School's Out For Summer

The day after Luke and I came home from the hospital, the girls had their end of year program.  I believe the date was May 24th.  Claire and Sophie were so excited to be in the program, they practiced their songs and their lines religiously.  And when the big day came, they were ready!

Unfortunately, Luke and I couldn't quite make it out yet, so we missed the program.  But Daddy dutifully took pictures and video, and as I expected the girls were as cute as could be.  The program was at the Clearfield Library, and Claire was sure to tell me all about the stage that was there.  Once they got there, they took their places and looked into the crowd for their Daddy.

They found him. ;)

The girls have enjoyed having their cousins, Braxton and Tavin, in school with them.  It's fun to be close to family again, where the kids can have real friendships with their cousins.

Then it was time to get on stage.  This was Claire's favorite part.  Ever since she did "Beauty and the Beast", she just loves being on stage!

And the girls sang their hearts out!  They love all the songs they've learned, and I love what each song teaches them.  Most of all, I love how cute they look singing them with gusto! 

Claire and Sophie did much of the program together, but they also each had a portion that they performed with their classmates that were their age.  Sophie did a song about being a seed.  Unfortunately, we only got video of that.  But she was so cute!  She crouched on the ground and grew up nice and tall.  She shook her hips like leaves in the wind and sang loud and clear.  Sophie loves to perform!  

Claire was part of a song about animals.  She played the part of the crocodile.  Grandma would ask, "Crocodile, Crocodile, what do you hear?"  Claire would reply, "I hear an ostrich, screeching in my ear!"  We practiced her line, and she did it so well.  I was particularly proud of her use of "an" ostrich, instead of "a" ostrich.  I know, I know.  Nit-picky.  But I come by it honestly...and genetically.  :)

This is a new face of Claire's.  She makes it whenever she knows she's cute, she knows people are watching, and she doesn't know what to do.  I love it!

One of the reasons why we made the move home from California was to get the girls into their Grandma's preschool.  It was especially important to Danny, who personally benefited a great deal from his Montessori education.  We know that we are beyond blessed to have access to this amazing education for our children, at the hands of their loving Grandma.  We know we could never do it anywhere else, and we are all so grateful. 

Claire has excelled in so many ways during her 5 months at school.  She knows all her sounds and her numbers.  She can count as high as she wants, and can even count to 100 by tens.  She has told me all about her body and its different functions, and that animals live in habitats.  But mostly, she tells me who was at school that day, what they were wearing, and how cute so-and-so's shoes were.  

We learned a lot about Claire's interests and aptitudes.  She loves art.  She always looked forward to her time in the Art Room with Mrs. Winfrey.  She colors well beyond her age group, and she colors true to life.  She also has penmanship that is beyond her age group, and she loves writing her name on everything.  She is excited about reading, and her goal for the summer was to be able to read a book by herself.  We're working on that!  More than anything else, I learned how confident Claire is.  She has learned how to be a good friend, and she is confident and caring in all her interactions with other children, whether she knows them or not.  I think she is well-prepared for kindergarten next year.  I'm not, but she is. :)

And then there's our Sophie Anne-kins.  This girl loved school!  She also knows all her sounds, and can count confidently to 20.  She can read from her word charts, and enjoys doing so.  She was really good at telling me what kids weren't nice that day, or who had a problem. :)  She is my little other-mother.  But she also knew if anyone was missing that day, and then would excitedly tell me the day they came back.  

We found out a lot of surprising things about Sophie during her months at school.  Apparently, our Sophie who won't stop moving or talking at home is the best worker in the bunch.  She finds some work to do and keeps on doing it.  Then she'll put it away, pick out a new activity, and quietly work away at that.  It doesn't matter if the other kids are playing around, Sophie likes to work.  I can hardly believe it!  Where I always assumed Sophie would be our social butterfly that was a distraction in class, she apparently prefers to work on her own.  She has plenty of friends, and she loves those friends fiercely.  But when it comes to working, she prefers her solitude.  Go figure!  She particularly loves puzzles and things that she has to figure out how to put together or build.   

I think I saw the most progress from Sophie in her coloring.  When she started school, she had a very difficult time staying inside the lines.  Which was totally age-appropriate.  Then one evening, after only a few weeks of being at school, Claire made Sophie cry by accusing her of being a "scribbler".  This was really hard for Sophie to take, and we talked to both of them about it.  After that, Sophie seemed to really focus on her coloring.  And by the time school was out, I had a hard time distinguishing Sophie's work from Claire's sometimes.  I'm really proud of Sophie and her determination to become better at something.  

Sophie also had a special place in her heart for each of her teachers, and they for her.  Mrs. Moss, Mrs. Winfrey, and especially Mrs. Raleigh loved Sophie's deep, gravely voice.  They loved her enthusiasm, and loved her concentration.  In fact, Mrs. Raleigh used to tell Grandma not to worry if Sophie went missing, she'd be at her house! :)  Where Claire would easily tell me that her favorite room was the Art Room and her favorite teacher was Mrs. Winfrey, Sophie told me all her teachers were her favorite.  And she meant it.  What a little sweetheart.

Again, we're so grateful for the school!  Sophie is excited to go back in the fall, and I'm sure Claire will back in some capacity.  Johnny is anxiously awaiting his chance to go as well, as he hated dropping off the girls every afternoon and watching them walk away into a wonderland of learning and fun.  He'll get his chance, as I hope all our children will.