Back to school 2010

Today was the first day of school. Both kids were more than ready to go and couldn't wait to get there and get started. They saw the school and their teachers for the first time last Thursday. The school looks great and is just about ready to go.

Both of them already have two friends in their class. There are so many kindergarten-age boys in our neighborhood, so Ben is lucky that two are in his class. Susanna has two friends from her soccer team - all three of them were at different schools last year, so that was a happy coincidence.

Ben is so happy to be going to the same school as Susanna. I am sure there will be lots to talk about when they get home everyday. Susanna will really feel like the big kid with a brother in kindergarten.

I think we are off to a great start!

Ready for some football

After a successful season coaching baseball, Brad has decided to switch gears and become a football coach. Originally he had planned to wait another year or two to start Ben in football. But when it came time to decide what to play in the fall (for football you need to decide by the end of May) he decided to go for it.

So Ben will play flag football (tackle starts in 2nd grade.) His team will be the Gators. We have 12 boys on the team - some from baseball, some from preschool, some neighbors, and a few extras. There will even be cheerleaders.

And I get to be the Team Mom. While I took on this role unofficially with baseball, with football it is an actual position, and every team must have one. It seems to be mostly to handle administrative details. I get the impression they don't trust the football coaches to worry about the details, like picture day, etc. We are also expected to fund raise for the league - I am not really thrilled about that, but we'll see what happens.

This is Texas, and Texas is football.

The half-way point

Today we have reached the half-way mark of our summer vacation. Five-and-a-half weeks down, five-and-a-half to go.

Its gone much faster than expected. So far we've had one week away (California) and two weeks of summer camp. We've also had soccer - Susanna is playing on an indoor team for summer), yoga (also for Susanna), practice for fall sports, the pool, and playing outside most nights until late. Occasionally I can get my kids to sit down and do math worksheets (they prefer math books to others at the moment) and they've been to the library twice so far (should be more, I know.)

I'm sure the next half of summer vacation will go faster than the first. Lots to do before school starts. Both kids are enjoying the break but are looking forward to starting school again, especially Susanna. I, on the other hand, would like to put off the 6:30 wake up calls as long as possible!

The tooth fairy returns

Tonight we had corn for dinner. It didn't occur to me until I was cooking it that this might be a challenge for Ben.

One bite was all it took!

San Diego Zoo

We spent a day at the San Diego Zoo. The zoo was as wonderful as we've always heard. We didn't quite see the whole place, but we covered quite a bit during our day there.

Sightseeing

Today's adventure was visiting some local animal attractions.

First we went to a koi place. They sell koi of all sizes and prices. If you want a fish for several hundred or thousand dollars, you can get it here!

Ben and Breck were ready to jump in with their new snorkel gear.

Next we went to the Pacific Marine Mammal Center. This is a non-profit group that rescues, rehabilitates and releases stranded or injured seals and sea lions. We couldn't get too close to the animals, but they were interesting to see.

California

Here we are in sunny California! We have come here to visit Brad's sister Tara and her family. Susanna and Ben love seeing their cousins Breck and Piper. They are having lots of fun together.

Today we went to Laguna Beach. Its not too hot outside, but the kids don't mind. They loved playing on the scenic beach.