Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Off to School!

Can anyone tell me where summer went? I don't think it could have gone by any faster, yet, here we are, September 6, the first day of school for the Arning Bros.

This year, Charlie is in the 3-day/3-year old program and goes to preschool on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9a-1p. Chase goes to a different school and is in a "Mom's Morning Out" program on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9a-1p. (He isn't old enough to go to preschool, but he is ready for a program of some kind, so this was our best option.)

I wasn't worried about Charlie at all. I knew he would have a great first day of school. I figured he might miss us a little bit (Mrs. Jacobson said he asked for me only once), but I was confident he would love his classroom and his teacher.

I was, however, worried about Chase. He's never really done anything like this, except maybe child care at church and yoga. Plus, we didn't get a chance to go to the open house because we were at the beach, so I was taking him to school, sight unseen, without ever having met any of his teachers. (Granted, I'd toured the school and met the teachers, but Chase had not.) So, I'm sure you can understand why I was nervous.

Surprisingly, Chase was not in the least bit bothered about anything. He stayed by us until we said it was time to for us to leave, but then he started playing with toys and did not care one bit that we had to go. Not one single tear from Chase! What a big boy! The teacher said he did not get upset or sad the entire day except at the very end of school when other moms started picking up their kids. When I arrived, he was so excited to see me, though. It was so sweet and made my heart jump a beat. What a cutie!

So, that's that. My boys are getting so big and are both so independent. I could not be more proud!

But, is it ok to wish they'd miss me just a little bit more?

Here are some photos from our first day of school.

Getting ready to head to school. Chase follows in big brother's footsteps.

This is Charlie's best attempt at a smile.

Big boy!

We dropped Chase off first. Doesn't he look so confident?

Chase decided to take Bunny to school. I think Bunny was a big help.

Isn't he adorable?

Why is Dad in every picture? I need to teach him how to  use my camera!

Charlie had fun at Chase's school, too!
(A little too much fun. I had to follow behind him, picking up all of the toys  he drug out.)

This is Charlie's school. Charlie was the special helper on the first day.
I think it's because he's super smart and sweet, but it might also be because his last name starts with "A."

So festive!

This is how Charlie will "Check In" every day. He puts his apple on the fence.

Charlie's basket.

He found a flat bed truck right away. That's all he's talked about since.

Mrs. Jacobson explains that we do not play with trucks when you first arrive at school.
First, you must put your backpack away, then you sit down at the table for an activity.
Trucks come later.
(Oh, boy. She has no idea who she's dealing with here.)

This is Charlie's tree. He adds an apple sticker to it for every polite thing he says or does.

Ah, we made it to the table!

I want to go to preschool! It looks so fun!

Teachers are so creative!


I even got into the spirit and put my Back To School flag up. :)
Here's to a great school year!

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Arning Beach Vacation Comes to an End

What a fabulous time we had at the beach this week! We stayed in a wonderful rental property, ate delicious food, rode bikes every day and had a ton of fun in the sun.

I must say, my favorite part was watching Charlie have an absolute blast in the ocean and playing in the sand. He was in heaven! He would have stayed at the beach all day if we would have let him. Chase loved the ocean waves, but his favorite, by far, was swimming in the pool. He loved jumping into the water, playing with pool toys and swimming from one end of the pool to the other - with a little help, of course.

Both boys got along so well all week and really enjoyed playing with each other. They did a great job sharing their toys and were super sweet to each other most of the time.

It was an awesome vacation. I'm already looking forward to next year!

Here are lots of photos from the last couple of days of our vacation...

Isn't this cool?

Charlie LOVES the ocean!




Grandpa...

...and Cappy. Same-style photo. Totally unplanned.





This is a great picture of both Grandma and Charlie!

Believe it or not, there was a construction site on the next street over - the building of a new house.
Charlie saw forklifts, cranes, dump trucks, you name it! Is Charlie lucky or what? 

I love this photo. All of the dump trucks are lined up, ready for work at the beach!


Grandpa and Dada catching up.


I like this picture, too. Look at his reflection in the sand. I also love the water sprinkling out of the bucket.

Mama and Dada, relaxing in the surf. (Check out the craziness going on behind us.)

Holy cow! Both boys are sitting still for a photo... and they're both smiling!!
(You should see the goofiness going on behind the camera - grandparents trying to get them to smile.)

Harbor Town's lighthouse at Sea Pines.

Playing in the playground at Harbor Town.

Seriously, what's with the face?


A picture of all four of us! (Again, more goofiness going on in the background.)

Dada and Chase sitting in their man made fort, which held up most of the weekend, by the way!

Holy cow! Two pictures of both boys in one beach trip! Amazing!

Playing with bubbles on our last night at the beach.


Chase and Moby.




Isn't he cute?

Chase, watching big brother from afar.

BUBBLES!

Love, Love, LOVE!

Kind of a cool photo...
Until next year...