Apples and Cows Everywhere

Autumn is finally here- not officially yet but soon. And nothing is more "fallish" than apple picking- one of my favorite annual activities. Now I have no idea what to do with my peck of apples but I had to have them. I may try my hand at pie- the last time I tried this I created something too scary to look at or eat. Wish me luck. My favorite niece enjoyed the apples as well- she smuggled two out in her pockets and kept one in her hood for a bit too. That's not including the other two she started to eat while we were in the orchard. Good times were had by all.

After apple time we decided to continue the fun at Farm Day. Just couldn't get enough of the outdoors I guess. And there were real animals there- wandering about and doing their business all over. But move over real cows...the blow up cow was the biggest hit to Little Miss Butterfly.

It's a Jungle in There

It's Sunday night. It's been a great weekend. And now I have that queasy feeling- about what tomorrow's adventure in kindergarten will bring. It's been a trip so far- filled with little ticking time bombs like the tantrum kid, the kid who throws up upon entering, the aloof kid, the girl in charge, the sneezing kid and the excuse me kid. I'm not sure which one makes me more nervous. It's been quite a time already- tomorrow I begin the long road of letters. Three days per letter with lots of review days in between and 180 days of school. The funny thing is I never make it all the way through the alphabet- too much time spent negotiating tantrums, cleaning my hands, and calling for the janitor.

All I ever really needed to know- well maybe not

As some of you may know, kindergarten just isn't my thing. You may say there's not really a big difference between kindergarten and first grade (which I love) but there really really really is. The chairs are bigger and do-able in first grade- in kindergarten they are so freaking small. There is less crying in first grade- unless of course you make a kid cry because they were caught in a devious scheme (Did you kick that girl? No, I missed.) There is more time in grade one. Blocks, paint, and sparkles are not staples in grade one as they are in kindergarten. I have limited exposure to play-doh in grade one and kids can learn how to use glue eventually. Most kids can even tie shoes in grade one. I could go on and on.

With that said, I have tried to start the year off with a more positive kindergarten attitude, especially because we have an awesome kindergarten teacher, and it was working until today. Today I had tears, a backache, I danced, put off a tantrum, held a snotty hand, and the most fun was the runner- who I raced out to catch from the side door. Looks like it will be a promising year in kindergarten. Today was only the one hour orientation for half of the kids. Tomorrow the other half. And Friday, the day I wear my running shoes, a pony tail, and cover myself with Purell, the real fun begins.