Kindergarten Graduation

 

I am now back to blogging! My computer has been on and off for the past year making it very difficult and frustrating to blog. I have been using my iPad for the internet, facebook, etc... but it is not great for blogging.  My sweet husband just purchased me a new one so now I am back online! Yay! I am going to play catch up in the next few posts but this one will be about kindergarten graduation. Back in June Aidan graduated from Kindergarten. I couldn't have been more thrilled how his school year went for him. I( of course) love the Montessori philosophy and love love love his school. It is such a nurturing place with such loving and nurturing teachers. I know that my boy is well looked after there. They use just the right amount of love and encouragement as well as setting high expectations for the students. I know I could always go talk to his teachers if I was feeling uneasy about any situation.

 

For graduation each student had to give a little speech. They had to say what they wanted to be when they grew up. Most of the kiddos said they wanted to be doctors but not my kid. When he grows up he wants to be a Movie Director!  They then each got called up to shake all the teachers and the Directors hands and receive their little diploma and a rose.  Afterwards we went to their classrooms for refreshments and we got to receive their Kindergarten binders as well as see their power point presentations they each created. Power Point in Kindergarten. Who would have ever guessed? As a treat we decided to take Aidan out early and his dad and I took him to the County Fair. It was a great day.

 

 

 

 

Aidan giving his speech. I promise I had him all straightened out when I left him. When he walked onto stage his tie was out and his hat was all askew. Oh well. The whole outfit kind of went with the  "Movie Director" theme and this is typical Aidan. lol.

Shaking his teachers hands.. Anne Margaret was not there that day. She was attending her own son's middle school graduation.

 Shaking the directors hand

 smelling his rose

 These were the kindergarten binders. You can see Aidan's at the bottom. We were so blessed that Anne Margaret is such a gifted photographer. She took so many awesome pictures of the kids. She always took them from across the room so she was able to catch their "authentic selves" and not some cheesy posed smile. Each 8x10 black and white photo was framed and on the wall the entire year. The first time I saw them I thought they were just professional photographs of random kids. I then realized I recognized those kids! Then I recognized my own kid!

 Here is the front of the binder. This will be a treasured keepsake for the rest of my life. :)

Erika is Aidan's other teacher. He LOVES her and always asks if we can have play dates with her. lol. She was the one I can credit Aidan's love of Math. She was always working with him on it and pushing him to do more difficult work. :)

 Aidan and his buddy Dylan

 Jennifer the Teachers Assistant. What can I say about Jennifer?? Well she is amazing and you will be seeing more pictures of her when I do Aidan's birthday party post as she ran the event. I credit her with Aidan's love of Science that he has developed over the past year. She was constantly doing fun Science Experiments with the kids.

 

My next post will be about Aidan's Science/Beyblade birthday bash and then I will do one about the first day of first grade. Oh My!

 

He just wants to be grown....

It seems lately that Aidan Kai just wants to be grown up and it is killing me. His wish list for his birthday consists of a " real toolbox" with "real tools" NOT toy tools, Monopoly Millionaire ( I don't know any other soon to be 6 year old that loves Monopoly like me kid does, Beyblades and a new bike. He has grown so much that his bike looks like a toddler bike on him now.

 He LOVES money. He loves to hold money, count money, and figure out how he is going to spend his money. He is NOT happy doing chores to earn money because he feels he doesn't earn enough. lol. He worries about things like paying bills. He is 5! We had this conversation the other day....
Aidan- " Mommy I don't have to pay my own bills until I am 19 right?"
Me- " Daddy and I will pay your bills until you graduate college and then you pay your own bills"
Aidan- "First I go to college, then I get married, and then I pay my own bills?"
Me-" Yes thats right"
Aidan-" and when I'm 16 I can have my own car"
Me- "When you're 16 you will be able to drive but if you want a car you are going to have to work and pay for it yourself"
Aidan- " Oh ok, maybe I will get a job at the dealership and get a super deal for you too"
Me- "Yes that would be nice"
He makes me laugh. I swear he is like a little adult at times. If I told the kid today that he could go out and get a job I think he would be estatic!

He is also becoming very independent. He had a big day yesterday when I gave him some money at Target and let him go to the snack bar by himself  for the first time and buy a pretzel and icee while I was checking out.( dont worry he was within eye sight the entire time). He thought this was a BIG deal and couldn't stop smiling. When we got home from Target I was in his room talking with him and noticed his wallet laying there. I noticed there were some gift card looking cards in it. There were 3 and each was worth $50.00. When I asked him about them he said " I randomly found them while I was going through my dad's suitcase". lol! Im glad he "randomly" found them while he was doing something he was NOT supposed to be doing. I asked if daddy knew he had them and he said "No", so I made him ask his dad if it was ok if he had them and had a discussion  with him about not going through other people's belongings. It turns out the cards were some type of discount cards and were basically worthless as they were from Australia so his dad let him keep them. Aidan was so happy when he said yes and immediately asked to go to Target to spend them. I explained that they weren't real gift cards and they weren't really worth any money. The child had a total meltdown and was laying in the floor crying saying that he wanted his own credit cards and money. I couldn't do anything but stiffle a giggle ( and of course make a facebook post) and console him saying it was tough being 5 sometimes and not having your own money. He did something similar to this when we were at Legoland last month. He went "Mining for Gold" ( which I think was really scrap metal). He got a few pieces and then wanted to go to the gift shop to trade his gold for something in the store. LOL. You have to give the kid credit for being creative. I only pray that he ends up being a entrepreneur and comes up with a creative way to earn money at a young age.

In a few weeks it will be Kindergarten graduation. I can NOT believe how FAST this year has flown by and that I will have a kid in 1st grade next year!

Catchup (again)

So it is time to catchup again on the goings on at the Swaine Casa since February! Let's see.... In February Aidan had a week off school so we took that opportunity to have a day at Disney, The Wild Animal Park, play with friends and just hang around the house. Just lots of living everyday life!

In March we made a last minute trip to London! Clinton was going there for work and he has like a bajillion frequent flyer miles so we made the trip with him! It was great to see old friends and to meet new ones. Aidan and I did a lot of sight seeing while daddy was working. Aidan's favorite thing on this trip was riding the tube. He loved looking at the tube map to figure out how to get to our destination, which trains to take and where to transfer. I have to say this was a GREAT life skill for him to learn. I let him pick out a tshirt before we left and he picked one out that said UNDERGROUND and then had all the stations listed. lol. What is it about getting older and disliking crowds? I was fine with taking public transportation and riding the tube, but by about the 3rd day I was OVER IT! People are like little ants running around the Underground, people bump into you, most of them are walking briskly or running in a hurry, and I just think it is stressful. I honestly don't know how people live without cars and take public transport everywhere. On this trip I fell in LOVE with my car even more. I love being able to hop in it and drive wherever I need to go. I guess I am not a big city gal. :)

The weather was cold and snowy while we were there which was pleasant at times and a pain in the butt at times. Overall, Aidan loved the snow!

Easter also happened while we were in London. I was a little sad that we weren't able to go to church but we did take a guided tour that day and found ourselves at Westminister Abbey AND St.Paul's. They both just took my breath away and brought tears to my eyes.

I love the culture, people, and history of the UK. I LOVE to visit there but can't say that I would ever want to live there.

In May Aidan had his Spring Fling for school. It is like their Spring concert and was a big deal. They have music once a week and have been practicing for months now! This year had a motown theme and Aidan's class sang "Rockin Robin" and "The Way You Do the Things You Do". I have to say that Aidan and his friend Tyler stole they show. They were on stage having the best time! Everyone was laughing. I will see if I can post a video.

Also in May Aidan finished AWANA's at church. In case you don't know AWANA's stands for Approved Workman are Not Ashamed. AWANA's is for kids K-3. Aidan was able to finish the Kindergarten and 1st grade curriculum! Each week they have to memorize bible versus and learn about the bible. Aidan has such a great memory that it was a breeze for him. He was able to memorize all the books of the old and new testament.

Aidan is still doing great in school and he loves it! His reading is doing great- so much so that they have to go to the grades 1-3 class to find books for him to read. :) He also loves math. He loves figuring out math problems in his head and does this for FUN. Crazy Kid. I always HATED math. He also loves learning about geography and studying maps. We have been working hard on his hand writing and I can see a big improvement since the beginning of the school year. Everyday we work on writing 3 sentences to form a paragraph. I can't wait to see what he ends up doing when he grows up. :)

We go to see the new Radiator Springs section of Disney. One word. AWESOME!

 riding Towmater's Tractor Ride. This was Aidan's favorite.

 His Agent P Mickey Ears he insisted on having. I didn't know who Agent P even was and don't know how Aidan does either since I don't allow him to watch Phineus and Ferb.

 At the Wild Animal Park. This is Johnny, Aidan's little charge for the day. They were so cute together!

Taking time to rest and look at the park map. Look at those legs! This picture cracks me up because I think he looks like a little old man.

 Crazy Hair day at school.

 London

 Aww... Aidan and Meg ( his UK friend) The last time they saw each other he was 3 and she was 10. Now he is 5 and she is 13! How time flies!

 Eventhough we weren't at home I still wanted to have an Easter Egg hunt for him. :) It was a bootleg one but an Easter Egg hunt nonetheless.

 This was the typical weather while we were there. It was nice as long as you didn't have to get out in it and walk for miles.

 Aidan singing Rockin Robin in his Spring Fling.

 Aidan also sang in the opening and final acts.

 Pajama Day at school

 We went to a wedding earlier this month. Look how handsome!

 AWANA'S awards night.

Update

I am well overdue for an update so here is what has been going on since NOVEMBER! My mom came to visit for a month and we had a great visit. We took a mini vacation for Thanksgiving and it was good to get away for a few days. The month of December can only be described in one word. BUSY! We had a great Christmas holiday. Every day we were doing something fun, hence no updates during December. Also, Aidan was in his first Christmas play at our church. He did an awesome job. The kids worked very hard and practiced every weekend from October until December. Two days after Christmas Aidan had walking casts put on both of his feet. The purpose of this was to stretch out his heel cords and to retrain his brain not to walk on his toes. He did great in the casts and it did not slow him down at all! He even attempted to climb a tree while he had them on. lol. He wore them for 4 weeks and had them taken off a little over a week ago. So far, so good, and he hasn't been on his toes once! He still has an awkward gait but we are hopeful that this will be corrected in time. We also moved during New Years. It was to a house just 2 blocks from our old house but it was a BIG job and took several days. We took a break for a few hours on New Years Eve to ring in the New Year at Legoland. They have New Years for kids there. It is like a mini times square. They have different bands perform and drop a lego brick at 6pm when they ring in the new year. They then have a fantastic 3D fireworks display with lego bricks popping out of the fireworks. Way cool!

We are now settled into our new house and back to a routine with school. Aidan continues to love school and is really thriving there. I can't say enough good things about his teachers or Montessori in general. His school had a walk a thon last week. They are raising money for a new elementary building that will be used for kids 1st through 3rd grade. The currently have 50 kids in one classroom with 4 teachers. They make great use of the space but it is dark and old. They want to demo the old building and build a new one. I am praying that it is sooner than later since that is where Aidan will be next year.

Aidan just started playing basketball and they had their first game last week. The game looked like a combination of rugby, football, and basketball, but the kids had fun and learned a lot. It was so cute!  He likes it but we really need to work with him on basic skills.

I am doing well. I am no longer working but am staying busy. I volunteer 3 days a week at Aidans school  and volunteer for some other things at his school that I do from home. After experiencing Montessori it was just to hard to go  back to a public school and see the attitude of some of the teachers. I was not cut out to be a teachers assistant. I am a much better teacher than assistant. lol. I really enjoyed working with my student but am much happier now. I work with Special Needs students at church on Sundays so I am able to "get my fix". lol.

Here are some pictures from the past few months....

Christmas morning

 Clinton and Aidan on Christmas playing with his new science kit. ( Aidans not Clintons. lol)

 One of Aidans teachers is a really talented photographer. She is always taking such great pictures of the kids. Here is the frame that Aidan made us for Christmas. It is made from some of my old costume jewelry.

 You can see Aidans casts in this pictures. It is from my phone so it isn't the best. I took him to get all of his hair cut off since we couldn't really wash it while he had on his casts. I took him back once a week to get it washed.

 New spikey haircut!

 Legoland on New Years.

 Basketball!

 Aidan at the walk a thon. I was concerned that he wouldn't be able to run because he only had his casts off a week and still has weak ankles. He thought he could only do 4 laps but ended up doing 17 and ran the entire time while most of the other kids walked at the end!

 Aidan and his one of his amazing teachers Erika. She is his first "teacher crush". He keeps inviting her over to our house for a play date. lol.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all of our friends and family. I hope this holiday brings you joy and peace.

tragedy

I have been meaning to post for the last couple of weeks, but after yesterdays shootings at Newtown Ct everything I wanted to post seems not to matter. I just can not get this tragic event off of my mind. How can one even begin to wrap their mind around such a travesty? All I could think about during the night were the empty beds, the Christmas presents under the trees that would never be opened, the parents who would never get to hold their babies again, the siblings who would never see their brothers/ sisters again, the parents that waited and waited and waited yesterday at the fire station only to be told that there would be no reunion with their sweet children. How does someone go on functioning? How does the entire TOWN of people recover? These kids were just babies and the epitome of innocence. How does a 5 year old even have a clue what to do when they see a gunman shooting and killing their classmates? How do you EVER send your kid back to school? How do you take care of their psychological needs? How do you prevent suicides years from now due to this event? Their lives are changed FOREVER. Christmas will be ruined FOREVER for the people of this town.

People posted on facebook yesterday that this was an act of pure evil and I have to agree. However, was this 20 year old evil when he was born? Was he evil when HE was in kindergarten? I don't think so. What happened to this young man to cause him to commit such an act? I don't know. I have no answers. I feel strongly that there are some serious issues with people's moral compasses these days. I feel strongly that we need prayer back in school. Years ago the 10 commandments were posted on school walls. At least if kids weren't getting their souls nurtured by their parents ( by taking them to church or believing in SOME higher power) they could get some type of nourishment at school. If parents aren't going to teach their children right from wrong
and nourish their souls, then it should be done at school. Some people feel this is a gun control issue and I have to disagree. Evil is Evil is Evil. I am not a supporter of guns, but guns don't kill people- people kill people. If they want to kill then they will find a way- whether it be a homemade bomb, a knife, a box cutter, etc... Guns are not the problem- PEOPLE are the problem.

Another thing that has been on my mind is how does a mother NOT know or see ANY type of clue that your 20 year old son is capable of such an act? I am in no way  blaming the mother, but wouldn't it be obvious that your child is at least CAPABLE of  mass murder?

Today I am deeply saddened and pray for the people of  Newtown. May God wrap his arms around them and provide comfort.

Halloween 2012

Have I mentioned that October is my favorite month? Only in the last few posts? I have a secret though, as much as I LOVE October I am a little glad it is over. It was a crazy busy month and man did I need the weekend to recover. I am so looking forward to November being a low key month before the craziness goes into full force in December. :) My mom is coming next week and staying until Christmas. I am SO EXCITED! I have an awesome trip for us planned up North the week of Thanksgiving. Clinton is out of town so Mom, Aidan, and I have reservations at a seaside Bed and Breakfast in a sleepy little town. We have reservations for Thanksgiving dinner at an awesome restaurant.  A few days of nothing but down time. Ahhhh......

Halloween was awesome as usual. I dressed up at school as a kitty to match the lil munchkin I work with as her one on one assistant. Halloween night I was Princess Leia to match Aidans Darth Vader. Several of us met up at friends house. We did a potluck dinner, had some arts, crafts, and games for kiddos and then we all went trick or treating together. Our neighborhood is always a zoo on Halloween night and there is a lot of excitement. However, we had a good time with our friends.

This is what I left out for trick or treaters. There were 150 lollipops and about 75 glow in the dark bracelets. We came home to an empty pumpkin and a missing container. :( Did I mention our neighborhood is a zoo. We probably had about 300 trick or treaters. There was a haunted house a couple of houses down so it could have very well been more.

 For our potluck I brought bloody bandaids and pukin pumpkin guacamole.

 The bloody bandaids are graham crackers, icing, and strawberry jam. :)

 Getting ready to head out trick or treating.

 Princess Leia and Darth Vader.

 Doing some crafts before trick or treating.

 Our little group hat went trick or treating.

 The 2 darth vaders. This picture cracks me up. Diego is being all Rico Sauve while Aidan is just doing his "Aidan thing" and being goofy.

I had Aidans parent/teacher conference on Thursday. He is doing great with the exception of the area of attention and gross motor. No surprises there. I have pretty frequent contact with his teachers so most of the info I already new. He is really excelling at reading and math and really loves the life skills area. He is a great helper in the class and is very social. The teachers said that he is kind of the "class hero" and if anyone has any questions they say " go ask aidan". lol. The teachers said that he is "beyond his years" in many areas.  We mostly traded "funny things Aidan has done" stories. I am glad that he makes his teachers smile as much as he does me.