Fast times and wild living with (the former) Baby Whozit…
Posted in Friends, Jessica, Kindergartener on Oct 22nd, 2012
Anyone besides me go to a school where roses were delivered on Valentine’s Day as a class fundraiser? Typically, one class or organization would arrange to sell roses with notes to be delivered to other students in class. They could be signed or anonymous, and the whole thing was supposed to be a wholesome, fun […]
Posted in Birthday Letter, Jessica, Kindergartener on Oct 16th, 2012
Dear Simon, Today, at long last, you are six. Not five, not five-and-a-half or five-and-three-quarters, not even five-and-eleven-twelfths or any of the other intervals you tracked this past year. Just six: exactly, perfectly six. Relish it, for tomorrow you will be six and one three-hundred-sixty-fifth, and the countdown to the next year will begin anew. […]
Posted in Jessica, Kindergartener on Oct 13th, 2012
Much as it was hard to say goodbye to KIP last year, I felt strongly that Simon needed to be somewhere with more boys for kindergarten. Lots more boys. I don’t think Simon ever had more than 2 other boys in class with him the entire time he was at KIP, meaning his friends were […]
Posted in Jessica, Kindergartener on Oct 10th, 2012
I’m back from a week-long hiatus. We had an out-of-town guest and spent some time in the Smokies off the grid. I now return to my regular programming. Unless things take a bad turn in a few years, Simon is on track to be better looking than either of his parents. (No offense, honey.) He’s […]
Posted in Jessica, Kindergartener on Oct 4th, 2012
For the most part, all the rules and restrictions that accompany kindergarten are not hard for Simon. He likes rules (maybe a little too much; no one likes the narc), and he finds it easy to follow them. Still, knowing that you have to eat a certain way, work a certain way, talk a certain […]
Posted in Jessica, Kindergartener on Sep 24th, 2012
At the tender age of 5 (and 11/12, as he likes to say), Simon has become disillusioned with me, with last week bringing about the shocking revelation (to him) that mommy doesn’t know everything. Or, in some instances, anything. Simon began Chinese classes at Brandeis (enrichment only—I’m expecting no real conversational skills) a couple of […]
Posted in Jessica, Kindergartener on Sep 19th, 2012
“Good news, Daddy. Homework!” Thus did Simon announce the inaugural homework assignment of his academic career. We’ll see if the enthusiasm carries over to next year or, indeed, next week. Mr. Sowder at Brandeis and Ms. Candy (the kindergarten teacher) at KIP have vastly different theories of homework. For Ms. Candy, homework is designed to […]
Posted in Jessica, Kindergartener, Simon says... on Sep 17th, 2012
Oh dear. So here’s the thing. Today is the first day of Rosh Hashanah. Well, right now it’s after sundown and therefore the second day of Rosh Hashanah, but you get the idea. In observance of the holiday, Simon and I went to synagogue services at Keneseth Israel. When I was a kid, Rosh Hashanah […]
Posted in Jessica, Kindergartener on Sep 13th, 2012
With a few minor hiccups, kindergarten was off to a very strong start in our house. According to Simon’s own reports, the bus ride was getting better once he and Gwyneth, a girl from our stop, started to sit together and the regular driver returned from his National Guard duty. His class was quieter than […]
Posted in Jessica, Kindergartener on Sep 9th, 2012
Once again, Simon and I are proving to have something in common I’d just assume we didn’t. Believe it or not, he’s starting to stress about his grades. Let me repeat that for a moment so it can sink in: Thirteen days into kindergarten, Simon is concerned that he gets mostly checks on his work […]