First Day of Kindergarten!

Today was our first day of kindergarten - first for our family AND first for Ava. Since she does struggle with anxiety at times, I have been wondering how she would do, but as we found out today, I didn't need to have any concerns!

School starts at 7:45am, and her bus is at our house at 7:15am! I am beyond thankful that Mark is a morning person and can help get her up and ready. He woke her up about 6:30am this morning and she was so excited. She'd given me explicit instructions about what to pack in her lunch and kept asking if I'd put everything in there requested. Breakfast eaten, hair combed, body dressed, teeth brushed, shoes tied, and we were ready to go!

We decided we'd take her on her first day so we could see her room and get the obligatory first day at school picture (it is a historic event, you know). When I told her, I think she was a little disappointed not to get to ride the bus, but then she told me it was okay since she could ride it home. Everyone loaded up and we were off for school. When we got there, Ava led the way (she'd been in for a reading assessment last week so she knew where to go), not even making sure we were keeping up. She ran into her room without even a look back until I asked her to stop for just a second so I could get a picture, and she agreed.

The house seemed quiet without her there (no bickering between her & Carter!), and poor Carter kept asking when she'd be back (missed having someone to pester and be pestered by, no doubt... I'm sure Audrey will figure it out before long). Soon enough, the clock said 2:15pm and I was waiting for the bus to stop in front of the house. I'm guessing they're still working out the kinks of dropping off kids since it didn't show until 2:30pm, but Ava was all smiles as she got off the bus and was especially happy to have made a new friend who was in her class and who also rode her bus.

We had a few minutes to ourselves while Ava filled me in on her day (2 recesses! guess that's one perk of all-day kindergarten) and enjoyed a cupcake. Then Carter was up and he grilled her on her first day... seriously... I don't know where he comes up with all his questions!

She has a strange schedule - all-day, every other day. She goes Tuesday and Friday and every other Wednesday, and this week is an on day for Wednesday. It may take a while for us to get used to the schedule.

I'm so glad she had a great first day - here's to a great first year!

Carter's Fourth

Way back in July, Carter turned four! We got to celebrate his birthday two weekends in a row - one in WV and one here in Ohio.

He has become such a big man over the past year and I'm so grateful to have him in our family. I guess it's because I'm so uncoordinated, but I find myself continually impressed with his athletic abilities. He has an abundance of energy and I'm often at a loss as to how to get it all out. His mind seems to go a mile a minute and the questions have become vast and varied. I love that he's so inquisitive, even though there are times when my own mind wears out trying to answer his constant queries.

He has moments of calm, too, and routinely asks me to snuggle with him. He has a great appetite and will try just about anything - and now that he's convinced being both strong and smart come from eating vegetables, he proudly eats them (usually), asking me to feel his muscles between bites. He's a great playmate to both his sisters and has taken to the role of big brother with Audrey in such a sweet way. Just tonight Mark ran to the store for a couple things and took Audrey and Carter with him. Audrey was squirming, so he let her down and Carter immediately grabbed her hand and guided her through the store. My prayer is that his heart continues to be tender and that he comes to truly understand how much God loves him so he can share that love with others. So thankful for our precious boy!