What Kindergarten Means To Me

When I said "Good Bye" to Ella today, her first day of Kindergarten, I was surprised at my sadness. I wasn't expecting the tears and emotions. I was more emotional today than when I dropped her off at daycare at 8 weeks old. Actually I was pretty emotional then, but it was different. I was a little bit taken aback by today's emotions because Ella has been in "school" since she was an infant. Why is the first day of Kindergarten different?

It seemed bittersweet. I'm so proud of Ella and how much she knows and grows, but I can see how quickly she's growing up. She's definitely not a baby anymore. She's not even a preschooler. She shared her fears with me yesterday. She was scared that she wouldn't have any friends and that no one would play with her. She cried a little bit. But today, she was so brave as she walked up the stairs and waited outside of the classroom with all of her classmates. I knew she was scared, but she did it anyway. I couldn't be with her up there, I just had to let her go. And that's what today was, letting a little bit of Ella go. Releasing her into a new world with all new experiences. Watching as she waved to me and thinking, "there goes my baby."



Showing off the Froggy Backpack



Giving me a goodbye curtsy before we leave.

Back To It All

My summer break really seemed to just fly by! Now here we are back to work and school. I've been in my classroom all week getting set up. What a difference from last year. Last year I really had no idea what I was doing. It was all so different from my last school. This year I feel like a pro. We have our homevisits next week. If you remember from last year, that's when we visit each child in his/her home before school starts. It's such a great way to see the child in his/her own environment. It's so helpful when school does start because it allows us to have more insight about the students.

Ella's first day of Kinder is on Wednesday. She has to report at school on Tuesday afternoon for a Kinder Assessment. I have no idea what that is, but I'm sure that she'll do fine on it. We went to her school last night to "meet her teacher." It was a schoolwide event and packed. We had to wait in line just to enter the school building. Then, her classroom was packed and we really didn't have the chance to "meet the teacher" because all 60 of her students (morning and afternoon classes) were trying to meet her too.

On a sad note, one of my colleagues is missing. He went on a hike in late July and never returned. Unfortunately, they didn't begin searching for him until almost two weeks after the hike. He lives alone and I'm not sure if his family and friends realized that he was missing. There are a lot of things that we just don't know. His family is really keeping a lot of information to themselves. There's probably a lot that they don't know. It's a sad way to start the school year off. My last post is a link to the most recent article about him.

Our trip last week to S.F. and Fresno was a good time for Ella and I. I didn't really have the chance to take too many pictures, but I'll try to post the ones that I have soon. Whenever I travel alone with Ella I'm horrible at remembering to take pictures!

Another note - we haven't found another snake in the garage since the last time I wrote (we did find one in the yard a few days ago). Whit removed the rocks that surrounded that side of the house and also filled the hole with a foam that hardens to fill holes. So, it seems like it worked...for now.

Family of missing Colorado hiker grateful for help from his students, parents - The Denver Post

Family of missing Colorado hiker grateful for help from his students, parents - The Denver Post

Camps Galore!

As an attempt to keep all of the kids in the South Suburbs of Denver busy during summer, there are more camps offered than I can count. There are overnight camps that usually are located in the mountains. Those sound great, but they're usually for 8 and up. Ella's cousins go to a science one in Winter Park (where Ella learned to ski). But there are many more day camps offered. All of the museums have them, almost all schools, dance studios, art studios, rec centers, you name it. They're big business, so everyone wants to get in on the action. They can be quite pricey, so I figured that Ella could attend only one or two this summer.

Our schedule was pretty busy and I was taking another gifted class during the beginning of summer, so her only opportunity came during the first week of August. I found a great Sport Camp offered through the rec center right at our neighborhood park. So, I would be able to just walk five minutes to take her to camp. Great Deal! Also, the Sport Camp sounded fabulous because it's purpose was to introduce different sports to little ones. Ella would have the chance to play a little soccer, kickball, lacrosse, etc. I figured that she'd show an interest in one of the sports and I would learn which sport she was interested in. It seemed perfect. Ella was very excited for the Sport Camp, but then she got wind of a Fairy Tale Camp that some of her friends were going to. It was the same week as Sport Camp. She had to make a choice. Hmmm...let's see. A Sport Camp in the park with strangers or a princessy, pink, frilly camp with friends. Which one do you think she chose?



Her introduction as "Princess Ella."



Anxious to show off her poses.




All of the girls were so precious in their little outfits! Too Cute.


Ella dances her Cinderella dance in this video.


She had such a great time at Fairy Tale Camp. They did a great job. She made a sweet little craft every day and actually learned a few ballet terms. As much as I hate to admit it, it was a great choice.

By the way, we found snake #3 last night. Another different one. We might have to bring in a professional! It's only a matter of time until we find one in the house.

Snakes!!!

Okay. So, I've been very tolerant of the wild animals that roam our neighborhood. Sure, I cringe a little bit when I hear the coyote pack howling after a kill, I get upset when the rabbits eat my flowers, and I really am not comfortable with the small garter snakes that live in the far corner of our yard. I've learned to live with the animals, even the snakes, because I just tell myself that they are outside and our house is very well built.

A couple of months ago one of my friends posted this video on Facebook. It really creeped me out. Essentially, it's about a family that purchased a house in Idaho and the house turned out to be infested with snakes. I've never really had an issue with snakes. I don't think that I would ever have one as a pet, but I'm not tremendously scared of them. This video made me a little bit paranoid though. It actually scared me into thinking that some of those innocent backyard snakes could actually infest our home.

Snake House': Family Home in Idaho Turns Out to Be 'Satan's Lair' of Serpents - ABC News

Of course my recently developed snake paranoia is silly...or is it. Last week I found a huge garter snake in our garage. It had taken up residence in a dark corner. Leigh shooed it out and tried to plug up the hole with a large rock. But, later that night, the snake found it's way back into the garage. So, Whit took him and put him in the back corner of our yard. Not my choice. I would have taken him down to the park or the creek, but he was on his way to work. It took the snake about 2.5 days to return to his spot in the garage. Whit and Ella took him down to the creek. The creek is pretty far. I have big doubts that he will ever find his way back to our place (although you never know). Today I just happened to look in that corner of the garage and what did I see...a snake! Not the same one, a different one. I actually would have rather it been the same one. Obviously we have a minor snake problem. I would have been fine with this whole thing if I hadn't have seen that video! Darn video! So, tomorrow I'm going to Home Depot for some moth balls. Apparently they don't like them. I know that they're really poisonous and toxic, but they'll be in the garage. We'll see what happens from here!