Week one

Okay...I have a ton of pictures to sort thru and share, but first let me tell you how week one went.

On Monday the girls gave great reports from school and were excited to go back. Sort of. Sweetness was not so sure about going every day.  I took the van in for a potential slow leak in a tire. There was a nail, but not in a patchable place so I bought a new tire, despite the tires themselves being pretty new. The boys did a trip to Phoenix. John to the airport. On the way home, while passing a semi truck, it threw a rock onto the rear passenger window. Eric said it sounded like a gun shot! SO SCARY! Our little guy was thankfully sitting on the other side and even more grateful that we had gotten the windows tinted, that is what prevent it from shattering and sending the millions of pieces INTO the car.

I did use the incident as a reminder as to why we don't throw rocks, or toys, or books, or really anything!

The rest of the mornings while Sweetness was at kindergarten, which is only half day, this guy wasn't really sure what to do. So he mostly laid on the couch, waiting for his sisters to come home.

The only one who could keep him company was Ariel. At one point I offered him the chance to paint, unsupervised while I took a shower, he turned me down. That is how melancholy he was!

CJ has had a blast in second grade. Making new friends and having fun at recess. This year has started off great for her! She even got to walk home in a thunderstorm one day. Okay, maybe she didn't see it as a positive, but now she can tell her kids and grandkids just how tough her walk to and from school was -including storms her mom made her walk in.

She has enjoyed her summer with this snap circuit kit. Sirens, fans, lights and more!  Today her glasses arrived, they got left in a hotel room last week. So she'll be ready for week 2 to start come Monday!

Now last year there were some issues with preschool. While I never got the full story, the short end is, she started to completely shut down. The teachers thought she was a painfully shy student since she refused to talk and would burst into tears when they spoke to her. After a month, we pulled her out and her little body just lifted when we told her she wouldn't have to go back.  So I did touch base with her teacher and mentioned that we like to make sure she uses her words and participates. I mentioned our concern of her shutting down and really withdrawing last year and wanting to stay on top of it this year.  Sweetness LOVED day one. However, she was surprised and really mulled over the idea of returning every day. She enjoys walking with our little neighborhood group but after school I would get mixed reviews and very little verbal out of her.  Honestly, I've been holding my breath.

When I picked her up today, she did tell me all about the fire drill and where they go.  When I turned to her teacher I learned that she had also been selected as student of the week for the kindergartners! WOW!! So proud and excited for her!  Her teacher said she has been participating, raising her hand and answers questions, just doing very well overall. What a relief! Her great teacher has also been reinforcing and giving her positive feedback when she does speak up and take part in activities.

And that is how week one played out.