Redshirting Morgan

To My Little Morgan,

I love you so much! You are such a smart and fun kid.  You have Daddy’s determination and attention to detail.  When you were just a few months old you lined up all of our shoes by style and size.  You amaze me!  I love how you color your pictures with the entire box of crayons in “rainbow style.”  Speaking of rainbows, right now you and Emily believe that if you see a rainbow you will turn into a fairy.  Emily is your best friend (most of the time).  You have lots of friends in school and enjoy making friends wherever we go.  You include everyone but you also want the security of your family when you approach new friends to play.  Sometimes you say “Mommy, will you go with me so I can talk to her?”

You are so smart! You have begun reading “high frequency words” and short stories.  You also have started writing your own stories.  You have a big imagination!  I know you are gifted with a high IQ –  another trait from your daddy!  Because we see how smart you are and how much you love school.  The decision we have made for you has been a tough one, we have decided to hold you back for another year of four-year-old preschool instead of sending you to kindergarten.

Your due date was September 3rd, 2007 but the doctors thought you were going to be a very big baby so they decided to have you delivered via cesarean section on August 21st.  Being born just a few days early meant that you were eligible for kindergarten this year (2012).  Since you began preschool we have been profoundly aware that you are the youngest kid in the class.  Although academically you are right on target with your classmates, we see the benefits of giving you an additional year to grow and develop emotionally and socially.  We want you to be confident; Daddy prayed that prayer for you before you were even born!

With more time to play and explore you will grow more comfortable in your own skin and more confident in your ideas. Even if your relative immaturity isn’t an issue in kindergarten, it could catch up to you with the social and academic pressure of middle school.  I have also read research and found that the oldest students in a high school class are more likely to lead student government, school clubs, and the cheerleading squad and less likely to be diagnosed with learning disabilities.

We thought way ahead into middle and high school and even college.  We want to send our confidant 18-year-old off to college.  At 17 you couldn’t even sign your own lease or vote, that’s too young to leave the house and venture out on your own.  Overall, we believe in our hearts this is the right choice for you.  Added bonus, you will be the first of your friends to drive!

We love you so much!