I may be biased, but I think they are smart

School is rolling along and all of us are having a great year.  Lindsey has had her first test in spelling and math and made 100 on both.  I asked her if everyone makes 100, and she said no, some even make an F and then told me that James made an F.  I do not know who James is but hate that the comparisons have already started for him in first grade.  We are so blessed that Lindsey is driven and does her homework on her own--we will have to learn how to ask "Do you have homework?" when Benton reaches real school because I doubt he will have it completed before we get home each day like she does.

Benton still loves school.  He has only moved his owl once in two weeks, and it was for talking at naptime, so not a serious offense.  He is on an orange kick and colors most things orange, but he brought this home one day his first week and I decided he must be a genius.  Our buddy can write his name!  He has also learned the names of his new friends, and he told us that Mimi was not his girlfriend anymore last week but she would be again soon. 

Kate is still Kate, preferring the word "no" to just about everything else.  She proved she knew who Popsey was (Pop Pop is her version), but she usually tells us "no" anytime we ask a question.  We are working on asking more open-ended questions.  It is what I have to do all day at school with my high schoolers--some habits die hard.

Two down, one to go

We anticipated this week all summer--Benton started pre-K at Pleasant Hill.  Lindsey did the same program two years ago and loved it, but they are very different children.  Lindsey loves to have an activity going at all times and thinks reading, writing, and doing math problems are fun.  Benton would be content to sit in Ms. Lynn's lap and watch Disney movies the rest of his childhood.  However, we knew he needed to start school.  On his last day  at Ms. Lynn's, we both cried a little--that would be Lynn and me.  Benton had no tears because he was convinced Lynn would come be his teacher at school.  Once we broke the news that Ms. Lynn had to stay with Kate, he quickly recovered and decided he would be in Ms. Natalie's kindergarten class.  At this point, we were concerned that Benton would not adjust well to the real world. 

He spent last week with B and Popsey and they spent the week telling him how much fun school is, so B brought him home just in time for Open House and he was ecstatic.  He loved meeting his teachers and told them he was coming back Monday (and gave them both a hug and a kiss--he is our lover boy).  Monday rolled around and Benton was still excited about school.  He periodically would pass through the kitchen and gaze at his Star Wars backpack and lunchbox.  David dropped him off his first morning, and four days into preschool there has not been a tear.  In fact, every day when I arrive to pick him up in the afternoon, he says, "Aw, I not ready to go home!"  He also asks if he can come back the next day.  This might be because he is covered in dirt from head to toe (literally every inch of him other than his eyes was a dirty shade of orange every afternoon) and loves playing with the kids.  He keeps forgetting to ask his new friends their names, but he told me today that he played with a new friend and he does not know her name but she had to move her owl today.  I was celebrating the small victory that Benton was not the first to move his owl this year. 

We are grateful this preschool is available for our kids, and we are thankful to have two kids at a wonderful elementary school (eternally grateful for Ms. Lynn, too).

The Big Brown Dog is 10

I have not mentioned Shelby on here in months (or ever) because we now treat her like a dog and not a child, but we do not neglect our first born.  Lindsey participated in a coloring contest at the library this summer, and she won the six-year-old division.  We are so proud of our artist!  Her prize was a gift card to Petco, and she wanted to use it to buy Shelby a birthday present.  August is a busy month of birthdays and an anniversary in our house, so we rarely celebrate Shelby's birthday, but she turned 10 this year and that is worth celebrating.  So I took Lindsey to Petco and she picked out a sock monkey toy because all three kids have a sock monkey and she really thought Shelby needed one.  Plus, the picture on the tag showed a dog cuddling with a sock monkey on a doggie bed, and I didn't have the heart to tell Lindsey that Shelby will chew up the toy within minutes.  Lindsey also picked out a bag of treats from the treat bar, and she was especially proud of the rawhide lolllipops they had.  Shelby loved her gifts from her "little sister"!

Ten years of Shelby have included lots of frustration, dirty floors, and broken things around the house--but they have also included ten years of love from a loyal companion.
Happy birthday, Shelby!

First Grade

Lindsey now has a week of first grade under her belt.  In this week, she has learned that first grade is not as fun as kindergarten, and we have learned our little girl is growing up. 
We went to Open House at Pleasant Hill two weeks ago and met Mrs. McNeer, Lindsey's teacher.  We are excited about Mrs. McNeer's class!  We made the mistake of going to visit Ms. Natalie first, and Lindsey got sad seeing her old room, her old teacher, and several friends who are repeating the class.  She knows several boys in her class from last year, but none of her good girl friends are in her class again.  She got a little overwhelmed at Open House but was still excited about starting first grade.

David took her to school the first day, and she met again with her friends before school for pictures.  They have grown so much in a year!  She rode the shuttle bus to my school that afternoon, and, unlike last year, she did not get off at the wrong stop!  There are two kindergarten students from her school that ride over to my school where their moms teach English, and Lindsey feels responsible for them.  This makes getting on and off the bus a cinch each day as Lindsey is no longer worried about it.  She and the little girl, Anna Kate, have become fast friends and look forward to coloring in my room after school each day.

Lindsey has not had homework yet and let me know that she is ready for homework because she is bored after school.  That's my girl!  She has been exhausted at the end of the day all week.  She is meeting new friends and reunited on the playground with some old ones.  First grade is off to a great start!

 Madilyn, Campbell, Abby Grace, and Lindsey

 So excited about going to school!

 They could be in a Pottery Barn catalog

Sweet friends!