minutes we waited for Dale. Then many discussions about our new discoveries began:
"Is this edible?"
"What in the heck is this thing?"
"How are we supposed to get this home?"
"Do the teachers hate us?"
When all the little ones started appearing from behind the doors, they were all very excited about their new Christmas trees. Dale could hardly wait to get home and eat his creation.
"Darn," I thought, "Now I can't pretend like I accidentally left it at school."
The drive home was fun, and by fun I mean horrifying. Every turn I took, every step on the brake pedal was slow and calculated, as I eyed the bright green mountain of frosting sitting next to me in the passenger seat. I swear it was laughing at me.
It was also fun trying to get Dale to eat lunch before the frosting cone, but eventually I caved, and Dale got his treat.
He allowed Rose to eat a few M & Ms dipped in frosting, and then he began to lick away.
Since Rose had a tiny taste of the green treat, she spent the next several minutes trying to get Dale's tree. It was great entertainment for me.
Dale also came home from school with a few other art pieces that day. They were much cleaner.
