Ambling Rileys: School's Out!

Wow! I can't believe the school year is over and summer is finally here! It's been a fun and amazing year, but also one of the most difficult to date. Having two kids in daycare and working full time is no joke! I felt like we were constantly busy. While I know that being at home with two kids full time this summer does not equal relaxation, it will be a different (and welcome) kind of busy! Jonathan and I almost danced for joy this evening when we realized we didn't have to make lunches!

Having the last day of school on a Monday seemed like a bummer, but it did give me some time to prepare for last day pictures. I didn't want to miss the opportunity to mark the occasion with a photo! For working with a busy four- and one-year-old, I think the pictures came out pretty great!

Andrew has had a great school year! He loved his teacher (told her he wanted to marry her!) and had a lot of great friends at school. This was the first year he really seemed to get into his friends. This was also the first year I really felt like I could compare him to my students. He's still quite a bit younger, but as the gap shrinks, I'm noticing more and more similarities. As I said in his four year post, he's really developing a fun personality! We've already talked about what happens after next year, and at the end of school he asked me if he was going to kindergarten now (sob!). I said no, and I'm so glad that he has another year left at Eagle Wings. He's growing up right before my eyes, but sometimes I catch glimpses of him and realize that he still is so young! I'm not quite ready for my baby to go to "real" school yet.

He wanted a toy that we had taken away for the picture... shocker!

Guess where the toy is?!

Oh, there it is!

We let him have the toy, and got the best (most natural) smiles out of him!

My sweet, wonderful boy!

At the beginning of school this year - he definitely has grown up this year!

Ben also had a great year at "school", but since Andrew stayed at home his first year, it was almost like our first year in daycare, too. There was a big learning curve for us! We dealt with TONS of sickness, Benny drinking a ton and then not enough, and not napping well at school. It's been a challenge, but he had great, caring teachers, and I know that next year will be easier. Looking at Benny from the beginning of school, he's almost unrecognizable! The changes he's gone through are amazing! When we took his first day pictures, it was the first time he sat in the Bumbo chair. Today he is a walking, babbling, playing, fun little guy!