The Lee Family: The First Day of 5th Grade and 1st Grade!

Somehow the summer slipped away and it seems the first day of school arrived faster than ever! On Thursday last week we attended Olivia's "Meet the Teacher" from 4:30pm until just after 5pm, when we then headed over to Glen Hope to meet Sofia's teacher at the Aspire Academy. Olivia will have Ms. Feaster as her teacher this year, which I think will be a great fit. She's a second year teacher who taught her first year last year and seems to be a bright, happy and thoughtful teacher who has a presence for being so young. I think she may be the "next" Mrs. Schultz and I can envision Olivia being very happy this year. We made our way to Olivia's 1st grade class, met Ms. Feaster, and found her seat for her first day of school. We spent our time figuring out what to do with all of her school supplies, labeled all of her folders and signed all of the forms for the start of the year. Olivia was a little shy around Ms. Feaster and wouldn't approach her without me and then would hardly speak. She's will warm up to her quickly, I think. It was a little overwhelming and crazy, but we figured it all out. It was great to see so many familiar faces and also a bit bittersweet to know I wouldn't be seeing any of the 5th grade kids or their parents in the coming year. As soon as we arrived at CES, Sofia headed up to the 4th and 5th grade floor to "see her friends" and "say hi to her teachers." It was pretty cool that she was so excited to be there and see everyone. She headed off and later found us just before we were ready to head over to her school.

We drove to Glen Hope and found a parking spot and went inside to figure out who Sofia's teacher would be and where her classroom is located in the building. I think CK and I were more nervous than Sofia! We headed down the Aspire Academy hallway and found that Sofia will be in Ms. Hayes class this year! There are two 5th grade Aspire classes and they are actually separated by a partition that is mostly open, so they will be working together and moving fluidly between the two classrooms. Ms. Hayes is younger than I expected, but smart and vibrant and I think Sofia will really love her over the coming year. We introduced ourselves and she showed us around the class for a few minutes and welcome Sofia. We found Sofia's seat at her desk and went through her school supplies. It was significantly easier and faster than Olivia's school supplies. The highlight for both girls was watching the two leopard spotted geckos that are the class pets. The classroom has a lot of cool and fun things in it and it looks like a great place to learn. We are so excited for Sofia and what the coming year will bring!

After Meet the Teacher, we headed our to Tokyo Samurai for hibachi. Each time we go to Tokyo Samurai for sushi, Sofia begs to go to hibachi so we figured it would be a fun treat. It's just so much food, but it is fun to do from time to time and the girls love it. It was such a fun end to a great day! We were so excited for the year ahead for both girls!

On Friday, I took Sofia to get her hair cut. CK took Olivia for a trim on Tuesday to get ready for school and now it was Sofia's turn. Earlier in the week I suggested Sofia cut her hair and donate it to Locks of Love, like one of her friends had recently done. She loves her long hair and it looks great on her, but it is very difficult to comb and manage. So, at first she said "No way!" but later in the day she said "OK, I could cut my hair short." However, I wasn't really ready to see all of her beautiful hair cut off. Instead, I took Sofia to Great Clips since I had a coupon for $8.00 hair cuts. I showed the lady how much to cut Sofia's hair but once it was done, it seemed really short! She ended up loving it! Plus, it really looks great on her!

Finally, the first day arrived! CK and I both woke up around 5am unable to sleep. It helped me get ready for the day and we woke the girls up at 6:15am. They had their "first day of school" clothes all set out with their new gold shoes and they both got dressed. Olivia was pretty reluctant to get out of bed, while Sofia got up and downstairs quickly. I made them scrambled eggs and toast so they would have energy for their big days! At 6am we headed outside for photos of the girls in their cute clothes with their "1st Day of..." signs. The week before I asked the girls what their favorite things are and what they want to be when they grow up and added them to their signs. After more pictures than the girls cared for, we headed out around 6:15am to deliver the girls to their schools. CK took Olivia to CES and I drove Sofia to the Academy. We parked and headed in for her first day! She was so excited and had her space book and her pinhole camera that she and CK made over the weekend. It was weird to be in a school and not really know any of the parents or kids. Once the doors to the classroom halls opened up we headed to Ms. Hayes' classroom! We talked with Ms. Hayes and then Sofia got settled in by putting her backpack on it's hook and getting settled into her seat. Her friend Abby sits in the desk next to her and Sofia is super excited to be with her! I gave Sofia one last hug before I headed out!

CK said Olivia was shy with Ms. Feaster and even shy around her friends who came to talk to her. She is always a little shy and uncertain of new situations with lots of people, but we're sure she will get comfortable quickly. CK made sure she was settled in before giving her a hug goodbye and wishing her a great day!

CK and I went together to pick up Olivia and then wait for Sofia to arrive on the bus from Glen Hope. Olivia was so happy to see us and gave us a big huge. We asked about her first day and she said it was "good and bad." When I asked why she said it was "good" because she likes Ms. Feaster and had fun, but it was "bad" because she "missed her mommy." I'm bummed she misses me throughout the day, but it's also a little sweet. She also said they "watched a video" about the eclipse. We told her it was the NASA Live feed which means it was happening outside while they watched but I'm not sure she really understood all that.

Sofia's bus arrived around 3:30pm and I introduced myself to the bus driver before we headed over to the car. We asked Sofia about her first day and she said "Awesome!!!" She was so excited and said it was so much fun and she loved it! She was so enthusiastic and excited! It was great to see her so happy and eager to be at the Academy. We figured she would get off the bus and either love it or hate it, so we were happy she loved it! Both girls had a great first day and we hope it just keeps getting better and better over the days ahead!

Sofia's new haircut!