Rodeo Day

As we celebrate Texas Independence Day, the Kindergarten team hosts Rodeo Day!  The kids wear their "Texas Best" and have a morning filled with cowboy/cowgirl fun.  Crafts, games, activities and snacks. :)

They had so much fun with their friends. :)

Nursery Rhyme Parade

While studying Nursery Rhymes in Kinder at school, the teachers organize a Nursery Rhyme Parade to share with the school.  The kids were to dress up as a character from their favorite nursery rhyme character and memorize the rhyme to share with their class.

Pat-A-Cake

Old King Cole

Mr. D actually shared his rhyme with his classmates, Little Miss A, not so much.  :)

Valentine's Day

A & D had fun putting all of their classmates Valentines together and gearing up for a fun party day!

Chen Chen

Little Miss A's class pet Chen Chen the monkey got to spend the weekend with us. With trips all around town, I had to keep checking to make sure that we hadn't lost the beloved class monkey!

Little Miss A was so excited to FINALLY have Chen Chen come home with her and kept trying to come up with new places to take him. CUTE! :)

Christmas Parties

Can I just say how nice it is that the Kinder Room Moms coordinate the classroom parties to be identical from room to room? Though the kids are in different classes, their games, crafts, snacks and treats were truly identical. :) Although, going back and forth between the two rooms was a little bit of a challenge. It was so nice to get to share in their holiday celebration.

Polar Express Pajama Day

The Kinder classes at school had a Polar Express Day planned for the kids. Let me just say, that wearing PJs to school is the best gift to parents EVER!!!!! Our get up and out the door was AWESOME!!!! They received tickets upon their admission to the "train" and bells as they exited. CUTE!!!! What a fun day!

Native American Day

We were feeling better enough by Friday to join our friends at school for a super fun morning of Native American rotations.

The kids started the day with War Shields with Dad. Then it was on to several different stations across the grade level completing different activities with their classmates. It was so fun to see their loot at the end of the day.

Since I had classes, I wasn't able to make it, so we don't have pictures. I'll have to take some of the kids with their treasures and post later. :)

Thanksgiving "School" Lunch

We had our Thanksgiving lunch at school, which Little Miss A informed me was actually a "feast"! :)

I was fortunate enough to be able to rearrange my school schedule with my own students in order to be able to join my own little pilgrims for a feast at school. What a fun treat!!!!

I am so thankful for you two!!!!!!

Star of the Week!

Our Kinder classes at school each have a Star of the Week. This week was all about Mr. D is Ms. A's class. He was so excited to pick his pictures that he wanted on his poster. We had so much fun looking back through our adventures. I loved hearing him recount events...I am always completely blown away by his amazing memory!!! :) We went to the store so he could pick his favorite color poster and extra supplies to make it totally what he wanted! He helped me cut the pictures with fun scissors and place everything around the board then he was done. He fell asleep shortly after , so I finished after he went to bed. He woke up to the final product and was grinning from ear to ear at all of his pictures. He was so excited to take it to school and show all his friends. It's going to be a great week!

Six Years Ago Today...

6 years ago today our lives were changed forever in the most amazing way!!! I can't believe that our sweet little punkins are six!!!!! Where does the time go? Although, having said that, I think back and can't really even remember what our lives were like before their arrival November 3, 2004.

Little Miss A is the sweetest girl. Always so caring of others, super kind and considerate. She loves to take care of her family and friends...wanting to make sure everyone is happy all the time. She is so thoughtful and always wants to do the right thing. We are so lucky to have her!

Mr. D is our little funny man...he has the most amazing sense of humor. He loves to laugh and make others laugh as well. His laugh is contagious...completely infectious! Like his sister, he loves for everyone to be happy and is more than willing to share his laugh and silliness to make people smile. We are so lucky to have him!

I am happy to report that the bug they had yesterday was completely gone by the afternoon so they were able to spend their special day as we regularly planned. We had an early release day at school, so the kids had the best of both worlds...school with friends and a nice long afternoon of fun as well.

The kids woke up in the morning to the traditional birthday song. We learned when we split them up to their two separate rooms when they were 2, that we needed to sing loud and have them both come to the great room for presents together. (Not quite the same as my childhood where the whole family walked into my room singing the birthday song carrying presents, but we can't be in 2 places at once.) After a shower of gifts, the kids began to get ready for school. I headed out to Starbucks for our traditional birthday morning pick me up...hot cocoa. A little bit farther drive in the new house, but a tradition we can't possible give up. :)

At school the kids had their names called on the announcements...birthday wishes from the principal. As all of my students heard their kids names, they came to my class passing on birthday wishes, some of them even made cards for them...how sweet is that? Little Miss A and Mr. D thought that was so cool! They were both line leaders for the day sporting their birthday crowns from their teachers for the day...

The kids picked special cupcakes to share with their classmates:

(Princess)

(How to Train a Dragon)

We celebrated both birthdays in the cafeteria as one great big group. Which meant the boys in Little Miss A's class were able to enjoy dragon cupcakes/rings and the girls in Mr. D's class got to have princess cupcakes/rings. :)

With an early out at noon, I took the afternoon off to spend A & D's special day with them doing something exciting and fun! After a few changes in plans, we ended up at the Main Event. (A fun indoor play land.) We ironically bumped into some of our old playgroup friends, so we were able to join lanes and bowl together. :) After a few hours of bowling, the kids and I headed to the arcades to play some more. What a fun afternoon.

We left the Main Event and met Daddy for dinner...A & D's choice our old traditional Mexican favorite. I think we've celebrated their birthday dinner there for the past 3 years now even though we've moved. :)

In maintaining that tradition, the kids fell asleep (AGAIN) on the way home and we ended up having birthday cake the next day instead...

What a great day with two AMAZING kids!

Happy birthday "babies" we love you!

Winning Bookmark

Our librarian has a bookmark contest every year for student to submit bookmark creations. The winners of the contest have their bookmarks copied and added to the years supply of bookmark option for the entire school to use. Both Little Miss A and Mr. D submitted their designs, and neither one spent more than 5 minutes creating. Mr. D however, had his bookmark selected as a Kindergarten winner. He was so excited when I saw him after school asking "Mommy, did you hear my name on the announcements? I won!"

Here is his design. We are the Rattlers, so Mr. D decided to draw a really LONG rattler and write "Read 4 a LONG time" across the top.

Little Miss A drew a rattler as well, but covered every space around it with hearts and wrote "LOVE 2 read!"

Cute ideas!!! Totally them! I love it!

Pumpkin Math with Dad

Our Kindergarten team has a grade level event every month. The event for the month of October was Pumpkin Math with Dads (and/or Moms). Daddy came up to school with a pumpkin and carving tools ready to go and the kids brought the rest of the supplies: instruction paper, pencil, yarn, scissors and unifix cubes.

They started off with estimations and measuring...height, circumference and weight. Then came the interior scooping. Let the seed counting begin! :)

With faces sketched it was time to carve the shapes...

What a super fun family morning!

REPORT CARDS!!!!!

The first report card of many to come over the course of the next 13 years! The kids did great...both above average in all areas! :) Then on to the citizenship section...

Little Miss A has S marks (satisfactory) across the board.
Mr. D has an E (exceeds expectations) in Music and an I (needs improvement) in PE and S marks in all other areas. How is that even possible? Shouldn't it be the other way around? If a little boy has trouble sitting still, shouldn't that affect his overall behavior scores in music and not PE? Just wondering...

Fall Fest

Our school had our Fall Fest on Friday. It was a fun filled evening...for half the family anyway. Little Miss A and Mr. D both had TONS of friends all over the place and bounced from friend to friend. It was hard to keep up with who was heading in which direction with whom. With lots of games, bouncy contraptions and a great petting zoo...Little Miss Social did not want to leave. She and I outlasted the boys by a good hour and a half. Her "big" friends (some of my 4th graders) were quick to find her and take her under their wings and play. Such amazing girls!! So glad my Little Miss A has such good girl role models to look up to. :)

What a fun family night!

National Walk or Bike to School Day

It was National Walk/Bike to School Day on Wednesday. This has become a Caswell tradition. As long as there is good weather, we'll participate. :) It was a chilly 49 degrees. When we walked in the building, we immediately began "sharing cold hands" with one another. They were freezing, so we were working together to warm them up.

Watch DOGS!!!

Little Miss A and Mr. D saw all the Watch DOGS (Dads Of Great Students) on campus last year and have been anxiously awaiting Daddy to join the club!!! The kick off event was on Thursday and Daddy went! :) He walked in the door afterwards proudly sporting his T-shirt to show the kids. They were elated!!!!! YEA!!!! Their kid tees are on the way.

Daddy told the kids of his fun game (ice breaker/team builder) of rock/paper/scissors where he ended up being a cheerleader. They both marvelled that Daddy actually not only knew what it was, but could actually play the game. Then began to giggle as they were picturing Daddy as a "cheerleader"!!! :)

Realizing that Daddy has a shirt and is now totally official, they were certain he would be joining us on campus the very next day. Not so, but we are all so excited to see his schedule of the 4 days he'll be with us at school this year.

Running Champ

Holy crow, we have a runner in the family!!!! Aunt K, you would be proud. One of our gym coaches caught me in the hallway after school gloating about Little Miss A's performance in PE this afternoon, urging me to ask her how she did in gym class today. When I asked her, she said "Mom, I was the fastest and got ALL the scores!!!!" Through a serious line of questioning to interpret this news, I found out that they had a bunch of races in gym class today and Little Miss A came in first for almost all of them. Did I mention she was in a dress? Granted she still had on sneakers, but still this is co-ed PE!

GO LITTLE MISS A!!!! :)

Mr. D's class goes to gym tomorrow for the same exercises, so we'll see how he does. The pressure is on, but he's already betting on a good performance after Little Miss A's experience today. He's counting on the fact that he'll "beat his friends for sure!"

I am SOOOOOO glad they are in different special area class blocks!

What Does Freedom Mean?

As we were wrapping up the evening getting ready for bed tonight, Little Miss A informed me that "That's not Freedom! My teacher said freedom is getting to make your own choices, and I definitely didn't choose bedtime!" Happy freedom week Little Miss A, but it's still bedtime! :)

Trouble In Paradise

So, Mr. D had his first scuffle at school today. Not that he did something to someone else, but that something was done to him! :( I was beyond upset!!!!! I wish I could just put my kids in a bubble! There are days like today that I just wish I was homeschooling my sweet little munchkins!

Kindergarten Crushes...

Okay, didn't think I'd have to post on this topic for a while, but we've already had our first "crush" report! Mr. D came home from school this week and announced that he had a girlfriend. At first I didn't think anything about it...it's a friend that's a girl...no big deal, right? Wrong!

I began with the basic question. What's her name? With a dreamy faraway look Mr. D told me "Her name is Maddie short for Madelyn. Isn't that such a pretty name? Oh Mom, she's the most beautiful girl in Kindergarten!!!" Am I really hearing this from my five year old little boy?? What's really funny is that as I am asking what she looks like, Miss A has an open ear, taking it all in then announces that her brother HAS to show her who this girl is on the playground tomorrow! This is a scene I have imagined in my head before, but with the roles reversed!!! Too funny!

In taking the kids to class the next day, I stopped by Miss. A's room to get a sneak peak of "the girl", but alas she was absent. I was explaining to D's teacher who I was looking for and why, Miss. A laughed...she said that ALL the boys like her. With my curiosity at an all time high, I can't wait to check in again tomorrow morning to see this mystery girl. :)