Preschool FUN!

We're getting settled into our new home more and more each day. There are a lot of little projects we want to do with the house, but are trying to be patient and do what we can right now and plan for everything else...chip away at it a little at a time. It's a great house, though and we are loving it!
There are a group of moms at Church that alternate hosting a playgroup for 2-4 year olds, and when offered the opportunity, I was thrilled to join in! So, Shae and Cooper participate every Tuesday and Thursday from 9-11AM and I host the playgroup at our house one Tues/Thurs every 5 weeks. I haven't yet hosted, but I think it will be great. Not only is it fun to get the kids together to play, but we also follow a lesson plan and incorporate different projects and activities. Cooper and Shae LOVE playgroup and always seem to be having so much fun when I pick them up. For example, below is a picture of what I walked into picking them up this last Tuesday! The kids had a blast playing dress up (if you can't tell, Cooper is a combination Ninja Turtle/Batman!!) It was hilarious- that little guy has such a fun personality and really does his own thing, which cracks me up!!

Since Jadan is still 4, we tried out the playgroup with him, too. I realized right away that he needed something more. I always hoped I would be able to teach him just at home...but I have loved seeing how much fun and how beneficial playgroup is for Cooper and Shae, I knew Jadan would gain so much from a formal preschool environment. We decided to check out some preschools in the area, and finally enrolled Jadan this past week. His favorite thing leading up to his first day was, of course, his new Lightning McQueen lunch pack.
He soon discovered that there was so much more to be excited about, and told me all about his first day later that afternoon. He kept saying "it was so much fun!" "We went on a walk to the park...and it was so much fun!" "We read a book...and it was so much fun!" "We had a snack...and it was so much fun!" "We learned some words in Spanish...and it was so much fun!" He made new friends, although he can't remember their names yet, and his teacher said he had a great first day! She was impressed with how well he could write his name. He is really looking forward to tomorrow, because they get to go swimming! It is so exciting to watch him learn and grow! And, no, in case you were wondering, I did NOT cry when I dropped him off like Danny teased me I would!! It has been a great experience, and, yes, emotional in certain ways...I mean, look at my little man...growing up too fast!!!

I had to get a shot of this crazy guy...Believe it or not, this attire is quite regular for him!Cooper and Shae were a bit confused the first day Jadan went to preschool. After dropping him off, I took them to their playgroup and...went home to an empty, quiet house! It was weird. I know it will be good for me to have time, especially to catch up on photo editing, etc... but I was so ready to go pick them all up! So, I picked Cooper and Shae up at 11:00 and didn't get Jadan until 1:00. So, since the two little ones were a bit jealous that Jadan got his own really COOL lunch (hey, those things are big when you're that age!!) I packed them their own picnic and let them drive their Gator to our community park. It was interesting having just the two of them at the park, and really good to give them each some extra attention and try to make their day special, too.

Taking the time to get to know our kids (they are all so unique and special and different and we can learn so much from them!) is so amazing and increases my love for each of them individually even more!! I am so blessed and so proud of our three wonderful children and grateful for their incredible Daddy and for the opportunity to share the experience of raising them with him!!!