Devan's first day of Kindergarten

The day has finally come!  Devan woke up early, ready to get dressed and eat breakfast.  When I was finishing up making his lunch, I asked him if he was excited for kindergarten.  And he said "Yeah, kinda" but with a big smile :)  And I knew he would be fine.  He loves school and is ready to go start a new adventure.  Now, Lexi on the other hand.....  I think it's harder for those left behind :)

 Ugh!  This backpack is so heavy!!

There's the bus!  It came on time, and Devan got right on without looking back!  He saw all his friends on the bus and couldn't wait.  But as soon as the bus drove off, Lexi started crying "I don't want to go home...."  Hahaha!  Now who's going to boss her around???

 

A little comparison between preschool & kindergarten

So, tomorrow is Devan's first day of kindergarten....  I can't believe it's here!  He's growing up so fast!!!  So, since we have to get up so darn early tomorrow for the bus, I decided to take some pictures today while he had more patience for it :)  Tired cranky boys in the early morning are NOT going to want to sit and take some pictures for me.  Hahaha!  Tomorrow I'm just going for pictures on and off the bus, and that's it.

 

So, now that we took some, I thought I would do a little comparison for everyone.  He looks like such a baby in the preschool pictures!  And Lexi has changed dramatically!

 

Sibling shot (or trying to- she wasn't in the cooperating mood for this).

 Preschool (18 months & 4 yrs):

 Kindergarten (2.5 yrs & 5 yrs):

 Hopefully she will be more photogenic tomorrow morning and I can snap a few more.  But, no guarantees she won't still be in her pjs :)

Sneak-a-Peak

I'm skipping ahead because I'm running out of time and I want to make sure to get this posted...  This past Wednesday was sneak-a-peak, where Devan met his teacher, explored his classroom and school, went on a short bus ride, and played on the playground.  It was good for him to see everything and take away some of his anxiety around starting something new.

 

We found his classroom, talked to his teacher Ms Budelman, and found his desk.

At his desk was some "Jitter Glitter".  The cute little poem says he should sprinkle the jitter glitter under his pillow on Sunday night and it will help him sleep and take away all the first day of school jitters that he might have.  A super cute idea.

 A picture with his teacher

 We walked around the classroom and found his cubby where he will hang his backpack, coat, and lunch box.  We looked at the computers, reading nook, found his writing book, read through the helper chart (they have "line leader" too!, says Devan), and just looked at all the stuff on the walls.  It's just like preschool, but on a bigger scale.  So he felt better because he was already familiar with the preschool routine.

After the classroom, we visited the cafeteria, the gym, and the library.  Then met up with some of his preschool buddies for a bus ride.  They were so excited to be together again!  The 3 Musketeers from KSPC :)

After the bus ride, I was trying to take a picture of Devan in front of the sign, but everyone decided they wanted to go up too, so I got a good shot of his preschool buddies (and Lexi's friend too)

After sneak-a-peak, we all went to the pool to chill out for the rest of the day.  We got home around 5:30 and scrounged for a quick and easy dinner- chicken brats!  It was a long, but fun day.  And now, the countdown begins to the first day of kindergarten....  in 2 days!!!!

back-to-school party

Through the MOMS Club, we got all the incoming kindergarteners together for a back-to-school party.  The kids had a blast playing outside in the sprinklers, slip-n-slide, buckets, toys, etc etc.  We brought in pizza for lunch and made ice cream sundaes for dessert.  Yum yum!  It was a great way for them to meet some other kids they will see on the playground.  Always good to know familiar faces when you're starting a new and scary adventure :)

Misc Summer Fun

I'm just going to group some stuff together to save time... :)

 

Playing on the bike racks outside the gym, waiting for daddy to finish running his last lap around the park:

 We went and got school supplies.... (boy were those expensive, and he's only in kindergarten!).  But, he was SO excited to pick out his pencil box (red, of course), and all the other supplies.

Lexi says: "I'm Pete the Cat!" and walks around the house with 4 shoes on.  He's a book character in a series.

 Look what she let me do one day!  She actually sat still so I could braid!!!

One rainy day, we got out the moon dough.  Of course, after 10 minutes the whining and fighting started.  Sigh....  And then the countdown to school started....  The constant fighting/bickering/pushing/shoving/arguing/etc etc has been extremely draining these past several weeks.....

Skeeter was batting at Lexi's fairy wings.  Guess he thought it was a giant moth.  He always runs to the back door when it's time to let Taylor out before bed.  Then he catches all the bugs that fly in.

 One day, we had a visitor.  A monarch!!!  Gorgeous, just gorgeous!

After a rain storm, I went into the window wells for the basement and rescued all these frogs: 7 of them!  Lexi's job was to make sure they didn't jump out of the bucket while I was grabbing the others.

 And then we let them go in the front flowers

One day we met some friends at White Clay Creek.  My friend knew of this place off the beaten path where the kids could wade in the water and play.  It was awesome!  We packed a lunch and I had to drag them away after 4 hours!  They were perfectly happy with a plastic pitcher and some ladles from the kitchen :)

 We got Lexi a leotard for tumbling.  She was so excited!

Also, daddy started his new job on the 18th.  He has been so miserable this past year with Ashland, and we're all looking forward to him doing something new and different, and something that he will enjoy and excel at.  So, the kids and I made him an ice cream pie.  It took us 2 days and I can't believe that they kept it a secret!  Devan almost let it slip one night at the dinner table ;)  It says "You Are Free" because he is free from his horrible job, and can finally do something he will like. 

We all loved it :)  What more do you need in life besides oreo crust, ice cream, fudge, and a little sprinkles???