Report Card

Brantley got his report card. Now, I'm not quite sure why we got the progress report. I guess the one today is the official one. Overall, it's a good report card but he does need improvement in a couple areas. This is the most detailed report card I've ever seen. It has the alphabet and indicates which letters he recognizes and knows the sound of. It indicates what sight, color and number words he knows. Some of it isn't accurate, but I know why. Brantley is terrible about not answering questions or answering them incorrectly on purpose. For example, there are 9 letters that are not marked as him being able to name them. I know he knows all of his letter. I just have to get him to show his teacher that. The other thing that bothered me was that it wasn't checked that he knew his age. Everyone knows he knows his age. But most likely, he told her he was six. What am I going to do with him!

Fall Break

Brantley had an awesome weekend with his cousins. He got to go camping for the first time. I'm not really sure of everything he got to do, but I do know he got to pretend to be a firefighter and learn how to make rope. I have lots of pictures thanks to Aunt Tracy. He was so sad to leave them.

Soccer Update

Another great practice, although only half the team showed and it was freezing! Brantley's coach again said to me that Brantley is the best player. He asked "And this is the first time he's played? Does he have an older brother or something?" Nope. Don't know where he learned it. The coach said at this level they just want to kids to get the dribbling down and he said Brantley is the best one at it. I hope he keeps enjoying it, although I'd like him to keep playing baseball too. For, now I think he can do one in the fall and the other in the spring. In a few years though, he'll have to play both seasons in order to keep up so he'll probably have to choose what he likes better. I'm just glad he's enjoying himself and getting some exercise.

The Tooth Fairy

We've never really discussed how Brantley will lose his teeth or who the tooth fairy is. I'm assuming one of his new friends at school must have lost a tooth and been talking about the tooth fairy. The other morning Brantley said to me "Mommy, you know how we lose our teeth." Uh huh... "And, the tooth fairy comes to get them. The tooth fairy comes to get them so that babies can have teeth." I'm not sure where he came up with that, but it was such a cute thought.

Soccer Update

Saturday's game was great. Soccer is so much more fun to watch than baseball. The boys played great. At this level they split the field into two fields and then they play 3 on three. It's good that they do this because at practice the kids just get all jumbled up around the ball which is why they get hurt. The kids really showed improvement about knowing the ball needs to go to the goal and that only one goal is theirs. They don't keep track of who wins at this level, but we only scored one goal and the other team scored one for us, so technically they scored four I think. Brantley was close to a goal but he needs to work on the aggressiveness. He's doing great though. Just look at his form.....

Check out the rest of the pics here.

Soccer

Just when I thought that soccer wasn't going well...Brantley missed the last practice and the last game because he was sick. Today, we made it to practice and again Brantley got hurt. Probably 10 or 15 minutes into practice Brantley was out there crying. I didn't see what happened but I went out to get him and carried him off to the side. He just wanted to go home. Finally I coerced(threatened with everything I could think of) him to get back out and practice. The rest of practice went smoothly with only 1 other kid crying. After practice, the coach (assistant really) came up to me and said "He's really good. He has the best control and coordination of any of them." I told him that I didn't know where he learned it, he just came home from pre-school one day knowing how to dribble. He said "Some kids are just naturals." Now, uncle Matt isn't the only one who thinks he's a natural. After we left I really tried to play it up to Brantley and tell him not to be afraid to get the ball. Be aggressive. Get the ball. SCORE!!!

Progress Reports

I'm not really sure how you grade kindergarteners or even what standards should be imposed. But, I think this is a pretty good report. Brantley brings home a behavior calendar each day and each day it has been stamped "Terrific Job" until today. Today, he got in trouble. For......are you ready.....talking at rest time. Imagine that. Growing up my report cards would say "Talks to much." Guess we know where he got that from. I feel like he has finally gotten more comfortable with kindergarten. He's been acting more like himself and has made some friends. He's even invited to a birthday party in a couple of weeks. He was so excited the day he got the invitation. He still doesn't like the after-care program so I've dropped it. It actually has worked out pretty well as far as me getting home to meet the bus and it saves me even more money. It's actually really nice to be able to watch him get on the bus and be waiting for him when he gets home.

Family Trip

I'm taking suggestions for a location of a family trip. I want to plan something but I just can't decide on a destination. I really want to go somewhere that I haven't been before, possibly out of the country. I also want it to be somewhere that has some sites that Brantley would be interested in. Any ideas?

Thumbsucking

Brantley broke himself of sucking his thumb at least a year and a half ago. However, he still sucks him thumb in his sleep with out knowing about it. I've been trying to think of ways to get him to stop because he already has a bad cross bite because of the thumbsucking. We have to get him to stop before his permanent teeth come in so that, hopefully, his permanent teeth will come in properly. I tried the stuff that you paint on nails to stop biting. He woke up with a horrible taste in his mouth. A girl in my bunco group gave me the idea to put band aids on his thumbs. I thought this was a good idea until the next morning when we could not find one of them. I was so afraid that he had swallowed it. Wouldn't that be an interesting call to the pediatrician? We ended up finding it, but then I was afraid that he might choke on it if he were to actually suck on the band aid. So, I'm back to the stuff that you paint on the nails. He didn't wake up this morning with a bad taste in his mouth so that means he must not have sucked his thumb last night. Now, I just have to figure out how long I should keep putting that stuff on.

Soccer

This fall Brantley is playing soccer. He seems to like it. However, in 2 seasons of t-ball, I don't remember Brantley ever getting hurt and crying during practice. We've had 2 practices and each practice, something has happened. During the first practice, Brantley got kicked above his shin guard. He cried and got over it. Second practice, Brantley was going for the ball and got tripped up. He landed on the ball which apparently hurt. He cried and got over it. Is this going to happen every practice. I'm not too sure about this soccer thing. Baseball is looking better and better.

After-care

Well, today was Brantley's first time in after school care. He didn't like it. My idea was that he would get to play for 45 minutes or so instead of sitting on a bus. The problem is that they spend the first 10 or 15 minutes checking everyone in and getting organized. Then they give the kids a snack. When I got there, Brantley was just sitting there. He looked so sad, and relieved that I was there. I thought he was going to cry, and I was just about to myself. They had all kinds of cool centers and things. Brantley saw a box of pirate toys and another box of dinosaurs as we left. But, to get to play he'll have to be there longer than I wanted him to be there. He really wants to ride the bus home, but I just don't know. The bus really isn't as bad as I thought it would be. The driver seems really nice and Brantley seems to like it. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what works for us.

The School Bus

Today, I put my baby on the school bus. Working full-time, there are some compromises that have to be made. Riding the bus in the mornings is one of them. I think it's important for kids to ride the bus. If everyone drove their child to school, traffic would be a nightmare and it would probably take 3 times as long to get all the children in the school. (Yes, I am trying to convince myself that riding the bus is the best situation.) That said, it was still hard for me to put Brantley on the bus. But, I was comfortable when I talked to the bus driver and a little girl sitting up front said she would make sure he went where he was supposed to go. I didn't get a picture of him getting on the bus because he was too quick, but I did get pictures of him waiting for the bus.

First day of kindergarten

Chicago

Brantley loves going to Chicago. We had a fun-filled long weekend in Chicago. Friday, we went to a children's museum which Brantley really enjoyed. I think Uncle Matt enjoyed it almost as much as Brant. We were going to go see a car show Friday night, but, as it does in Chicago, it rained. We did get to visit what must be the world's smallest candy and popcorn shop. Very cool. Saturday we went to the air and water show. We didn't see the water part - just the planes. Very cool and loud! And, Sunday we went to a Kane County Cougars game. It was just as hot there as it is here. Brantley had his customary soft pretzel as he does at all baseball games. Afterward, Rosemarie's parents had invited us for dinner. Brantley doesn't know what he missed by eating a hot dog instead of the meal Rosemarie's mom made. It was really good. I have to try to make those sweet potato fries. I bet Brantley would like them to if I could get him to try them. As always, I took lots of pictures which you can see by clicking here.

Right of Passage

I think it is correct to say that today was a right of passage. Today, he left behind his old friends to start a new adventure in Kindergarten next week. Meeting new friends will be new and exciting. A new school, a new teacher. Brantley will miss all of his friends and his favorite teacher - Ms. Jennifer. Here are some pictures from his last hurrah at pre-school.

Kindergarten Screening

Screening went very well. The teacher came out and called Brantley's name. He got up and went right to her and said hello. No issues. That was a relief. So, Brantley did his part. I had to fill out this questionnaire. There were questions on there about what his interests are, what my concerns about him are, etc. It also asked what I expected from the kindergarten program. I left it blank. I haven't a clue what I expect. He already knows more that I would expect him to know at this point, so what do I put down? It also asked what I would do to help them and help my child learn. I left that blank to. Jeez. I'm willing to do whatever is necessary to help my child. What is it that you want me to answer here. They'll probably think I'm an idiot but to me you can't answer questions like that on two lines. I'm probably giving them the misconception that I'm easy going, won't give them a hard time and don't expect much. Not good, because I will probably be one of the most over bearing mothers they have. :)

The Fair

We went to the county fair for the first time this year. Brantley had a great time riding the rides. I made the mistake of riding the black widow with him and I paid for it. Not only did I think I was going to throw up for quite some time after getting off the ride, I could barely move the next day. I was screaming(and about to start yelling some expletives) the whole time while Brantley was telling me to stop. He actually didn't like that ride either. Brantley also got to get in this huge tractor which he thought was cool. It was even bigger than papa's tractor! You can see some more pictures here. It was a nice fair but nothing compared to the Wisconsin State Fair. We've been a couple of times and we need to take Brantley some time.

Kindergarten Picture

Here is the picture from kindergarten camp.

Artwork

Do you remember Brantley's version of a stick figure? Well, his stick figures have changed. What do you think? I like the way the hands are shaped like Bs.

Kindergarten

Kindergarten hasn't actually started, but we had Kindergarten camp. Brantley had a blast. They got to go to the different areas of the school, like a sampling of what their days will be like. The first day he got to go on the playground and I think he was impressed. He can't wait to get back on the playground. He also told me something about a mouse that comes out in the library when they have story time. Not sure what that's about. They also got to get on the bus. When I picked him up, I didn't notice his buddy that had been there that morning so I asked about him. Brantley said "He got hurt." He said something about dancing and a table and that he was hurt. Alrighty then - kindergarten hasn't even started yet. We saw him the second day and he did have a pretty good gash on his forehead. No stitches because he wouldn't sit still for that. They used the glue. In the car on the way to pre-school he was telling me about the bus and he said "Mommy, the bus didn't have any seatbelts!!" His friends at pre-school were so funny when he got there at lunch time. One of his best friends came over and said "Where have you been?" just like a mom would when she's worried about her child. The second time another friend said "Brantley, did you go to kindergarten again?"

I tried to post a picture but it's not working. I will try again later.