Snip-its of School

I absolutely LOVE Kip's Kindergarten teacher because she shares photos from the classroom nearly every day on an app!! It is in no way expected of her but so very, very appreciated by all the parents. I am so grateful for any teeny tiny peek into Kip's life at school. 

So far, Kip is loving Kindergarten. It is much more academically rigorous than I was expecting but in actuality the teaching approach still appears to be play-based so Kip hasn't felt overwhelmed and looks forward to his "worky." He gets to eat lunch in the cafeteria and has specials this year with Music, Art, and Gym. There are 14 girls in his class and five boys (including him). Only two kids from his class last year are with him again this year, so he has made many new pals. He does get to see some of his old friends in different classes at lunch, recess, and gym. He has told me on several occasions that he wishes he could live at school.

I joined the PTO again this year but I did not volunteer to do room mom because it was an expensive and stressful effort last year. Last week, at Back to School night, Kip's teacher said no one signed-up to be room mom for the class and they needed someone otherwise there would be no class parties. I felt like with a bit of experience behind me, supplies left over, and covid restrictions gone, maybe it would be easier this year? I certainly want Kip's class to have the class parties! So I volunteered again, wish me luck!

Weekending it - Back in Brooklyn

This past weekend we took the kids along for a day back in Brooklyn! 

A friend reached out to me last week to see if we could get together. Dan and I attended her wedding this past summer and she is moving to Arizona in October. We thought it would be fun to meet up with her at Brooklyn Bridge Park on Saturday afternoon and bring the kids.

Meanwhile, another friend reached out to me a few days later, and as we were catching-up via text, I realized this weekend might be the perfect time to see their family as well, since we would already be in Brooklyn. We stopped in Bay Ridge first for brunch with them. It was delightful. The adults caught-up and the kids played.

We grabbed a bunch of bagels in Bay Ridge to bring home and Dan and I snagged our favorite sandwich from the deli we used to go to all the time (it's nothing exciting, just ham and cheese but we missed it). The kids fell asleep in the car while Dan drove through horrendous traffic to downtown Brooklyn. Parking was even worse than we remembered and we ultimately paid $40 for a valet garage. I've decided I've lost my tolerance for crowds and city chaos. 

Ultimately, we made it to the park and found my friend. We jumped around the playground areas while the kids played and we caught-up. 

We all grabbed some ice cream and then said goodbye.

I had hoped we'd be able to swing by one more stop to say hi to an old friend from our Crossroads days and buy some pie from her shop. But, it was nearing dinner/bath/bedtime, the kids had lost steam, and Dan and I didn't want to deal with more parking issues. So, we headed back to New Jersey. It was a long day but it felt good to reconnect with some friends and take the kids some place "new." It's funny to call it new but Ivy has no memories of Brooklyn and Kip's are few and fading. 

But now that we've ripped the anti-social pandemic band-aid off, I think it will be easier to make the trip a more semi-regular thing. There will always be people and places we love in that Borough and truthfully, we really aren't that far away.

Summer Bucket List Recap

Burrrrrrr. It is officially fall. It's the first pants and long sleeves + coat day. Sigh. Guess it's a good a day as any to bid farewell to our favorite season. SO LONG SUMMER, we love you!

Despite how crazy this summer was with everything family related, we did manage to check off most of our bucket list.

We made it to Storybook Land on the 4th of July and had a blast.

We hit up the pool at least a dozen times and discovered three splash pads in the area.

We went to the "soft sand" beach at Asbury Park three times.

Dan and I took the kids on a few bike rides, and towards the end of summer Kip was biking on his own.

For our train adventures we rode in a caboose on Father's Day, went to a train exhibition, and got to get close to a real layout while in Colorado.

We enjoyed Rita's Italian Ice several times, got the ice cream truck, had scoop ice cream, and made homemade shaved ice as well.

Mandy earns the prize for discovering several epic playgrounds and we had friends join us throughout the summer at the pool, parks, and splash pads. 

Our Stratsburg trip got canceled and we never worked up the energy to run around in the city for the day. But, we did loads of fun things that weren't on our list too! Dan and I got to go to a wedding and the US Open. Mandy went on a beach trip with the other family she nannies for. The kids went to a carnival, we celebrated birthdays, we played with the water table, sprinkler, and pool in the driveway, Grandma came to visit, and our trip to Colorado, while bittersweet, was fun for the kids.

It will be hard to look back at summer 2022 knowing it was our last visit from Marmee and the hardships of her passing, but I'm trying to remember all the light and love. It really felt like an actual summer for the first time since the pandemic. It wasn't 2019, but it was pretty dang close and we are grateful for that. 

 

Until we meet again, dear summer, we will be counting down the days until your return.