Big Changes

The past two weeks are a blur.

We moved! woohoo! we closed on our house, spent a few evenings working on it (sealing granite and grout, concrete treatment in the garage, etc.) and then spent a very long, exhausting weekend moving a LOT of stuff.  I can't believe we have that much stuff.  or that we packed it it storage so well that I forgot.  anyway.  We started on Friday but got rained out.  We continued on Saturday with some help from the ward.  But still not finished, we spilled over into Sunday, moving stuff from the Grandma and Grandpa's house.  But we still hadn't unearthed the parts needed to assemble beds (or found the bedding) so it was finally on Monday that we spent our first night in our new home.  Since then, I've been unpacking, sorting, shuffling, moving and generally trying to make sense of it all.  Husband suggested it's like a giant puzzle box: all the pieces are in but it's a jumbled mess.  But after a week, we have made really good progress and 100% love, love, love our new home.  The girls especially love their new room which features a bunk bed for them to share.  Overall, there's been a few hiccups like needing the plumber to come back and fix the water pressure, or finding out our laundry room hookups are electric and my dryer is gas but mostly good.

I found an in-home daycare to try and the girls loved it.  Being able to take them there while I've been packing or moving has been a huge help.  We've been there a few times now and will probably only use the daycare occasionally in the future but the girls have been begging to go again.

Ballet started two weeks ago and L is in heaven.  She eagerly shows me what they learned and begs all week for it to be ballet day again.  She takes two classes a week, her production class (mostly jazz) and her technique class (she picked ballet).  They happen to fall on the same day so it makes our schedule a little easier.  Can't believe she's getting so big.

Even bigger, L started kindergarten!  We arrived late to back-to-school night to pick up her packet and meet her teachers.  She's been assigned to morning kindergarten and is in the dual immersion program so she has an English speaking teacher and a Spanish speaker teacher.  I think she will love the challenge and will love being with her classmates.  But her favorite part so far is riding the bus.  I was a nervous train wreck because she wasn't on the bus schedule (since we just moved her and our newly constructed house isn't even in the postal system yet) but things worked out fine.  I walked with her the half block down to the bus stop, explained to the driver why she wasn't on the list and she hopped right on, settling into her seat.  I was so worried about the bus list fiasco that I didn't think about a tender or tearful moment until I realized the bus was pulling away.  (I waited eagerly for the bus to return after school but instead of welcoming a bouncing princess full of excitement, she trudged down the steps tearfully, upset that they wouldn't let her stay at the school to have lunch and attend the afternoon session as well. "but mom! I love it and I want to learn everything! It was fun but not fun enough.")

On the same day, A started preschool.  Daddy dropped her off since I was teaching a class by then.  When I picked her up, she ran to me squealing, showing off her art project from the day and singing praises of her new "fun, fun!" teachers.

Since L will be attending morning kindergarten everyday and A has morning preschool three times a week, little E and I get to have one-on-one time now.  It was strange and special and wonderful.  Mostly we've been unpacking but I loved getting to take her to the store and talking to her and giving her all my attention.  After the big girls get home from school, we had lunch and put E down for a nap while I have "backpack time" with my big girls, looking at their school papers and helping with homework.