Meet the Teacher Night

would it be bad if i just spent the first 20 minutes of everyday blogging? at least then i'll get it done. but then, when will i cram in doing my makeup? or catching up on emails? or buying a lunch plan for Connor.

oh yes. connor. that's what i'm here for today. anyway...last night was Meet the Teacher night at Connor's school and even though I made a poor shoe choice for standing around in the gymnasium and classrooms all evening, it was a great night.

seriously? clearly a bit overdressed. should have changed clothes after work. clearly, i'm trying too hard.

Every year, Brisas has a theme. It's been Star Trek, Indiana Jones, something about the ocean maybe...this year it's the Old West. The hallways and all the classrooms were decorated with Wanted posters, barns, cowboys, tumbleweed, cacti, and other Western finery.

We bought Connor his first (of many i'm sure) Brisas tee shirt and it was adorable

Jeff and I were planning on getting shirts for ourselves but we hit this step last and they were nearly sold out of everything. We even got his yearbook ordered.  While we almost always prefer digital over hard copy, we went for the actual yearbook versus the disk version.  The thought of popping in a cd to view your yearbook feels wrong to my core.

Jeff and I had our pictures taken for our Brisas school ID cards so we're officially in the system now that we've both taken the least flattering photos ever. check check.

We learned about school lunch. school lunch now is nothing like school lunch when jeff and i were in school. these kids have options. seriously. the first day they choose between Whole Wheat Bean & Cheese Burro, Whoe Grain Chicken Patty on Wheat Bun, Turkey Ham & Cheese on Whole Wheat Sub, Whole Wheat Crispy Chicken Wrap - all with sides of broccoli florets and grapes. Um, sign me up?! If you're interested the whole calendar is here. Also he gets to choose his milk so that's a fun thing for him. Funny side story: My mom and dad tell me that on my first day of school they got a phone call from my teacher with a concern. Apparently, when asked if I wanted white milk or chocolate milk i asked for a wine cooler. While I find this hilarious I have to question the truth to this story. Lindsay doesn't drink wine coolers.

We got Connor's teacher assignment and were pleased to get the teacher we asked for, Mrs. Yoshioka. Tough name, nice lady.  She came so highly recommended and we chatted with friends so Connor and two of his friends Kaci & Sam will be in class together. Connor's bff Aidan will be in a class just across the hallway and from what I understand the two classes partner up a lot so that's great.  When Connor and Aidan are together they just adore each other so much that no one else matters. That can be tough on other kids and tough for a teacher so we decided that maybe this would be a good year to give them some space lol. They will still see each other at recess and after school at Kids Club so they'll get their bromance time in. It's so great that Connor is back at Brisas. To recap, this is where Connor spent most of his first three years. When Bear was born, the Kyrene program had ended their infant program (they feared his arrival clearly) and so we had to remove Connor in order to keep the boys together in one school. This was heart wrenching but we're thrilled to be back.

Samantha - Aidan & Connor - Kaci

We found his classroom and there were 5 stations that Connor had to lead us through. He got to write his name on a class board, do puzzles, fill out some forms with his name and Kids Club info.  The kids all take turns bringing in snack and I let him pick the day we'd bring in snack. He picked the first day. No pressure, right?  We brought in the bags and bags of school supplies we battled the masses to acquire in the last few weeks. We learned that he'll have PE on the very first day of school so leave the flip flops at home that day. His classroom was bright and cheerful and I can tell he was super excited. We got forms to fill out and Connor even got his first homework assignment. On Monday, the kids are all to bring in a picture, toy or item to tell about something they did over the summer. Not sure what we'll do. Unlike many of our friends who are teachers, we don't have the whole summer off to vacay :) Connor wants to take his shirt from Take Your Child To Work at the Dbacks he did last month. Maybe. I'm thinking of making a photo collage with pics of swim lessons, dbacks games, soccer photos and other randomness we did over the summer. Maybe we can be a bit liberal with the "summer" term and includes pics from the Hot Dog Derby for his birthday since that was pretty cool and likely to be something that impresses the tough 5 year old crowd.

standing outside his classroom - room 50!

this is a list of his Kindergarten friends - he wrote his name on the board

Meeting Mrs. Yoskioka and learning some first day business

Yo-Shi-O-Ka - we'll be practicing this weekend

Connor learned from Mrs. Yoskioka that each morning school starts at 7:40 but he can arrive at 7:15 to play outside. When the bell rings at 7:40 he's to line up with his class. Each class is given a symbol so they know where to line up. CONNOR'S IS A BEAR. easy peasy. Here he is lined up by his bear.

So, Monday is his first day of Kindergarten. Unbelievable. We'll be taking him to school but parent's aren't allowed inside the building so that kids can get right down to business without the distracting weeping. Honestly, I don't anticipate any crying from the Barnes camp. Not that I'm not a cryer, I am. But we've already had him in such a school environment since the day he first went to Kyrene at 6 weeks old that it may feel more comfy and familiar than anything else. I hope it's that way for him as well.