First Day of Kindergarten

Less than 30 minutes old, here are the photos from Elena going to her first day of Kindergarten.






(I am kicking myself for taking the small camera, not the good one because the pictures aren't in focus!!!!!)

Elena was up at 6am this morning (and midnight last night) in anticipation of the big day. She picked her clothes out. Bunny was stashed in the backpack for the first week. Lunch packed. Jake and I walked her (and our bikes) to school. We were told to say goodbye on the walk way where the kids get off the bus and not to go inside. so that is what we did. After she kissed us goodbye she walked all the way down by herself and right in the door. She didn't even glance back at us. We both managed not to cry, although I seriously thought I was going to have to get off my bike because I felt sick! I can't believe our little girl is a brave kindergartener.

We'll post full details later....but wanted to get the 'newsbreak' out right away.

Grandma Joan

Grandma Joan
AKA Cannonball Grandma, Garage Sale Grandma, Hip Grandma
April 12, 1934 - August 15, 2009

My favorite memories of Grandma Joan:
- Flying kites on the beach at Neskowin Oregon on vacation with my grandparents and my brother Seth when I was around 10 years old.
- Spying on Aunt Kim and Mom through binoculars to see if they had stopped for icecream on their walk
- Playing taboo and rummikub by the pool at Greaegle
- Egan kicking Grandma through my belly last summer as we snuggled on the couch
- The way she could say 'huh' and try to look innocent when she had done something - like hide the tootsie rolls
- That she rather than share her movie treats - always popcorn, diet coke, and junior mints - with you,she would just hand you money to buy your own. Even if you just wanted one sip, or a single junior mint.
- Having a Grandma who dressed so well that I loved to 'shop' in her closet
- When she and Grandpa Dwaine garage sale shopped for weeks and drove the pickup over to Santa Cruz to help me furnish my first apartment in graduate school
- That when ever she was with you, the perfect parking spot always magically appeared
- All of the weekends Jake and I would stay in Reno to ski in Tahoe and they would have dinner waiting for us
- Having all my grandparents at my PhD defense
- That Grandma and Grandpa never let a birthday, anniversary, or important event pass without a card. In fact the very day after Grandma died, we checked the mail to find Jake's birthday package.

Jake's favorite memory of Grandma Joan is when she accidently gave him Grandpa's winter coat as a present (she thought she'd bought it at a garage sale for $5) and then once we all realized what happened, tried to convince Jake to keep it. (he mailed it back, in case you were wondering)

Elena's favorite memory is going to the pool and getting her bike with a kids seat. (and I will also note that though she didn't mention it - she keeps all the musical cards that they have sent over the years and plays them until their little batteries run out).

Egan's memory of Grandma is through the gentle tummy rubs when he was still incubating and that his first piece of mail ever came from them.

Over the past few days I've unpacked enough boxes to find a few photo albums and the picture that Grandma Joan painted for me. It is extraordinarily difficult to not be with my extended family right now in Reno - I know they are all sharing some really wonderful memories.

You can read the her official obituary
http://waltons.lifefiles.com/registryMain.php?i_memorialid=1250546601&override=1024090316&PHPSESSID=73d605486ffc372f0334d52b3540c8bb

A few of my favorite pictures

Berenstain Bears Moving Day

Since Elena is a veteran of so many moves, we have a library of moving books to help with the transition. There are the little critters moving, books of maps, books about the places we have been and then are going. By far, the most popular is The Berenstain Bears Moving Day.

The Berenstain Bears live up in a cave on Great Bear Mountain - and though there are many wonderful things, it's time to move. Everything goes in the truck, but the friends. When the Bears arrive at their new home, they have a new little tree house, that needs a bit of work, but momma and poppa bear have 'big plans' (sound familiar?). The truck is unloaded and the bears start to settle in. Then they are greeted by their neighbors, the local bird, squirrel, and bear families come rushing to meet them with gifts of honey and nuts and there are tons of cubs to play with.

Now it is usually here in the story that we explain to Elena that your moving van is not met by hoards to people bringing gifts, it is just a way of showing that with time you will make new friends. That is unless you happen to be moving to Kutztown. In the first week that we arrived Kurt (new colleague and chair of the search committee that hired us) brought over a 6 pack of homebrew and a loaf of fresh bread, Lara and Sierra (new geology faculty who lives down the street with her daughter) brought an apple pie, Richard (next door neighbor) loaded us his pick up truck for a dump run, Jon and Perma (across the street) brought a coffee cake, Donna and Jim (across the alley) a plate of cookies, and, my personal favorite because it was hot and he heard we were painting, Earl (across the ally) brought us a cold case of miller lite (and really cold beer in PA is no small feat, we have learned). What am I forgetting? Oh yes, the cubs...within three houses, there are two other kindergarteners, a 2nd and 5th grader who run around in the evenings together catching fire flies and playing hide and seek. Elena used all her courage and ran off with them - to be rewarded with arms around her shoulders and pats on her back from the bigger kids before the screaming games continued.

Who knew that page of the book could be true.