I Hate Fay

Tuesday morning we had to break the news that she would not be going to school because of Fay. We told her that the school wanted kids to stay home with their mommies and daddies to be safe because a storm was coming. We also knew at that point that school would be closed on Wednesday, too.  So we just had to get through those two days.  I also came down with a wicked cold Tuesday, and now Nathan has it, too.  Thankfully, my mom was able to come up Tuesday to help wrangle the girls.  

Anyway, tonight at dinner I told Bethany that she was going to be able to go to school tomorrow. Her response? "But, when is the storm coming?"  Yeah, I'd like the answer to that question myself.  No offense to those living in Brevard county.  I feel terrible for those people. But all it has done here for two days is a moderate rain.  Usually when we get a heavy rain we get a good size little lake at the end of our driveway.  After two days of rain, nothing.  

So about 9:00 tonight we find out that Volusia County schools are closed AGAIN tomorrow!  I don't want to jinx ourselves but it better be good tomorrow or I'm going to be really upset! And I have to break the news to Bethany when she's all set and excited about going back to school tomorrow.  What a tease.  One half-day of school.  I almost feel like if they're going to be closed tomorrow then they should just close Friday and start all over again on Monday.  

So, whatcha gonna do, Fay?

First Day of School

Well, I think I heard more about school today than I did the entire year last year!  It was only a half-day worth of school but Bethany talked about it almost the entire ride home!  When we walked in, the room was so quiet and Bethany went right in.  What a great fit for her.  

For those of you who haven't been here in awhile, because of some last-minute "shake-ups" at her school last year, they ended up with one class of 3-year-olds with two teacher's assistants and 30+ kids!  We really wanted her to be in school last year for some socialization (she just went 3 mornings a week) and this is a good school (also one of the cheapest) so we stuck with it.  The kids were only all together for a few activities (the pledges, snack and playground) but the rest of the time they split them into smaller groups (since there were a few extra rooms in their part of the building).  But it was always a chore to get B into the classroom.  It was so noisy and she always had to take about 10 minutes to assess the situation before choosing something to do.  By the time I picked her up she was fine, but didn't talk about what happened that day much.  

So this year (upon recommendation of her 3-year-old teacher and her current teacher) we put her in the 4-year-old enrichment class.  The basic idea is that everything they learn is "enriched" by deeper study, field trips, projects, etc.  We thought that for her quiet (most of the time!) and thoughtful personality she would really benefit from this class.  When we walked in this morning, she said hi to the teacher's assistant, we found her backpack hook, said hi to the teacher and then her teacher showed B her cubby with her pencil box.  She showed B to her seat and got her a coloring sheet, introduced her to the other kids at the table and B said hi to them, too!  Then Mrs. H started showing B how to color the sheet (based on the color the objects are outlined with) and B said sweetly, "I know how to color a giraffe!"  So she really got off to a good start today.  

B told me what she is to do when she comes in in the morning and what they had for snack (I never could get her to tell me what snack was last year!) and basically gave me the whole rundown of the day.  What a difference!  I'm really looking forward to hearing about school this year!

I...am...exhausted

Nathan has been gone (to Arizona) since early Saturday morning.  He'll be home this Saturday evening.  Chasing after two little ones in itself is exhausting.  But I think what wears me down the most is Bethany's incessant talking!  She just never stops.  Don't get me wrong, I love her dearly and a lot of times I love listening to the crazy things she talks about.  But it is difficult to listen to when I'm so tired.  And the questions, OH the questions.  Why, this; Why, that?  And, even when I make a statement that includes a reason, she STILL asks, "Why...?"  Ugh.  

I need a spa day.

Maybe a week.

I win!!!!!!!!

I apologize for the crappy video, but I had to be in another room for her to do it. You will hear me say it, and Bethany some, too, but try to focus on the crying Penny in the distance. It's pretty clear, I think!

busy little artist

Bethany has been busy all summer making creations with Daddy. It all started one day when she colored and cut out a piece of paper that she thought looked like a "tail" so Daddy helped her finish off Ariel (seen above). Then, after reading Charlotte's Web, she had to make all of the characters. You'll see we have Fern but not Avery. Bethany decided to give Avery to her friend, Michael J. She also had made Charlotte but, after reading the end of the book, decided that her Charlotte had to die, too. I'm sure you'll also be able to tell those done with Daddy's help and those done all on her own! Here they are!

Mice

So, last night after reading Stuart Little, Bethany asked us if we could get a pet mouse. We told her that Oscar wouldn't like that very much. Today she says to me, "Mommy, when Oscar dies, THEN can we get a pet mouse?"

4 years old

I still can't believe that Bethany is 4 years old! She had her annual check up on Tuesday, including 4 shots! Poor girl. She didn't really cry during the shots, but after the first two (in one arm) she FOUGHT to not get the other two (in the other arm). She was a trooper, though. She got her Snoopy band-aids and not one, but TWO stickers when we left.

Well, Bethany is 39 inches tall and weighs 32 little pounds! She is starting to become aware of her stature. She knows that even though some kids are younger than her they are "bigger". Bethany has a friend who turned 4 a couple of weeks after her. After Bethany's birthday she kept saying, "Betsy is still 3, but she's bigger than me". I hope she doesn't develop a complex.

The preschool class she'll be in next year is an enrichment class. She'll already be probably the youngest one in there, but from what I've heard, some parents put their 5-year-olds who aren't quite ready for kindergarten in this class. So she has the potential to be a very small child in that class! We'll see what happens.

Some of you know that Nathan started reading "chapter" books to Bethany at bedtime. He was getting board with the other usual night time books and she was starting to tune out, too. They started with Charlotte's Web and they just finished James and the Giant Peach. I started Stuart Little with her last night (Nathan's going to Arizona this coming week). She really loves reading these books. It's fun to listen to her tell you what happened in each chapter. I'm looking forward to Stuart Little. She already thinks (after one chapter) that Stuart's family is human.

Well, only a little more than 2 weeks and it will be time for school! Bethany is excited to pick out a lunch box (back, sack, what do they call those things now? Because I haven't seen hardly any actually lunch BOXES, they are all fancy insulated bags and stuff) since she'll be eating lunch at school this year. That should be interesting. She takes anywhere from 30-90 minutes to eat lunch normally. I feel bad for her little friends when we meet for lunch at Chick-Fil-A or something. They try to wait for her to finish, but they end up playing alone until B finally finishes everything! I bet for several weeks she will be so distracted eating with other people that she won't eat anything! Hopefully that won't last long, though, and she'll figure out that she needs to eat to make it through the rest of the day!

We'll keep you posted on how she does in school this year. By the way, I have a TON of pictures of things she has made this summer (most with Daddy's help but some completely on her own) and I'll get them up as soon as I can!