School...

Can this guy really be starting 1st grade??? The first day of school came with a bit of sadness, but a lot of happiness. We were a bit sad for the lazy days of summer to end, and the joys of sleeping in and not having a schedule and just relaxing, but this mama sure was HAPPY that this cute little boy would be heading to school for a few hours each day! :) It's funny, I was really excited at first, and people kept on asking me how I was doing with the all day school change and honestly, I loved it, and still do, but now that we're a few weeks in, I miss the guy during the day! But it's been good for both of us! :) Just a few days ago he told me, 'mom, I'm sick of 6 hour school, can I go back to half days?' Sorry, buddy! :)

But in true Tucker fashion, he really is loving school! I was nervous that he would be going to a new school and not know anyone in his class. But I was more concerned about it than he was. HE was excited about a new school. And actually, we know a lot of kids at Sunrise, so I think that helped ease the transition.

{He had to wear his new dinosaur socks...thanks for that one grandma!!! :)}

One thing I'm not excited about are the years and years of packing cold lunches I have ahead of me! :)

I had to snap a picture of my first ever cold lunch! I'm already feeling the need to be more creative. This is getting a bit boring!

The first of many years as a Sunrise Superstar!!!

Can you tell he was ready for me to get the heck out of there? :)

His teacher is Mrs. Larsen. She is awesome! I'm really excited for this school year!

This is what this girl chose to wear on Tuckers first day of school! She is a nut! She wants to wear these booty shorts every day! I have since this picture hid them far far far from sight! Plus it's too cold now for shorts. That doesn't stop her from trying, though!

And after his long day at school, he came home a happy boy! To a plate full of warm yummy chocolate chip banana bread! We just might have to start making that tradition! My favorite part of the day over these past few weeks has been when he comes home from school and we sit in the kitchen and chat about his day at school and go over his homework and have a snack!

At sunrise all of the class rooms have individual doors to the outside. So, after recess all of the kids just go right back to their individual classes. Well, the doors lock from the outside when they are closed, for obvious reasons, and Tucker says he didn't hear the bell ring for the end of recess, and he was playing with a girl in his class. Well, they were late getting into their class, and the door was locked so they couldn't get into their class. My first though was, oh no, poor guy, to have something like this happen on his first day of school. But he was just laughing about it! He said it was so funny and that they had to bang on the window to have the teacher let them in, and that everyone thought it was funny! Whew! :) The friends he made on his first day of school are: Brayden, Noah, Carson and Ezra from his soccer team!

This girl also wanted a picture with mom:

Our theme for this school year is: "Kindness Matters" I saw it on a wooden sign in a store this summer and it just hit me that that needed to be our theme this year, and that is what we were going to focus on. So, we have this displayed at our house so that Tucker and Taylor always remember to be kind. Especially since he is at a new school and has to make new friends all over again, I told him that the best way to make friends and have people like you is by being kind. And to always remember to include those who look like they might be left out. Luckily, Tucker is really good at this naturally and always wanting to include those who may not feel included.

Taylor also started school! We are doing a co-op this year with 5 other friends. She loves it and she loves feeling like a big girl going to school. It is like a real pre-school with a ciriculum and everything. My friend whose daughter is in the co-op has all the stuff and supplies and we rotate houses, and we have letters and themes, and say the pledge of allegiance, and go over the weather and have work sheets. I was a little nervous at first, I didn't realize it was going to be quite so much work, but now that we're into it, I love it! Taylor loves it. I only have to have the kids to my house 6 weeks out of the school year, as we rotate houses each week. And the kids are pretty cute! Here are:

Taylor, Amber, Tucker, William, Lily and Oliver.

Funny story  about the week they were at our house, we were on the letter C. So, for their sharing item, they all brought things that start with a C. Well, I thought it would be cool if I taught them a Spanish word for every time they are at our house. Just for fun, since I speak Spanish. Well, it was the start of the fall and I had just gotten out some of my pumpkin decorations, and I thought, perfect, I will teach them the word for pumpkin, which is calabasa. Calabasa also starts with C. Perfect! So, we share our items, and I have a pumpkin. And I asked them if pumpkin started with C and most of them had no clue. But I say, NO, that's silly. But did you know pumpkin in Spanish is Calabasa? And that starts with a C. (thinking about it now, I realize it may have been a bit tricky for a preschooler to understand this!) :) So, I have them repeat me, and I think that they understand that C is for Calabasa which is a pumpkin. Then we go on a C hunt throughout our house and I tell them to find all the things that start with C. Well, of course, at every pumpkin they see they point and yell: PUMPKIN starts with a C! Oops! That backfired! :) I'm going to get kicked out of this co-op once the kids tell their moms that I taught them that pumpkin starts with C! :) 

I had more pictures of Taylor on the first day of her pre-school, but my camera got lost! (more about that later) And I'm so bummed that I lost some of those fun pictures!

We love school, I really do love having a routine and a schedule, and my friend Tara who lives behind us has been a life saver and takes Tucker to and home from school every day! It is a lifesaver! Once we get little man on more of a schedule then I'll start in on the car pooling, but for now it's been awesome! I'm one lucky mama! These kids are growing up too fast, though!