I Took Her Seat

This morning I told Charlotte that there was a suprise waiting for her in the car. She looked in the back seat and then looked back at me with a puzzled expression, "I don't get it."

"That's right," I replied.

"What?"

"The booster seat. You don't get it anymore."

Her face lit up. "No more booster seat?! That's so cool!" Char jumped in the car and luxuriated in the open space.

The Iowa Child Restraint Law states that a seat belt alone is not appropriate for a child six or younger. Char is eight years old, and it feels like it's the right time. 

Charlotte laughed as we pulled out of the driveway, "Hey, Dad! I remember when I was five in kindergarten, and you had just given me the booster seat. I bragged to everyone at school that I had one. Do you remember that?"

"Yes. I remember that." Back then I was lamenting how much she had grown. 

Some things do not change. 

August 11, 2015: "Getting a Boost"

Char moved out of her "baby seat" and into her "booster seat" on Sunday. She is really excited about the change, and Char has asked more than once, "Do I look like big girl, now?" I have to say yes. 

Honestly, it is a bit of a shock to look over my shoulder and see how much she has grown. 

 But what she doesn't know is when I look at her in the back seat, I also see this.

And my chest tightens.