Miss Kristen & Prince Stephen’s Wedding

I have a tendency of getting unusually close — like, very very close — with my kids’ teachers. They play such a huge role in the lives of my kids; they are monumental on the path of each chapter of the journey; and, being a teacher myself, I deeply understand that my kids’ teachers have a special relationship with, perspective on, and insight to, my children (a relationship, perspective, and insight, that I do not have). As a result, I tend to fully embrace Kyle, Owen, and Meera’s teachers and learn all that I can from them — I’ve done this from the very beginning, with daycare staff, babysitters, coaches, and care-givers of all types.

I became especially close — even close for me — with Meera’s first teacher. From the minute I met Miss Kristen, and saw her interact with my daughter, I was immediately enamored with her. She is a gifted pre-school teacher and she put me at ease leaving my 2 year old with her each day. Meera loved “school” (daycare) from the start, and I always knew that this was in large part due to Miss Kristen. And Miss Kristen helped me to see some of Meera’s strengths that I hadn’t known before– like Meera’s extraordinary ability to be friends with everyone, and her unbelievable obedience, her independence, and her great capacity for making people happy. Miss Kristen and Meera had a very sweet and special bond right from the start. It was incredible to see the two of them together. And I truly adored Miss Kristen.

After Meera “graduated” from Miss Kristen’s 2-year-old-room up to the 3-year-old-room at the daycare, we all made a commitment to trying to stay in touch. And, unlike the usual “commitments” of this sort, we actually really did. Kristen introduced us to her fiancé Stephen (who Meera has always called “Prince Stephen”), we got together a couple of times, and have had a special relationship ever since. Kristen is beautiful (inside and out), and Stephen is incredible in his own right. When I look at them, I see a mixture of visions– I see in Kristen a grown-up version of Meera (or at least a sort of version of the kind of person that I hope Meera will become), and I also see — in Kristen and Stephen’s relationship — some resemblance to Braydon and me ten years ago. It is special.

On Saturday Braydon and I got to go to Miss Kristen and Prince Stephen’s wedding. It was dripping with gorgeousness in every possible way. It was such a treat for us to witness. And thanks to Zahir, who babysat the bambinos for most of the day/night, Braydon and I got to live-it-up kid-free and truly enjoy every minute of the wedding day.

The next morning, I showed Meera the pictures we had taken on Braydon’s cell phone. It literally took Meera’s breath away to see Miss Kristen as Beautiful Bride. And she really was a breathtakingly beautiful bride! Congratulations Kristen and Stephen!