Back to School- 1st and 4th Grade Edition

Today was the first day of school for our 1st and 4th graders!  There were a few back-to-school jitters over the past couple of days, but everyone was excited and the kids had big smiles on their faces this morning.  

We found out the children's teachers via phone call last Thursday morning, and went to Open House that afternoon.  This is always a huge day for the students, as they find out who is in their class, meet their teachers, and see their new classrooms.  It's an equally emotional day for the mamas, who pray for a good teacher fit all summer, and anxiously await that morning phone call.  I was absolutely thrilled with both teacher assignments and we had a whirlwind of a day communicating with friends about who got which teacher, greeting school staff/hugging past teachers at Open House, and catching up with every single parent & elementary-aged child in the town of Oak Ridge (where one is asked and answers the phrase "How was your summer?" approximately 728 times).   

Soccer started this weekend, and after morning practices, Daddy had the great idea to have the "First Annual Winterhoff Family End-of-Summer Bash" on Saturday afternoon/evening.  Part of the fun of this event was that you had to say the entire formal title every time that you referred to it, which was a mouthful and made us giggle.  There were lawn games, music, kids' choice of take-out dinner (anything from Oak Ridge Town Commons), fire pit with smores, and sparklers:

It was such a fun way to celebrate the end of summer as a family, and on Sunday morning we continued our preparations by taking Back to School photos before church. Yep, we faked the front porch pictures with Thing 1 and Thing 2 by taking them 24 hours early... and it's my NEW FAVORITE tradition!  

This came about as a result of Mommy's back-to-school outfit vision for Leah.  Earlier this summer, I found the most adorable dress with pencils on it...and you know how much I love a good theme!  What could be more perfect for the first day of school than PENCILS on a dress?!   Leah liked the dress and agreed to wear it on the first day (Bless you, dear girl, for humoring your mommy!).  And then we walked into Leah's new classroom at Open House and saw a big note from the teacher on the board:  

"We have P.E. the first day of school.  Please make sure your child wears comfortable shorts, a tee shirt, and sneakers on Monday."

NOOOOOO!

Mark saw my face and saved the day by suggesting that Leah wear her dress to church on Sunday (and possible again on the second day of school tomorrow, too!).  He proposed the idea of a photo shoot on Sunday morning to capture the "spirit" of the First Day of School, but without the stress (and with the cute outfit included!).  It turned out to be so easy, and there was no rushing around and no bus to catch.  How I love that man, and how much he "gets" me!  

Yesterday also happened to be Winnie's 13th birthday, so we had her birthday party in the afternoon.  Every year, the children pick out special dog toy presents for their furry sister.  This year, they thought it would be hilarious to give Winnie "pizza and beer", which she seemed to thoroughly enjoy:

We made a kibble cake for Winnie (complete with ice cream and peanut butter), sang to her, and generally made a huge deal of her birthday celebration.  Mark and I are so thankful that we've shared 13 years with our precious puppy, and each day truly is a gift with this sweet girl who gives us so much joy.  By the end of the day, our birthday girl was pooped from being the center of attention:

  

Last night, we read "The Night Before First Grade", and I had a moment where it was hard to believe that my baby is such a big girl:

The bus came this morning with our beloved & familiar Ms. Debbie as bus driver again this year- Hooray!  The kids raced onto the bus, and there were no tears for anyone, which is such a great feeling and so different than Mama's waterworks last year on Leah's first day of kindergarten:

Our new teenager missed her Sissie and Bubbie today.  It was quiet at home, and right around school dismissal time this afternoon, Winnie walked to the front door and waited for me to open it for her.  She plopped down in her usual spot, and waited patiently for the sound of the bus.  (What's not pictured is that she ran/hobbled joyously all the way to the bus to "fetch" her brother and sister when they got home.  I haven't seen that much energy or tail wagging from her in months!) 

Finally, here are our annual Back to School photos of our two favorite little students.  Wishing them a great school year with many wonderful moments! 

Now that she's a teenager, Winnie has perfected the eye roll at these pictures!

Sports Excitement and the Solar Eclipse!

This week, we had the opportunity to go to not one, but two Greensboro Grasshoppers games.  We especially love our minor league baseball team for its special canine "team members".  Miss Babe Ruth, Master Yogi Berra, and Miss LuLuGehrig are the black labs who add so much energy and joy to the game by picking up discarded bats, retrieving balls, and racing around the bases during breaks.  Each time we go to the stadium, we like to take a picture with their statues so that we can show Winnie when we get home:

    

Luke also loves "pushing" the giant baseballs.  Every. single. time. 

 Our first Grasshoppers game on Tuesday night was with a group of people from Daddy's work.  We had a party deck, food, and covered seating, and thought that this was a pretty nice way to watch the game.  Then we were invited to come to another game yesterday with our friends who had a box... and the rest is history.  Mommy decided that this air conditioned, comfy, private suite is actually her favorite way to watch baseball, and that regular ol' bleacher seats may not be appealing ever again.  The Grasshoppers mascot, Guilford, and the Greensboro Swarm mascot even made a special visit to our suite, and these little fans were elated!

Leah was the only girl, and had no trouble keeping up with all those crazy boys!

The kids were invited to run the bases after the game, and this was a big highlight for Luke and Leah!

Saturday also proved to be a special day, as we attended WFU FanFest.  There were inflatables, games, and activities on the football field, which provided entertainment for the children while Mommy held our place in the line to obtain autographs from the football team.  

We ended up very close to the front of the line, and the kids were able to get every starting player's autograph.  They were absolutely star struck, and I love that Luke and Leah are the perfect ages to have this be the pinnacle of their celebrity sightings!  

 The players were very kind to our children, took their time conversing with L&L, and asked them their names and hobbies.  Here's Luke chatting with the quarterback:

Coach Clawson was at the end of the line, and he talked to us and posed for a picture with our family after he signed the kids' posters.  Daddy was very excited about this moment! 

 We also found the Demon Deacon, who has a new, fresh look!:

 Our luck continued as the kids posed beside the gigantic 18-wheeler that carries all of the football team's equipment to away games.  The driver spotted us and offered to open up the truck for Luke and Leah to climb in and look around:

Two VERY enthusiastic Wake Forest fans!

Love her fierce Demon Deacon scowl!

This WFU football player went to my elementary/middle school and was one of Mimi's students.  He remembered this, and we were excited to take a picture with him to show her!  I will not mention that he is less than 10 years older than Luke and more than 20 years younger than me.  Nope.  Won't talk AT ALL about how old that makes me feel:

We recovered from all of our sports excitement in time for the solar eclipse today.  The kids were ready with their eclipse glasses and a themed cookie cake:

We watched the eclipse on live television this afternoon as it hit the west coast, and eagerly awaited our special moment, where the moon would cover 93% of the sun in our area:

All of the excitement and hype quickly wore off as clouds and some rain moved in.  These are the faces of three bored children.  I told the kids that we could go inside and watch more on tv, and Leah (who was on the verge of tears) moaned, "But I want to see it in person!" 

Then, suddenly, there was a break in the clouds, and we were able to see the eclipse occur.  These expressions say it all! 

We ended up having an impromptu "Eclipse Party" in our yard with many of our neighbors.  (That's what happens when you have coveted eclipse glasses and cookie cake!).  It ended up being a great afternoon for everyone, and Luke has already asked if we can make plans to watch the next total solar eclipse (which he informed me is in Chile and Argentina in 2019).  Between those plane fares and my new love of suites at sports events, we better start saving our pennies now!  

Good News and Bad News

We found out last week that Luke's favorite basketball player is leaving Wake Forest unexpectedly to play professional basketball in Greece.  Dinos Mitoglou was Luke's very first sports idol.  We're not sure where the fascination with the "Greek Deac" originated, but it has been so much fun as a parent to watch our little boy's eyes light up watching Dinos play.  We've cheered for him on tv and in person during countless WFU games, followed his stats, and taken delight in our son's interest in basketball thanks to Dinos.  We even obtained an autographed Dinos Mitoglou program and card for Luke's 7th birthday, and was one of the most exciting presents that we've ever given our son.  

When Mark shared the news with me that Dinos won't be returning to WFU to play his senior year basketball season, my heart sunk.  

"I'm not telling Luke," I told Mark.  "You're going to have to break this news to him..."

And so a couple days ago, we were all in the car together, and Mark said to Luke, 

"Hey buddy, I've got good news and bad news.  I'll tell you part of it, and you can guess if it's the good news or the bad..."

Luke agreed and Mark continued: 

"Dinos Mitoglou decided to go back to Greece to play professional basketball this year!"

Luke responded, "That's the bad news, right?"

Ever optimistic, Daddy answered, "No, that's the GOOD news!  How cool for him to make millions of dollars doing what he loves... and he gets to go back to his home and be near all of his family and friends!"

"Guess what the bad news is?" Mark continued.

And without missing a beat, Luke earnestly answered, "We're going to have to go all the way to Greece to watch him play!"

I laughed so hard that I cried.  That sweet little boy really, really thought that was the bad news!  How we adore Luke and these hysterical parenting moments! 

Good luck, Dinos!  We'll miss you!