Baby Steps

I love the way our district eases you into school.  I am not a rip the band-aid off kind of girl.  I always slowly peel it off, so the way they do things works for me.  We had an orientation last week for Kindergarten Parents Only.  We got to sit in their chairs and hear all about what to expect from the upcoming, milestone year.  Spencer and I were both THRILLED to find that he will have the same teacher for Kindergarten that Jessa had.

The next little step is the partial First Day of School. 
I got up extra early to make first day of school pancakes.  I borrowed an idea from an old friend, Jill who made special pancakes for her kids first day of school:

Jessa's: a "2" for 2nd grade.

Spencer's: a "K" for Kindergarten.

Jessa came running in at 6:15.  She was fully dressed with socks and shoes.  Her hair was brushed and pulled back into a ponytail.  She scared me half to death because I did not know anyone else was even up!  She was ready for her breakfast and to get this first day started.

David was headed out to catch a flight, but he was happy to pose for a quick pic.

Spencer was a little slower to wake up:

My patient children posed for the traditional Mommy pictures.

And then we were off. 
One more picture before we headed in:

I settled into the cafeteria for some PTO business.  And in pretty short order, Jessa was ready to get the show in the road.  We dropped Jessa off in the line to go to her class.  They discourage parents from going to the classes of the older kiddos, and she was more than ready to GO!
I mean just look at her:

Ready to take on the world, or at least 2nd grade.

On to the next baby step, Kindergarten Meet and Greet.
Spencer got to follow instructions to find his locker.

And his seat at his table, oh by the way, at the yellow table.

He wrote his name and drew a picture, per the instructions.

I am sure you can tell, it's a castle.

We found his mailbox, his lunch card, the behavior cards. 
And the last thing was a final check-in with his teacher.

What a fun baby step!

I loved being at THEIR school with them on the first day.
The excitement in the air was palpable.

Spencer had an OK time, but he was not happy that he had to leave with me.
He can't wait until tomorrow when he gets to stay.
The. Whole. Day. 
And eat lunch in the cafeteria.
And ride the bus.
*sigh*

At least they will be together. . .

 

Twas the night before school. . .

I cannot believe that tomorrow is the first day of school for us.  I mean, I know that I shouldn't be shocked.  We had a crazy long summer this year.  (We did the math and we were 1 day short of Phineas and Ferb's 104 days of summer vacation)  But I am still not sure if I am ready.

Of course, it may have a little something to do with my Spencer starting Kindergarten.  Think that may have something to do with it??

Tonight, we had tacos for a special supper to celebrate back to school.  We got Cold Stone Creamery for dessert.  We loaded new backpacks with new school supplies and placed them by the door.  We chose the perfect outfits to wear.  We read stories - my favorite was "Twas the Night Before Kindergarten" (hence the title of this post).  David came up and told them both good night and wished them luck because unfortunately he will be headed TDY just before we have to head to school.

I tucked in my brand new 2nd Grader first.

She has been out of bed about 46 times because she is too excited to sleep. 

She cannot wait to see her friends. 

And she is not happy that I am driving her tomorrow instead of letting her ride the bus.

Oh and she already told Spencer that she will sit with him on the bus so he won't be lonely.

And then I tucked in my brand new Kindergartner.

He says he is excited but not nervous. 

And he makes fun of me if I even pretend to get choked up about my baby going to school. 

He cannot wait to finally get to go to "Jessa's School."

And riding the bus after tomorrow is going to be so much cooler than the "Mom Van."

I guess I better get to sleep since I have to get up crazy early to make back to school pancakes.

And so a new year begins. . .

*sigh*

Almost Wordless Wednesday

MAX.

Some days, one bean bag is just not enough.

Tough day for Molly

Being a part of a family is wonderful.  You get all sorts of love and support.  But belonging to a family also brings with it certain responsibilities.  You have to pitch in and help out.  This means doing a chore or a favor from time to time.  It may not always be what you want to do, but it is what is expected when you are a part of a family.
And I am not just talking about people here.  I am talking about each and every member of a family.  As many of you know, we have several furry family members.  And the furries do not get a free pass.  There are garbage men to bark at and birds and other critters to chase.

Last Wednesday was a particularly busy day for us at the Crazy Key House.  And our littlest furry Key had a day jam packed full of important jobs.

First the kids and I went to the commissary.  We got back and we were trying to get all the groceries unloaded before it was time to head to our next engagement.  I was having some trouble fitting all of the new items into the fridge.  I bought 2 containers of tomatoes, and those were the last things that I was trying to find a place to put them.  I was also keeping the kids and track and a few other things.  So when everything was in the fridge, I thought, "yes!"  I had no idea that my helpful little Molly was aware of my plight.  And bless her heart, she was ready to help.  She made the executive decision to just find another place for those tomatoes.  And it was all really quite clever. 

She snacked on a few.







And then she decided that the plastic case was not a suitable storage receptacle.

I think you'll be impressed with her final decision.

So after the troublesome task of putting away most of the groceries, the kids and I were off again to our next commitment.  I am sure Molly was busy guarding the house from neighborhood kids and UPS trucks while we were gone.  I mean, a dog as helpful as she is would never just take the afternoon off.

Later on, after we were home, I was working on the dishes.  I had not had a chance with our early morning errands to get the dishwasher loaded and unloaded.  And let me tell you, this is a job that I pretty much cannot do alone.  Ever since Molly arrived on the scene, she is my devoted dishwasher dog, for sure.

And she takes her job very seriously, too.  She has developed techniques to get at some of the dishes that would be out of reach for a less experienced dog.

Just look at her form.

She does like to be noticed when she is working this hard. 

"Look we me, Mom, sacrificing my body for your dishes."







We could all learn something from this devoted little helper, couldn't we?

But even the most devoted and hardest working among us have rough days, right?
The stress of the day can really start to wear on you.
Apparently, Molly is no different.
Remember when I said that we had put away most of the groceries?  Well, little Molly apparently saw something that she thought she might need.  She stashed it away for another time. 
And I guess after the busy say she had, it was a good thing.
Some days you can get a headache.






And if this happens and you are a dog, you are in trouble.
What with the no opposable thumbs thing, opening much needed medication can be difficult.
I mean, you can get the box open and the top off pretty easily.






But darn that child-proof and apparently (thankfully) dog-proof safety seal.
She had to give up.
She left it in the yard for me to find.







Here is a closer look at her valiant attempt.






I guess I better do a better job at keeping medicine out of reach of children - human AND canine. . .

After a hard day of helping me and doing her chores, she was worn out. 
I guess she just gave up on the "headache medicine" and just went on to sleep.










We are so lucky to have such a helpful little dog.

Almost Wordless Wednesday

Westies are the Besties!

Fashion tips?

We had just gotten back from Hawaii on Thursday. I had to get up early to take Max to the vet. So I got up, showered, got dressed in comfy clothes. I mean, I was in no way close to being over the whole time change, so there was no need to get all gussied up, right? I was just going to the vet. So Max and I headed out and took card of business. I came back home and did a few things around the house. And then about 11, I realized that David, Jessa, and Spencer were all still in the bed. The house was quiet. So what did I do? Yep, I went upstairs and climbed back in the bed! I slept a few more hours, still in my comfy clothes (knit pants and a long sleeved t-shirt). Late in the afternoon, David suggested that we all go bowling. I thought that sounded like fun. And the kids are always up for a night at the lanes. So I hollered at them to get dressed. Yes, they were somewhat dressed. I mean, they were not naked. Spencer actually still had on jommies. But normally before we leave the house, I like for everyone to look at least somewhat presentable. 

They both head to their bedrooms to get cleaned up to go out. I considered changing my clothes, but then I decided, hey, it's just bowling. So I did not heed my own advice.

Jessa walked back into our room holding something that looked like jeans. She brought them right over to me and asked if she could wear them. I looked closer, and it was overalls. My first thought was where did she get those? I have not bought overalls in years. I asked her what size were the overalls in her hand. She looked and looked and found the size. 3T. Yep. My 7 1/2 year old daughter with a closet full of clothes in HER size wanted to wear some 3T overalls. Out. In public. I said, well, you can try them on. In my head, I am thinking that there is no way that she will even be able to get them on her body.

Well, she got them on, but she had me help her fasten them.
I thought there was no way she'd be comfortable enough to actually wear them.
She said she was.  She has called my bluff.
I decided to just go with it.
Then she chose her footwear.
And well,
this is what she looked like:

Overalls are a size 3T, people!

And as we were walking out the door, she looked over at me in my knit pants and t-shirt and said,

Mom, are you going to wear that?

Right backatcha, little girl.

Almost Wordless Wednesday

Spencer is still not sure about the pool and the water. 

We have made lots of progress this summer,

but he still as a healthy respect for the water.

More than respect, really,

apprehension, fear, dread, anxiety.

Even though he wants to swim and spend lots of time in the pool,

he is not taking ANY chances.

I think his motto is

SAFETY FIRST.