Karren and the Kindergarten Bus.

When Laura started kindergarten, she rode the bus home with Marijo Rogers. It was just a little tiny bus, because the kindergartners came home at lunch time. At 11ish, I would put Stuart in the stroller, collect Karren, and walk to the bus stop, where Kay Rogers would be with Emily in her stroller (Stuart really liked Emily--his first crush!), and we would visit while we waited for the bus to come.

Karren was two-and-a-half years old at the time Laura started kindergarten, and she wanted desperately to ride the bus like Laura did. We explained that when she was old enough, she would be able to ride the bus too, but Karren was not appeased. I think, in her heart of hearts, she never really believed that Laura was older than she was. She cried miserably, and as the days passed, her suffering increased.

The bus driver, a kind-hearted soul, suggested a solution that worked very well for the rest of the year. She allowed Karren to board the bus when Laura and Marijo got off. Then Karren rode blissfully as the driver drove to the end, made a U-turn, and came back, dropping off Karren, triumphant, back where she started, before the bus left the neighborhood. It was enough to satisfy Karren's wanderlust--at least while Laura was in kindergarten.