First Days

How do you prepare yourself for this day? Everest started Kindergarten last week. It is so cliche, but where does the time go? This year was not as bad as I anticipated with Everest. He is still at Montessori and knows most of his class already. He is in a different class with different teacher (who are all amazing), and he goes 5 afternoons.This year will be more academic than the last 2, but I think he is ready for the challenge.

Ready and excited for his first day! Everest picked out a Planet Box lunchbox. It is wonderful. I gave him the choice of many lunchboxes and this is what he wanted. Thanks Nonnie and Papa.

Nonnie rode a bike to school with us. Everest was so excited she could come. She and Papa left right after he went to school. We miss them!

 Everest putting his school bag into his locker and then changing into his indoor shoes. He wanted Sketchers this year, because Ryan (a girl in his class last year) had them. She is a very cute red head.

After school daddy surprised Everest and was at pick up. We wanted to bike to the ice cream shop, but it was pouring rain, so we drove the 2 blocks instead. The ice cream shop has about 100 flavors, the boys did exactly what I used to do as a kid. They picked rainbow, at least that is what it was called when I was a kid. Today it was called Superman and it was bright red, blue and yellow. What kid couldn't resist that, especially when their was a poster on the wall of Superman with Superman ice cream.

 Guess who got a hold of Leaf's ice cream. Luckily he was in a generous mood and continued sharing with her. I do not even want to think about the amount of food coloring my kids had.

 It is 7am Monday morning August 29, 2011. I never thought this day would come so early, and I have been very surprised at how I am handling it. Leaf started the Montessori Toddler program. He goes Monday and Tuesday morning. He has dreamed about this day for a year. He has been excited about it since I signed him up in March. His teachers visited this summer and then we visited the classroom. He is all prepared. He got his own Montessori bag, with his name on it. He has indoor shoes (Sketchers, just like Everest), he calls them fire shoes because the toes have flames and they light up. There is a flashlight waiting to be taken apart at school, his teachers put it in a special place just for him, when I apologized early about the fact that he LOVES to take things apart. He tends to not be able to put them back together and asks a grownup. Only to show up 2 minutes later with it taken apart again and the request to "fix it". He is ready.....I am not. I thought I would be, he wants so much to be independent and I know he will thrive there. He needs his own space, he needs to get out of his brothers shadow. But...he is young. I know he is not really, he is among the oldest, some kids have just turned 2, he will be 3 in October. I know all of this, but it was so much harder than I expected it to be. I am so thankful that I have 3 children. I had no choice but to say good bye, have a great day and walk out of the room, because I have 2 other kids that need to be taken care of too. Today I needed the distraction of having multiple kids.

Blueberry pancakes, with fresh blueberries. It is his favorite. Nathan put the kids table next to the dining room table as a special treat. Leaf loved it...so did Everest. I made the boys take off their shirts, they had their school clothes on and blueberry pancakes and nice clothing do not go well together.

All dressed up and ready to go.

Wearing his MSGL bag to school like daddy does.

Daddy stayed home to take Leaf to school.

Giving big brother a hug. Everest was so helpful with Leaf this morning.

Giving daddy one last hug.

Silly boys!

 Walking Leaf to class. Everest has grown up so much this past year.

 In the class. He had a great day, no tears and he is ready to go back tomorrow. The kids bring a framed picture of their family to keep in the classroom. Miss Dena said Leaf carried the photo with his all day. He had it on the playground when we picked him up. I guess we were with him all day. That's my boy, very independent, but mama and daddy are never far from his heart.