'Twas the Last Day of Summer...

...and all on the couch:

'kay, I'm soooo not feeling clever enough to come up with a whole rhyming story right now. Sorry.

So, yeah, it's the last day before school starts. Well, for Easton: he starts kindergarten tomorrow! Oh how we're going to miss him! Last week we did a trial run to see how long it might take us to get to the school.

We saw the building through the window and Dalton asked, "Are you crying, Mom?" and I said, "I'm not right now but I might that first day...(which made me think about it) oh, yeah, I'm crying a little now." Dalton said, "I'mna cry too cuz I'm gonna miss Eassin." :( Easton said, "You'll be at your school, silly" but D's school is only two days a week...and it doesn't start till next week.

To commemorate the end of these 3 months of hanging with all three kids we took that above picture. I put my camera on timer and that was our one and only picture...not bad, eh?

As the last days of summer break have wound down...we finished up swimming lessons:




Each boy passed on to the next level with flying...

...colors!

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We also wrapped up the soccer season:






Easton scored a goal at the very end of his very last game! At the time it went in, I thought E just had the assist, then I saw the way he looked over at me, the other coach (with a baby on his back) giving him a high five, and people cheering "Good one, Easton!". Good thing I can re-watch it on this video whenever I want!

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Someone else is changing with the seasons...little Autumn has taken her first steps!



The very first two happened in the church lobby on 8/8/10! She was being too loud to sit in the service so Jason and I had her out in the lobby and trying to still listen to the sermon. I was holding her hands while letting her step around and when I let go she took a few steps towards me. I was blocking Jason so he didn't exactly see...but he was there. :)

She's not real brave still, even 9 days later, and I think her max amount of steps before falling or giving up is 4. But she's getting there! Here's a couple steps if you wanted to see her go:

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Now we're just about ready for school to start. Easton got his first pair of shoes with laces and learned how to tie them immediately!




Each boy got an end-of-summer hair cut and on Monday they each got to meet their teachers and see their classrooms.

Dalton (and A, E, and I!) went for his class visit at 9 a.m. Sure he's known Mrs. M in passing the last two years...but this was his first time to really get to talk to her much and check out the classroom. She brings the three year olds in to show them around as it's a tough transition. She shows them some of the class pets, shows him the potty and explains he can go whenever he needs to, he doesn't have to ask. They practice hand-washing. Then she shows each kid a few lessons. That's how Montessori is...the kids will come in and choose some work that they've had a lesson on. Dalton was very chatty and talked about random things, "You know what? I have a McQueen water and an Ariel one." "One time Daddy put a balloon in my pants and I tooted." Yeah, seriously. Jason and I were saying that we were glad he was on the comfortable end of the spectrum...even if he needs a little fine tuning. :)




I haven't a clue how D will do in school. I think he'll separate okay...he does fine at church and he's got several good pals in the class already. Mrs. L (the helper) has been in our house and he's watched Easton going the last two years. It's the other stuff I'm not so sure about. Will he be quiet when he's supposed to be? Will he beat anyone up if they make him mad? Will he actually remember to go to the potty when he needs to? Will he close the door? Will he sit in there and call for someone to come wipe his bottom? Will he remember to push in his chair and put away his work? There's so much to remember! I think he'll do alright...eventually. He's a super sweet little guy, even if he's a bit rascally at times. We don't work with him much on academic stuff because he's not into it like Easton was. But he did make his very first letter...a "D"...at dinner the other night!

Unfortunately, when he sees a D somewhere he says, "Hey! That's my number!" School will be good for him. :)

Last night it was Easton's turn to check out his classroom and meet his teacher. I dropped the littlest two off at Miss Tracy's and Jason met E and I at the school. We found his name on the list of 3 different kindergarten classes and headed to his new room. His teacher is young and adorable and seems sweet. She's pregnant. And apparently her husband and I have three Facebook friends in common. :S (She does not know this...Miss Tracy told us.) Late last night Easton mentioned how excited he was and how he thought Mrs. T was "so pretty".

We didn't spend a ton of time in his classroom but we looked around a bit and filled out some forms and such. We introduced Easton to the other kids that would be sitting at his table: Connor, Paige and Jayley. The parents weren't being particularly social nor encouraging their children to be that way. Weirdos. Interestingly, I read the name of one of Easton's classmates from last year on the roster: Chase! I was so excited! They weren't exactly close pals but they get along fine and I'm just glad there will be a familiar face for Easton tomorrow. We didn't seem him at Back to School Night, though. I got a little teary eyed as we were in the building and checking stuff out and when I asked Jason, "Gosh, what will we do on Back to School Night when we have 3 students here?" I could hardly get all the words out. Definitely tough to think about having a 4th grader, 2nd grader, and Kindergartener one day. Ack!

Easton doesn't seem nervous at all. He seems excited even. Dalton too. I think the fact that they're handling it so well helps me handle it better. It was so so tough sending a miserable Easton to preschool in those early early days. Poor guy. It was good for him. We really think that. One of our big goals was to make separation easier once Kindergarten rolled around...and here we are. He told me, "I might be a little shy at first but I won't cry like I did for preschool." Well, there ya go. I can put a little completed "check" next to that there goal.

My big guys. This summer with them has been a blast. I love these kids. All three of 'em!








*deep breath*

We're ready for this next chapter to begin!


That's all, folks!