Survivor: Summer Edition

Summer, alas, has ended, though fret not, it's still hot as chicken soup outside.

We got through the last couple days, barely. Donny came down with an illness which stubbornly refused to be strep (despite two tests) and is still lingering, Ariella got GLASSES and a cool haircut, and Yaakov informed me he will be playing "Lions" during mifgash (circle time) in gan this year. [Sigh.]

Both of the big kiddies had orientation - Ariella had a half-hour activity at school with her teacher and classmates (same teacher and kids as last year), and Yaakov's gan meeting was eerily similar to his gan meeting last year. That's because it WAS the same - his gan has a mix of first-timers (3 year olds) and old hats (4 year olds). So, if you didn't catch it last year, the meeting was "new for you," otherwise, same song, same book, same treat in the kids' drawers. Meanwhile, Yaakov was very excited all day to be reunited with his good friend Matan; he expresses this excitement by refusing to go near him at the meeting. Boys.

Yaakov's ganenet is finishing her maternity leave and isn't coming back until after Sukkot, though she was at the meeting. Maternity leave does not faze Yaakov. He is so used to teachers on maternity leave he wouldn't know what to do if a teacher wasn't pregnant. Last year, there were so many babies, he had subs for his subs. And when one of the teachers (in her mid-fifties) was absent one day, he confidently informed me, "She had a baby." Anyway, the sub seems nice, and has no discernible bump, so no worries

I displayed my cunning juggling skills at the meeting - sitting with Yaakov, making sure Nadav didn't fall asleep, and dealing with Ariella's I'm bored/I got hurt on the swing/I'm bored/Nitzan doesn't like my glasses/I'm bored issues. Luckily, the few times I dropped a ball (usually Nadav), my Tired friend was there to pick him up. (Yes folks, Tired and I have children in the same gan this year. Look for a Special Tandem Blogging posts throughout the year!)

But this morning, it really paid off having everyone "same same" as last year - no fights or crying or clinging at drop-off time! Please, please, please may it continue this way.