Mommy, where do babies come from?

I went to our school's "sex education" meeting on thursday night. Not because I needed to be education (come on now people, I'm already pregnant!) but because as a year three teacher I felt that I should be there to answer any questions from concerned parents. The meeting was a preview for parents of the sex ed videos that would be shown this coming year to the year threes and also to the year fours, fives, and sixes. To be honest, the videos are quite graphic, but not anything that a child doesn't need to know and should find out from an education standpoint before they hear about it from the creepy kid on the playground. The parents were outraged, but they mostly conceded that yes, this was in fact a good idea. Not to mention that these kids had actually seen these videos last year.

When the question was posed "why do these young children need to know about this anyway?" I silently sat at the back of the room and thought to myself, because all of the year three teachers are getting pregnant, and the questions are going to start flying soon enough!! I've already had two of the worst questions you can have: 1. How does the baby get in there? and 2. How does the baby get out?
If parents aren't willing or able to talk to their kids about this sort of thing then I'm glad that there are vidoes out there to help us teachers along with the process. Of course I answered those questions the way any shocked teacher would..."go home and ask mom or dad!"

The kids in my class are so so so excited about the baby. They ask how it's doing, and how big it is, and if it can hear them when they are too loud. I tell them that it is mostly hanging out, but while we are doing PE it is busy practicing it's backstroke!! They think the baby is hilarious! One boy asked me the other day why I was drinking water. I told him that the baby was thirsty. Ok, perhaps a bit of a stretch of the truth, but he believed me and was completely satisfied with my answer!! In fact, I could justify just about anything I do with "the baby wants" or "the baby likes". The kids love it!

I have to tell you about the cutest thing that happened Friday afternoon. Now, I realize that not everyone who reads this blog will think that this is cute, but if you are a mother or especially a mother who is also a teacher, you might appreciate this.
Shaun (a boy in my class who happens to be autistic) ran out the door Friday without so much as a goodbye. Usually he walks out with me and gives me a hug and tells me that he'll see me whenever we are meant to see each other next. Now, I noticed that he had left his lunch box on the trolley, and was looking to see if he had in fact left the school yard with his mom or if they were still around and could catch them. Suddenly Shaun appeared again to get his lunch box and I said "oh, Shaun, I thought you were gone already!" He came over quickly and gave me one of his little "side hugs" and without even saying a word to me patted my belly (which is not even really honestly showing yet) and whispered "bye baby!" With that he was off like a flash and back to his mom. It was by far the cutest thing that has happened to my baby since the kids found out. Part of me can't wait til the baby is bigger and they can feel it kick and stuff!! (the other part of me doesn't want 26 hands on my stomach, but such is life!) I'm still enjoying sharing this experience with these kids!