Yea!...It's Friday!

I'm happy to report that we made it through our first week with Rex in Kindergarten. It has been a busy, but good week for us. Rex seems to be adjusting well to his much more demanding schedule. This is the first time he has gone to school five days a week. His summer day camp was four days a week, but was only half-day. (His Kindergarten is M-F, from 8:20-3:20) Plus, he has church on Wednesday nights and soccer practice on Thursday nights. Surprisingly, he hasn't seemed too worn out though.

He received a stamp in his folder for good behavior 4 of the 5 school days this week. He did have some behavior problems on Tuesday, and had to spend some time in time-out during centers. This also resulted in a note from the teacher instead of a stamp in his daily folder. Of course, he had additional consequences at home. I'm hopeful that he got the message loud and clear that we expect good behavior at school!

It is clear that Rex is having fun at school. He really likes center time. The first day he spent center time in the home center, but since then, he has played with the transportation toys, playdough, and enjoyed the listening center for the past two days. Yesterday, his class hunted around the school for the gingerbread man. They read the gingerbread man story, and made the hats that Rex is wearing in the picture. Overall, I have to say that this first week of school has been a great success!


Mara is doing fine too. I feel bad that I haven't written much about her on this blog yet, but she's not quite as busy as Rex has been lately. She seems to be coping well without her big brother around all the time though. I took her to Grandma and Grandpa's house to play on Wednesday, and she did ask, "Where's Rex?"...he's usually there playing with her. I think she's liking the mommy-time, but probably misses her playmate.


While the week went well, I'm thrilled that it's the weekend (and a long one at that)...Time to recharge the batteries before it all begins again!

Rex's 1st Day of School

Well, today was the day that Rex officially became a Kindergartener! It was a very exciting morning. I woke him up early, and he ate a good breakfast (cheese omelet, bananas, and milk) before getting ready for school. Then, backpack in hand, he headed out the door for the short walk to the school.

Mr. Serious Rex ... I think he is still half asleep in this picture.

C. T. Eddins Elementary

It is wonderful to be so close to the school! I love that we only have to cross the street, and walk up this sidewalk to the school's front door.

Rex and Daddy pause for a picture before heading up the remaining walkway to the doors of the school.

Almost there...

The hallway was very crowded with staff, parents, and children heading to class. Rex was not intimidated in the least by all the activity. He hustled through the crowd toward his classroom like an old pro.

Rex rounds the corner into his classroom.

Rex heads over to the cubbies to put up his backpack before finding his seat.

Camille and Rex play with the bears at their seats.







Rex's table with friends Camille, Logan, and Madison.

Ready for a fun first day.

I just had to give my sweet boy some sugar before leaving him for the day.

Daddy shares some last minute words of wisdom with Rex before we go.

The classroom is already full of activity and the day has just begun.

Bye Rex! Have a fantastic first day!

Post School Day Report:

Mara and I headed over to the school to pick Rex up this afternoon. It was very hot, and we had to wait for quite a while. Finally, his class came out of the building, and I snapped these pictures. When Rex saw me, his first words were, "I just had kinda a not good day." Of course, my heart just sank. The whole class filed out of the Kindergarten doors and proceeded up the sidewalk to their designated areas. It was pretty chaotic to retrieve him from his teacher because the front of the school was a mass of parents, teachers, and clueless children, and I was trying to navigate the swarm pushing Mara in the stroller. We survived it though, and I'm sure that tomorrow will be easier.

I had a chance to visit with Rex about his day in detail on the walk home. Apparently, his teacher got onto him in the cafeteria because he got out of his seat several times(last night we discusses that he was not allowed to get out of his chair at the lunch table, so he already knew that was a rule). It turns out that he got up because he had a problem. He could not find the juice boxes that I packed in his lunchbox because they were in a different compartment from the other lunch items(I showed him where they were this morning, but I think he was too tired at the time, and it didn't register)...He thought that I'd forgotten to pack his drink. This led to him getting chocolate milk from the lunch line. (Now he's going to want me to "forget" his drink everyday because he loves chocolate milk) I feel bad that I contributed to his confusion that led to him getting into trouble, but I think he'll remember the rule about staying in your seat in the cafeteria from now on.

I really think that he had a good first day. He told me that his favorite thing was playing in the home center during center time, and that he had two new girlfriends named Camille and Madison (the girls that sit at his table). He got a blue star stamped in his take-home folder that indicates a "good day". I am very proud of my big boy!

Meet the Teacher Night

Rex had the opportunity to meet his new Kindergarten teacher and check out his classroom last night at the Meet the Teacher Ice Cream Social. It was very exciting to check out the school again (we toured it for the first time in the spring during the Kindergarten Round-Up). We also had the chance to meet his teacher, Mrs. McClellan, and also meet some of his classmates. I know he is going to have such a fun school year!

Daddy and Rex enjoy ice cream in the school cafeteria.

Yum! Yum!

Rex and Mrs. Raleeh (the principal)
I taught with her at Glen Oaks Elementary before she went into administration. It's nice to have familiar faces at this new school.

Heading down the hallway to the Kindergarten area.

Rex's Kindergarten Classroom
Things were a little chaotic when we first entered the room. It was full of parents and children all sorting out new school supplies into the designated areas. That is Rex's teacher, Mrs. McClellan is in the middle of it all.

Rex and Mrs. McClellan

Rex's seat

Rex checks out some of the cool things in his new classroom with two of the girls in his class.

I was very impressed with Rex's new classroom. It seemed structured, but fun too. I can just imagine all the cool things they will be doing there, and all the many new things that Rex is going to learn. It is hard to believe that he is old enough to go to Kindergarten! It seems like yesterday that we were bringing him home from the hospital. It is a little sad that he is growing up so fast, but I'm really looking forward to this Kindergarten year. I am excited for all of the new experiences that he is going to have. It is sure to be a great adventure!

Howdy!

Welcome to the Dooley Family Blog! For some time now, I've been wanting to start a blog to keep our friends and family updated about our activities. I just decided that today is the day! Rex is about to start Kindergarten, and Mara is such an active toddler. It seems like they are doing new things everyday that I want to tell others about, but until now, I didn't have an easy way to share our family news. I will try to contribute to this site as often as possible. I hope you enjoy it, and visit as often as you can.