The First Day

Today was a much anticipated day for both Amanda and Eva.

Before going to bed last night, both girls had their outfits all laid out, right down to socks, underwear and shoes. They were awake bright and early (as usual) before 6:00 am! We kicked the day off with a nice, leisurely breakfast of whole wheat pancakes and then we were off and running.

For Amanda, it was her first day of 4 year old Preschool. She has been counting down the days for weeks now and whenever we drove past the school, she would say,"Hello Preschool! See you in xx days!" When we drove past yesterday and she finally got to say,"See you TOMORROW!", she could barely contain herself.

This year she will be going three days per week, for 3 hours each day. Today was just a 1 hour Orientation where parents met the teacher and the kids got acquainted with half of their classmates. (They'll meet the rest of the class on Friday.) Just like last year, Dave was the one who accompanied Amanda on her first day, so any report of the day is secondhand information.

Posing under Daddy's cherry tree for the traditional First Day of School photo.

It seems like the day went very well and Amanda is anxious to go back! She told me that she met the other two girls in the class, painted, made an apple craft, and played dress-up. During playground time, she gravitated toward her old friends from last year, especially her buddy Paul.

The majority of last year's class is still together, with the exception of Amanda, so the only chance she'll get to see them is on the playground or at Lunch Bunch. (Lunch Bunch extends the school day by 2 hours, and allows the kids to eat together and have playground time.) I think we will sign up for that once per week because Amanda could benefit from some additional social time with her new and old friends. On Friday, there is a Coffee Hour scheduled for the parents so I will get a chance to meet everyone. Dave commented that they all seemed to know each other already, so I may end up being the outsider in the group.

Today was a big day for Eva too. It was her first day of gymnastics at Tumblefun! We attended an Open House there last week and Eva was completely in her element so I signed her up for a 9 week class. Today she learned a "squat" (in preparation for next week's skill: the somersault) and did a variety of activities that incorporated that.

Eva's first day of Gymnastics

She had a blast going through the whole circuit, which included things like the trampoline, rope ladder, rock climbing wall, balance beam, bar and ball pit. (I wish I had video of her climbing the rock wall. She didn't need any instruction whatsoever, and had climbed to the top in a matter of seconds!)

I couldn't believe how coordinated Eva was and her teacher even commented on how "strong and aware" she is. But the thing that really blew me away was how well she listened to the instructions! Many of the kids just ran off and did their own thing or threw tantrums if they didn't want to participate, but Eva very patiently listened and followed the directions to a T.

Another thing that surprised me was how shy Eva was in the beginning. She clung to me and followed me around like a shadow. Normally she is off like a shot and I have to chase her down! After a while though, she warmed up to the teachers and seemed to trust them.

Today gave me a chance to see a completely different side of Eva. I think it will be really good for her to have an activity of her own, where she won't be in her big sister's shadow.

As soon as we came home from Tumblefun though, she was asking for Amanda. They are the best of friends when they play together, so Eva will have to learn how to come up with imaginative play ideas on her own without the instruction of Amanda.

As soon as Amanda came home from school, Eva was literally jumping up and down with glee. She hugged Amanda and said,"Yippee!! Manda's home! I so happy to see you!!!"

All in all, a very good day of "firsts."