It’s not every day that someone kisses a pig and still retains a smile, but Maplewood Elementary School principal Sherry Bees managed to do just that.

Dressed in pajamas and with the entire school watching her in action, Bees kissed Lola the pig twice on its head and once on its snout.

“It was fun. She was very cute and well trained," Bees said. "The kids enjoyed it. I don’t know if the pig liked it though."

Bees was keeping her promise to students after their collective success in the school’s Accelerated Reader program. The students went past the 20,000-point mark that had been set and ended the year with 21,500 points.

“The kids enjoy reading, but we wanted to motivate them as there are so many distractions like movies and video games,” Bees said. “From August to December, they got only about 4,000 points. From January to March, they added another 6,000 points. After that, they started reading like crazy to make sure I kissed the pig.”

It was the students who decided what the principal would do if they reached the target, said Judy Slade, reading resource specialist. “We wanted to ensure they would reach the mark," she said. "All the students were part of the program, but kindergarten students did not start until January. The deadline was May 16. We allowed students to wear pajamas to school the day Lola came.”