last day of school...

It's a day that is highly anticipated by some and dreaded by others.  For me?  Both.  I made some really cute gifts for the teachers as a thank you gift and then totally forgot to make them cards.  Sometimes I am completely absent minded (my husband would agree).

Here is Sunshine with Mrs. C.  Sunshine loved school this year but is happy that it is summer so she can spend time with her family.

Here is Buddy with Ms. C.  He enjoyed learning so much this year.  He talked so much about bones and what goes on inside our bodies, that I felt I was back in biology.  That just shows how much he loves to learn. 

I decided to make the end of school fun with a special treat of books for the kids.  (Thanks Uncle Ben!)  After I took this picture, the kids opened their books and started reading immediately.  It was so cute to see them, and yes, I should have taken a picture of that too, but I didn't think about it until Turtle was up and running.

weather balloon launch...

Dad will post the details on this later (we hope).

world book night...

Turn off the TV week is difficult.  However, the kids school did something different this year.  Every night there was a something fun to do, including gardening at the school's community garden, a nature walk and square dancing (we weren't able to attend all of them).  Monday happened to be "World Book Night."  We decided to make that our FHE activity because they wanted families, and not just kids, included.  We got to school and every kid got a new book, as well as one adult per family.  The gym was set up with little reading areas everywhere.  We shared our spots with our good friends, the Olsen's.  It was fun and something different to do.

Here are the kids with their librarian, Mrs. Jones.

literacy night...

A couple of weeks ago we went to literacy night at the kids' school.  Not many people showed up, but we had fun playing games and learning.  Buddy won a door prize of a Shel Silverstein book (yeah!) and Mom won a prize (an orange balloon) by guessing correctly what a teacher was dressed up as (which was an asparagus).

teaching preschool...

I was torn between what to teach on a certain day of preschool.  I could have taught a number of different things, but I chose to teach about Dr. Seuss.  The kids loved it!  Here is what Turtle did.

gingerbread houses...

The school the kids go to doesn't do normal holiday parties.  However, they do make gingerbread houses for fun.  The entire month of December parents are encouraged to send in bags of candy to be able to decorate these houses.  When I went to help out in Sunshine's class I wanted to brush my teeth or throw up.  I couldn't figure out which one I wanted to do more, so I just decided to grin and bear it and help the kids out.  They had so much fun designing their own houses and grabbed candy to decorate it with. 

I eventually made it to Buddy's class, where they were just starting their own houses.  But I had to go take the other kids home so I wasn't able to take more pictures.

Here are their finished houses.  No awards were given out in Sunshine's class, but Buddy's class had awards and Buddy was given the "Ugly in a pretty way" award (he was hoping to get the cavity award).

The worst part of this whole process was that the kids each came home with a bag full of the extra candy.  Yuck.

joy school...

I got a phone call right after the start of school asking if I wanted Turtle to participate in Joy School.  Basically it's free preschool that I get to teach for two weeks every few months. 

I am just going to tell you now that Turtle was overjoyed to be able to go to 'school' just like his brother and sister.  I also gave him a new outfit so he felt special.  He left his school happy and excited to go again.

soft start...

Sunshine had her first day of kindergarten today.  I went with her because of something called "soft start."  It's where parents join their children for the first day of school in order to make it easier on everyone.  Whatever.  Sunshine so did NOT need me there.  Two seconds after we walked in her classroom she ran off to play with some new friends.  She was super excited.

I got to watch her interact with her peers and with her teacher.  She remembered to raise her hand and not yell, which was fabulous.  She got to take a tour of the school and learn where things are.  She got to play on the playground, color and play with playdoh.  It was a regular school day.  I'm positive she will do great.

I was also able to be there for her kinder testing.  It's what they do the first week of school.  They test the kids to see what they know.  Sunshine knew all of her uppercase letters, the sounds they make, all but 'b' and 'd' of her lowercase letters and the sounds they make, she can already count to over 100 and she can skip count to 18 by 2's and 90 by 10's, she knows all of her colors and she can name 7 of 10 shapes (she missed cube, octagon and trapezoid).  The lady testing her was so impressed by Sunshine and said a lot of kids don't even test that well at the end of kindergarten.  Way to go Sunshine! 

interview with a third grader...

Buddy came home with a sheet he filled out at school today.  It was a little getting to know you type thing.  I thought you would like to see his answers.

My favorite colors are.....turquoise and blue.
A hobby of mine is.....collecting books.
I am good at.....not liseing to my perents.
One way I help at home is by.....washing dishes.
My favorite foods are.....spaghetti.
The subject I like best in school is.....reading and math.
My favorite book is.....Leven Thumps.
My favorite game is.....battle ship.
The thing people like best about me is.....I am smart.
The thing I like best about me is.....I know how to read.
My favorite television program movie is.....Rio.
My favorite song is.....I didn't.
In my family there is.....mom, dad, brother, and sister.
My favorite flavor of ice cream is.....birthday cake.
When I grow up I want to be.....a scientist.
The best time of the year is.....my birthday.....because..... I get prestents and get to see family.

(He isn't the greatest speller, but he certainly is trying hard)

off to third grade...

I'm not one of those mothers who gets all emotional about kids starting school (and I might take this back Thursday or in two more years, so don't quote me on it quite yet) but I was so proud this morning and I actually got a little misty eyed.  I have a 3rd grader!  Yes, this is crazy.

 Oh wait, the misty eye didn't come from emotions, it came from the fog that was hanging so stinkin' low.  That's part of life, as is school.

Buddy is excited to start school again.  New school, new friends.  Sounds like fun.

what to give a teacher...

I've seen this idea on several blogs over the past couple of years. I finally decided to make one. Mrs. Young really liked it and the roses and the can full of chocolate. I also made her a disc of all the pictures I had taken over the past year. She was so happy about that. She definitely deserved that special treat.

By the way, cutting crayons is the easy part. Trying to get them all in the right spots to make the letter (I tried using a font outline) isn't all that easy. But it looks awesome.

last day of second grade...

I have a third grader and a kindergartner! That is so crazy to think about. But before he became a third grader, I want to show you Buddy's last day of second grade.

Wake up bright and early, with the sun. See the messy bed head? We let him go to school like that on purpose today. You'll see why in a moment.Last bus ride of second grade. Waving at the bus stop can be so fun. And for those of you who think otherwise, need to take a look at this blog here. So much fun.For their last day of school, Buddy's teacher treated her class to a pool party and then a trip to the park and then a pizza party and tons of recess time. What a fantastic last day of school!Buddy has had his teacher for two years now. Mrs. Young is totally awesome and we loved how great she was with him. She told me today that if she could, she would keep him another year. I asked her if I could take a class picture. She agreed. As we were walking from the pool through the park, we stopped by the bamboo 'forest' and got a picture. I told her that I needed the kids to do something for me. I thought of this only this morning. I printed up the letters right before I had to be at the pool and I even ran out of ink doing it! Mrs. Young actually got teary eyed when I showed this to her. I think it's adorable.Then it was off to feed the ducks. The kids probably threw two loaves of bread and a bag of buns to those ducks/geese/swans/seagulls. Little did those birds know that TWO more classes were doing the same thing later that day. Poor birds.Buddy was the one doing most of the feeding. Why? Because he loves to think about food.Buddy and Mrs. Young.Buddy and the principal.Today was not only Buddy's last day of second grade, it was his last day at the school. Due to a school closing, Buddy and Sunshine will be going to a different school next year. I am sad at this because I've really gotten to like the staff and teachers there. But we are up for new adventures and are excited for a new school year.
But first, we get to have a wonderful summer!