First Day of School: 1st and 3rd grades

Our little chickadees returned to school on Tuesday and were full of excitement* as the day approached. (* Annika wants it pointed out that she is NOT excited about homework.)

A few days before school, the kids went to their class meet-and-greets with Eric so they could see their new classrooms, find their desks, and drop off their school supplies. (Whoever decided that was the way to go was a genius!! I love not having that on our first day of school to-do list!)

Conor was so excited for his first day of first grade that he was up and dressed in his uniform before I knew what was happening. Annika was only slightly less revved up for the day. (She arrived at the breakfast table still in her PJs.)

Before long, it was time to do the last-minute checks (teeth and hair brushed? check! backpack? check! coat? check! shoes? check!) and head to school to start another year of academic adventures. I couldn't help but think back to last year and how apprehensive Conor was about being a big kid in kindergarten; he clung to my hand as we walked from the van to the school. This year, I could barely keep him from sprinting through the parking lot!

The kids had a blast seeing their friends (many of whom they hadn't seen in 3 months). As for me, it was fun to see them interact with their buddies and to see how much some of the kids had grown over the summer. There were new hair cuts, lost teeth, and many kids who grew quite a bit over the summer.

School let out at noon and as an extra bonus, I brought my sister with me to pick up Annika and Conor. It was fun to see their excited "back to school" faces get even MORE excited when they saw her and exclaimed "AUNTIE ZUZANNE!!!" (No, not a typo.... that's how they say her name.) :)

Both kids had marvelous first days and couldn't stop chattering about how fun it was to see everyone, how nice their teachers are, where their desks are, etc. Not every day will be filled with this much enthusiasm, so I soaked up what I could from this day to carry me through the "bumpier" days ahead, when homework is a chore, friends are mean, and life is just terrible.

We wrapped up their big day with a celebratory trip to Menchie's for fro-yo. Seriously, our kids couldn't have been happier!!

Annika; First day of 3rd grade

Conor: First day of 1st grade

Each year on the first day of school, I take their picture in these shirts to
show their growth, One day, these adult-sized shirts are going to fit
them... and then I'll be a blubbering mess.

Off they go for a new year of learning, adventures, and growth

Conor Lost His First Tooth

Every so often (ok, practically daily), our kids remind us in some way that they are growing up and are no longer our wee little babies. Well, yesterday, Conor proved that he is constantly eeking toward adulthood by losing his first tooth!

He'd asked for an apple as a snack (no problem!) and a short bit later, returned asking for it to be cut up because biting into the apple was hurting his loose tooth (lower, right). Eric took a peek into Conor's mouth and said that the tooth was probably ready to come out. Once he said that, Conor started to debate whether he (not the tooth) was ready, and Annika ran to the freezer to fill a cup of ice to prepare for the big event.

It didn't take Conor long to agree to having his tooth pulled out. Annika was a marvelous coach and told him how it wouldn't hurt and she knew he was brave. (It was really sweet!)

Before I had time to grab my camera, Eric already had the floss around Conor's tooth and he was ready to pull it. I actually had to hold him off for a second while I got my camera settings where they needed to be (I'm so persnickety!).

With one good tug, out popped the tooth!! It didn't just pop out ... that sucker went FLYING! All four of us were looking for it on the ground. Fortunately, Annika spotted it near Conor's foot ... whew!

We quickly got ice in a paper towel for his mouth. All the while, Annika kept proclaiming how proud she was of Conor and singing his bravery praises. "I'm so proud of you, Brother! You were SO BRAVE! You did SUCH A GOOD JOB!" (Future life coach?)

Later in the evening, I whipped up a quick tooth pillow for Conor to use at bedtime. Which he promptly misplaced before bedtime (whoops!). Annika loaned him her tooth container so he could leave his tooth for the Tooth Fairy, who left him a lovely note and a $1 gold coin.

His lower left tooth is fairly wiggly, too, so I have a feeling we'll be doing this all over again in the next week or so. Stay tuned!

Goodbye little tooth

Holey smile

 

Conor and his tooth losing life coach

Big kid!