school's back in session!

These two munchkins went back to school last week!  They went back earlier this year, and have an earlier start time, so going back to school kind of crept up on all of us.  Last week we had the "Kindergarten Curriculum Night" and "Meet the Teacher" so the kids knew what was coming.  Then the first day and it was all smiles and new backpacks and excitement!

The kids have their first full week starting tomorrow, so hopefully the smiles and excitement keep up!

barrett: 63 months old

Barrett is ready for kindergarten, that much is certain!  He has his backpack filled (with library books and a travel pillow),  he has a plan to take naps at his desk, and he is certain that recess will be the best part of his day.  I love his enthusiasm for this new step in his life!  

We had a kindergarten playdate at the school this week, "Curriculum Night" on Thursday, "Meet the Teacher" night next week, then the first day of school in a week.  There might be some sadness that my baby is growing up, but I'm also excited to see what changes await him this year.

Barrett is very into drawing right now - so much so that he has taped his pictures all over his bedroom  walls!  I finally broke down and bought a roll of paper from IKEA and a couple of rolls of cheap tape, and just let me go to his heart's content.  There's a good chance his entire room will be covered, but it makes him happy to show his art gallery to us.

Likes:  lollipops, picking out his own clothes every morning, running

Dislikes:  waiting until next week to go to school

happy 9th birthday, Britton!

We can't have a birthday around here without sprinkle and chocolate chip pancakes!  Never mind that Britton and I both had dental appointments this morning - nope, we're having the pancakes.  We wanted to start the festive day right! This evening we went out to dinner, then home for Oreo ice cream cake and blowing out candles and making birthday wishes.  Britton's birthday party is on Saturday, so today was our special family celebration.  We gave Britton the game Clue, a new book, some fun earrings, and some Harry Potter odds and ends, while Memaw and PawPaw sent some fantastic clothes and shoes!

Nine seems to be the age where Britton has changed the most from the previous year.  And it's halfway to 18 and college and leaving on her own, and I start to get a little panicky that it's all going by way too fast.  But she's still my sweet girl, my firstborn, the one who loves her Winnie (still sleeps with it at night), speeds through reading books and will read her favorites over and over again, who swims with the effortless glide of a mermaid, who loves her brother as much as she is annoyed by him, who loves to sing and learn new songs with the zest only a true lover of music has, who still lets me read to her every night, who still wants me to wake her up early in the morning so she can have more of her day. 

She's smart as a whip too - we received her standardized test scores, and she's scoring with the sixth graders as a third grader.  Almost a year younger than her class, she's the tallest girl in her grade.   She wears size 7 shoes - women's size 7.  She's a secret snuggler too, this one - if Nella the cat was smart, she'd know to curl up with Britton and never look back.  

Likes:  riding her bike, her new friend Abigale, cannonballs into the pool, snorkeling in the pool

Dislikes:  waiting until tomorrow for the new Winnie the Pooh movie