End-of-school parties

Audrey and Kate's teachers held end-of-school celebrations in their classrooms today. In Kate's class, the kids read poems they had written (unfortunately the footage in Dada's phone camera of Kate's reading was blurry) and received memory books their teachers had prepared. They also took home big packets of art and classwork they had worked on throughout the year. Audrey's class had an ice-cream party, to which Audrey had contributed two types of sprinkles.

Kindergarten concert/open house

It was Open House night for grades K-2 at Audrey and Kate's school this evening. GG, Honey, and GPA came for the event, which was kicked off with a concert by the kindergarten classes. Afterwards, Audrey and Kate showed off their classrooms and recent projects and artwork.

Audrey Oxbow Park class field trip

Audrey's class went with a couple of other second-grade classes on a field trip to Oxbow Park today. (Dada went along as a chaperone, but got there late, as he and three other dads that were driving together got lost on the way.) The kids looked at animal tracks, looked for insect larvae and nymphs under the rocks in the river, and took a hike through some old-growth forest. Audrey was happy her friend Kamea was in her group.

Kate dances with Ms. Kat

As with Audrey, Kate's kindergarten class got some dance lessons from Ms. Kat thanks to the money they raised with their Run for the Arts. Today was their final performance.

Sweet Science

Inspired by the crystal-making kit Audrey got from the Easter Bunny, Audrey and Kate decided to do a project on crystals -- specifically, sugar crystals -- for their school's science fair. With help from their friend Hannah, they learned about crystals and how sugar is made, then did an experiment to see which type of sugar -- raw, table, brown, or powdered -- made the best sugar crystals (i.e., rock candy). With help from Dada, they set up the experiment and monitored it for a week, then wrote up their results and presented it at the science fair this evening. 

Auction art

Mama and Dada went to the Alameda Elementary auction this evening, where they got to see the finished products of Audrey and Kate's class auction projects.

Athletic endeavors

Audrey and Kate show off some newly developed gymnastic skills: doorway-climbing for Kate (taking a cue from big sister), and some playground acrobatics for Audrey after school.

Cheering on the Generals

Audrey and Kate and their friend Hannah went to Grant High School tonight to cheer on the girls basketball team in their game against Lincoln. They enjoyed the concessions (and hopefully the basketball, too). One of the coaches let the girls hold onto a few of the basketballs.

Settling into kindergarten

Kate's transition to kindergarten continues. Today she went to the computer lab with her class for the first time, met her fifth grade buddy, MacKenzie (whom she wanted to make a card for), and went to a special assembly with African drummers to kick off the Run for the Arts. She also got hot lunch for the first time, choosing chicken nuggets and grapes.

Kate loses tooth #2

Kate lost tooth #2 -- another lower incisor -- today. It came out as she arrived at school in the morning, although she lost it temporarily in the hubbub as the kids streamed into school. Thankfully Audrey and Kate's friend Cora helped her get some adult attention to help stop the bleeding and find the tooth out on the pavement. She got to bring the tooth home in a little envelope to leave for the Tooth Fairy tonight.

Kate's first ride on the school bus

Today was Kate's first full day of kindergarten, and her first ride on the school bus. She had a lot of folks to show her the ropes, including Audrey and their friends Hannah and Olivia. We heard later that Audrey and Hannah were really sweet and helpful in showing Kate the way to her classroom and helping her get settled in. Honey met Audrey and Kate at the bus stop in the afternoon and reported that Kate was in good spirits, a good sign after such a long day of new experiences.

Back to school

It was the first day of school for Audrey and Kate today. Audrey had a full day of school, while Kate had an assessment with one of her kindergarten teachers, Mrs. Masunaga, and then had the rest of the day off. The girls and Mama and Dada joined the throng of parents and kids streaming into the school after the first bell rang, catching up with their friends Lilah and Hannah. Mama and Dada helped Audrey get settled into her desk in Mrs. Bailey's second-grade classroom.

School Halloween party

Audrey got warmed up for Halloween with a costume parade and class party at her school this afternoon. Dada came to watch the parade and help out a bit with the party. The kids rotating through five stations of games and crafts, including making skeletons out of Q-Tips, decorating pumpkins, and playing "mummy bowling."

Preschool pumpkin pickers

Kate went to the pumpkin patch at Lee Farms in Tualatin with her preschool class today. There were farm animals to ogle, apple cider and doughnuts to sample, and pumpkins to pick. Mama came along for the outing.