First Day of Kindergarten

Twas' the night before Kindergarten and all thru the house...

 

Outfits were hung, surely...admired by mouse.

Art smocks were ready, backpacks all filled...

Blackboards were ready ... read Mrs. Madill.

Time to take photos ...

and photos...

say "cheese"!

"Mom, stop crying ...NOW won't you please?"

One more of the backpack..

a kiss for the Dad.

I promise to smile and not be too sad.

You looked a bit nervous..

you looked a bit long...

and at the end of the day...were tired...but strong!

A surprise awaited ... a spectacular sight...

For the First Day of Kindergarten...kiss kiss ... say goodnight. 

well...until the next day :)

Check the first day of Kindergarten off the list!  Even though I said I cried (for the poem to rhyme)...I didn't.  The only tears were that of Amelia's just as we left the classroom.  I was sure that it was all the commotion...."Uh MOM!  What's going to happen when you leave me?!! Why is everyone hugging like they are never going to see us again!"  I played it up as just another day just like Pre-school, but I think she sensed it was more at that last moment. 

No worries...I picked her up and she was fine...a little haggard as you can see in the photo... but happy and her teacher said she was fine once the parents all left.  

Next morning she said she didn't want to go...but I assured her it would even be easier.  She was fine once in the car, excited to see her teacher and her new "friends", even though she doesn't know their names :)

So the first year of school begins.  

The epic journey of 13 plus years of knowledge and wonder.

Let the adventures ... begin...continue. :)

Week Before Kindergarten

Week before Kindergarten.

Playdates with her buddies, school clothes shopping and playing playing playing...she is ready for school.  

Met with her teacher this past Wednesday and couldn't be happier.  There will be 3 kindergartens this year ... up from 1.  Baby boom apparently.

Did lots of school shopping (always the tourist ... had to touch the moose) and lots of friends coming over for the last hoorah before school begins.  She knows no one in her class.  She will be fine though...she is quite personable now and makes friends easily.  I thank pre-school for that.  She is not nervous at all.  Mom on the other hand was a bit anxious, but now kind of excited to have some time to do all the things that Amelia doesn't like me to do...grocery shopping, cleaning, projects.  It is a win win scenario.  Dad is taking off Wednesday so she has us both there for the big day that I will try to make feel like any other.  

Speaking of shopping.  I bought this little table and chairs (like we need another) for $5 at a garage sale I passed by.  Didn't paint it yet...just cleaned it up as it, already had chalk paint for the top.  She has been using it constantly.  Now it resides in Dad's office covered in legos ... so she "can be like dad".  Prior...

there were glorious tea parties...

Hours of drawing...

and playing with her Calico Critters 
and her Lille Huset house.

Next post...Kindergarten slideshow I am sure.

Rhubarb and Raspberries

Our Rhubarb has been picked and frozen.  

I kept 5 cups out for a recipe a friend said I had to try.  I did and Amelia inhaled it.  

Rhubarb Custard Bars

(thought I would put the pic of the picture she took and sent me...I love the spots of oil...recipe is well loved).

I actually used a pie crust that I had in the freezer...I am guessing the crust in the recipe would be better, but mine came out very tasty as well.

We have been picking Raspberries too.

Although I forgot to take a picture of it,  we also made our famous Blueberry Crumble into RASPBERRY Crumble...equally delicious.

Lots of projects going on too:  

Finishing up a bookshelf for Rob's office, designing Amelia's "zoo" for all her stuffed animals and finished a present that included this picture:

Cannot tell you about it till later...like October. :P

Lots of play too this week:

including a birthday party at the zoo on a rainy Sunday.

Where Amelia borrowed my phone and snapped these babies.  She set the filters too...quite the photographer at 5.

Finished up our last dance and swimming lessons for the summer.  She can  swim underwater and use her windmill arms to get across the pool with few stops.  From not dunking her head to this with 4 lessons...I couldn't be happier :)

The Tooth Fairy

It is official...my baby is growing up.   Not only in sophistication,  but in physiology as well...she has lost her first tooth.

This is what it looked like the morning of our dentist appointment for our 6 mos. cleaning.   I was hoping it would be gone by the time we went at 11.  No such luck.  This is what she looked like in the chair.

Then...the inevitable happened.  The water pushed it out.

It was the dental hygienist first tooth lost during a cleaning thus she said...she would never forget Amelia :)  They put the tooth in a little treasure chest and we headed home.  We put the little box into the bag of her tooth fairy doll along with a letter asking to keep her first tooth ("as it's special").   We woke at 5am the next morning to find this:

A letter, the tooth now magically in a glass vile and a very sparkly $5 bill rolled and tied.  All in a gold bag with her treasure box from the dentist.

The letter had a wax seal with a rose. 

 

She carried the bag around with her til I said to put it in her box so it wouldn't get lost.

We headed to our neighbors for a playdate to celebrate.  She is all about marketing.  This is actually her new backpack for Kindergarten.

Then we headed to the Imaginarium at the Anchorage Museum to play...for 4 hours.  We had lunch too at the museums cafe "the Muse" where the first picture was taken.  I looked up and took the pic thinking ... where did the time go?

Time for a cupcake.

We have picked our last rhubarb and now onto our raspberry patch.  Next...a Rhubarb Custard Bar recipe that Amelia inhaled and the preparation for Kindergarten has begun.