Grandpa Primmer

Loren "Dean" Primmer was born on October 21, 1923 in Montrose, Colorado and ascended to his Father's side on August 29, 2009 at home in Cedar City, Utah. Dean joined the United States Marine Corps on November 18, 1942 and served until the end of World War II. He was discharged on February 1, 1946 with the rank of Sergeant. After the war Dean went to work for R.B. Wilson Trucking Company in Denver, Colorado. He married Mildred Irene Roatcap on June 2, 1946. They moved to Lander, Wyoming in July 1958 where he worked as an independent trucker until 1966 when he went to work for United States Steel at the Atlantic City Mine. Divorced in 1973, Dean subsequently met and married Elayne Heyborne on August 22, 1974. They moved to Cedar City in 1990. Dean is survived by his wife Elayne, six children, nineteen grandchildren, and 23 great-grandchildren.

Funeral services will be held on Tuesday September 1, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. at the Rock Church located on 75 East Center Street. A visitation will be held an hour prior to the service at the Rock Church. Interment will be in the Cedar City Cemetery. Online condolences can be sent at http://www.southernutahmortuary.com/.

(Grace, Hattie, and Great-Grandpa, July 2008)

watch your fingers!

Like your mom always says...

Poor Gracie. The day after she got her nose smashed at church she slammed her right index finger in the car door. We pulled up to karate and she saw her best friend, Eamon, pull up next to us. She was SO excited to see him that she jumped out of the car and slammed the door as hard and fast as she could. I was on the other side of the car and I saw her face as it closed. She got her finger. I ran to the other side and I had to open the door to get her finger out. OUCH. She was in hysterics. I didn't know what to do, go home or stay at karate w/beloved Eamon. Both would be bad for her.

Grace wanted to try to stay, so we went inside and ran the finger under some cold water and sent her into class. She couldn't stop crying though, so I pulled her out and held her for a minute. She kept saying "I want to stay, but my finger wants to go home" in muffled halted breaths.

So, we went home. In hind sight, I should have just taken her straight home and iced the poor thing. It was a pretty good slam. She caught it on the sides of her finger, not on the top and the swelling and bruising were there for a long time. Only thing is, the day after she slammed it she said it didn't hurt anymore. Anytime I asked her about it or touched it she said it was fine. This is the kid who will cry that her knee hurts for days if she gets a tiny scratch! So, I thought it was probably fine. Her doctor even saw it about a week later when we were in for a routine check up. Smashed fingers take a long time to heal, so we didn't worry about it and plunged into a crazy busy summer.

Sometime in the middle of one of our summer vacations in mid-July, I was trimming Grace's fingernails and this finger exploded in green pus as I picked it up to trim the nail (which was growing!) I couldn't believe what a bad mom I was to have let it get infected like that, but you really couldn't tell that it was that bad. She must have had a deep abcess. I vowed to take her straight to the doctor when we got home. In the mean time I soaked it and cleaned it up and by the time we got home, it was actually looking pretty good. So, I decided not to waste my time with a doc visit and quit worrying about it.

One week (end) later, it swelled up again with pus. Gross. What was I thinking not taking her in?! I get the stupid mom award for sure. We called our pediatrician's office who referred us straight to the ER because they thought we needed x-rays and possibly a drilled nail. X-rays were negative and the ER doc REFUSED to treat her. I could not believe it. He said he couldn't see any sign of infection. Hmmm... what is the red swelling, the yellow drainage, or the foul smell? Even the discharge papers he gave us said "come back if you have any of the following: ALL OF THE ABOVE!"

So, back to the pediatrician the next Monday. By now, there was a huge proud-flesh, tumor like thing coming out from underneath her cuticle that got bigger every day. After 2-3 weeks of unsuccessful antibiotic treatments from the pediatricians office, we got referred to a hand surgeon at Boston Children's Hospital.

Poor Gracie, she had to have surgery on Tuesday. They had to put her under general anesthesia (her first time) to do it. They removed her fingernail, cut out the thing (hypertrophic granuloma) and sewed her back up. She did not do well w/the anesthesia. It was simply horrible when she was waking back up. That is one of the hardest things I've ever had to watch. She was in so much pain and so confused. Finally, she did wake up all the way and things got much better.

Now, she's sporting a wrapped bandage on the whole hand/arm for a week. End of summer plans, have been totally wrecked. No swimming, horsey riding, or much outdoor stuff for her. Hopefully, she'll get a more manageable bandage in a week and can get back to her normal stuff.

We're just so thankful that she was able to go to horse camp with her cousin before all this went down and that we might even have it taken care of before school starts. We're also very thankful that we finally got some good treatment for the finger and that she is doing well. It's kind of an important finger, the right index finger, when you're right handed.

So, again, like your mom is always telling you: WATCH YOUR FINGERS!

cousins from Pittsburgh

Cousin Alec has been in Boston all summer on a scholarship to the Berklee College of Music. He is a jazz pianist and is really getting good. We've seen him here and there as he comes out to our house on weekends to do laundry and grab a Sunday dinner. I can't believe how much he's done on his own in Boston. The kids have loved seeing him this summer. He is so cute to play with them and always tries to do something to help me while he's here. You couldn't say that about too many 16 year old boys. (he'd be darn near perfect if we could teach him how to catch the train on time! :-) )

Clare came to join us last week as she flew in from her summer vacation in Utah. She's wanted to come and do horsey camp with us, and since she's 12 and proved to be a good helper at the barn last winter when she came for a trail ride, she was invited by Rita to be a counselor this summer.

I took the girls (MY Little Women) to Orchard House in Concord on Saturday. I have never actually been inside, so it was very interesting and exciting to finally get to see it. I love that book. Clare had never read it, so I bought her a copy. I hope she reads it!We started horse camp on Monday. Clare has learned so fast! I took her to the barn last Friday to show her what the counselors do, how to tack up horses and clean the barn so that she could do her counselor jobs this week. As of Monday morning, she was doing it all without much help, and by Tuesday, you couldn't tell the difference between her and the other much more seasoned riders we have at the barn who work as counselors. She also progressed in her riding at lightning speed this week. After only 4 lessons, she was riding Duncan 2 on her own at the trot.

I think I've created another horse addict. The Chapman family is going to be none too thrilled with me when all the girl cousins are begging parents to buy ponies and pay for riding lessons! (see, now if you'd all just come and live by me, problem would be solved.)

Brian, Wendy, and Jeremiah drove in last Saturday with their doggies, Argos and Helios, to join their teenagers at our house. We spent a wonderful day with them in Boston on Sunday as we went to see Alec perform and take in a few of the Boston sights. They are always awesome to hang out with. We love eating out with them. (thanks for taking us to dinner twice!)

(short snippet of Alec playing)

(little cousins running around a mine from WWI in the Boston Commons)(finally found the Make Way for Ducklings statue! couldn't find it last time we were in the Public Garden)

Grace and Hattie had a total blast this week. Grace and Jeremiah are fellow gaming buddies and spent lots of time comparing nintendo skills. The girls all had a wonderful time at the barn.

Grace also make giant leaps in her riding skills. After her week in Ponies Rule! she is also riding Tinkerbell at the trot all by herself. Her instructor this week was amazing and was so dedicated to helping Grace improve.

Hattie joined the Ponies Rule! kids when she could, but she was always left behind when they went off for their riding lessons. She didn't like that too much (you really can't enroll a 3 year old at riding camp!) So, we did our best to give her little pony rides here and there and then she got invited yesterday to play a few of the pony games on Peppe with Grace's team. She was so happy! I am also amazed at how self sufficient she is getting at the barn. She grooms, cleans stalls, washes ponies, and gets on and off "all by her own self."

Horse camp this week was mysterious and magical. The theme for the week was mystery week. On Monday, bandits stole the door to Tinkerbell's stall! Then, they stole Rita's stool, hat, and even a camper. They left a note that they would steal Tinkerbell on Friday if we didn't catch them. THANKFULLY, the kids caught the bandits just as they were about to swipe Tink from the field. Hattie was SO worried all week about Tinky's stall door. She was nearly in tears every day about it. I'm so thankful that we did find it on Friday after the bandits were caught!

We also had a Unicorn sighting at the barn. Our woods around the barn do have unicorns in them and you can sometimes spot evidence of a unicorn when you are out on a trail ride. Sally, the Unicorn, left a few notes, some silver hoof prints, and even some silver unicorn poop behind in the pony barn. (I thought unicorns had more mystical names? hmm... Sally it is then.) The kids squealed with delight each time evidence of her showed up. Grace was so caught up in this mystery since she has recently read a book about Unicorns. She proudly told the camp group that a unicorn has not been spotted since 1931. She has all of the facts. She cried on Friday when she couldn't take the unicorn shoe home from the pony barn.

We ended our crazy long week at the barn yesterday. We are completely, totally, and utterly exhausted. We spent about 8 hours a day there every day plus the getting up to pack lunches, lace up boots, gather swimming gear, and coming home to piles of dirty riding clothes, blistered feet, sore legs, and tired kids. It's the kind of happy tired that you are glad to experience once in a while, but you are also a tiny bit glad when it's over and you can get back to normal routines.

Today, we are putting Alec and Clare on a plane back home (parents, brother, and doggies left Thursday.) We'll miss our Pittsburgh family, but we're so glad they got to come and spend some time with us this summer.

(doggie cousins: Velvet, Shadow, Argos, Helios)

Phew, I guess our summer is just about over. School starts in 2 weeks, so I guess I'd better find those supply lists and see if my kids have any shoes that fit for fall! (was I supposed to go to some orientations or parents' meetings? hmmm....)

Cape Cod 2009

I think that Cape Cod is hands down my favorite place in New England. I have now been there 3 times thanks to wonderful invites from super cool friends. Whether it is winter or summer there, it is just a place where I feel like I can breathe. Maybe it's because I feel like I can see OUT and through the trees and into the wide open sandy beaches and water. I love all of it. Everything is so charming there. I love the sailboat masts, the old towns, the darling shops, and having absolutely no pressure to look like a California hottie in my swimming suit. People are pretty real here in Massachusetts! The cute little "Cape" houses are so quaint. Maybe I'm partial to them because that is the kind of house we have. I love our little house. So does Grace. If you don't know what a "Cape" is, it's basically like an old doll house. It has a main floor with bedrooms built into the attic space for a little second floor.

This trip to the cape was exceptionally relaxing and much needed. We pretty much beached it the entire time. Ok, we logged quite a few hours in the pool too because my little fishes just couldn't get enough swimming! They would go from ocean to pool and back all day if you'd let them.

(a little bucket of hermit crabs that Benjamin caught on a beach walk.)(Grace and Daddy playing some Star Wars on the beach in the moonlight with their new light sabers.)(after Linda and I spent hours building a sand castle last year only to have it immediately wrecked by the kids, we opted for a breakfast castle this year. the work to pleasure ratio was much improved! YUM!)

We also went to the Circus in the little town of Sandwich. I haven't been to a real Circus since I was a kid. It was pretty darn fun actually. I'm always amazed at the acrobatics and the juggling. Those are skills I will never hope to have.

Our grand outing this time was a whale watch. We went out on a huge ocean boat from Barnstable harbor, up through Cape Cod Bay and out a little ways into the open Atlantic. The ride was pretty choppy. Luckily, no one got sea sick. (queasy, but no one actually lost it.)

The whales were utterly amazing. I actually cried a little under my sunglasses. I have loved whales since I was in second grade and my "mean" teacher, Miss Rogers (she was actually from Boston! teaching in Lander, Wyoming of all places) got me hooked onto whales. I could jot a few memories about her too, but that would be too big of a tangent. There is just something majestic about an animal that big and graceful. I'm also astounded that the biggest whales live on some of the smallest food you could think of. We were told that they have done autopsies of dead whales and found arrowheads over 200 years old embedded in their blubber. They are living history. Some of them may have been here since the revolutionary war. That is crazy!
Well, we pulled up to a couple of humpback whales. At first, we just saw the rounds of their backs and spotted a couple of blows from the blow holes. I don't know why, but I kind of thought that might be it - that we would just watch them swim around the boat. Then, after quite a few minutes of waiting, one of them started to show off with a flipper flap. That was pretty cool. Then, nothing happened for a while, so the boat captain decided to seek out another group of whales. As soon as we pulled away from these two humpbacks, they started jumping out of the water with their whole bodies (breaching.) Everyone on the boat was shrieking, so the driver turned around to see if we could go back and catch some more action. Oh my goodness, they kept it up for quite a while. It was so hard to catch on camera or on video though. You weren't sure whether to keep watching through the lens and risk missing it with your own eyes, or whether to live in the moment and just watch it and forget the camera.
Grace and Hattie loved it. At first, Hattie refused to come to the side of the boat to see them, but she finally agreed and I think she was pretty happy about her decision.

Our favorite part of our two summers on the cape now, is spending time with our friends, the Dotys. They are totally amazing hosts. Our kids love playing with Benjamin and Jack (ok, after about 3.5 days, Benjamin and Grace have a war over who is the alpha child.) But, really, you couldn't hang out with finer folks.

Every time I go, I come home and try to figure out how I could live on the cape year round. It boils down to impossible considering David would be over 2 hours from work and my bank account just isn't as big as the Kennedys'. But, one can dream!

(babe, if you want to write more and throw in some more pics, be my guest...)

Wally World it up

And, we finally did it. We took the kids on a theme park, amusement ride, good ol' American summer vacation last weekend. We didn't end up at Disneyland like I've been trying to get in the works for over a year now, but we had a great little tour of northern New Hampshire and all it has to offer in the way of kiddie fun.
We also checked off 2 other things from our "need to do" list. 1 - take the kids camping on the East Coast (take them camping at all - Hattie has never been.) 2 - Grace has been lamenting that she has never stayed in a real hotel. Oh, poor thing, she's stayed in ski condo's, beach houses, and the sort, but never in a regular hotel room. I'm playing a tiny violin for her sad story.

For amusement park fun, NH has a couple of REALLY nice places for the 2-12 year-old crowd. Storyland and Santa's Village were both super fun, nice, and relaxed, and perfect for our kids and their interests. I think I liked Santa's Village the most. Who can resist Christmas everywhere you look on a nice day in July? Christmas music playing, a barn filled with Santa's reindeer, and even the Jolly Old Elf, himself made for a pretty fun day.

Camping around here is, well, not like the camping David and I really like to do in Utah where you can get away from everything and everyone up in the mountains. But, we found a campground right next to Storyland complete with flushing toilets, showers, and a swimming pool. I decided trading peace and quiet for a flusher was worth it - especially with 2 girls, one newly potty trained! It was actually pretty nice when we pulled in and seemed very clean. Not too shabby. So, we pitched our tent, hooked up the camping stove, and settled in for a night under the stars (well, under the tree canopy anyway.)

(Day 1 - dry tent, happy girls)

THEN, came the second night. We came back from a day of fun at Storyland and pulled into the campground to find a complete assortment of New Hampshire's "finest", um, red-necks (what's the politically correct term here?) The once really clean bathrooms and showers were now, well, disgusting, after the volume of new people using them. The crowd that had gathered in the neighboring tent site was delightful fun, full of Metallica blaring, beer drinking, kids. Sweet. Nice place to put your little girls to sleep.(Day 2 - roasting weinies in the rain)

It started raining too, rained all night. We woke up in a very moist tent full of water, and wet towels and swimming suits that we had hoped would dry hanging up in the tent. Ya right. Still, we pressed on.

Grace wouldn't get out of bed all morning. We thought she was pouting. She was homesick and not happy with the tent situation anymore. We finally rolled her out of bed and threw her in the car to head to Santa's Village. On the way out of the tent site, she said "mom, I need to vomit." Lovely. We got out of the car quick and sure enough... It didn't end there. She was sick ALL day at Santa's Village, ran a 103 fever. We pushed her around in the stroller all day, but she basically missed everything. I felt so bad. She LOVES Christmas and everything that goes with it. She would have had such a great time there.

What to do? Pack up and go home? Sleep in a wet tent with a vomiting child next to the party crowd? I didn't actually say anything about it, not wanting to crush David's camping spirit. On his own, he said "why don't you call the Attitash ski resort and see if we can stay there tonight." Are you kidding? Did he really say that? YES! He CAN read my mind after nearly 12 years of marriage. AND, he agreed with me! I didn't waste any time calling and quickly made the reservation before he could change his mind.

So, we doubled the total cost of the trip and checked into civilization. As we pulled up to the pretty yuppie place, WE felt like the red-necks with our packed-to-the-gills subaru station wagon, mismatched duffle bags, camping gear, stuff strapped to the top of the car, grocery sacs full of wet crap, and sporting our classy camping fashion. Good thing we were still in New England where no one really cares what you look like 99% of the time.

We prayed that Grace only had a 24 hour bug and would be healthy the next day. David even gave her a blessing. In good faith, we bought tickets to do the alpine slide at Attitash for the next day. Little did we know that we had actually bought day passes to their entire resort which also included a water park, ski lift rides, and bungy trampoline.

(Hattie and I don't look too happy here because for the 1/2 hour ride up the lift, I spent the whole time trying to keep her from dropping something or squirming out of the chair. It was torture!)

Miraculously, Grace DID wake up the next morning feeling 100% better and we were all able to have a blast for the rest of our salvaged trip. And, Grace got her hotel wish!

I do feel bad that David didn't get to camp the whole time and he missed out on driving to the top of Mount Washington, but we did see it from our view at the top of Mount Attitash :-) I'm so grateful to have such a nice hubby and super dad that he let us wimpy girls crash in a hotel when the camping got iffy. I would have been fine if all the days were like the first day, but seriously.

Our list of favorite things:

1- Bamboo Chutes (log flume ride) at Storyland
2- Yule Log (log flume ride) at Santa's Village
(can I just say that Hattie went on these over and over and over and finally asked if we could just put one in our back-yard! the kid LOVED it!)
3- beautiful flower gardens at both parks
4- super darling themes for the rides and attractions at both parks

(Grace and Hattie in the 3 bears' house. I always call them my Goldilocks!)

(Princess Hattie and her Prince Charming sitting in Cinderella's Pumpkin Coach)

5- getting to meet all of Santa's reindeer
6- riding the longest Alpine slide in North America. I didn't know it was the longest one, but when we got off, I said "wow, that was a really long Alpine slide" and David said "duh."
7- the circus at Storyland, cool magic tricks and performing house cats!

A strange trip to SLC.

I just got back from a short, 3 day trip to Salt Lake. I feel super lucky that I got to go. I didn't have any Utah trips planned for the summer and was starting to feel really itchy to go back. The reason for the trip, was unfortunately, a sad one. As you can tell from my last post, my Grandpa died last week and I miraculously made the trip for the funeral. I did not take very many pictures, so I don't have lots to share that way. I wish I had taken more.

The spectrum of strange started with buying a single ticket for me to go. David really wanted to go, and I would have loved to have taken my girls, but last minute flights over the 4th of July weekend were just too outrageous to buy one of them, let alone 4. David was extremely generous and still urged me to buy a ticket for myself and took time off work to stay home with the kids while I went. That was strange number two (for all of us!) I have NEVER left Hattie overnight before, and the only time I've ever left Grace was when we came to Boston to look for houses and I left her with my mom for a week when she was two. I vowed that I would never travel without them until they were more grown up, but there I was with one plane ticket.

Strange number three: going into the airport alone, not checking any bags, going through security without 4 carry-ons, liquid to declare, a stroller, and 3 pairs of shoes to get off and on, sitting in the airport terminal by myself. CRAZY! I was so bored and lonely. I had no one to take potty, no one to chase, no one to beg me to buy expensive stuff in lame shops, and expensive food that wouldn't get eaten. WEIRD.

Strange number four: you can see where this is going! Being on an airplane by myself with no spilled juice, lost crayons under the seat, fighting over the movie for the DVD player, kicking each other, fighting for the window seat. Well, it was just a bit too much! I watched MTV (and Michael Jackson stuff on CNN) for hours straight thanks to the cool tv's on jetblue (not sure if that is good or not.) Haven't done that since high school.

Strange number five: staying with my sister, Melissa (and not my mom like I always do) and getting to spend quality time with my niece and nephew. I have never really gotten to know them well because I already had my own kids to chase by the time they came along and I had already moved to Boston too. I loved spending time with those little stinkers! I hope they know their Aunt Shell better now too. I was especially happy to see little Kate. She broke her leg a couple of weeks ago and I had wished I could go and hold her and help Melissa a bit. I didn't go anywhere much except Melissa's house and it felt great to just hang with her for a few days.The funeral: It was strangely good too. I haven't been to tons of funerals, but I've been to my share. It was really nice to sit and listen to stories of my Grandpa that I had never heard. (He has been my Grandpa since I was about 6 years old. My Dad's dad died when I was only 3 and I am the oldest grand-child, so no one really remembers anyone in the Grandpa spot except Grandpa Hal.) His sons and 2 of my cousins did an amazing job of speaking and singing. Luckily, I got out of speaking at the last minute and only had to say one of the prayers. Strange number five: sitting in church with my ENTIRE family. All of my sisters, my parents, most of my cousins, all of my uncles. That has probably never happened before, and may never happen again. I joked a few times that I have reached the point in my life where I am unlikely to see all my family except at weddings and funerals and since I haven't made it to the last 3 weddings, I really need to go to the funerals.

Everyone keeps asking if this was an unexpected death and if we are all doing ok. I should say that Grandpa was 92 and had cancer here and there for a couple of years. So, unexpected, really isn't the right word. He did go kind of suddenly. We thought he would last a few months longer and he was only really super sick for a couple of days. I do feel really badly for Grandma. She's not taking it well and has been left with quite a few details to take care of with his cable supply business and his sheep farm. He worked until the week he died. He lived a really healthy, productive, full life, so there isn't much tragedy to it. Except, again, Grandma, who has now buried two husbands and has quite a bit of time left alone in her life thanks to her younger age, good health, and lots of longevity in her genes. I also feel bad for my dad and his brothers who are again left without any sort of father.

Well, it isn't strange to be home, that's for sure. All the normalcy you could want is here. Plenty of chores, work, refereeing, and all the usual things were here and waiting for me. David will have to blog about what he did with the girls while I was gone. Apparently, he gets the award for super dad this week!

Grandpa Hal

no time for blogging today, but I want to at least post this:

Harold Schofield "Hal" Coleman
Harold "Hal" Schofield Coleman 1917 ~ 2009 Harold Schofield Coleman passed away peacefully June 29, 2009 surrounded by his wife and family who dearly loved him. Hal was born March 24, 1917 to Irene Schofield and Charles W. Coleman. He graduated from the University of Utah in 1940 as an Electrical Engineer. In 1940, married in the Salt Lake Temple to Rose Kathleen Halling, who preceded him in death in 1946. Married Amy Tift in 1953, later divorced. Hal married Pearlie Mitchell in 1982 and they shared 27 wonderful years together. Hal worked for General Cable back East for many years before returning to Salt Lake City to open his own business, Coleman's, in 1976. Hal loved his sheep farm in Fillmore and was a gardener extraordinaire. An active member of the LDS Church, he served many positions including a service mission with Pearlie. Survived by his wife Pearlie; sister Gloria Baker; sons Steve (Kathleen), Brian, Mark and Tom (Stephanie); step-sons Louis (Cece), Lyle (Debbie), Kurtis (JoAnn) and Randy; 15 grandchildren; and 11 great-grand-children. Funeral services will be held Monday, July 6 at noon at the East Millcreek 2nd Ward, 3750 S. Hillside Lane, Salt Lake City, UT. A viewing will be held at Wasatch Lawn Mortuary, 3401 S. Highland Drive, on Sunday, July 5 from 5:00-7:00 p.m. and also on Monday prior to the services at the church at 10:45 a.m. Interment at Wasatch Lawn Cemetery.

I'm headed to the Salt Lake for the funeral this weekend. More later. Love to Grandma Pearlie.

a fond farewell to kindergarten

(Grace and some of her friends building blocks on their school fieldtrip.)

Poor Grace. School is over for the year. She LOVES school. She thrives at school. She wants to go, every day. She cries real tears when there is a snow day. She is bummed that the weekend is coming. She says "thank you for going to school today" every night in her prayers. She also HATES change.

Now, truthfully, she did have a bit of anxiety at first this year. She was scared to ride the bus, and I think she worried about school too. She was diagnosed with some speech problems and had to go get extra help. There was something strange going on at the playground that she never would really tell me about. She developed a nail biting habit that was pretty bad. But, sometime around Christmas, she suddenly quit doing it one day and school has been a haven for her ever since.

This year, she made her first real friends. She has a few friends at church and a few at the barn, and she had a few little friends in pre-school, but she's never had true friends to play with on a regular basis. She's never had friends that she thinks about every day and who think about her. She's never done many playdates (partly due to her mother.) But, this year, she finally made some good friends, especially her friend Eamon. She and Eamon started the year making pictures for each other at school. Then they started playing at each other's houses. When Grace's dance teacher suddenly disappeared, she asked to go to karate with Eamon and they have been fast friends (and fellow warriors) ever since! I have to admit I also got a friend out of it. Eamon's mom, Annelie, is so cool and so nice. We've gotten along famously too.

(Grace and Eamon painting their own faces on the kindergarten field trip.)

Grace has also loved her kindergarten teacher. As a former teacher myself, I had to learn quickly to stand back and not judge my own child's teacher against my own teaching standards. At first, I had such an impulse to question so many things, especially after my first time volunteering in the class, but I really did swallow down the urge and stay away from it. (what do I know about teaching kindergarten anyway? I taught chemistry in a high school!) I remembered how much I valued parent trust in my own classroom and decided unless I had a glaring reason to interfere that I should just stay out of the way and support her in any way that I could. I'm so glad I did too. Even though I still might not agree with some of the classroom philosophy, (which might have more to do with the school and the town we live in than the teacher anyway), Grace's teacher turned out to be a really super fantastic kindergarten teacher. She was funny and serious and strict and easy-going at all the right places. She watched out for Grace and helped her through all the rough patches, and she advocated for her speech therapy and did everything she could to help Grace feel comfortable reading outloud (a real struggle for us.)

So, the last day of kindergarten was not bitter sweet. It was just plain bitter for her. She was the only one NOT celebrating the last day of school. All her other friends were totally happy. She doesn't want to change into a first grader. (although, she wants to keep going to school AND she wants to go ALL DAY.) She wants to be in kindergarten forever. She got off the bus on the last day and burst into tears. She sobbed for 45 minutes and then cried herself to sleep that night too.

(getting ready for the kindergarten song day celebration, 2 songs, 30 minutes!)

Well, like it or not, kindergarten IS over. I actually can't believe that summer has begun, finally, on JUNE 24th?! We don't have much of summer left and we would really like the sun to come out now, please?.