1st Grade Down, 11 to Go!

When Mr. YH first brought up home schooling our kids, it was before I had agreed it was time to even have any. I had just finished teaching middle school and although they are my favorite age to teach, they are in a category of their own for very good reasons. It was quite intimidating and overwhelming to think about teaching our children- I mean, before, they were other people's kids and even though I tried my best with them, we were now talking about my kids!

It's turning out to be pretty fun- a lot of work- but I wouldn't trade it for the world!

May 29- finishing up her last math assignment
We hummed Pomp and Circumstance but she was not overly impressed.

School ended for Big Girl two weeks ago, but Friday was the first day we were able to go off and celebrate her accomplishments in the first grade. I got to take her because, well, it was my idea and I am the teacher. I needed a celebration, too!


It is Yellow Hat tradition to have shaped pancakes for whatever holiday we're celebrating (we make up a lot of our own). I was informed that Big Girl had requested special pancakes for her big day. And, of course, they were served on our blue plate and the occasion duly recorded on the blue plate history sheet. (You can click on all of these photos to enlarge them if you want.)


I put this outfit on knowing that when she saw me she'd put her dress on. She had asked me to wear it on Sunday, but it was way too cold! She told me she wished we had more matching outfits. So there-it's in print and documented for future reference! (FYI- I not only don't tan, I can't)

As we drove to our first stop, I asked Big Girl about her first grade favorites:

Books/stories:

• Mr. Popper's Penguins - "I like the part when he talks on the phone to the man who doesn't understand him. It's SO funny! And the penguin tries to disconnect the phone."
• Mrs. Piggle Wiggle - "I like the first chapter that tells about her upside-down house."
• George Mueller - "I liked it that he always prayed whenever he needed something."

Re: Math: "Playing math games."

Re: History/Geography: She liked the story about a Persian king who had an unusual reaction to a weather problem when he went off to conquer parts of Greece.

First stop- the beauty salon to have a trim.
Every girls day out needs to include a little bit of pampering.

I was a little miffed that the lady didn't dry her hair all the way.
It's not like they were busy or that I wasn't paying $20
for a stinking haircut for my 6 year old!

Next stop, Cannery Row!

It was a gorgeous day!
The temperature was just right and the view was great!

We wandered through Candyland.

Perhaps this pencil would last through the next 11 years!

Mr. YH and I gave Big Girl $10 to spend wherever she wanted.

We went to the IMAX to see the Sharks movie. Big Girl was excited but equally vocal about being scared. She held tightly to my hand with both of her [cold and clammy] hands the entire 45 minutes! With the exception of a few evolutionary references that I promptly corrected, the movie was great! Did you know that the giant Pacific manta ray can have a wing span of 22 feet and weigh nearly 3,000 lbs? Or that the great white shark is the only shark that can take a look above the water? Or that the whale shark is the largest of all sharks and has 300 teeth but doesn't use them for biting or chewing? I found that last fact fascinating- God has such a sense of humor in making this gigantic creature and it's essentially harmless.

Big Girl wanted pizza for lunch and Louie was able to oblige.

We had a little trouble getting the background in, too-
just pretend the picture after this one is behind us because it really was.

Hello Kitty joined us for lunch.
We had a great view of the bay- a fairly clear view Friday!

Amazingly (and oh so sad for me!), Big Girl was not very hungry. I had planned on taking her downstairs to the Ghiardelli shop for ice cream. We'll have to do that another day! They gave out free samples, so we had a yummy and FREE piece of chocolate for dessert. We stopped by the Goodwill in downtown Monterey because I was looking for a little shelf I can use in one of the bathrooms. We found this picnic basket for $5. It's in great shape and I think I may try to line it.

And with that great find, we called it a day!
Now I'm heading over to Shutterfly to put these right into the photo album!