The BIG First Day.

This year, we have three kids at the same school. This will be a first and a last for the Stewart family.
Most likely, this is the cleanest and put together they will be all at the same time this year:


Together in the schoolyard:

Finding our way to the Kindergarten Line-up:
The supremely confident 5th Grader plus posse:
The Studious Second-Grader: Bring it on!
The trepidatious Kindergartner! It's the class line-up. . .and. . . the moment of truth has arrived! The school BELL. But look! No Tears! What a great job, Ivy!

And finally, The Lone Stewart Child: "Who took my playmates?!"

Our Little Poetess

Was given an award recently as a district winner in the poetry contest. It was for her poem "The Chase". Here she is with her teacher, Mrs. Willis:

Blond white girls were in the minority at this party.

Lizzie's Latest Poetry Win...

Lizzie came home from school with bells ringing: She is a winner in the District Poetry Contest! This is her poem. She wrote it at school, so this is the first time I've seen it. I have to sign a statement that it is her original work, then I have to send the poem back to school tomorrow. I love the rhythm and I love the fact that I had to read it twice before I realized that she was talking about the mouse in the beginning.
Please enjoy!

THE CHASE

Pitter-patter, pitter-patter,

The smell of cheesecake batter.

Cat is sleeping on the table,

Snible-snable, snible-snable,

One crumb left for the colony,

Loney-lawny, loney-lawny.

Snatch it up and stay alert,

Then the chase begins.

Cat leaps up and Mouse leaps down,

One will lose the other, wins.

Twists and turns,

Stomps and lifts,

Ups and downs,

Jumps and shifts.

Skidding, sliding,

Halting, gliding,

Mouse comes to a stop.

Breathing hard,

She looks around,

While Cat was crouching low.

He didn't make a sound.

SILENCE...

SILENCE...


SILENCE...


SILENCE...

Cat pounces,

Mouse leaps,

And Cat landed,

In a heap.

Mouse scurries back,

To her mum,

And her hole by the pantry...

Still holding her crumb.

Student Council

GOOD LUCK LIZZIE!!

Eli's self-portrait

James, if you are checking this blog, I want you to know I hold you entirely responsible for this.

Tonight was Back-to-School Night. At the end of the long discussion about phonics and math manipulatives while all us parents were scrunched into First-Grade-sized chairs, we were told we could take home our child's self-portrait, which was taped to the back of the seat.

I noticed with pride the dual-toned hair. I noticed the neat coloring. Then I noticed the shape of the cut-out. Those weren't shorts our paper-Eli was sporting. I looked closer and noticed the belt was very purposefully colored, that the pattern was a colorful striped pattern - nay! It was plaid! Could it be? Did our First-Grade son request a girl-stlye cut-out so he could fashion himself a kilt?



We took home the curious artwork, and asked Eli, "What are you wearing?"

"A Kilt!" He was proudly exclaiming.

I'm glad Eli is proud of his Scottish heritage - just tell me - do you think we need to explain this to his teacher? :)

First Day!

Haircuts: Check.
Argyle: Check.
Notes from Mom in lunchbox: Check.

The Stewart kids are ready to start school!

The energy is palpable in the First Graders line...

Lizzie and Ashley play it cool in 4th grade...

Gonna be a great year!

The end of another school year!

Diplomas, Certificates, all manner of representations have been dispersed to signify how much work has been accomplished this 2008-09 school year!

Ivy successfully finished Princess School,
















Eli graduated from Kindergarten,

















And Lizzie can successfully hang with anyone from the Third Grade.

We have been blessed with some phenomenol teachers this year - thank you Mrs. Kennedy, and Mr. Mares!

'Stauches, Stanton, & Bajawma

Wednesday's 'Stauche: The Bruiser Sunday's almost-lost -forever-but found-under-the-bed Moustache: The Hollywood

And now, the anticipation is over, the Third Grade Wax Museum was today! Here is our very own Elizabeth Cady Stanton, writer of the Declaration of Sentiments, and founder of the Women's Rights Movement:
The parents entered the room and all the children were still as statues. I mean wax. They were each holding a poster that was blank except for a large "button" that said "ON." When a parent touched this button, the wax figure suddenly came to life, telling the bystanders all the interesting and important facts of themselves. They each ended with saying, "Who am I?" and the parent would have to guess.
Yep, we sprayed her hair brown and curled it into ringlets! I mean, when do you get to do that for school, right? Not often enough, I say!

In other news, did you know Barack Obama came to Phoenix yesterday? Well, as a matter of fact, he did. Just ask Adam, he saw the whole thing. Adam works in building that has a view of the Sky Harbor Airport runway, and the way he tells it, yesterday afternoon, before Obama arrived, his cargo plane arrived, with his whole entourage, which includes: his helicopters, black armored cars (like three), and then, Air Force One flew in later that day, and all around the airport, they had roads shut down, police guarding underpasses and protecting roads, and before he landed, they shut down the runway, all of a sudden all the commercial airplanes stopped flying, and two helicopters started flying around in these strange formations to make sure it was safe. And after they landed, the helicopters went away.

Then this morning as Adam drove to work he looked on the runway, and there was Air Force One, sitting on the tarmac, next to the huge cargo plane. I don't care who you voted for, the office of the president is inspiring as an American.

Lizzie was personally affronted that she wasn't able to see the President, with him stopping in the neighborhood and all. So, I recorded his speech that he made this morning in Mesa. Tonight, we watched a few minutes of it before the kids went to bed. There was lots of cheering in the crowds, of course, and when we turned the tv off, Ivy jumped off the couch yelling, "Yay! Bajawma! Yay Bajawma!!" Which of course meant, "Yay Obama." We were in hysterics laughing at her.

And that concludes the news from the Stewart household.

I think I'm going to put my bajawmas on and go to bed.

Old-Fashioned Kids...

Monday's Moustache: The Hero Tuesday's Moustache: The Square

You know, usually it takes me a while to get this boy up in the mornings. I was anticipating extra wake-up time today especially, after coming off of a three day weekend.

But lo and behold, this morning I come in his room, (and I'm still waking up), and he says to me exuberantly, "Hello!!" and I looked at him, and he had his Tuesday moustache on.

For Lizzie, tomorrow is the big day she's been preparing for: The Third Grade Wax Museum! Yesterday, we perfected her Elizabeth Stanton costume, and she posed like she was in an old-fashioned picture.

Eli's Field Trip to the farm!

I'm so glad I was able to go with Eli's Class on his fun Field Trip! :)

Field Trip!

I got to rock out with the 3rd graders yesterday!

Would you believe me if I told you that our tour guide's name was Crystal? It's true.

Our favorite part was the plates of food made all out of rocks! Crunch ~ Crunch!

What a fun class trip!

Vote for Frizzy...I mean Lizzie!

Well, I'm telling you, it has been quite the poster-making weekend for Lizzie. Not only is she the Student of the Week, but she also decided she wants to run for Student Council.

A poster and speech are required before the class votes on their two representatives.

Last week, Lizzie made up this funny cheer, and she decided she wanted to put it on her poster. It goes like this:

"My name is Lizzie

(clap, clap)

My hair's so Frizzy

(clap, clap)
I am so busy

(clap, clap)

It makes me Dizzy!

(Clap, clap!)

Let's keep Lizzie Frizzy, Busy, and Dizzy. Lizzie Stewart for Student Council"

Lizzie had the idea to take pictures of her jumping on the trampoline to make her hair look frizzy. Then we put four of them on her poster. Here's my favorite shot.

Good Luck, Lizzie!

UPDATE: Lizzie and her friend Nicolette were both voted in as class reps! Yeah!

The Lizzie Coat of Arms

Lizzie is the Star Student of the Week! She was chosen for demonstrating the Life Skill of Caring. She gets to have lunch with the Principal, show a special talent, and she got to make a Personal Coat of Arms! Here's her collage she put together of all the things she likes:
But, you know, Lizzie is our Star every week. :)

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!!!!

What an EXCITING morning we had! Lizzie and Eli were up at the crack of dawn, so excited to get ready to go back to school.
Honestly, Eli has been waiting for this day since Lizzie went to Kindergarten 3 years ago. At that time, we lived in Connecticut and a bus came to pick her up. Eli kept asking all morning, "When does my bus come to pick ME up???" So, sorry Eli, no bus! But we did get to walk to school as a family this morning!
I'm glad Lizzie will be there to watch out for her little bro.
And he's off! In he went, without a look backward, and barely a good-bye.
So, we went to get Lizzie situated in her line-up outside. She looks ready for third grade, don't ya think?!
And Mrs. Kennedy let the parents come in to say good-bye and take a class picture. Does that boy look happy to start this long road of public education, or what?They had a breakfast for the parents in the multi-purpose room - what a treat! I'm glad to be back to school!