End of Year Party & Last Day of Kindergarten

Here are some shots of the final days of kindergarten. I was lucky enough to be able to volunteer for their end of year party, where they tossed water balloons, knocked over can towers, went bowling, and played with a colorful parachute. The kids had a ton of fun!

These wonderful people are our friends the Garan's. Nina is one of Afton's best friends, and Son and Todd have become some of mine. I'm bummed I didn't get a picture of their super cute baby, Hope.

Afton & Nina

A final salute to a wonderful year!

Safari Park Field Trip

I was lucky enough to be a chaperone for Afton's class trip to the San Diego Safari Park. There were a bunch of classes on that trip, and it was pretty nuts...but super fun!

Mrs. Ruelas' Kindergarten Class

Afton and his buddy Brody.

Stud muffin with elephants.

Checking out the bats.

Left to right: Sultan, Afton, Cruze, Brody

Silly boys!

October Shenanigans

We had a very full October! After our relaxing and much needed Sedona trip, we got into the full swing of Halloween.  Afton went on a field trip to Oma's Pumpkin Patch (Afton thought that was great since Oma is what he calls my mom) where he picked out the perfect pumpkin and had fun playing in a huge pile of cotton. We carved pumpkins; Nippon's was a Pokeball, and Afton and Rowan wanted "happy" faces. The kids decorate the house with spooky cobwebs, and there was lots of dressing up. Afton finally settled on being a ninja. Rowan wore several outfits (that I sadly didn't get any pictures of other than the unfinished Mickey Mouse costume). She was Indiana Jones for Afton's school Fall Festival, Princess Rapunzel, and for trick-or-treating she was a mermaid! I so wish I had a picture of the awesome mermaid costume my friend Barbara made for her. It was shimmery and pretty, with a pearly jeweled "shell" top. 

To sum it up, it was lots of fun!

The Bridge and Flag Day

The city and school worked together for the past several years to raise enough money to build a pedestrian bridge across Ted Williams Pkwy (a very busy road that kids have to cross when walking to school). They had a "walk to bridge" day where they had free coffee/hot chocolate, cookies, and doughnuts for everyone that walked to school. It was really great to finally be able to use the path and check out the great view from high up. Afton had a good time running up and down the walkway and peering over the edge.

Once we got to school, they had Friday Flag Day. The whole school gets together at the flagpole at the front school and they sing (One of the times Afton sang with all the other kindergarten classes a song called "Stop and Think."), announce birthdays, and give reminders about events coming up. It's awesome watching the kids recite the school moto (Work Hard, Be Kind), say the pledge, and giggle when the teacher join them singing the school song (to the tune of YMCA). It's especially fun for me to see Afton so happy with his fellow students.

We love Shoal Creek Elementary!