Beginnings

Natalie and Samantha once again kicked off the back to school season in our house.  Actually, it's also the end of school season here as well - Jared is finishing up the final class for his Bachelor's Degree this week! It's definitely an exciting time for our family.


Natalie has finally moved on from Kindergarten and is starting first grade at the Grundschule.  She's been looking forward to this day all summer.  In fact, she was so happy to be going to school that she hopped right of bed that first day and was all smiles.  Typically Natalie is NOT a morning person at all.


Part of the excitement was because she was looking forward to opening her Schultute, which was filled with candy.  She reminded me at least once a day for the week before school that I needed to buy candy for her Schultute and "maybe some toys too."


We got to school and found her classroom where we dropped off her books and other supplies.  Then it was time for the first day of school assembly where the second graders performed some cute songs for the new first graders.  They took class pictures for the local newspaper and then the kids went to their classrooms for their first day (well, half day) of learning.  The parents were invited to stay and have coffee and cake for the hour that the kids were in the classrooms.  After the hour was up everyone (students, parents, teachers) walked to the Catholic church for a beginning of school church service and then the school day was done.

I think her first week has been just okay and certainly not perfect for her.  At the end of the first week she has said she doesn't like her new school at all.  There have been at least a few tears every day  - some days more than a few.  The first day no one sat by her.  The second day, for some reason even I don't understand, they made her eat school lunch and not the lunch I'd packed her.  The third day a boy punched her during recess.  Today she got a bloody nose.  I'm hoping that having time over the weekend to decompress will help and that her second week will be a better experience for her.


Samantha started third grade this year and thankfully has had a better first week than her younger sister. For the first time she actually put more than 30 seconds of thought into what to wear for her first day of school.


She even wanted coordinating nail polish to go with her outfit and was very specific on the color of the polish and that each hand should have one nail painted differently.  Sam even knew what she wanted to do with her hair - a big messy bun with a headband.


For first and second grade Samantha has had the same classroom teachers and the same classmates.  This year the kids in her class have remained the same but she has a new teacher, Frau Hemmer.  Samantha is the type of kid who always wants to do things exactly right and hates to make mistakes so she was a little worried about third grade because this is the year they begin receiving grades for their work.  Her biggest concern is that she'll get a "bad note" if she makes even a single mistake.  She had a good first week though - no tears like Natalie - and I think she is much less stressed about grades now.

Next week the older three girls have their first day back to school and, as Emily says, I have my first day of freedom since June.

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