Rix Survived Kindergarten!

Or should I say Kindergarten survived Rix?

Rix finished kindergarten last week. At first he was excited for the last day of school. He was tired of getting up early (something he struggled with all year!). He would say almost every morning that he wasn't going to school that day because he was too tired. Isn't this stuff supposed to start in high school? He was also excited for summer break and the chance to stay home and do things with his brothers.

But, alas, he is naive.

Literally, the minute we drove out of the school on his last day he said quietly, "I already miss my friends."

It was so cute. But lucky for him his birthday party is this Friday, and some of his friends are coming!

Anyway, he had an amazing kindergarten teacher. Her name was Ms. Faughender (pronounced Fonder). She was so good for Rix! He can be difficult at times, super competitive, and he has this quirk that he always thinks he is right (even though most the time he isn't!). She was so patient with him and really helped him learn that he doesn't always have to be first, or the winner, or the one in charge. She found his quirks to be humorous, which has helped me embrace Rix's personality as who he is instead of something I should try to change. We love her and are going to miss her next year!

Rix's school doesn't do a Kindergarten Graduation or anything like that, so we just picked up him and Olivia like we always did. They are wearing their "graduation hats" which said things like "Here I come 1st Grade!" and other fun stuff. Ms. Faughender also made them scrapbooks, which they are holding, which shows how they progressed throughout the year with things like drawing, handwriting, and their personality. For our teacher gift, Carissa and I bought a fern and placed paper flowers on dowels, which we stuck in the plant. Rix and Olivia each wrote their favorite thing about Ms. Faughender on a flower, and then we wrote on the middle flower "Thanks for helping us grow!". Then on the back of each flower we taped fun gift cards for her. It was fun to make, personal, and easy! You can see her holding it, but it's backwards in the picture.

Another awesome thing about Park Lodge? Nana is the secretary! Rix got to see her everyday and say hi, mooch quarters for the pencil machine, and get treats. It was nice having Nana there because she always knows what is going on, so all I had to do was call and ask! And if I was running late she would hold Rix and Olivia in the office until I got there. Having Nana there makes going to school so fun, and Rix won't go anywhere else because Nana won't be there!

Here are some things about Rix's kindergarten year, which will go in his school book when I get around to making it someday:

His favorite color: Green

Best Friend: Ethan Nimmo & Nathan

What to you want to be when you grow up: A Dad

Favorite Subject: Recess and Science

Least Favorite Subject: Doing work

Funny Story: I got an email from Ms. Faughender that said Rix really thought he needed to go to ESL classes (like English as a Second Language, for students who speak Spanish). He wanted to go so bad that he started counting in Spanish to her. Little did he know they don't speak Spanish in ESL. They speak English because they are teaching the students, well, English! He was pretty bummed.

Funny Story: Rix and Olivia get along like brother and sister. Or married people. Or enemies. They push each other's buttons like you wouldn't believe! Well Olivia knows that Rix hates being called Rixy. So of course, she calls him that. Rix got so mad he called her stupid. Yikes! Well Ms. Faughender didn't like that, so she told Rix he couldn't call kids names that their parent's wouldn't say (like stupid). So Rix (I don't know where he got this) called her Bolivia. Just to make her mad. Rixy and Bolivia sitting in a tree...pushing each other off it. Thank heavens they are in separate first grades next year!

Now that First Grade is a couple months away, Rix is getting excited. In fact, most sentences that come out of his mouth end in "because I'm a first grader now." Bring it on First Grade. Bring it on!