Carlos left on a trip to Eastern Washington on Wednesday with his 5th grade class.  It’s an amazing trip where they tour the Wild Horse Wind Farm, a potato farm and the Grand Coulee Damn.
A friend sent me this picture of him w his buddies at the dam.  It absolutely made my day.  It’s not just a picture of my boy, who I miss terribly.  It’s so much more.  That smile, that genuine “I’m happy” smile.   I needed to see that.
I think back to Carlos’ first field trip to Seattle without his mama.  He was so scared and we tried to make it better by me drawing a heart on his hand so he could look down and know I loved him and was thinking about him, even

 while he wasn’t with me.  It seemed to help and we did it every field trip from there on.  Even this year, on the way to the ferry, he asked me to draw him a little heart.  This time, small so nobody would see it but he would know it was there.
So, this picture that came yesterday really let me know that my little boy is growing up.  He’s about to change schools and be in a bigger pond.  The Island School has been such an incredibly supportive place for him to grow up, he’s become such a confident young man.  He’s ready for this.