the first day

Today was the first day of school for all of us. (Josh and I went back last week, but kids didn't start until today. Same with B's preschool.) The day FLEW by!! I'm exhausted and can't believe how fast the day went. It was a good day though!

B had a great day at his first day too. Kacey said she cried when she dropped him off... I'm flattered that she loves my kid enough to cry!! He came home with all sorts of stories. It's in the afternoons this year, 12:00-3:15. They did fingerprints and looked at them under the magnifying glass, drew rainbows, read a story about a dog that went to school, played at recess, had snack... He was the only kid at Kacey's today though, I feel bad. :( The kid he played with last week started kindergarten today. B said he played with the dog a lot and they got to go see Kacey's horses, which he liked a LOT.

Hard to believe my baby started his last year of preschool. Even harder to think that he COULD have started kindergarten today instead, but we kept him back a year. I can't send a 4 year old to kindergarten, even if he does meet the cut off. But just looking at him, thinking he COULD HAVE started today, makes my heart beat a little faster. I'm glad we have one more year. ;)

the new lady

We started Brecken at a new daycare this year. The change between last year and this year has been total night and day. He has beat us out the door to get to Kacey's house in the mornings... I'm not going to lie, I totally love that! I'm so glad he feels comfortable at this house and has a good day. In fact, one day last week he got mad at me for picking him up too early! That hasn't happened since our beloved Amy lived here!

Kacey is an EMT with Josh and I secretly (or no so secretly) LOVE that. Not that anything would happen to my B-man while he was there, but gosh, you never know!!!

There aren't many kids at Kacey's... one little guy that B plays with that won't be there now because of kindergarten. He has a little sister, so hopefully the little sister will continue to go.

the day i cried in the middle of walmart

Today was the big day... we had to go to Riverton to pick up the half a beef we ordered, so we went to Walmart, too. We went back to the little boy's section, felt all the jeans, picked a few pairs B deemed "soft enough", and found the dressing room. Josh took him in and I waited outside, but I couldn't stand it anymore, so I knocked on the door to go in, too. And there he was... my baby... in jeans. I haven't seen him in jeans since he was 2 years old. I was so proud of him for even trying them on, and I figured he'd say they didn't feel good and we'd leave without any. Which would have been FINE. My amazement was fulfilled with him even trying them on. But, he liked a pair. I asked if he would wear them to school, and he said no. He said he would only wear them for his 5-year-old pictures. GREAT! I'm ecstatic with that; it's such a huge start! He did say the waist kinda bugged him (which, coming from elastic waist sweats and basketball shorts, it's gotta feel funny!) but he felt better when I assured him that if he wanted to, he could wear his shorts underneath the jeans. He nodded, said he liked them, and we bought two pairs of the kind he liked best.

That's when I cried.

This is such a big deal! I can't even tell you how proud of him I am. Like I said, I was excited that he just wanted to try them on, but for him to buy a pair.... it's like I was in a dream.

Whether or not he will actually wear them, I'm not sure. We're not going to make a big deal out of it, as he hates that kind of attention and he will backpedal. If he ends up freaking out and not wearing them, I'm ok with that. Like I said. He tried. And my heart is so full from that.

jeans

Brecken asked tonight if he could try on some jeans. I had to ask him to repeat the question, just so I could see if I heard correctly. And then I about fell out of my chair.

Of course, we don't own any jeans bigger than a 2T. So he'll have to wait until we go to a store. (which just happens to be tomorrow, we lucked out there!) I hope he still feels like it tomorrow! Even if they still hurt him, I'm TOTALLY stoked that he asked!!!

the last week

This is our last week of summer. It's always a really sad time. Once I get thrown into work, I'm fine... it's just that jump that I totally hate. I wish Josh and I both could be on permanent summer... I love the freedom of jumping in the car and going somewhere when we want to, sleeping in, staying up late, just hanging out all the time. I love the time with my family. But, since I don't want to live in a cardboard box down by the river.... we must work.

We've been working hard this week on last minute summer projects. We are rebuilding our deck; taking out the wood and putting in composite. Brecken has willingly been helping, and it's pretty fun to watch. :)

hair

B is about 6 weeks away from turning 5 years old, and last Thursday, we had a new breakthrough. He finally, finally decided it was OK to have his hair washed.

He's never liked it. Ever. It's always the most miserable part of the bath. Yes, we've tried a hundred different ways: Laying back on his own, laying back on our hand, tipping his head back while sitting up, using only a wash cloth, the special bucket that sits on your forehead while pouring back on your head... you get the picture. It's always a huge scream fest and it's the very last thing we do because he immediately stands up, while crying so hard I'm always sure he's going to fall down, and the bath is over.

However, this past Thursday, for some reason, he decided he would try once again, laying back on my hand. He didn't get any water on his face or in his eyes, and washing his hair was a success. It was so much of a success that we had to call Daddy back to witness it for a second time. And since then, he has asked for his hair to be washed every single day (and I am most happy to oblige!).

SPD is a funny thing. Most people reading this are probably thinking, "Why is washing hair such a big deal? My kid hasn't cried about water in his eyes since he was 10 months old. Just dump the water and be done with it." With an SPD kid, that's not always possible. And imagine our frustration before we knew WHY we couldn't do that!

Now, let's hope this new thing lasts :)