Firsts!

Seany lost his FIRST tooth yesterday on the way to soccer!  After a trip to Wawa, Sean bit down on his pre-game snack and the tooth was left dangling precariously from his mouth.  Daddy was able to help Sean out when they got to the fields.  Sean carried on with his next-to-last practice and game before... getting to Clare's last game where she got her FIRST trophy!

First Day!

The kids started new schools on Thursday - Clare started a new preschool and Sean started Kindergarten!!  We've been steadily receiving paperwork and notices from the elementary school regarding Sean's first day.  Sean's teacher even sent him a letter that included some "Jitter Glitter" to put under his pillow the night before school so that he could be sure to have a good night's sleep!

The kids had a good breakfast, we made sure we had all of our bags and that Sean had his nametag necklace on.  Then we headed out the door - we stopped to take pictures, of course:

Google made a little movie of our pictures on the porch  :-)

We dropped Clare off at her new preschool and she seemed totally fine - not nervous at all!  It helped that there were only a couple of other students in the class so Clare was sure to get a lot of attention from her teachers.  After we made sure Clare was settled, we drove Sean over to the elementary school.  We were a little early, so we checked out the before-care program and then waited outside the front doors.  

In the parking lot with Mommy:

Waiting to be let into the building:

Sean met up with one of his buddies -  they've known each other since the Toddler A room at daycare!

Once we were let into the building, we walked down to Sean's new classroom.  We met his teacher and Sean found his seat.  He got right to work coloring in his owl (the school mascot is an owl):

With Daddy:

Sean had a great first day of Kindergarten.  His "special" that day was gym class and he loved it!  He also really liked the aftercare program - they got to go to the gym again!  Clare did well at her first day, too.  She met new friends and spent a lot of time at the puzzles center, doing each and every puzzle over and over again!

The kids both had great second days, too.  Sean's was extra-special because he got to ride the bus to school!  Can you see him in this picture?  The bus driver let him sit in the front seat since it was Sean's first time riding the bus to Kindergarten.  Sean thought riding the bus was the coolest thing ever!

We're looking forward to this new and exciting school year with our two big Sooy Kids:

Phillies Phun

We took the Sooy Kids to a Phillies game on Saturday night - Sean's first Phillies game was way back in September 2009 but this was Clare's first visit to Citizens Bank Park!  We picked a beautiful night for a game and good night to get stuck in traffic on this way into Philly - former manager Charlie Manuel was being inducted into the Phillies Hall of Fame - so that pushed gametime back a little bit.

At our seats - I'm not sure why Clare looks sad in this photo...

...so here's a smiling one of Daddy and Sean:

Ahh, that's better:

We caught then end of the induction ceremony and then watched the first 4 or 5 innings from our seats - Clare was always on the lookout for the Philly Phanatic (or "my friend" as she refers to him).

The kids got a little restless and so we took them on a walk around the stadium.  One of the best things about the Phillies' stadium is that you can see the field from anywhere on the concourse - even in the teeniest little spots:

Right about when the Phanatic came out on the hot dog cannon car with Jim Thome shooting hot dogs into the crowd, the kids were ready for a snack themselves -

Cotton candy!

 
With a belly full of cotton candy, we headed over to the Guest Services office and got Clare her own "My First Phillies Game" certificate:

More shots from roaming around the stadium before heading back to our seats.  We left at the bottom of the Tenth inning but the Phillies went on to lose :-(

That's okay - the kids had a great time and Sean paid a lot of attention to the rules and picked up on a lot of the rhythm of the game!

Class of 2014

Seanybear graduated from Pre-Kindergarten last Thursday! The warm, rainy weather didn't deter Sean's grandparents, great-grandparents, and Auntie Mary from coming out to watch him end his pre-school career.  And despite feeling all-around rotten (she had been sent home with a fever that day), Clare watched too. Wisely, the school rented a huge tent so we could enjoy the ceremony without getting soaked.

Before the children came out, the school's owner and principal, Mr. John, gave a speech recalling the "exit interviews" that he had with each of the students.  Here's the clip about the conversation he had with Sean:

He asked Sean what he wants to be when he grows up and Sean said he wants to be a baseball player, specifically a pitcher but he likes to hit, too.  Sean said that Mommy loves flowers and that her favorites are daffodils and clover (Yes, this is why we let clover take over our lawn).  Sean also said that he thinks Mr. John is about 100 years old (yikes!).

After the speech, Sean's class filed out of the building:

After reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, Sean's class sang several songs...

...and then it was time to give out the diplomas!  Here's Sean receiving his diploma and shaking hands with Mr. John:

After returning to his seat, Sean immediately used his diploma as a spy glass, of course :-)

After the ceremony, it was time for the school picnic.  There was a lot of yummy food and of course, a cake!

Sean ran around with his buddies for most of the picnic.

Clare perked up a little when we brought her a plate with a hotdog and fruit... and cake, of course :-)

We tried to pin down the graduate for photos, but by this time it was sunny and warm again and he just didn't want to sit still.  At least we got a snap with Mom-Mom Jackie and Pop Pop Pop!

Congratulations, Sean!  Here's to a fun summer with our soon-to-be-Kindergartener!

Kindergarten Registration

We registered Sean for kindergarten this week at our local public elementary school!  We met up with some of Seany's friends from Pre-K before going inside the school.  

We filled out some paperwork, then Sean went off with a teacher for a one-on-one interview.  He passed his screening with flying colors!  While I met with the school nurse to go over Sean's medical history and vaccinations, Sean's future teacher read a couple of books to a small group of children.

Sean decided he likes this new school and he was excited to hear about the "Kindergarten Tea" we get to go to in June.

After registration, we went out on a little lunchdate with one of Sean's best pals and her mommy.  These two have known each other since the infant room:

After lunch, we went to our town's "big playground" where the kids ran around and around playing games of tag, "Star Wars", and "Princess and Bad Witch".

Crazy Couple of Weeks

The blog has been slow these past couple of weeks and that's because life has been moving fast around here. What have we been up to? Well, to start, the kids started a new daycare! Clare's first day was last Tuesday (Feb 25) and here is the outfit she picked out - all by herself! 

She has already charmed the pants off of everyone in the school and she likes her new teacher and has already made two new friends she likes to chat about! Sean had his last day last Friday and his class sent him out in style with a new customized t-shirt and a notebook full of drawings from his friends!

Friday was also Mommy's last day working at Liberty Place in Philadelphia - my office is moving to a new building a couple of blocks away...

and on Saturday, we took Seany for a haircut - doesn't he look sharp? :-)

On Sunday, Seany came into the city to help me unpack my new office. We also walked all around the building, checking out the views and then we went up to see the greenwall in the new cafe:

"It's a wall of plants!!"

Even the dreary weather (right before yet another snowstorm on Sunday night) couldn't put a damper on Sean's excitement on the train!

Kitted out with his new haircut and spiffy Star Wars sneakers, Sean had a great first day at the new school on Monday!  He's fitting in nicely with his class, participating in all the activities and dazzling the teachers with his stories.