No Tears.....4 1/2 Weeks Later

Today was Sam's 1st day with no tears at drop-off. Well, he didn't cry on Day #1 only because I think he was confused. He cried aggressively during Week 1.....the crying began as soon as he saw the school building. This tapered off in Week 2 to just a bit of crying when we walked in and more crying at his classroom. Week 3 he was just down to crying when he walked into his classroom. Last week...Week 4 his crying in his classroom only lasted seconds....basically however long it took me to get out of eye sight. Here we are mid-week of Week 5. Today I walked him in and told him to go check on Roger....his stuffed otter friend who sleeps with him during nap. Roger also now spends the night at school....he used to come back and forth each day. Today Sam went to go check on Roger....no tears....I about fell on the ground! I think his teacher was surprised too! Hopefully this is the start of a new thing for him. I think he is finally used to the transition from Mommy to Teacher. On another side note, he had been crying at drop-off on Sundays at church nursery. This past Sunday he surprised us with no tears. What a big boy!!! :)

Because I didn't cry when Mommy and Daddy dropped me off at Sunday school, I got to play on the cool playground and go down the big slide. :)

Bedtime Pro

My big boy bed is awesome! I fall out of it every once in a while in the middle of the night, but I am getting much better at staying in it. :) Mommy and Daddy have a rail for the bed I will graduate into next, but not for this bed. I'm so close to the ground, it's not much of a fall.....more like a roll. :) Sometimes I sleep on my pillow....sometimes not. As you can see, I have become attached to some of my stuffed animals. They keep me company when it's dark. Mommy and Daddy say they are so proud of me because I don't get out of my bed in the middle of the night or in the middle of my naps. They told me not to, so I'm gonna listen. My teacher says it's good to listen and follow directions. :)

Happy Birthday Jacob!

My cousin Jacob turned eleven on Saturday.
He invited me to come play at Chuck-E-Cheese. We had so much fun!

Friday Night at Chili's

We met Aunt Jes and Lindsay at Chili's on Friday night for dinner. Yummy!

Show-and-Tell

My teacher asked me to bring a picture of my pets for show and tell last week.
We tried and tried, but this was the best shot we got of Georgia and Yankee.

I also brought a picture of my family to share with my friends.
That's Roger (my stuffed otter) in my hands...
he comes to school with me everyday and sleeps with me at nap.

Here I am riding to school.
Most mornings I slurp down a fruit puree or a yogurt pouch.
Yummy!

Happy Birthday Grayson!

I went to my neighbor's 4th birthday party yesterday afternoon.
His party was at the bowling alley. This was my 1st time bowling.

Cool bowling shoes huh!

Daddy was such a big help. He showed me exactly what to do.

Love my Daddy!

Mommy showed me how to use the bowling rack.

Now which one is mine?

1-2-3-Bowl

Strike?

I was the youngest one on my team and I was still ahead of the pack.
Maybe Daddy will give me another lesson or two and I can be even better. :)

Game Time!

We had SO much fun!

Big Boy Bed!

I climbed out of my crib on Saturday afternoon. Mommy said I scared her to death. You see, I was really quiet getting out and getting down the stairs. I did slam the door shut and I don't think Mommy was expecting that. Whoops! :) Anyway, here is my new day bed. I am taking naps and sleeping through the night in it. I am such a big boy. Daddy said he is SO proud of me. Here I am waking up from my nap on Sunday.

I Love the Zoo!

I went to the zoo with Aunt Debbie and Mommy on Saturday.

Look at those tigers!

My favorite....the bonobos.

Walking with Debba to see the pandas.

Hi Le-Le

Good morning Ya-Ya.

Whatcha doing little duckies?

The zoo is SO much fun!

Mr. Gorilla, are you having a good day?

I know, I have days like that too. Tomorrow's another day. :)

School Days

This picture is from last week.
Mommy was just picking me up from school.
We were outside playing.
I love my new school.

Having a Great Week

1st Day of School (for Mommy)

1st Day of school for Mommy.
This is my 2nd week of school.

Mommy and Daddy Go Out

Waiting for Miss Rachel....even the pup pups were excited!

Can you tell how much I like Miss Rachel?!
Her Daddy works with my Daddy.
She is really nice. :)

200th Blog Posting!!!

Cooking breakfast with Daddy.

Sam is 2 years and 5 months old today. He is 38 inches tall and holding steady at 33 pounds. We bought him size 8 shoes today for school. He is really enjoying his new school....everything but drop-off. He cries when we drop him off, but he also cries when we have to leave school. Sam cries for his teacher Stephanie for about 2 miles down the road. He calls her Steppie....so do the other kids in his class. Cute huh! Sam comes home talking about going to chapel, Noah's Ark, and saying the God is Great Prayer. His teacher is impressed that he knows all of his colors. Yesterday he did really good going potty at school. They had a water play day yesterday and ended the day with pizza and a movie. Sam is very attached to his backpack...the one Aunt Jes carried in kindergarten. He doesn't want to hang it up when he arrives at school. Instead, he carries it most of the morning. I don't know if it's his connection to home or his new "security blanket." This is his 1st backpack, he may just feel like a big kid carrying it around. We are looking forward to the coming weeks as Sam settles into his new school. We feel blessed that we found such a great place.

Little Photographer

Look at this great shot I got of the pup pups.
Mommy helped me keep the camera steady.

Say cheese Yankee. :)

Still practicing.

Hold still Georgia.

Welcome Home

This is how I welcome Daddy home from work.

I can hear the garage door come up and I jet to the door.

Sometimes I'm feeling a little silly. :)

Hehehe! :)

What's That Noise?

Mommy Note: We ran in the house yesterday afternoon and I had to use the facilities. You know, teachers hold it all day. :) Anyway, I hear a noise that sounds like Sam is sliding his chair across the floor. So I'm thinking I better hurry up and see what he up to. In a matter of like 2 minutes, Sam climbed for his paints (stored in the blue crate on our island), opened them all, and emptied them all on the table. He then proceeded to slap the table he squirted them on. It kinda looks contained in the pictures, but believe me, it splattered everywhere....floor, walls, almost to the ceiling! Yikes! Needless to say, we don't have paint in the house anymore. So much for taking a quick restroom break. :)

1st Day of School

Stopping to smell the "roses" before heading into school.
Do I look big or what?!

I am ready to go! :)
I love my new (new to me) backpack.

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Mommy Note: Sam started a new school today. They have a wonderful 2 year old program. The class sizes are very small and the teachers are fabulous! He carried Aunt Jessica's old backpack....he thought he was big stuff. :) Last week, we went for a visit and met his teacher and friends. We have also been giving lots of prep talks over the past week or so. Last night we showed him what we packed in his bag and such. This morning he woke up in a very good mood. He seemed excited on the way to school. Upon arrival, he went to a group room to wait on his teacher to arrive. In this room was a teacher that I seriously think Sam thought was Granny Fouts. He walked right up to her and hugged her....not typical of him with new people. He seemed a little confused/timid during all of this, so I exited with no big good bye scene. We said ours good byes in the car....I learned my lesson at last year's drop off. I thought that maybe he would cry after I left but he didn't. His teacher arrived about 15 minutes after I dropped him off and she said he had a great day. He was a bit clingy to her at first, but then he opened up to playing with his new friends. Sam ate well and slept well today....what a big boy! He did not do the potty thing today...I think tomorrow will be different. He knows now that his teacher gives M&Ms for potty trips just like we do at home. We'll see...no pressure. Sam was happy to see me when I arrived to pick him up. He did well on the ride home, but he wanted my full attention. No more lengthy phone calls for me on the ride home from school. That's okay, I have a little man in the back who is ready to tell me all about his day. :) This time last year, the evening were crazy at our house. Tonight was very pleasant. We had a nice dinner and then took a short walk. Sam is enjoying a bubble bath right now. We are going to slowly move his bedtime to an earlier time slot...closer to 7pm. That way he will get 12 straight hours of nighttime sleep.
Good Bye Amazing Summer....Hello Incredible School Year. :)