This is 5 year old GD’s latest obsession. She has been playing with the Stomp Rockets for a couple years, but she has suddenly figured out how to make them go super high. She loves it!
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What a cutie. I love her hair!
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Yes, D has purchased one or two bikes used and some new. Lucky (or unlucky) GD always has her brother’s old bikes waiting for her.
Love, love, love having GS and GD home for the summer.
We’re having so much fun playing together. They love playing school where they are the teachers and H and I are the students. Today they told me the teacher will keep all cell phones in a special container. 
We spend lots of time outside biking and playing in the yard and driveway. We love to play tennis and golf, go to the pool, and cheer them on at their games.
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That’s kind of amazing that kids today play school with a cell phone box!! How old are they?
They are nine and seven. They attend a K-5 elementary school. GS and GD do not have cell phones, but I know that several of the older kids do have them. They are aware that the school policy does not allow the students to have cell phones during the day.
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Thanks all. We are likely getting (pending parental OK) REI’s balance bike. Wirecutter liked it almost as much as the Woom.
Today was GS’s birthday party. He decided on a family party so it was both sets of grandparents, my SIL’s 2 aunts and a cousin, plus our niece and her 2 daughter that are 3 and 5. The 3 kids had a ball.
GS was totally wiped out by the end of the day.
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My second widdle granddaughter starts first grade tomorrow. Sniff, sniff. It is happening so fast, their growing up. DGD#1 is in 2nd grade this year and DGS#1 is in 5th grade!!! Yikes.
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I haven’t checked to see how much they are, but REI typically has a sale @early October where you get 20% off one item (they have changed some of their sales lately though). If you don’t need it too soon it might be worth waiting for the sale. They may also have a Labor Day sale.
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My developmentally delayed grandchild started preschool last week. The week was successful and he had a great time. It looks like it will be a great experience.
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Birthday is Thursday so can’t wait 
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I was super excited to visit DGS’s new school building Friday for the open house. The most lovely brand new school I have ever seen!! Windows galore, lots of light birch wood, and colorful tile walls, high ceilings, cozy nooks and cubbies, rooms for speech, physical therapy, occupational therapy’s, counselor, nurse, beautiful big gym with windows and light, a cafeteria with oval tables so all the kids at the table can see each other, gorgeous library, beautiful light fixtures, outside raised bed gardens, handicapped accessible playgrounds….. oh my gosh, I am so stoked for his year at the new school! He will be entering first grade and is in the Spanish immersion program. Kinder was great in the old building, but it was so ugly and run down, and this new building will raise everyone’s spirits! 
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Ànd I love that the bus picks him up at the bottom of the driveway, and that all the kids get free breakfast and lunch.
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GD2 will be two soon. She is starting preschool, 2 mornings a week. The first few weeks, the nanny going to have to sit in the cafeteria, just in case. GD1 is starting Kindergarten this year. A big year.
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Lots of firsts!
GD3 (D2’s child) started daycare last week. Fabulous program run by the State U. Only for university students and staff. GD3 was on the wait list for the program even before she was born. The U uses the sites (there are 3 different facilities, none of them are large) as training locations for social work and early childhood education majors. The worker to child ratio is very low. Once a month, there is free “date night” babysitting at the daycare from 6-9pm. Students get first option, but if there are slots left, they’re open to everyone else.
Twins A and B start kindergarten in a week. It’s hard to believe. I remember them as tiny babies. Now they are long legged, loquacious individuals.
GS is starting round 2 of preschool. He has grown up so much since last fall. He’s gotten so opinionated and much more independent. Tonight, he wanted dinner, but mom, dad and sisters were all busy. I heard someone rustling around in the kitchen and I found him standing on the kitchen counter getting down his plate, cup and silverware from the upper cabinet. I lifted him down off the counter and gave him a brownie to tide him over and told him mom would be down soon to get his dinner. I went into the kitchen a few minutes later and he’d set his place at the table–plate, chopsticks, fork, spoon, cup. He filled his cup with ice water from the fridge dispenser and had a Tupperware container of fried rice from last night’s take out in front of him, open, and he was helping himself.
He had been sick all day yesterday, and vomited up every single thing he ate all day. Today he was ferociously hungry and just couldn’t wait.
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Reporting in - older four grandkids started school Wednesday. GD2, age 3 is attending along with older 3 sibs; capped off tuition with 3 kids so only pay any extra fees. She was excited to have her uniform and be with the older kids. Excellent learning environment. Since they are in a new to them school building (same teacher/team from last year) I will be seeing these facilities at our next visit. Family has done well transitioning from their move in 2023 to starting with a school for two years until it closed, with some faculty moving to this ‘new’ school program. In TX, after having the new school for 2 years, with their accreditation also means the kids will be eligible for full school voucher (TX has charter schools and state-supported school voucher). That will help the pocket book. Right now, mom can claim home school voucher of $2K per child for the older four.
Our family always focused on education and educational opportunities (including extra-curricular), and they are doing the same.
Grow where you are planted.
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GS’s daycare sent a 1st day of school picture even though there was really no difference from Friday.
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Spent 4 days with GS, who is now 8 weeks old. A very chill and happy little guy, sleeps 4 or sometimes 5 hours overnight, short daytime naps and then pretty cheerfully looking around the world. I did dishes, emptied garbage, cooked meals we had all agreed on. Changed a few diapers. DIL is doing well, so is our son, although they are both really tired. The kind of really tired where you don’t realize how really tired you are.
S1/DIL (the aunt and uncle) were there and are struggling to conceive and it is a fine line to enjoy everyone’s company but not land too hard on how attention grabbing an infant is.
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I’m visiting my GD for 10 days, and I’ve been picking her up from school. She started Kindergarten the first week of August and she’s in a charter school. She likes school, but she has to get up an hour earlier and that’s been tough. Over the weekend, we went to the state fair, which was fun. GD really enjoyed seeing the animals. We also went to a demolition derby. SIL bought tickets since thinking it would be interesting. It was incredibly loud (not just the car engines but there was also very loud music). I don’t think anyone is anxious to watch again, but it was an experience.
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I babysat for Nashville grands last night while D & SIL went to back to school night. GS will be 3 a week from Sunday. He resisted bedtime because he wanted his mommy and cried despite me doing all the bedtime things. I ended up going back in after about 15 minutes and rocked him for about 20 minutes before he conceded that he needed to get back in his toddler bed. Those 20 minutes with his arms around my neck and his head on my shoulder were an absolute gift. He’s the youngest of all 4 grands and I don’t expect any more, so I was wise enough to enjoy the moment.
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