Talking, Tired

Clara just finished her second full week of pre-kindergarten, which, happily, has been a great experience for her. She really enjoys her teachers and the other kids in her class. Today when I asked her what she did at school, she said, "I shared." Awesome. Love Graham Hill Elementary.

We are all very tired from Clara's school. Clara is tired because she goes to school five mornings a week. I'm tired because I walk Clara and Annabel to and from school twice a day. Uphill both ways--literally. Graham Hill Elementary is on the south slope of (you guessed it!) Graham Hill. We live on the plateau to the north. Like I said, uphill both ways. Though on a sunny day like today, we had views of Mt. Baker, Mt. Rainier, the Olympics, the Cascades, downtown Seattle, Renton, the Rainier Valley and Beacon Hill. We can see for miles and miles. It's a beautiful and breathtaking (in more ways than one) walk.

Annabel has much to say about our changing routine. Mostly it sounds like "roar, roar, roar", but I know soon it will come out in actual words like "Volvo" or "cat". She is growing up so fast. Just today I called to schedule her 1-year well-baby visit. My baby won't be a baby for long, though I don't think I'll ever stop thinking of the girls as my babies. Even now when I look at Clara in profile, I still see her ultrasound picture.

All this talk of growing up and higher education just reminded me of Annabel's latest news: She got into college! She'll be in the older infant class at the Parent Child Center starting next Thursday. I'm excited to be doing the class with her and seeing our old teachers once again. It really is a fun place to be. And Annabel will know first-hand why Clara comes home so worn out from school.

Clara's First Day of School

Our "baby" went off to pre-kindergarten today at her new school. She had a great time playing with crayons, stamps, and "the swingy thing" on the playground. Her "mentor" (kindergartener Olivia) was "good at helping," and Clara played at recess with "the girl with the sparkly shoes." Overall, it was a great first day.

Swimming, Crawling, Weaning, and Visiting

After downloading 280 (count 'em!) photos to my computer, I realized I failed to mention a number of milestones that we passed this summer.

Annabel learned to crawl! Her crawling is best described as "inchworm-style", but nevertheless, she gets around. As she has mastered her crawling (and thus, eating!), she's given up breastfeeding. She's just more interested in "real food" than what I have to offer. I'd planned to nurse for at least a year (as recommended by the American Academy of Pedicatrics), but she just wasn't having any of it. So at nine months, Annabel said adios to nursing, hola to moving and grooving. (The picture of us on the bed was taken in July at our hotel in Portland during our human-and train-powered vacation. She weaned shortly thereafter.)

Speaking of moving and grooving, Clara has become our own Martha Graham, dancing her little rump off to every kiddie rock cd/concert we can pack into a summer. Her pogo is particularly heartfelt. And Annabel enjoys watching all the big kids' moves. She is concocting a routine of complicated dance steps in her head, I can tell. The photos above were taken at Seward Park at the Not-Its! show. Clara, approaching groupie status, saw the Not-Its! 3 times this summer!

Clara learned to swim, really swim! Thanks to swim lessons with Katy Close at Tam O'Shanter, Clara can doggie paddle, swim with her face in the water, jump in unassisted (or what she likes to call "diving")and dive to the bottom of the pool to retrieve objects (with some help). By the end of almost 3 weeks of swim lessons, Clara's hair was a wreck, and with school fast approaching, she got her first back-to-school haircut at Columbia City Cuts. She was thrilled to get to sit in the "car chair" for her coiffing. (It was a Volvo sedan, so it felt quite safe.)

Also, Grandma and Grandpa Armitage made their annual trek to the Northwest. We loved having them visit us in our natural habitat. The girls loved waking up and having someone to play with each morning. If Clara had her way, we'd all live in a giant compound (complete with car chair, pool, and haircuts) in which to while away the summer.

Back to School (So Long Vacation!)

After biking through Portland, hiking in Leavenworth, and swimming in Bellevue, our summer has come to a close. Greg's students started this week. And Wednesday, while in the middle of making jam (my own summer's end ritual), I received a call from Seattle Public Schools notifying us that a spot at Graham Hill Montessori opened up, and did we want to take it? Yes! YES! So Thursday night we walked up the hill to Clara's new school for the open house where we met her teacher, Ms. Maureen, and the other kids and parents from her class. Clara's first day of school will be this Friday.

Annabel, while not quite ready for school herself, did have her nine month well-baby visit with Dr. Danielson. She got good marks: 30 inches long, 21 lbs, and 40 cm head circumference. In other words, bigger than your average 1 y.o. A+, Annabel!