Oh, honey...March? I don't think so.

I'm on a bit of an emotional high right now. I shared the news with my students yesterday and it was one of the sweetest, most genuine things I have ever experienced. They are just way too stinkin' cute--and excited!
I'd been debating when to share for a while, but it is becoming pretty necessary that I wear maternity clothes and really let things show. I put together a notice to share with parents and copied it onto light blue paper. Then I put 3 games of 'hangman' on the ActivBoard. The first one said "I have big news". The second one said "It will be here in January". The first one they nearly got 'hanged' so I gave them a hint on the second one--the last word is a month. After the second, I turned to the next page. It read _ _ _ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ! Immediately after turning to that page one of the girls called out, "Mrs. Cherian is going to have a baby!!" without guessing any letters. The kids started squealing and hugging one another. One boy asked me, "So, does that mean that you are actually pregnant now or that you are getting pregnant in January?" The student beside him said, "You know, it takes nine months to grow in there."
The girls were immediately delighted. Finally, someone asked if it was a boy or girl and I told them "I'm sending their parents a note today and I copied it on...." and they saw the blue paper. This is when the boys went crazy with excitement. They stood up and danced, and gave each other high five.
After processing the moment, a few had some questions. They wanted to know if I'd be their teacher any longer after January and who would be my replacement. I told them they'd be in good hands, but we're still sorting out a lot of that. One girl became quite upsetand was very emotional. After we had dispersed a bit, she came back up to me and said, "Mrs. Cherian, if I tell you that I love you and that your my favorite teacher ever will you keep him in there until March so that you can stay our teacher." What a sweet girl! I responded by asking her, "March? The school year doesn't end until June." Which led to her quick reply, "Yeah, but there is no way you can keep him in there that long." Awwww!
At the end of the day as kids were heading out, another boy came up to me very seriously. He said, "I just want you to know. If your baby goes to school here, my baby sister who is just one will be in first grade when he is in kindergarten and I will totally tell her to watch over him and protect her."
You know, I have just the greatest job in the world. I am so lucky that I get to work with such a compassionate, caring, exciting group of individuals every day! It's funny how it is said that teachers change lives. There are few days I feel I've changed a life, but every day I feel like I've had an experience with a child that has changed mine. Today that was all put into perspective.