Mr. Star Student

(Parker with Freedom Bear and Mrs. Mendoza)

Parker has talked all year long about Freedom Bear - a stuffed bear that comes home with you for the week that you are star student. Well Freedom Bear finally made an appearance at our house and Parker was so excited. All I could think of as he carried it everywhere was whether or not it got washed in between houses. I never knew I was so afraid of cooties. But I guess I have good reason as evidenced by this public service announcement.

Anyway part of being star student entailed taking your favorite book to school, having a letter written from mom read to the class, and putting together and presenting a poster all about you. Here are a few pictures from Parker's 15 minutes of fame.
After telling the kids about the pictures on his poster, Parker got to answer questions from the kids in his class. It was so fun to go to school, see him in his class, meet some of the kids he is always talking about and eat with him at lunch.

The letter I wrote and sent to school to have his teacher read to the class follows. Parker told me that it was "so embarrassing that I wrote about him getting lost."

Dear Parker, (and class)
Hello Handsome! Hello Mrs. Mendoza and class. I'm excited to tell you a few special things about my Parker Boy. One thing that is different about him is how big he was when he was born. Parker weighed 10 lbs 13 oz at birth! That is more than the middle sized bag of potatoes! :) He was chubby from the beginning and all the nurses came to my room to see him when they heard how big he was. But even though Parker was big and strong he couldn't breathe very well and he spent a week in the NICU. We were so happy when he finally got to come home.
Parker has always loved to show affection to others. He smiles a lot, gives nice compliments all the time and loves to give everyone what he calls big squeezy hugs. Because of this I sometimes call hm Squeezy Magoo! I love his big hugs and sincere compliments.
Parker is very friendly and not afraid to talk to anyone. One time our family was on vacation in Oregon. His Grandma and big sister decided to take a walk down by the beach near the house we were staying in. They asked Parker if he wanted to go with him, but he said no. After they left he changed his mind and left without telling anyone to go find them. We all thought he was with them from the beginning. About an hour later a man showed up on the doorstep asking us if we were missing a 3 year old little boy. Parker had been wandering the streets by himself in the neighborhood looking for his sister and grandma. When the man saw him alone he asked Parker if he was lost. Parker told him no, he was looking for his Grandma. Then Parker walked the man back to the house we were renting for the week - three streets away! Our family was so grateful for this nice man and Parker being able to find his way back to us.
We love our Parks, Parker Boy and Squeezy Magoo! See you soon Parker. Love, Mom