BACK TO SCHOOL

The kids were all surprisingly very excited for their first day back to school. Most surprising of all was Anthony's excitement over starting Kindergarten. Why, you ask? Well, because all summer long, whenever the subject of starting school would come up, he would tell me "I don't want to go to Kindergarten. I want to stay home with you forever and never, ever learn anything." As you can imagine, it did not go over well when I told him he didn't have a choice, and that he had to go. Every time we had this discussion, it ended in a knock down drag out tantrum. And honestly, toward the end of the summer I was having that tantrum right along with him out of pure frustration over the fact he couldn't seem to get over this whole you-need-to-go-to-school thing. Very frustrating.

So, like I said, I was pleasantly surprised when I dropped him off at school the first morning and didn't get any crying, yelling, or a tight vice grip on my leg while I tried leaving him there.

[black eye courtesy of his trying to "fly" off the rocking chair "just like Superman"]

As for Lucas and Ava, they were as easy as ever. In fact, they didn't even need my help getting to class and finding their desks. I followed them to their rooms anyway, tried to help get them settled in and said my tearful goodbyes. All the while they were busy getting the stuff in their desks situated and talking to friends they hadn't seen all summer. I got a quick wave, a look over their shoulder and a simple "bye Mom." I have to admit, it was a little bittersweet knowing they didn't need my help.

And lastly, my Liv Grace. This little girl started preschool today, and I cried. I cried when each and every one of my kids went off to preschool. It is so great to see them gaining new found independence, meeting new friends, and starting a new adventure in life, yet at the same time it is so sad to see them growing up, and not having them at home with me anymore.

She was just thrilled to be starting preschool. My girl was happy, smiling, and dancing around pretty much all morning, and it continued into the afternoon when I dropped her off at her new school. I was so happy to see her smiling face as I left her there.

So there you have it. The first day of school for my preschooler Liv Grace, my Kindergartner Anthony, my 2nd grader Lucas and my 3rd grader Ava. Whew.

You know, my Mom always told me, "enjoy your kids to the fullest - they will only be young once and they grow up in the blink of an eye." My eyes usually glazed over half way through her telling me this little tid-bit as I was thinking, "yah, yah, yah, they grow up, that's what happens, don't worry I won't miss any of it..." But I have to say she had a point, the years do indeed fly by, faster than I have really been prepared for. It is all so bittersweet.

I love you Ava, Lucas, Anthony, and Liv. Happy first day of school - Mama is so very proud of you all!

PRESCHOOL GRADUATION

My Anthony Thomas had his very last day of preschool a few weeks back, and it honestly brought me to tears. I am not certain as to why, as this didn't happen to me when Ava left Sunny Hill, or when Lucas left either. Olivia will be starting school there this fall and Nathan will be following right behind her in a few years, so it's not like it's the last I will see of this wonderful school and those amazing teachers.

Whatever the case, it was a bittersweet day.

I cried, he asked what was wrong, I said nothing, that Mama was just happy and excited for him, he asked why, I said because he will be starting kindergarten in the fall, he said "No WaY", I said he would like it, he cried and said he wanted to stay at Sunny Hill, I said he couldn't but that we were going to have a party for him for being such a big boy and graduating preschool, he went from crying to laughing and jumping up and down in excitement for his "party" and all was well. WhEw. Talk about emotional.

Very last time singing the Goodbye song...

One last picture out front of school....

A special kiss for brother Nathan....

Pizza party to celebrate this memorable occasion....

His very favorite meal - of course without the cheese and toppings....

A few gifts on graduation day....

Fun with chalk and sidewalk paint, that he shared ever so graciously with his brothers and sisters...



Another big milestone met for my Anthony - with many more to come.

FUN STUFF FROM SCHOOL

The kids come home from school every day with folders busting at the seams full of papers. Some are important reminders from the teachers, some are homework assignments from days past, some are art projects, and on and on. I go through these mounds of papers each day, and most often find some really adorable things that tend to pretty much make my day.

Miss Ava came home with a few of these little gems last week:

Is there anything sweeter than your 7 years old writing you a letter? Especially a letter in regard to how much she misses you when she is at school? Talk about making a Mama feel loved and needed. Love, love, love this.

My favorites? The thing people like best about me is: "I look like my Mom." and When I grow up I want to be: "a boat seller like my Dad."

Smart little girl, no?

WORRY IS MY MIDDLE NAME

I am a worrier. I worried before I had kids, I worry even more [if that is even possible] now that I have kids. I worry about everything.

I worry that they are getting enough to eat, I worry about whether the food they are eating is healthy and good enough for their little bodies, I worry about them getting snatched away from the bus stop from some nasty stranger [a bit over the top, I know], I worry about how well they are doing in school, I worry about them making friends, fitting in, and feeling like they belong, I worry about them getting hurt, picked on or bullied, and I worry about whether I am raising them well enough so that they grow up to be strong, well rounded adults. You get it, worry is my middle name.

So when they started school this year at St. Croix Prep I was a wreck. I had pulled Ava out of Lily lake in March of last year to start school there [which meant she only got 2 months of this new school stuff under her belt], and now Lucas was starting the year off there as a first grader. Everything was going to be new for them - school, classes, teachers, friends - everything. They seemed just fine with it, but it was all too much for this Mom to handle.

I sent them off on the bus for their very first day of school and much to my surprise, I did not even cry. I spent the day busying myself with household chores and playing with Anthony, Liv and Nathan. When they arrived home I didn't give them much time before I started in with the questions. "How was it?" "Do you like your teachers?" "Did you have a good day?" "How was lunch? What did you have?" "Did you make any new friends?" "What did you learn?"

They both stood their staring at me as if I were crazy as they were hit with a myriad of questions. And I guess I don't blame them, as I was acting a bit crazy. But I am a Mom, so I figure I am allowed to be crazy every once in a while. Plus, my craziness is due to the fact that I love them so damn much and want nothing but the very best for them.

Anyway, I didn't get many answers to those questions. I got a few "It was alright's", some "I don't know's"and a couple "good's". All standard I-don't-want-to-answer-your-questions-Mom answers, but that was o.k. I decided that if I were patient and kept asking as the weeks passed by I would get some answers.

Turns out those answers still did not come after 2 weeks of them being at school.

I was feeling a bit bummed that my kids did not want to fill me in on what was going on, when the Mr. offered a suggestion that could help in getting the kids to communicate with me. He suggested [ever so gently] that I stop asking them so many darn questions, give them some space, and time and when they are ready to talk, or if they feel the need to tell me something, they will.

I knew all of this deep down, but for some reason I could not help myself. Whenever the kids would come home from school, my brain would say, "leave them alone, let them have a snack, do their homework, change and go play." My mouth would say "How was it? Did you meet any new friends today, what did you learn? Tell Mom all about it!"

And let me say this is not because I am a nosy, annoying Mom who has to be all up in her kids' business. It is only because I want to know if they are doing well, and feeling happy and confident in their new surroundings. And in their every day life for that matter.

I think my lovely husband could sense I needed something to make me relax a bit. Something telling me that the kids were in fact doing well. So he emailed Lucas' teacher to find out first hand how he was doing. [Boy do I love that man.]

Hi, Deb.

Thank you for the newsletter.

How is Lucas doing? He seems very happy at his new school but he can be painfully shy in the beginning.

Do you think he is adjusting well? Is there anything we need to focus on at home?

Sincerely,

Mr. Shelton

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Hello Mr. Shelton,

I'm glad Lucas is happy. I can see a little shyness in Lucas, but not a huge amount. He participates in class and mixes well with the other kids.

In the first week, I noticed him being very observant of where things are and how things are done (like lunch, bathrooms, going from classroom to classroom, etc.). He caught on quickly, and he seems comfortable this week. We've been doing some activities to get to know each others' names, and not only is he getting to know others, others are quick to know him as well. He's the kind of boy everyone wants to be friends with. He is actually getting a little too chatty with his new friends at his table in the classroom once in awhile - that's OK.

I think Lucas is adjusting just beautifully, and by the way he has integrated with the other students, it seems like he's always been here. Thanks for checking in, and for all you do at home. I'm so glad to have you back this year!

Deb

Just what this Mama needed to hear.

After seeing this exchange, I decided to send an email to Miss Ava's teacher as well to see how she was doing.

Hi Mrs. Chamberlain -

I just thought I would check in with you to see how Ava was doing so far this year. She started out at St. Croix Prep in March of last year, so it was an adjustment for her to leave Lily Lake and all of her friends there for a new school. She seemed to do well, but was not there all that long before the school year ended. She and Keelin, who is in another class this year, seemed to connect really well last year during the short time Ava was at St. Croix prep. I know she has mentioned she was bummed that she was not in her class this year. I just wanted to make sure she was doing well both socially and academically so far. I have asked her a few times if she has made some new friends, and who she plays with, sits with at lunch, etc but she does not tell me much. I am certain she is doing just fine, but I still wanted to check in with you.

Also, Ava has been asking me to volunteer in class ever since the first day of school, so I was really bummed that I was not able to help out this Thursday. I have 3 kids still at home with me during the day that unfortunately don't permit me to have much free time to come in and volunteer. But I wanted to let you know that I do have time on Tuesdays as the kids spend that day at their Grandparents each week.

So if you ever have any volunteer opportunities that fall on a Tuesday, please think of me!!

Thanks so much, Maria Shelton

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Hi Maria!

Good to hear from you! Ava is a delight to have in our class! She is definitely on the quieter side, but she has occasionally raised her hand to answer a question and add to the discussion. She seems to be getting along really well with Mallory Whitley (I don't know if she's mentioned her to you) and a few other girls in class. Being new to a school half way through is so hard! I moved when I was in 3rd grade so I completely understand how hard it is to pick up and try to make new friends and learn the academics. Ava's academics seem to be pretty good...she's in the Saxon 2 math class with Mr. Reistad and she scored very well on her Reading NWEA test. She's keeping up with the work and activities, too!

If Ava is ever feeling overwhelmed or left out she can always come to me or Mrs. Lynch (our EA). Mrs. Lynch is the one who monitors lunch and recess so I will also talk with her about Ava's social habits and who she's hanging out with!

I hope that helps! If you have any questions please feel free to e-mail or call anytime! Have a great Monday!

Mrs. Chamberlain


Needless to say, these emails have quelled my need for answers from both Ava and Lucas.

At least for now.

What can I say? I'm a Mom, I worry.

ART WORK

I will never, ever tire of the art work that my monkeys bring home from school each day. It is something I look forward to each time they come running off of the bus and hand me their backpacks for me to go through.

The past two days Lucas has come home with some really great stuff.

The front: My favorite part of this summer was... Tubing. Not so great on the spelling, but the picture gave away what he was attempting to write. Him in the tube, with Dad in the boat pulling him along. How wonderful is that picture?

the back: I went to the movie theatre. I think half way through attempting to write "theatre" he gave up - hence the "Dr". I love, love, love the photo that goes along with this one. People sitting in their theater seats eating popcorn - notice the kid in the last row was ever so gracious as to share his popcorn with the kid in the middle row.

Day 2 he came home with this little gem.

In first grade this year, I would really like to... Play outside whenever I want. Accompanied by a picture of what I assume to be a playground.

When he arrived home with this second piece of artwork I mentioned to him how much I enjoyed it all. I also ever so casually asked if his teacher was letting everyone complete these little assignments all on their own. Meaning without any help when it came to spelling, punctuation, etc. I am certain you can guess what the answer to that question was.

BACK TO PRESCHOOL!

My Anthony Thomas started his second year of Preschool today. I was hoping being that he was a year older he would not be so sad having to be away from me. Last year every single Monday, Wednesday and Thursday morning at about 8:45 am he would be found standing at the back door crying and begging to stay at home with me. Every single time - no jokes. At the end of every week I would say to myself, "Maybe this week will be better, maybe he will go off happily waving to me as Daddy drove away to take him to preschool." Unfortunately, that week never came.

Now I know I am a pretty cool Mom, but for the love of God, does he not get sick of hanging out with me all day every day?

Apparently not as just like every day last year, he stood by the back door crying and begging me to let him stay home with me for just one more day. Unfortunately he was in such a state of panic and sadness I was unable to get pictures of him on his first day back to preschool. I decided that it was too important of a day to let it go without snapping any photos, so I took them when he arrived home from school.

Smart one, right? He was excited and oh so happy to be home with me, so there was no better time to get some good pictures. Oh, and ask all about his first day. All he had to say was "my teachers are Miss Vicky and Janna Banana again!!" So onto picture taking I went....

He insisted on celebrating his very first day back to school with his buddy "Chicky" by letting him in on the photo shoot.

And we just had to get one of "Chicky" all by himself.

And one last shot to show off his brand new Batman shirt [that did not come in his size and is way too big for him but he just could not live without getting.]

I have to say I am confident that at some point during this year, he will leave for school as happy as he comes home. One can hope, right?

BACK TO SCHOOL! [PART 2]

Before the kids arrived home on the bus this afternoon Dad called saying that he would be home in time to watch them get off the bus. He and I thought it would be fun for them to see us both waiting when they arrived home after their very first day of school. After getting off of the bus, we thought it would be fun to hang out just the 4 of us, have a snack and talk about their first day. You know the stuff - Did you like your teacher? Did you make any new friends? What did you have for lunch? Did you get some homework? Tell me all about it!

When the bus finally arrived,

and they hopped off, I could tell right away that the day was a success.

I could also tell from the look on his face, that Lucas was getting pretty sick of all the pictures I had been taking. And I was alright with that.

I ran excitedly toward them to give them hugs and ask all about their first day, and what did they do? They ran right past me and into the house.

When I finally caught up to them they were half way up the stairs.

"Hey! Aren't you guys going to tell me about your very first day at school? I want to hear all about it!"

"We are going to change and play with everyone outside!"

"But tell me about your first day!"

"It was fine." was what I got from them as they continued on their way up the stairs.

"What did you do?"

Lucas: "I don't really remember."

Ava: "We don't have any homework. Can we play outside?"

Seriously? This was Ava's very first day of 2nd grade and Lucas' very first day of 1st grade - not to mention his very first day at a new school. And this was all they had for me - I don't really remember what we did, it was fine, and Ava completely ignoring my question with a response of we don't have any homework can we play outside?

I am beginning to think this whole first day of school thing is a much bigger deal for Mom and Dad than it is for the kids. No?

BACK TO SCHOOL!

It was a big day around here today as the kids had their very first day back at school. Yaaaahooooooo! Can you tell I am just thrilled? Don't get me wrong, I love my kids to death, but it was most definitely time to get back to school, and back to the daily grind so to speak.

Miss Ava, my 2nd grader,

and Lucas, my 1st grader,

anxiously awaited the arrival of the bus outside in the freezing cold. And I mean freezing - it was 53 degrees out, with misty rain and strong winds. Only in Minnesota will you find such crappy weather in early September. Only in Minnesota.

We waited, and waited, and waited some more - the bus was very late, most likely due to all the other Mom's like myself standing at the bus stop taking pictures like a mad woman as their children got ready to board the bus.

Some of my pictures while we waited:

In all the picture taking chaos, we did not even see the bus coming down the street until it was right in front of us. There it was, the big yellow bus, ready to sweep away my Ava and Lucas for yet another year of school. Every year the arrival of the school bus always results in me crying a big old puddle of tears, but this year I actually made it through with a dry face. No tears! Not to say that it was not so very hard to watch, and that a part of me wanted to run right onto that bus, say to heck with school and take them right back inside the house with me. But I knew I had to let them go -

My little first grader and second grader are off to school - and to think my Anthony will be right there with them next year to start Kindergarten. Why oh why do they have to grow up so darn fast?

A NEW DAY HAS COME

When I received the call that Ava had gotten in to St. Croix Prep charter school on Wednesday, March 3rd at about 4pm (yes I remember the date and the time the call was received as this was a HUGE call - a call I have been waiting for ever since she was in preschool) I was in a state of shock. So much so that I was not sure what to say to the lovely lady who was waiting patiently on the line for me to respond to her telling me they had an opening for Ava. An opening that I had long since given up hope on being that there are an average of 2oo kids on the wait list for each grade [yes, wait lists are that long.] An opening that needed to be filled on March 22nd to boot - a mere two weeks away. So I am sure you can understand my inability to come up with a single thing to say to her. But don't think for a moment that my mind wasn't swirling with a myriad of questions that I wanted answers to.

2 weeks from now, really? How did a spot open? I thought we were, say, 150th or something on the wait list - how on earth did the spot become available for her? Why can't she start after the summer as a 2nd grader? Will her brother Lucas have a spot in 1st grade for next year? Will Anthony, Liv and the baby [presently cooking away in my uterus] automatically get a spot in Kindergarten when it comes time? Will this have a huge affect on Ava, being that she has been at Lily Lake now for almost two years, established her friendships and is very comfortable there? Will the kids accept her at the new school; Welcome her, and make her feel comfortable?

My inner ramblings were stopped by the ever so patient woman on the other end saying, "Mrs. Shelton, I know this is a huge decision; but just so you know this opportunity will most likely never come around again. We had a student leave as his Dad had a job transfer, this rarely happens, and this is why the spot opened up for Ava. I understand what a huge decision this is for you and your husband, and I want you to take some time to think about it, but I just want to be honest with you."

This seemed to snap me out of my momentary inability to speak out loud and the questions came flowing. [Oh, the poor, poor soul on the other line that was inundated with all of my questions and made to answer each and every one.] I asked every single question I asked myself above, and was given answers to all, answers I quite liked. I was confident that we could not pass this opportunity up, as if we did I had a feeling we would regret our decision for a lifetime.

What to do, what to do? Well of course, sit down with The Mr. and hash this all out. The only problem was that the Mr. was out of town on business until Saturday evening so I was unable to sit down with him, go over the pro's and con's and make this huge decision.

I was told to wait until the husband arrived home to talk with him, make a decision and call back on Monday.

No more than 2 minutes after getting off of the phone I picked it up again and called the Mr. I did not even seem to find the time to say "Hi." and just started in: "You-won't-believe-what-just-happened-I-got-a-call-from-st-croix-prep-and-they-have-a-spot-for-Ava-what-are-we-going-to-do?? His response was, naturally, to advise me to slow down and talk in a not so panicked voice. We attempted to talk about it for a bit, though that proved to be very difficult as his cell phone was breaking up every few seconds. I decided it was best to get off of the phone with him and get on the phone with my Mom. She was always a good voice of reason in situations like this.

We talked and talked - well, I talked and talked. Going over all the pro's and con's, all the "what ifs" all the worries, everything. I talked about how I never thought about these kinds of things before having kids, you know, the tough stuff. I talked about how hard it is being a parent sometimes, trying to make the right decisions for my children, and trying to do what is best for them is never ever easy. She listened, agreed, and gave me her input. In the end she helped me to realize what an amazing opportunity this was for Ava, and even though it was hard, and somewhat scary to be the one to make such a huge decision on behalf of Ava, we just simply could not pass it up. I agreed, got off the phone and felt good about saying yes. I love my Mom.

Then I sat down with Miss Ava to talk to her. I wanted to pick her brain and see just what she thought about going to a different school. Before I could even finish my sentence she was crying. I mean all out sobbing and panicking, crying out "No, I don't want to leave my friends Emily and Zoe or Mrs. Tolaas Mama, Nooooooooo!!!" What was I thinking? I could not do this, I could not tear her from what she knows, her friends, teachers, her comfort zone. How could I?I decided to press on and continue talking to her about it in the hopes she would calm down, listen long enough to think about how fun this change could be. After assuring her she could still have her weekly play dates with Emily and Zoe, and that we could visit Miss. Tolaas too she seemed to warm to the idea. Even asked me some questions. "Where is the school?" "Will I know anyone?" "Can I go see it before I start going there?" "What will my teachers name be?" I answered all of the questions, and with each answer I could see her excitement growing. We ended our conversation with her saying "Alright Mama, I want to go to that new school."

Whew. Now I just had to discuss this all with the Mr. when he arrived home, call back the school and give them an answer. For the next few days, this decision consumed me. I changed Liv's diaper I was thinking about it, I folded laundry I was thinking about it, I laid awake at night thinking about it. All I did was think about it. You may think I was making a mountain out of a mole hill here, and maybe I was a bit. But this was my daughter, my Ava Marie. She would have to leave the school she knows and loves, not me. She would have to adjust to a new schedule, new friends, a different way of learning; not me. I was having to make the decision, yet she was the one that would be affected by the decision I made. In my eyes this is an incredibly important decision, one that I needed to think and think and think about.

Saturday finally came, and when the Mr. got home we talked about it. We talked and talked - again, I did most of the talking and he did most of the listening [he is good like that.] We decided that we had to say yes.

Monday morning came, I called the school, and with much anticipation I accepted the spot for our Ava Marie. After I hung up the phone I felt like a huge weight was lifted off of my chest. It was such a bittersweet moment for me - thinking of the amazing opportunity that Ava was given being able to get this type of education, and thinking of what a great adventure this was going to be for her to make new friends. But at the same time I was sad to think of her having to leave Lily, where Emily and Zoe, her brother, and teachers were. Where everything she has grown to know and love and find comfort in were.

Today was her first day at St. Croix Prep;

Anthony, Liv and I drove her to school and dropped her off at her classroom. I left her surrounded by her new teachers and students welcoming her. I was happy. As we walked back to the car, Anthony and Liv hand in hand, we chatted about how they would someday get to come to this school. Anthony seemed to like the idea, while Miss Liv did not have much to say most likely because she was concentrating on keeping up with her brother.



As I drove away from Ava's new school I felt an overwhelming sense that all was well. Because I knew; I knew we made the right decision for Ava.