Tug Tug Tug

Today the boy tugged at our heartstrings harder than any of the past 10 days of Kindergarten, including the very first day.

Carie went up to help the K teachers with a project this morning before heading off to her part-time gig. We hope that she'll be able to continue to volunteer with the K's and the 3rd graders each week, just another perk of her paid gig being part-time.

So this morning was her first day helping out in the K wing, and it was tough for our boy. I've been secretly worried for months that he would get to school and decide it wasn't his cup of tea. I was worried that he was too ready, if that's possible. But he seems to be enjoying his experience. Getting ready in the morning has really been smoother than we anticipated. He's just been so pleasant to get up and out the door! He hasn't hesitated once to get on the bus to head off to school. At the end of the day he is so excited to share everything with us in great detail, something that neither of his sisters have ever done. Sounds perfect, right?

This morning we got a glimpse of that other side. Carie was in and out of the classroom, working on things for the teacher, working with the students at their stations, etc... She got to spend time with him at his stations. But then it was time to go and Spencer really wanted to go with her. It's so clear that he enjoyed being able to stay home with Mommy all these years that he's really missing it now.

He didn't throw a fit or make a scene, no that's not how our boy responds to these situations in public. Oh he's naturally loud and calls attention to himself quite regularly, when he's happy he just doesn't realize it. But this morning Carie could immediately tell that he was holding it all back. He was trying to keep himself all collected and not draw attention to himself. He's so like one of his sisters in this regard... classic classic Abby!

So the goodbyes at school were quite emotionally tough on the both of them. After hearing about it all over the phone I just wanted to go give him a big hug.

She did ask him what he would like for snack this afternoon. He decided that he would really like banana bread AND he wanted to make it with her. So, they'll bond over making banana bread after school today just like in the olden days.

**********

They are home from school and apparently he recovered quite nicely. He's being particularly loud and obnoxious, borderline annoying I guess you could say.

First Day of School... version 2010

What a big day!

Today marks the first day of 3rd grade for Abby & Ellie and the first day of Kindergarten for Spencer.

End of Summer = Big Change

I think this blog could definitely file for neglect.

As any family with young children, there's so much life to document. There are so so many thoughts bouncing around my head each and every day. Getting it down on the proverbial paper seems to have taken the backseat. Heck, even capturing our memories through photography has taken a backseat... and when I do take pictures they sit on the huge memory card indefinitely. Photography has been a passion of mine and yet I feel as if I need a jump start. I know what triggered this funk... I just can't seem to get my groove back.

Since I last wrote (ahem, nearly 6 months ago) Abby & Ellie wrapped up their year as 2nd graders and Spencer completed his final days as a pre-schooler, complete with a graduation ceremony. Carie wrapped up another year of volunteering at school. Saying "goodbye" to our teachers continues to be difficult. This year may have been the hardest yet. I wrapped up my first year as the PTA President and found myself elected to continue those duties for another year. It is quite rewarding to be involved at school on this level, if not also challenging and time consuming.

In early May both Abby & Ellie opted to join a local swim team for their summer season, which then quickly consumed our life with a lengthy practice 3 days a week and a longer swim meet on a 4th day. It was an amazing experience for all of us. They love swimming so much, it was incredible to watch their progress and witness their joy. We get a short break in August and the Fall/Winter swim team starts up again in early September. The girls are already looking forward to the next season. Oddly, we are already looking forward to getting back into that routine.

Spencer played baseball during the spring season and absolutely loved it. We've opted to skip the fall season (unbeounced to him) in favor of keeping our month of August totally activity free. Though now I'm feeling horribly guilty about this decision.

All three kiddos had a birthday this spring. Spencer turned 5 in late April and the girls turned 8 in early June.

To celebrate Spencer's birthday we had a combo friend and family birthday party at a nearby activity center. We love going to this place and having his party there was a huge hit.

To celebrate Abby & Ellie's birthday we had a special adventure! They each invited a friend to hang out with on their special day. We went horseback riding, played miniature golf, did mani's and pedi's, had a bonfire, and had a sleepover. All four girls had an absolute blast hanging out with each other. I'm so glad we went this route over a larger party. We then held a family party for them at my Grandma's retirement center. While my Grandma thinks she can get around our house with all of our stairs, we think differently. It was super nice to use a room at her facility that had easy access and a large enough room for all of our guests. And to be totally honest, setup and cleanup was more than a piece of cake!

Our summer is about to wrap up. All school registration is this afternoon, open house is next Monday, and their first day of school is on Wednesday. We've had such a great summer that I don't want it to end. I do look forward to the end of the summer season, if only we could continue their break and our family time. We are busy over the summer doing fun summer camps and such. But there's something about sending them into the next grade that isn't desirable for me.

Speaking of summer camps, it was another successful summer. We typically have a full week-ish off at the start of summer and a full week-ish off at the end of summer but everything in the middle is booked with activities. Outside of their camps and activities, we also get to do other fun family activities... Library reading program, Royals Baseball games, big zoo, little zoo, our Children's Museum, Lincoln Children's Museum, Activity Center, Splash Parks here and here, Papio Bay, Mahoney Water Park, Bowling, Go Carts, etc... While there were many things I think we wish we would have done, I think we had a fabulous summer as a family!

All the kids were able to participate in our districts "summer school" (summer camp) program. I wish they would call it something other than "summer school" because it's not at all like their other (more mandatory) "summer school" program. This was Spencer's first year of eligibility and he was thrilled to be able to participate with the older kids. It's totally a fun summer program where they can take enrichment type classes in science, music, Spanish, math, etc... This program is held at a new "host" elementary school each summer. It's just a morning program over the course of a few weeks and it's very reasonably priced, which we love.

The next couple of weeks were dedicated to swimming lessons at our High School. Since Abby & Ellie were swimming so much with swim team, they opted to take the spectator role this round. Spencer was so incredibly pleased with himself that he passed his level and gets to move onto level 3! Of course, he wanted to start that "right now".

Then Abby & Ellie got to participate in a Totally Cool Math & Science Camp through UNO. They were so excited about this opportunity. This was quite possibly the highlight of their summer. We drove by the night before to check out directions and parking. As we turned onto campus the girls’ eyes got REALLY huge. It was then that they realized they were "going to college" (their words). We've talked all along about how it would be at UNO but it became quite clear that they didn't really know what that meant. Abby thought it would be at another elementary school like her other summer camp. We were then bombarded with hilarious (but very real to them) questions. They were clearly a little (more than) nervous! Thankfully they seemed satisfied with all of our answers and drop off the next morning went very smooth for all of us. At the end of the day they were so excited they were bouncing off the walls. Needless to say, they had an amazing week. They think they are hot stuff now that they've gotten to go to college. Thankfully for us, as incoming 3rd graders, they could only participate in one class. But next year there are 18 camp options. They are going to have to make some tough decisions!

Last week was all about Spencer and his "camp". Our elementary school was awarded a grant that allowed them to offer a Jump Start to K program. All incoming K's were invited to participate. It was a very short afternoon program that allowed him an opportunity to spend time with his teacher (whom he already knows) and his classmates. While they got to do some school work, they also got to enjoy all the perks of going out for recess, snack time, and play time in the classroom. While we believe he is totally ready for K, we thought it was a great opportunity to meet some friends before that big first day. He seemed to really love going to Jump Start once he got there, but the first few days he would say "I don't want to go today" or "I'm taking today off". We think he just didn't want to leave the other kids and whatever fun they were having without him.

Somewhere in there we found a perfect time to dedicate a long weekend towards a family vacation. We got out of town but stayed close to home. Limiting our drive time seemed ideal and something we appreciated when we were en route and heard "are we there yet" numerous times. We got to spend a fair amount of time swimming at the hotel, a huge plus for our kids. We enjoyed a full day at Adventureland and a couple of days at the Science Center. Total kid vacation. Making them happy makes me happy.

But now, like it or not, it's about time to move onto the next chapter. Abby & Ellie are headed (full force) into 3rd grade and Spencer is headed to Kindergarten. All three of our kiddos are full time elementary students. How did that happen?

Thankfully, for us, they are all super excited about going back to school. The girls love school so much; it makes our jobs as parents easy! Spencer is really looking forward to being a Kindergartner and we think he'll share his sisters’ love for school as well.

With all the kids in school full time, Carie has taken the opportunity to find work outside the home. She was very fortunate to get hired on for a part time gig in our school district which will allow her to be available before school, after school, and during school breaks to continue to be the awesome SAHM that she has been for the past 8 years.

Progress Report

The Kindergarten Progress Report Cards came home the other day. We are thrilled with how both girls are doing in Kindergarten. We are also particularly fond of both of their teachers!

We are in process of setting up a meeting with Ellie's teacher to brainstorm how we can help Ellie feel comfortable with taking risks. She is very clearly (to us) holding back in fear of "getting it wrong". We ended up having a great conversation last night and Ellie fully admits to worrying about being wrong. Her thoughts and words! The thing is the couple of areas where she is "not yet meeting expectations" are areas that she has excelled at in the past. It is heartbreaking to see your 5yo so worried about being wrong that they don't end up sharing what they do know.

We were particularly thrilled with the comments that Abby's teacher shared. It isn't that Ellie's teacher feels all that differently, it is just the words that Abby's teacher did choose to share with us that touched us.

She says...

"I am very pleased with Abby's progress in all areas of Language Arts. She has done an awesome job learning the letters and their sounds and applying what she has learned to her journal writing and reading."

"I would love to see Abby take some chances in her writing journal. She as such great ideas. I just can't get her to put them on paper. Also, she knows all of the letter sounds and can sound out words, but she rarely tries to sound new words out in her journal. I know she can do it, and I will keep encouraging her to work up to her full potential."

"Abby continues to do a super job in Kindergarten. She is a great listener and participates in class discussions. Once in a while she will come up with some great little fact that she knows that will really surprise me. She is an asset to the class and well liked by all."

I love that Abby's teacher sees that she has more potential and that she is encouraging Abby to work up to that. We need to share with her teacher that she is doing some of that at home.

Both girls are really into writing and it isn't unusual for us to find little notebooks or journals with their writings in them. It is SO much fun to read their notes, and we told the girls' last night how awesome that is. I also suspect that Abby is taking more risks with her reading at home than she is at school. Ellie however is still worried about getting it wrong. But when we do get her to try, she is often right on.

K Conferences

Yes, it is that time already. I can't believe that they've got 6 weeks of school under their belt. Our school offers 2 sets of conference times at the beginning of the year. The first conference being last night and the second one in just a few weeks. We'll then have another round of conferences later in the year. We were torn on what to choose as we saw pro's and con's to both time options. Ultimately we decided to be flexible and go to the one that worked best for the teachers. So last night it was!

Hmmm... did that mean that they needed to talk to us??? We were excited to get in on the earlier time slot to help piece things together and make sense of some of the information we are getting from the girls’ perspectives.

We went in with a few questions to ask of each teacher. The teacher also went through their spiel on what they are doing and how they are doing.

As it turns out, no big surprises. Fascinating information and minor surprises on the test results, but no big and shocking surprises came our way.

It was wonderful to have that opportunity to talk with the teacher, to see what they've been doing, to see the progress they've already made in just 6 weeks - wow! The work that they are doing is so them. It totally reflects their individual personality and passions.

It was great to see that the teacher really knows the child; their strength's, weaknesses, personalities, etc... We really feel that their perceptions are right on. We are pleased that they have already taken measures to meet their individual needs. We did ask Ellie's teacher to pursue some opportunities that we think will be beneficial for her in the long term. So I'll be excited to see where that leads us.

Yay for great first conferences! I’m glad they are getting the school year, and their school career, off to a fantastic start.

The First Week Of Kindergarten

School has started! Wow - was it a crazy week!

Monday, and since Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday & another Monday have gone off without a hitch. They continue to be excited and a tad bit nervous. All their nervousness and fears are coming through in their actions, which is just lovely.

Saturday morning they were both quite unhappy that they weren’t going to school!

They are riding the bus, which has perks and the not-so-perks. The pick-up stop is just around the corner from our house and the drop off spot is in front of our house. They are both quite excited to be riding the bus. Spencer would love to ride the bus! Unfortunately, for him, he has to wait 3 more years. We signed up for the bus thing as a trial with hopes that it would work out. It is quite convenient and their route is short enough that they aren't on the bus an extended amount of time. The issues at the moment revolve around a neighbor girl, as we fully anticipated. It just is unfortunate that we weren't pleasantly surprised.

The week started out with great interest in taking their lunches. I'm certain the desire to use their new lunch bags was a motivating factor. Abby opted to give the "hot lunch" a try one day last week and that went over okay with her.

In the past we've heard stories about how bad school lunches are nutrition wise. If the August 2007 lunch menu is a true sample of what we are to see in the coming months I'll be quite shocked at just how bad it really is. I would in no way consider us "crunchy" or "health nuts", far far from it in reality. Quite regularly we eat the not so healthy stuff and the really bad for us stuff. But I also feel like we are capable of balancing out a meal and make it healthy. This menu though is at a whole new level for us. I would expect that an institution such as a school to provide a better meal plan and teach kids the nutritional elements to become healthy adults. The girls will eat the "hot lunch" provided by the school if they really want to, but we'll certainly be cheering for the packed lunch from home as often as they are up for it.

We are also being educated on the things Kindergarteners do and don't do. It is fascinating hearing about their day through their view!

First Day Of Kindergarten - In Photos

All ready for their first day of Kindergarten.
Stop taking pictures - we've got to get to our bus!

















Hurry - the bus is coming!

















We made it to school!


















See ya Mom - have a great day!

Whoa - What A Week!

√ School Started
√ Major Work Event

We kicked off last week with the first day of school. It was an awesome, yet exhausting, week all around. More on the first day of school... soon!

Friday night we were explaining how we could sleep in (hint!!) Saturday morning if they wanted as Mommy wouldn't be waking them up. We didn't really expect that they would, but it was a nice idea. Saturday morning they were utterly bummed that they didn't get to go to school.

Add to that, I had a major work event for which I was a key planner. I am so thankful it is over! I’m even more thankful that everyone seems to think it turned out well.

Open House

√ Open House

Last night was the open house. After having a quick dinner we headed up to school and spent quite a bit of time checking things out. On the way they both were back seat drivers! Go this way, go that way, turn right then left. Geesh!

Their old school is now once again their new school. Pretty exciting stuff! On our way to school we talked about their mascot, the Tiger. Try explaining, out of the blue, what a mascot is!

The girls' got to take in their stash of school supplies, meet their teachers again, meet a few of their new classmates, see some friends they know, and check out their class rooms. Spencer totally made himself at home in Abby's classroom and didn't really want to leave.

We had really nice conversations with all of the teachers. There's 3 K teachers total and we are in 2 of the classes. All 3 teachers seem wonderful and they appear to work as a team. I can't wait to get to know them better and get involved.

Here we are, the final weekend before school begins!

Practice Practice Practice

Boy is next week going to hit us like a ton of bricks! Our daily routines are going to be changing quite a bit and man oh man can we tell. The kids are all just going nuts, and not in a good way. I'm sure they all are anticipating the up coming changes.

In the meantime we are doing our best to prepare. Ha, actually we are doing our best to remain grounded as we prepare. I'm not so sure we are succeeding at remaining grounded! Among many things, we are working on bedtime routines, morning routines, and lunch time routines.

Getting back into a decent bedtime hour and wakeup time is our most challenging task. We are headed in the right direction, but it will still be a shock to our system Monday morning. The "good morning button" is working for now, but I'm not sure how long that will last!

During lunch time Carie has been setting the timer to gauge how well they can do with eating their meal within the allotted 20 minutes. Thankfully in the beginning things will be a bit more fluid as they work at getting into the grove at school! Unfortunately there won't be a "timer" at school. One of our concerns is that they'll sit and zone out the entire lunch period as food and eating just isn't an important task for them. Except it greatly impacts their mood and ability to focus! But, much to our surprise they are doing fantastic! When the timer goes off they know that lunch time at school will be over and they evaluate what they have left and how their tummies are feeling. They have also been paying close attention to afternoon snacking to get into the routine of waiting until school is out.

We've also been evaluating their requests and encouraging independence where appropriate. We've been practicing opening containers, including milk cartons. Boy those were hard to find! As a balance to this, we talk about times or situations where it is a great idea to ask for help and who to go to for help. They both are on the shy side and we want them to feel okay or good about speaking up and asking for what they need. They certainly have no problem doing so at home!

The Kindergarten Countdown

The first day of Kindergarten is just 9 days away. The girls are excited and so are we. Yet I don't think we have any idea what is in store for us. I can't believe how much they are going to change over this next academic year.

We've been doing some preparations.

√ Kindergarten Well Check
√ Dental Check-up
√ ENT Appointments
√ Vision Appointments Set
√ School Supply Shopping
√ Backpacks Stuffed Full of Fun New Supplies
√ Parent Workshops
√ All School Registration (Forms, Lunch Money, Bus Info, PTA, etc...)

Open house is just around the corner!