Everything I do is late these days, especially blogging. My kids have been going strong in school for over 2 months now. They are surviving and thriving. Thank goodness.
I thought I post a few photo’s for memories sake. Better late than never.
The boys started 4th grade. They are in the same class again this year. I loved it so much last year that I thought I’d do it again. They complain about it a bit, but someone with more discerning eyes (mom) observes that they are closer than they have ever been as brothers. It’s fun to listen to them lay in bed at night, laughing and talking about their day at school. When they are in the same class they have lots more common ground on which to connect.
They got the new 4th grade teacher, Mrs. Hathaway. She is wonderful. I’m particularly grateful because she can understand some of Jeffrey’s learning challenges on a personal level. That’s always a nice things to have in a teacher. Jeffrey is making great progress and I’m very encouraged by how much help I’ve received from all the teachers. The most common question at our house is, “why to we have to go to school?” but I know that they really do enjoy it…for the most part.
I’ve already spent lots of time at the school and it’s fun to catch up with everyone. Odyssey is a pretty tight knit community and you get to know everyone pretty well. The book fair is coming up in a few days. It will be a long week for me, but the boys still think it’s pretty cool that their mom is in charge. They bring all their friends in to meet me (and to beg for books and trinkets).
As for the daughter…
…the start of this school year was a big mile stone for her. This is her first year at the high school!
To be honest, she has dealt with quite a bit of anxiety about starting high school and the first week or two was quite bumpy. There were lots of tears shed. I totally get it. It’s a big adjustment. Lots to take in. True to form though, she has settled in really well and is loving the experience.
She’s already met some new friends, made it on to the Shakespeare team, is accompanying on the piano for choir and seminary, and is enjoying her classes and the extra long lunch hour. The only thing she complains about is riding the bus. She is already begging for a car. Good thing we have another year before we have to worry about that. She’s studying for the written test so she can get her driving permit though. Somebody help us!
There are only a couple of kids Mary Kate’s age in our neighborhood and most of them go to other schools. Noah has been Mary Kate’s friend since she was five years old. It’s fitting that they went to the first day of school together.
They were too nervous (and probably too cool) to let me take pictures of them in front of the school before they went in, but I snapped this one without them knowing. That’s a big building I just left my baby to navigate.
All summer MK kept asking me why high school is better than Jr. High. I couldn’t even count all the reasons. Last weekend, she and her friends went to their first high school homecoming game. They were all jacked up on school spirit. My guess is they didn’t actually spend much time watching the game. I made this guess after flipping through the pictures on MK’s phone. Goofy selfies are abundant with the teenage set. There were also a few choice videos of she and her friends singing silly songs after sucking a few helium balloons empty. It doesn’t take much to entertain these people.
There is definitely more work required of Mike and I during the school year, but I love the structure and routine of it all. I love to see my kids working hard and striving towards good things. I’m always grateful we live in place were my kids can get a good education.
And it’s good to see them having fun too.
3 comments:
Love these kids!
The years are going by altogether too fast. I'm glad they're all happy.
You have a great perspective Jill. Your kids will always remember that their parents were involved and cheered them on even doing selfies! Great family - we love you!
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