Bamboozled

So QT came home with the class mascot today. And while I am super excited that it isn't an actual alive pet, we do have to hang out with this little panda all weekend, photograph him doing things alongside us and then print said photographs and write about his panda adventures.

Did I mention we are the first ones to host him? That means I am looking at a blank binder filled with empty pages and left with a choice: do I take a few photos of Bamboo at the park and playing with trucks, a shot of him eating some carrots and call it a day? Or do I go all Pinterest-mom on this project and really set a high standard? 

Since I have nothing to go on, do I burden my fellow moms with an unreasonable amount of adventure? 

There's Bamboo in a paper mâché hot air balloon, there he is at the Chinese-American cultural center learning Mandarin, Ni hao Bamboo! There he is yachting on the Sound. 

Suddenly our low-key weekend doesn't seem so great. At least last weekend we went apple picking, Maybe I can photoshop him in a pic or two. I mean in all honesty, I am not sure Bamboo wants to be photographed with a near nude QT as he plays, pants less with his trucks. Pretty sure he doesn't want to show up in the photo where I am dragging the Lady to religion on Sunday, and am damn sure Bamboo wants no photographic proof of his involvement in any of the Little Lady's adventures, including, but not limited to, her hiding in her closet eating Smarties and applying lipstick. 

We will see what the weekend brings for us and for Bamboo. But let me tell you, I am feeling like making some paper mâché. 

#TBT The One With the Best Friend

I have had the same best friend since I was 18 months old.

There isn't much more to say except that there is no way I could put into words what she means to me.

I would not have been able to get through the last year without her.

Love you. 

Here are a few pics that go way back. . .

My favorite yoga move. Just laying there.

Nursery School

Nursery School Graduation

Rocking the ET shirt

First Communion, before I bit it in the dirt and had to wear an orange bib over my dress.

Oh 5th grade.

Another black and white, many, many, many years later.

Baby shower for her first born!

Best photo bomb ever. Love this pic.

The Little Lady's First Day

Here are some pics of the Little Lady's first day(s) at nursery school.

Meet the Teacher Day. Here's to hoping that the water she spilled down the front of her dress while brushing her teeth dried in time. Also, not sure if any of you watch the Glee Project but she is doing that same weird self-hug thing that the choreographer always does when he is happy about something. See below.

Thought it was necessary to make a "funny face"

The official first day shot!

We were all set to start in the afternoons and I even made an effort with some moms in the class to meet up and get together, however at the last minute (Thursday) she was switched to the morning class. I was a little disappointed because the other moms actually seemed really nice and I had prepped her for the afternoon class.

However, yesterday the nursery school director told me that the "stars must have been aligned for you." I guess the a.m. is when all the cool kids hit the scene.

So, Monday morning my mom took her to meet the teachers and get acclimated (for a full 45 minutes) and then yesterday I took the morning off and brought her to school.

I am so used to the Little Lady just going with the flow of things. She is definitely my more adventurous child and is used to keeping up with the bigger kids. I will say I was a little taken aback when she got upset when I was leaving. I was surprised at how upset I got to leave her. I guess that since we have gone through separations before that this I thought this time it would be easier.

It wasn't.

This isn't the Little Lady's first "school" experience but it is a new experience for her and I hope she has a great year.

The Lady Graduates

Yesterday was the Lady's graduation from nursery school.

Insert tears here.

It was a very sweet ceremony with lots of singing and an especially robust version of a song about the power of Jesus.

I loved every minute of it.

Congrats Lady! I am so proud of you.

By the way, can you tell she is a little shy?

Nursery School: Day 3

Well, our morning was a little hectic. The Ladies didn't get up until 8, so our laid-back morning routine was kind of rushed.

The Lady, refused to get dressed, ate only a cheese stick for breakfast and hid under her assorted blankets for about 10 minutes.

Luckily, when the sitter came she was able to convince the Lady to put on her clothes, while I shoved her feet in socks, finished faxing some of my work, and tried to ignore the Little Lady who was crying for me.

We did make it to school on time, but the Lady was a bit clingy. Luckily, it was another little girl's birthday today and one of the Lady's teachers was able to distract her by asking her if she wanted to see the cupcakes they were going to have.

Bless you, Mrs. McMasters. Bless you. Not only was I able to leave the classroom, you knew the exact magic to use to distract the Lady. If there is one thing in this world she loves, and one thing in this world that reminds me that this kid has to be mine--it is her love of cupcakes.

I am off to pick her up, grateful that the first week of school has come to a close and hoping that next week will be a little bit easier.

Finally, The First Day!!!

The Lady, wearing pants--pants!!!!!

Getting excited for school!

Outside of school on the first day!

Well the first day is over with. It was pretty smooth sailing on the Lady's part. We walked into the classroom, and while I signed her in the teacher distracted her with stickers and I left. No tears on her part. Very few tears on my part. I got a little misty eyed as I drove away, but was happy that she was starting something new.

I will say that yesterday's meet and greet with the teacher, was a good thing. We got to see the classroom and twice the Lady told me "I love school." We will see if this attitude and the pants wearing continues. . .

School Daze

The Lady starts nursery school in a couple of weeks.

We have already met up with one of our school buddies for a pre-first day of school playdate, so that there will be a familiar face in the classroom for her. We will be meeting up for a playground playdate next week with other members from the am 3's class, then I will be attending the parent orientation that evening and the Lady will attend her orientation for an hour the day before the first day of school.

Phew.

This seems like a lot of prep work for nursery school. But in all honesty, I am actually grateful for it. I know how much anxiety I can feel when going into a new situation, so it is a good thing that the Lady will be given the opportunity to meet the kids in her class, tour the classroom and get a feel for where she will be. Actually, I think the prep work might actually be better for me. I am sure the Lady will adjust fine, but now I have to meet all these teachers, parents and kids. And, I have to leave my little girl (granted only for a few hours, three days a week) but I have to leave her and I want to be sure that I know who she will be with and what she will be doing.

I anticipate tears in the parking lot as I pull out the first day. Mine, not hers.

The nursery school sent us a packet of papers to fill out. The standard emergency contact forms and school calendar were included, but there is also a form called "Tell Us About Your Child." I skimmed over the questions:

Does your child have any allergies? Does your child have a hand preference? Then I get down to the question: How would you describe your child's disposition on a daily basis; i.e., cheerful, moody, quiet, aggressive, shy? They only left one line to answer this question.

My first thought was to point them here to my blog. There they could see how her disposition changes by the hour. Moody? Yup. Cheerful? Uh-huh. Aggressive? The Little Lady could give you an example or two.

My second thought was just to write one word: Yes. Or maybe Drama or Actress, because she certainly is capable of commanding an audience, but then I remembered that she asked me the other day "What does Dramas mean?" and I thought better of it. Perhaps, I have been using that word a bit too much. Humm. . .maybe I should just put Diva? Or maybe I can put a thousand other words to describe my sweet, caring, princess- loving, singing, dancing, screaming, moody, cheerful, quiet, aggressive, shy, creative, artistic and totally delicious little girl.

How in one line am I to describe this person who has been virtually attached to me for three years? I know her better than anyone else. I know everything that she is talking about. I have heard her have a conversation with my husband about something and I have to call into the other room that she is talking about a billboard we saw on the drive home from the park, or something she saw at the bookstore. We are a team, we have our own jargon and shorthand that is specific to our lives and our adventures.

I am not sure how I am going to feel when she comes home from school with new stories and new experiences about things she has done and people she has played with that I am not a part of.

Obviously, this is a part of growing up. Her independence is an important part of who she will eventually become, and as her mother I want to nurture that and not hold her back. I know how great she will do at school and how much fun she will have. I want her to experience that on her own more than I want to experience everything with her, but still. . . maybe I will just skip ahead and fill out the question about How do you generally handle discipline at home? This question has three lines following it and i think I can fit the answer: a combination of timeouts (even though she usually just gets up and walks away), bribing, threatening, ignoring, yelling and trying everything I can to distract her without losing my self-respect.

Maybe this nursery school thing is something we both need. I think we are prepped and ready to go.