The First Day

Well, it's been an exciting day. Everyone had a great first day of school. The only complaints I heard this afternoon were:

Jolie wasn't allowed to sit by her friends at lunch (who are in other grades or 1st grade classes); everyone else bought their lunch rather than bringing a lunch from home (obviously Jolie is new to the school lunch experience: she actually thinks she was deprived of something); Tristan's teacher kept mispronouncing his name; and Tristan's new school has assigned seating at lunch.

Given that 90% of their complaints were about lunch, I'd say it was a good day.

I was amazed at how easily the day went for Tristan. He had no reservations whatsoever. He went right into his classroom, he said he played basketball at both recesses and he even has a field trip tomorrow! Unbelievable!

Jolie is wearing her "nervous look" in the photo that I took outside her classroom. I think she may be the one who has a harder transition. She seemed pretty tired and emotional this afternoon, even though she only had a half day of school. I was also surprised that when the bus pulled up after school, she didn't get off. Gavin, Tristan and I beat her home so we walked to the corner to greet her. We waited and waited for her to get off... no Jolie. I climbed onto the bus and the bus driver even called her name over the intercom. Jolie finally appeared. When she got off the bus she had her lunch bag but not her backpack. Turns out she left it on the bus. Sooo... let's just say that I'm glad we walked to the corner to greet her. I do have to say that she did better than the little 2nd grader who got off the bus (at the same stop he got off at all last year) and didn't know his way home. His older brother moved onto junior high this year.

Learning Bangladesh-ese

This week we attended a picnic for Tristan's new school program. He's going into the "gifted and talented" program (I really hate that phrase) which is located at a different school. Other than the fact that it was hot and we ended up sitting on a blanket on the grass (which is becoming less and less comfortable these days), the picnic went well. We met the principal who seems great; we met Tristan's teacher who seems great. A lot of questions were answered and Tristan got a tour of his classroom and the school. I'm hopeful that it will be a great year.

There's another side to this whole thing, though, that's harder to quantify. While we were walking through the hallways of the school, it felt so strange to think that Tristan would be spending his days there. It felt like we were walking through the streets of a foreign country: unusual sights, unusual sounds, even an unusual smell about the place. Tristan is going to a place where he doesn't know anyone. He doesn't know where the bathroom is or anything about the lunchroom protocol. He's spent the last three years becoming acclimated to a place where he feels comfortable, where he recognizes the cuisine and understands the language. Now I'm turning him loose in Bangladesh! What have I done?

Strangely, I'm the only one who's feeling this anxiety right now. I just hope that eight-year-olds learn to speak Bangladesh-ese easier than their mothers.

One Week and Counting!

School starts a week from today. Not that I'm counting (cough) or wishing this wondeful summer away (cough) or anything like that...

We received a recorded message this morning from Jolie's principal, informing us that the class lists were FINALLY posted for all to see. They added a 1st grade teacher at the last minute so there are only 22 kids in her class (a large improvement from last year's 28). The good news is that Jolie has the new teacher and she knows a few of the kids in her class. A brand new teacher is always a crap shoot, but there's a particular 1st grade teacher with whom we have some experience and we were really hoping we wouldn't have to relive that nightmare. Whew! My prayers were answered on that one. Jolie was a little disappointed that some of her friends aren't in her new class but she's easy going and she makes friends easily so I'm confident that things will go well.

I'm going to miss Jolie when she starts 1st grade. Last year was perfect for all of us. She was home in the morning and then got to spend a couple hours of the afternoon at school. Her teacher was warm and nurturing and it was just what she needed. This year is going to be different. She'll be entering the cold harsh world of 1st grade: all day, expected to abide by the rules and regulations, tie her own shoes, do the lunch thing, play on the playground with the bigger (meaner) kids... it can be an adjustment. It will also be an adjustment for Gavin and I, we'll miss her.

The Cabin

We spent last weekend in Island Park, ID at the cabin. We try to make it up every summer but we were unable to go last year. I've been hearing about it all year (!) so we were sure to schedule our trip early this year.

Talk about a child's playground! The river, the dock, hunting for snakes, mountain biking, roasting marshmallows and eating smores, sleeping in a loft... what could be more exciting?

I called mom the morning after we got home and asked if she was glad to wake up to peace and quiet. Aunt Lisa, I'm sure, was too.

Balance? Maybe.. Please??

The other exciting part of Monday was the all-important news I needed from the ultrasound tech at my monthly OB appointment. Ofcourse we were interested to know about the development of the baby and my health and all of that, but we've also been excited to know whether we're expecting a baby boy or girl. There's been a lot of talk around here about whether we're going to have a brother or sister, which each of us would prefer to have, what we'll name our baby, etc. We've (more or less) been divided along party lines, that is, the girls in the family have been hoping for a baby girl and the boys for a baby boy.

Well the girls at last won one! We found out that our baby is "99% sure" to be a GIRL! To Jolie and I that means that we can look forward to a little more balance around here... maybe. We'll see. You never really know what you're going to get, do you?

Happy Birf-day!

Our little monkey turned three on Monday! In a word, the day was very exciting. It all started with Tristan and Jolie waking Gavin up at 6-something to tell him it was his birthday (thanks, guys!) True to the way things ususally go around here, it was all craziness and excitement from that point forward. Tristan and Jolie went to their last book club session of the summer, where there was a bouncy house and clown for the last hour, and Gavin and I ran a few errands to buy school supplies. We picked up the kids and came home for a quick bite to eat. Our only problem was that there was WAY too much excitement in the air for anyone to sit down and eat. After a few bribes and threats, I was able to get them to eat a little bit.

We headed to Salt Lake for my ultrasound appointment (but that's a whole other post). We spend a few very HYPER hours at University Hospital enclosed in a couple of small rooms with very expensive equipment, and then we headed home in the traffic. Dan had met us at the hospital directly from work so it was just the kids and I fighting traffic on our own. I had a couple VERY important phone calls to make, and so the kids were left to their own devices. Unbeknownst to me, some toy swords had made it into my car so a huge sword fight ensued on the way home. The kids were, ofcourse, buckled in, but where there's a will... there's a way.

Once we were home we had about 20 minutes to pick up the house, get dinner going, run to the corn lady to buy our favorite farm-fresh corn, and get ready for the party. It was a crazy day but Gavin enjoyed every minute of it. He enjoyed telling people "I'm having a birf-day!" and then he'd hide behind me or cover his face when asked how old he was or what his special plans for the day were. My mom made Gavin a special "Thomas" cake and he was BEAMING while we sang to him.

Couch Flying

Just a few images of my active little 2-year old while he's still two. I was just downstairs having a (rare) quiet moment, reading the Sunday edition of the Wall Street Journal in the living room. Gavin decided to start "flying" between one couch and the other. Most unseasoned parents I'm sure would discourage this but I've learned that it's futile with little boys. Threre's something about the liberty of the underpants and the tempting two-foot distance between the arm of one sofa and the soft, welcoming cushion of the other that makes it irrestistable. Plus, I'll admit it... It's Sunday evening, I've been fighting the fight all day long, and I'm exhausted! Let him have his thrill. At least I'm within close range if it all goes bad.

Oh, and I couldn't resist photographing Gavin's toenails. He begged me to paint them earlier when I was doing mine and Jolie's. When Dan balked I informed him that unless my news from the ultrasound tech tomorrow is that we're having a girl, I'll be painting the toenails of the next boy, too. He didn't say anything.

So tomorrow is a big day for us! Gavin turns three and we'll know some exciting news about our new addition... can't wait!