About James . . . in context.

James was invited to go to lunch and the children's museum on Saturday with one of the boys from his school. They went and he had a great time. You never know, though, what your kid is going to say/share/ask. Looks like we need to inform James about the advice that "friends who want to remain friends don't discuss politics, sex or religion." At least he didn't delve into the sex topic (that I know of anyway).

I got this email from the boy's mom this afternoon:

Hi Julie,

I just wanted to let you know that Saturday seemed to go well with
James, Carter and Spencer. They all got along, and James was a model
child (seriously...why is he so well-behaved?). The only time of
slight concern was when I herded them all into a bathroom before going
to the museum. James was worried about the others looking at him, so
we did our best to make sure they looked away or covered their eyes. I
think it worked out okay.

The funniest thing was when he started talking about his dad's work.
He said he worked at the City/County building and the Capitol. I
asked him what he did and he said emphatically, "He's a Democrat!" I
asked him "a democrat what?" He continued with emphasizing that his
dad was just a Democrat. It was so cute.

Then he got really interested in me and our family. He asked if I was
a Democrat, and I said no, but I usually voted for Democrats. That
was followed by lots of other questions about how that worked. Then,
he wanted to know where we went to church. I told him we didn't. He
seemed really interested in that. He asked if I ever went to church
and I said that I did as a kid, but that I didn't anymore. I
emphasized that it was okay and that one of the great things is that
people are different and we get to be friends with all of them. (At
one point, he did say that he and Kate didn't like going to church,
but they went...so, I'm really sorry if he says something like "Tif
and Carter don't go to church" or use that as a reason why he doesn't
have to go.)

He is such a cute and inquisitive kid. It was really enjoyable to
hang out with him, and fun to try to field his questions. I hope that
I didn't bring him back confused or disconcerted.

Thanks again, it was fun, and we'll do it again sometime!

Here's my response:

Hi Tif,

Your email had Ben and me laughing for quite some time. I love your line about trying to field his questions. We do this on a daily basis. I'm not sure if James' brain ever shuts down. I run out of answers long before he runs out of questions. No worries about the bathroom. He didn't mention a thing about it to me. He is extremely private and would rather have an accident at school than use those open toilets in the hallway. And, I'm sorry about the church questions. I had heard about that part because he told me on Sunday morning that he didn't want to go to church (again) and that Tif and Carter don't have to go. Your explanation was perfect (although he didn't tell that to me). I just told him that all families are different and his goes to church. I hope his questions about the topic didn't make you or Carter uncomfortable. You never know what a five-year-old is going to tell you, right?

Most importantly, thank you for taking him with you and Carter. He had a wonderful time and it was so generous of you to share your Saturday with him.

See you sometime this week at pick-up.