For not just Mckayla this year, but Talmage too! Kayla started 2nd grade again in the Magnet (gifted) program in our district. She really likes it and I really like her in it. She's challenged and interested and has good kids in her class. It's neat to see her and her friends socializing even more like I might remember in elementary school. Like certain kids fit certain social spots in class and they seem more like a team than just a class of kids. Right now she's writing a comic book for her friend Ian.
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| I assure you we are raising her a little crunchy, but not hippie, she just likes this outfit. Buying her designer shoes that are popular with the kids these days (on sale with a coupon of course) was a new thing, she was very excited! |
Talmage went to his testing the first week and we got to meet his sweet little teacher. And I say little because she really is like 5 feet tall, has the highest little cartoon voice and is so enthusiastic voice. A perfect kindergarten teacher! All those characteristics are positive things, I think she's great and so does Talmage. During his testing it was taking a little while and she told us she was able to challenge him/test him more so that was fun to hear. No idea if he'll end up like Mckayla, but it's totally fine if not. It will be really fun to watch him develop this year.
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| We trailer biked both kids to school as a family for their first days at school |
While Mckayla's first day wasn't really emotional for me and I didn't think it would be for Talm's either, it was. My sweet little boy was going into school without me and it was going to continue that way. He's such a big boy and was and is so ready to go. When I've had to walk him in if we're a few minutes late he runs ahead of me and tries to shoo me away "I know the way Mom, I'm fine".
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My big boy, wish we'd gotten a better picture of him, but I assure you, he's cute none the less
One reason we put Talmage in PM kindergarten was so he could ride the school bus home with Mckayla. He enjoys it, although not as much as I thought he would (sometimes he seems like he doesn't like how long the bus ride is). The bus unfortunately doesn't take the kids to their houses, but with students from the entire west side of the valley at that one school, I imagine it just isn't logistical, so they drop them off at local middle schools on the west side of the district. I was nervous originally when Mckayla first started taking the bus, I couldn't imagine just assuming she'd end up on the right bus and off at the right stop and fretted terrible when the bus was late, but we've been fine. So I had a little anxiety sending Talm with her, but their teachers are great about letting her come and pick him up and rejoin her class walking out to the bus. All has been well except for one day a few weeks ago where Mckayla somehow just forgot her little brother, and boarded the bus without him. We get a phone call from the school saying "we have Talmage in the office, I guess Mckayla didn't come to school today so could you please come get him". Um, YES she did go to school today, I'm glad you have Talmage, but where the heck is Mckayla then?? So they start making phone calls to the transportation people at Granite who contact the bus driver who tells us the kids said Mckayla got off at a bus stop a few minutes ago, a stop she never gets off at. Did I mention we were 20 minutes away coming back from our 9th Anniversary lunch date?? We were planning on picking them up on our way home and now we have one kid waiting at his school and the other 20 minutes away off her bus and who knows where now! Did she stay at the stop, did she go inside, did she walk to the library nearby, did she decide to walk home (which I never believed she would do, but I guess you never know)? So we madly drive over there, and guess what, she's not there. Talk about freaking out! We drove the way home she would take if she walked home after a police man there told us he drove around and didn't see her. Well, she's not at home. Where is our child?? We were basically constantly on the phone with their school, district transportation, even the district police. Turns out the bus driver thought she was someone else and she was indeed on the bus and was about to get off at the right stop. So the office staff there brought her inside till we could get her, we ran to get Talm, and finally reunited with Mckayla. I feared she would be just fret with worry riding on a bus for 30 minutes realizing she didn't pick up her brother and where is he now. Yeah, in a total morph of behavior unlike typical Mckayla, she was just fine and didn't even realize she'd forgotten Talmage till we picked her up. He was way more upset than she was. I just don't understand her complete lack of memory here, but we didn't get mad at her, both kids were safe, all was handled, and we now send her to school with a note everyday saying whether to take the bus or not and where to get off at. Shouldn't last forever, but for now it does. Yay for bus rides :) |
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| Love these guys! |
