Back To School

How did it get to be September already?!?  I know that most of the U.S. has been suffering from irrepressible heat all summer long, but here in the Pacific NW, summer has finally taken off with a heat wave for the past week just as the kids had to head back to school.  They did go back last week before Labor Day but thankfully had the long holiday weekend to enjoy the summery weather.  Monday we actually went out on the river with our friends the Davisons and went out on their boat and the kids all did some tubing, even Owen, and Justin also went knee-boarding and did a fantastic job.  I'll post pics of that soon but for now, here are pics of the kids going back to school.


                    Hannah, unbelievably, is in 5th Grade!!! How did that happen, and as you can see, she is quite the little fashionista.  For days, she worked on putting together outfits and numbering them and putting little numbers on the hangers.  She did great on her first day and actually has the teacher that she started out with last year before she was moved to a different class.  She also has a lot of her good friends in class with her.  After the initial excitement of the first day of school, some of her usual anxiety started to pop up but she already seems to be settling into the new year and has even joined band and will be playing flute.  I know that she will have a great year as usual and really be a leader in her class and school.

Justin is in 3rd grade and also has the same teacher he had last year and he is also very concerned about his fashion style.  He definitely has his own ideas about what's cool.  He always make such a quick and fabulous transition into school.  He had such a breakout year last year with excelling in his schoolwork, and I expect him to do the same this year.  While I know he'd rather be home riding his bike or scooter all around the culdesac, he always comes home with great stories of fun things he did with his friends at school.  I look forward to seeing where the year takes him.

This is how Owen wanted to pose for his 1st day

Owen is joining his big sister and brother at Riverview this year and made the big jump to Kindergarten.  He only started for a 1/2 day last Friday and came out saying it was so much fun, but then on Tuesday, he had his first full day.  Even the Kindergarteners go all day, every day except for the 1/2 days that the whole school has on Wed.  He wasn't quite as thrilled with the all day thing.  After school on Tuesday, he came out, seeming very tired and not as excited.  He said it wasn't fun and he missed me.  Of course he had to tug on my heartstrings like that.  Today was his 2nd full day, and he was crying from the get go, and it didn't help that I lingered too long in the class when I dropped him off, giving him even more chance to get upset, but after picking him up, his teacher said he had a great day, and he was excited about what they did in P.E. and is already singing songs that they're learning in class.  I know it will take a couple weeks, but before I know it, he'll be a pro.  I really can't believe my baby is such a big boy.