So Marissa...How Was Your First Day of Kindergarten?

-- She loves Minneapolis KIDS and playing with Lindsey with all the toys.
-- The zhu zhu pets at Minneapolis KIDS are the BEST.
-- The boringest part was the "bee" rules, which they reviewed in Mr. Carlson's class. "Bee" responsible, "bee" respectful, "bee" your best, etc. I hope she doesn't find following those rules "boring."
-- She doesn't like Mr. Carlson's class because she doesn't know anybody in it. (Keep in mind Mr. Carlson's class is her actual kindergarten curriculum -- if she didn't have working parents that's the only classroom she would be seeing right now.) But...she does like Mr. Carlson himself, so that's good.
-- She LOVED the media center (today's term for the library) and loved it when Mrs. Knight read the class a book.

Her one area of worry on her first day was the PIN system that they use for breakfasts and lunches. Each child has a PIN that they have to enter when they buy their lunch, and she was worried that she wouldn't know it. She used it twice her first day, at breakfast and at lunch (to buy a milk, she brought a lunch from home). One of the staff let me know that by lunch on her first day she had already memorized the PIN They asked if anyone knew their PIN and she, along with some 1st and 2nd graders, raised her hand. She got to go to the front of the line and used it with ease.

That's my girl!

On the other hand, she sat at the allergy table at lunch with her peanut butter sandwich. She understood that some kids at the table were allergic to peanuts, but she didn't think that included peanut butter, so she thought it was okay that she ate her peanut butter sandwich there. We tried to explain but the concept didn't really get through. We'll have to let the teachers know so they help her know where to sit. We certainly don't want her endangering other kids because she doesn't think that a peanut allergy and a peanut butter allergy are the same thing.

The really great news from my perspective is that throughout our long Labor Day weekend she is counting down the days until she goes back to Mr. Carlson's classroom. I'm thrilled that she's so excited.