Who-ligans

 "We are not acting like wild Hooligans."  This has become a saying of mine, both at home and in my first grade classroom.  I have no idea where it started, but popped out one day and has stuck, ever since. 
It made me smile the other day to hear two first graders in this conversation:


Boy: (pushing and shoving in line)
Girl: We are supposed to be ladies and gentlemen, not wild Hooligans.


The girls hit the jackpot when we moved to Dewey Ave.  It is girl alley. There is Natalie, Elaina, Mattie, Lydia, Karly, Hannah, Madi and Mollie-Claire all within screaming distance. They have a central meeting place called, The Tree.  It is a small triangle of land with a tree in the middle.  This tree has become their hang-out, where they climb, push each other on the swing, and just do all sorts of girl stuff under its shade.


This day was one of those extra warm Saturdays where you could see kids everywhere so glad to be outside, after being cooped up for weeks due to the cold temperatures.  Inspiration sprung from the movie The Grinch (the Jim Carrey version) where Whoville residents have some unique styles.  What started with "Let's put on a play" eventually turned into these eye-catching hairdo's.  Karly, the oldest girl in the neighborhood, was the talented stylist.  I looked out our window to see a long line of girls, waiting for their turn in the hair-chair.


It was one day that I did not mind them running the streets like wild Who-ligans.