End of an Era and First Day of School: 2020 Edition

It's the first day of school- 2020!

But this year, the first day of school means something a little bit different than it normally does...and it normally is a big, monumental deal.

But this year, you're going back to school in the middle of a pandemic. That's right...I bet you'll still remember 2020 whenever you're reading this because of the Coronavirus. Or "this coronavirus thing," as you guys refer to it. A global pandemic that shut down countries and schools and business has been raging across our earth since around spring break of this year. I took off for spring break, and never went physically back to work.  In fact, you guys came home for spring break and never went physically back to school. You both- and your fellow classmates and awesome teachers (including Mommy)- did Home-Learning to wrap up your spring semester, while I worked from the kitchen. But, it was a longgggg time without actually being back at the building. Everything was looking good for you guys to go back to school in August. The school spent the summer remodeling and redesigning and rethinking everything about how school works to make it work in this day and age of coronavirus. And then the cases started rising again in Texas, forcing the Dallas government to postpone physical school. But, since our school had prepared so well, and since Mommy had volunteered to teach a preschool class (which has to be done in person), you all became "essential worker kids," and got to go back to school with new teachers, and in new groupings of kids, and with new protocols including social distancing and masks and lots of hand-washing and daily pre-school health assessments and as much outdoor learning as possible. And you are loving it. No matter the initial complaints about all-day mask wearing and not being able to hug your friends (this is one of your chief complaints, Aidan... "I want to hug someone!"), you say it is far superior to doing school online. You are energized, and you are growing fast. Your vocabularies have expanded in the first couple of weeks, as well as your curiosity and exposure to new things. And...you are gone!

I am still working from home and for the first time since March...I am home alone. 

You might have noticed, but my blogging since the pandemic started has been brief...and not many written words to accompany the photos and videos. That's not because a lot hasn't happened. A LOT happened...a lot of good, some bad, some sad, some challenging, a lot of triumphs, and family time, and learning more about eachother than we ever knew before. It' because while we were all together I found myself not missing you guys....I could hear your voices and hug you whenever we wanted. We ate lunch all together, went on walks, you kept me company while working, we had movie nights every night and ice cream and swimming and backyard campouts. But now, now that I'm without your voices and 'pitter patter' every moment of every day, I miss you. I miss our weird little "castaway" experiment with the four of us. Toby isn't as good of a conversationalist as you guys are. And I am SO thankful for the 'break' from our all-too-fast-moving daily routine...for the opportunity to help you learn during the spring semester...for the opportunity for you to teach me so much in the past 6 months. And I will cherish it forever.

I may not blog as much as I have done in the past. I finally got that 'paternity leave' with y'all. I still like to chronicle our lives, but if covid has taught me one thing it's to not spend too much time archiving when you can spend that time living. So, I'm on my lunch break right now. I already ate, swept the floor, took Toby for a walk (he turned around and dragged me back home...probably because it was our second walk of the day...but moreso because it started to rain)...and before I jump back to work, I decided to put these emotions I'm feeling in paper.

You're back at school. Julia, you're now a second grader. Aidan, you're now a fourth grader. And, as I say every year, I can't believe how much you've grown. But this year, you've grown- we've all grown- more than we expected to. And I'm SO proud of you...and all of us. We are a better family because of, or in spite of, Covid. And I love you, and can't wait until you come home, so I can tell you that to your faces once again.

And now... on to the first day of school!

Look at you both!  So excited! So much fun!

And listen to what you both had to say about yourselves, your expecatations for the year, and your messages to your future selves. 

You are both so cook and so ready for this! 

And look at how much you've grown!

We love with all of our hearts!

First Day of School!

I cannot believe that another sweet summer is over and another school year is here. Of course, you two grow day-in day-out and hit milestones continuously, but the first day of school- the official start of being one year and one grade older - is legit. It's bittersweet and amazing. As we send you two incredible young people off to White Rock Montessori for another year of growth and learning and friends and PB&Js and field trips and skinned knees and hard work, your mother and I just marvel in amazement at the incredible people you are and how much you continue to evolve and change and mature.

After a summer of reading BONE together, it seemed only fitting for the two of you to be greeted by the Bone cousins in your lunchboxes!

Aside from naming as your favorite, a movie which hasn't come out yet (Wreck-it Ralph Breaks the Internet...great marketing Disney), Aidan you have been pretty future-centric.

You're excited about 2nd grade, and hope you get to do the Metal Insets. (spoiler alert- you have already proudly brought home some metal inset works!) You tell us that when you're in 3rd grade, for graduation, you get a ROCK and a BOOK. You tell us that a lot; that means you must be really looking forward to that rock!

You are sweet, and sensitive, and getting so much better about sharing and regulating your emotions with us and those around you.

You worked really hard over the summer on your writing, reading, and object-addition skills, and we are so proud.

Your teacher, Miss Gwyn, was super excited to have you back this year. She already shared a funny moment with mommy. She often refers to her students as "Brother Bear" or "Sister Bear," and she was taken aback and touched when out of the blue on the playground you told her "Come on, Mama Bear!"

Julia, my big kindergartner, you are a high-achiever, a funny person, creative, driven and sharp!

You worked really hard over the summer on your cursive and reading (chapter books!). 

You are a sweetheart, and you have great kindness and compassion in you.

On day 2 of school you fell and scraped your knee pretty badly. On day 3 you banged the same knee again and got pretty bloodied. Miss Mary took great care of you and remarked to Mommy how TOUGH you are!

She also told Mommy at the end of your first week how grateful she is that you're in her class. She says that you are a natural leader and willingly and excitedly work with the younger kids and show them the ropes, leading them through their new Montessori environments. 

The two of you together are a super team. You wrestle, you work together, you get into each other's imaginations and games, you fight, you make up, you giggle. You are a fantastic bro-and-sis duo, and as you continue to grow through 2nd grade and Kindergarten and grow your social networks beyond each other, never forget that you're a team of truly awesome kids- and that your bro-sis bond can never be broken.