Back to School

It was time for summer to come to an end.  I had mixed feelings but Molly was super excited to go to 1st grade...all day school, three recesses, and lunch at school...to her not much could top that!

We were able to fit one more fun thing in before that first day.  Molly had used some kids golf clubs at the cabin this summer and loved it.  And she was pretty good at it.  So we borrowed our neighbors clubs for her and Stockton and went to the driving range to hit a bucket of balls.  It was a beautiful summer evening and a nice way to wrap up our summer.

My family of golfers

Then it was real life, for all of us.  The time has come that I actually have to get up and get a kid up and ready and fed and out the door for school.  I was spoiled with afternoon Kindergarten because we could still be lazy in the mornings.  Good thing it's only one kid to start with and it's not too early!  Here is how our schedule goes for the mornings:

7:30: Get Molly up.

7:30 - 8:00: Molly needs to make her bed (if Stocky's still sleeping she doesn't have to), get dressed (we lay her clothes out the night before), brush her teeth, and get her hair combed.

8:00: Breakfast and family scriptures.

8:15: Family prayer, get shoes on, round up backpack and lunch, and anything thing else that needs to be done before she heads out.

8:20: Molly leaves to catch the bus.  We go with her sometimes but not every day like we did last year. When it was still warm we would go watch her get on the bus and play at the park for 10 minutes but now it's too cold in the mornings.  She's adamant about riding the bus so when it gets really cold I might drive her to the bus stop and let her sit in a heated car until the bus comes.

And that's it and really it's not too bad.  A lot of mornings I have to wake her up and she doesn't like that and I feel bad, but that's just how it is now.

Alright, on with the first day.  Molly was up extra early and super excited to get to school!  She is a cutie in the outfit Grandma bought her.

There are a lot of kids at the bus stop and they have to line up in the order that they arrive. I don't know which kid started it, but I'm sure this is not the first year they have done it this way.  If you butt in line, they will call you out on it, even if you're a first grader and it's the first couple weeks of school (didn't happen to Molly, but to one of her cute little friends).  It doesn't bother Molly, she usually goes to the back to be with her friends anyway.

Molly, Jade Boynton, Elise Jones

 

Molly loves school.  It comes easy for her so of course she does.  She is a super reader and catches on quick to all other subjects too.  This is great, although I think sometimes other kids resent her for it...or resent her for trying to help, even though her intentions are good.  But she doesn't talk about that much.  She is excited to go everyday and sometimes wishes there were no such thing as weekends!  Her teacher is Ms. Stanton, a brand new teacher.  I was worried about this a little at first but I've been in the classroom a few times and have been impressed.  She is strict and fun and expects a lot from her class.  I am excited Molly got a new teacher who is excited to be in the classroom and has fresh ideas!

I had mixed feelings about all-day school.  I was anxious to get back into a routine and for the summer-time chaos to be over.  But that first day was really, really long.  And then she gets home and I teach piano and she has homework and then there's dinner and baths and bed.  And for that first month she was doing soccer twice a week and ballet once a week!  Phew!  I don't get a lot of time to just enjoy Molly because there is always something to be done.  I've been trying to take advantage of bedtime when everyone is quiet to just sneak up in her bed and talk and enjoy her.  She is growing up so fast!  I just hope she doesn't look back and remember me as her distracted mom.

Stockton had a pretty big adjustment and for the first week would ask me all day when Molly was going to get home.  But we've all adjusted and he and Brynn are pretty good buddies now.  They make up funny games: store, church, school, or whatever else they can think of.  I try to get down and play with them whenever they ask me to so we've had some good times as well.

 

I sure love these kids.  I enjoy watching them grow and learn new things and discover the world around them but it is hard to send them out of our home and more often than not I wish I could just slow down their growing!