Cora's kindergarten year is nearly over, and I haven't yet compiled a "Day in the Life" post. Better remedy that now! Presenting Wednesday, June 5...
6 a.m. - Alarm goes off – time to wake up, get coffee, have quiet time on patio under bird serenade.
6:40 - Cora comes out of her room, 10
minutes before her alarm is set to go off. We started using her alarm a couple
of weeks ago, because she fought me so much when it was time to wake up. It’s
made a big improvement in our mornings.
6:50 - We pick out Cora's clothes and I get her
breakfast started before hopping in the shower.
7:10- Cora’s eating breakfast, I’m
dressed and getting her snack ready.
7:20 - Cora plays with her really
wiggly bottom front tooth for at least 5 minutes
7:30 - I get Violet up – she says she’s
flossing her teeth, with what looks like a long hair strand.
7:45 - With peanut butter toast for Vi's breakfast-in-the-stroller, we’re off! Cora rides her
scooter to school every day.
Today, John walks Ave and Johnny to school,
so we
chit chat as we wait for a green light with Richard, the crossing guard. Cora
entertains the Roberts with her loose tooth before the light changes and Cora races off.
7:57 - A quick kiss good-bye and Cora
goes through the gate to her line. Violet and I chat with another parent, who’s
invited us over for a pool playdate Thursday.
8:10 - Violet and I take our morning
walk, a loop that takes us down the paseo, through the neighborhood, along the
creek bed and back around. Violet chats with me most of the time, about the
animals and birds we see.
I ask what she’d like to see this morning. “Uh… A
squirrel. Owen likes squirrels. But Owen likes red, too.”
Later, we see a lizard on the wall
and two ducks on a front lawn, before finally spotting a squirrel. “Hello,
Squirrel!” Violet shouts. “Hey Squirrel, why are you talking to me?”
8:50 - We’re back home. For the next 2
½ hours, I tidy up the house, vacuum and prepare our picnic lunch; Violet plays, first
with the princess Duplo set, then the kitchen, then the Calico Critters, and
then the magnet doll set. I am very blessed - this little one plays so well on her own, and most of the time doesn't mind cleaning up after herself.
11:30 - We run out the door to get Cora
– literally running, since I’m leaving a few minutes late. But, as usual,
Cora’s class is a good 5 minutes late getting out, so we wait in the shade and
chat to other moms before her class comes out.
11:40 - Cora comes through the gate,
wearing a necklace – a TOOTH-shaped necklace! Yep, she lost that second front
tooth. She wants to show me the tooth; I say she should wait because she lost
her first tooth in Genia’s front lawn.
She doesn’t listen, and sure enough, the
tooth pops out of the necklace when she breaks through the tape, and it’s a
goner too. We look for 5 or 10 minutes – feels like hours – to no avail. Maybe we'll manage to hang onto Tooth No. 3 or 4 for her "First Tooth" trinket box.
11:50 - We make our way to the
park for our standing Wednesday lunch date with Genia and her boys.
Cora and Johnny play ninjas for hours, while Owen and Violet play
hide-and-seek. Owen counts: “1, 2, 3, 4, … 19, 20, 2010, 2011, 2012…”
Then they
make birthday cakes, with a pinwheel they found as a birthday present. (“This is the cake factory. I’m making a squirrel birthday
cake, for Owen,” Violet tells me.)
Another mom joins us, we talk, the children play. Life is good. Suddenly
it’s 2:38 and I’m way late for Violet’s nap, and Genia must head back to school
to get Ave.
2:40 - Genia takes Owen back to the
school, while I take Johnny, Cora and Violet home.
2:55 - Violet and I wash her feet and
hands and put her to bed, while Johnny and Cora begin playing an involved game
with the Duplo castle.
Violet falls asleep – she doesn’t do
that every naptime these days, though she’s usually happy enough to listen to
her music and play in her crib until it’s time to get up.
4:15 - Stacey comes home, Johnny goes
home, and Cora gets ready for a trial fitness/dance class at My Gym that her
school friend Sophia invited us to.
4:30 - Cora and I leave for the class,
while Stace stays with Violet and preps our dinner – salad with leftover steak. He loves chopping salads (no joke!).
4:45 - Cora likes the dance class well
enough, though her leg is bothering her. She loves the last 5 minutes of the
class, when the girls are able to around the gym.
Meanwhile, Stace takes Violet to
Walmart to check out camping gear, and to the park.
6 p.m. - After stopping to fill the car up, we’re home. Time to finish getting
dinner on the table.
6:30 - Dinner! We discuss our day and
look at photos on the computer of Cora’s 1st grade classmates acting
in their version of The Wizard of Oz, a big school tradition that Cora can’t
wait to do next year. She’s hoping to be cast as Dorothy.
7 - The girls have chocolate pudding
with fresh strawberries for dessert.
7:20 - Cora shows Stace the
dance/aerobic moves she learned in class, and teaches them to Violet.
7:40 - Time for vitamins,
teeth-brushing, jammies, toilet.
7:50 - I read a few minutes’ worth of
"Little House in the Big Woods," while Cora writes a note to the Tooth Fairy.
"A girl at dance class had a chipped-off tooth," she tells us. "I bet when she loses it, she doesn't get a lot of money for a chipped-off tooth!"
8 – I take Violet to bed.
8:10 - Cora and I say prayers and say
good night; within 15 minutes she’s sleeping.
8:45 - Violet needs a wee and complains
of her leg hurting; an hour later she’s still awake, singing in her crib.
Also on Friday, the sixth graders had their gift exchange party with their kindergarten buddies. I didn't get to see this happen, but Cora's teacher posted this photo on the class info-sharing site. How adorable is this pic of Cora, her buddy, and Mrs. Hawthorne? 
