trunk or treat

I expected to go without Halloween while we are in England as it wasn't much of holiday when we were here last.  Things have changed.  Pumpkins were for sale in all the grocery stores along with decorations, party favors, and specially packaged candy.  We had small groups of children trick or treating in our neighborhood.  None came to our flat, but most of the people living in our complex are retired, so it doesn't draw children celebrating this American party.  We didn't go out on the 31st because our school held a party for Halloween the next night, which was better for us since it was Friday with no school the next day.

I didn't even have to ask Tim to pose for this picture.  I think he likes Halloween as much I like it.

He had a mask that he wore for a good part of the night.  I remember mine from childhood.  It restricted my sight and got hot and humid very quickly.  I applaud him for wearing it so long.  He's the red Power Ranger.  The gold design on the front has small lights that flash.  I don't remember if I played in my Halloween costumes, but I know he'll get months, possibly years of play out of this.

The Halloween celebrations a school started with a parade of the Pre-K and Kindergarten children dressed in their costumes around the grounds.  I had to teach so I didn't get to see it, but I was told that Tim kept in Power Ranger character unless a camera was pointed at him in which case he would lift up his mask and pull a face.  Most of the rest of his day was spent eating cakes and playing games, I think.

After school, we walked to the pub for a quick bite before returning for the real event.  Parents had decorated the  trunks of their cars with skeletons, spider webs, monsters, witches, etc.  Some of them were themed, and all of them were impressive.  The kids went from car to car to get their candy.  After that, we went to the old gym where there were carnival games and bouncy castles.  We didn't go to the haunted house, put on by the high school drama department.  Apparently, it's terrifying.  The students get a grade from their drama teacher.

the farm show

Tim's class put on their first program of the year called The Farm Show.  This was the culmination of all the learning they have had thus far, starting with the Little Red Hen and included Johnny Appleseed and a trip to Garsons Farm, a local vegetable farm where they got to pick and keep a pumpkin.

The parents were invited, and I luckily didn't have a class, so I was able to attend and enjoy the performance and the pumpkin cake that they made the day before.  Tim served it to me.

This is Ruby and Jack welcoming the guests.

"All Around the Kitchen" is a new song for us.

This is the "glue dance" in which they are to pretend their feet are glued to the floor.

This is what we know about the farm.

This is what Tim knows about the farm.

It wouldn't be a farm show if we didn't have Old MacDonald.

This is Tim's class.  The woman behind Tim is his head teacher Mrs. Dunkley.  The woman on the right is Ms. Hylands who is with the class full time as Mrs. Dunkley's assistant.  There is usually a third adult with them.

On Tim's right is Jack.  His father and mother teach at the high school, and we are becoming friends.  Mom teaches English and Dad teaches science.  On Tim's left is Nathaniel, his nemesis.  Nathaniel has never been in school before, so he is learning a lot about group behavior.  Next to Nathaniel is Daniel.  His mother and I started work this year and got to know each other in all the new teacher meetings at the beginning of the year.  She teaches science and her husband teaches math at the middle school.  Tim and Daniel are current best friends.

Those are the major players in his class life right now, so I won't bother with the names of the others - not that I know all of them.  He has little to say about the girls.  Ruby is in the middle to Tim's far left.  Her mother and father teach at the school as well, but I don't know them other than to say hello and nod.

learning to read - the beginning

Tim is learning to read, and we are very excited.  This such a special, wonderful time in our lives, especially regarding his education.  I love how obvious what he is doing in school is because it just pours out of him spontaneously in song, noticing rhyming words, sounding out letters he sees on signs, in conversations he has with himself, and best of all the things that he voluntarily tells us about his day.  I don't have to say a word about school, and within minutes of collecting him at the end of the day, he's telling me about something that happened or something he learned or something that is going to happen.  I can't help but compare him to my own students.  I'm sure none of them go home talking about how an author creates mood in a short story.

kindergarten

in the garden waiting for the bus

mom's first day with students.  we ride the bus to school together

on the sidewalk just outside our flat and in front of the bus stop.  very convenient

on the bus. he's walked this route several times with dad to get to the grocery store.  so much faster on the bus!

outside the kindergarten building.  the two windows on the ground floor are his classroom.

these boys were playing when we arrived and tim joined them as soon as his jacket was off and his teacher had told him welcome and turned to the next child.  no tears, no clinging, no drama - from either of us.  The blonde boy on the floor is the child of one of my colleagues, kate, who i also consider a friend.

the room has a wonderful atmosphere

I planned to wake Tim at 06:30 to give him enough time to be ready for the bus at 07:15, but he came into our room just after 06:00 and asked if it was tomorrow yet because the last thing we'd talked about last night was that he'd get to start school tomorrow.  He has been ready to start since we moved into the flat, hungry for playmates and thirsty to learn.  The other day he wanted to know when he was going to learn about science.  

His teacher is a thirty year veteran name Annie Dunkley.  The kids have been instructed to call her Miss Annie.  When Paul collected Tim at noon today (half days all this week then full days from next Monday), she said, "He is such a sweet boy."  We know him well enough now to not be surprised by this, but it's still wonderful to hear.

Tim put himself to bed tonight.  We're all looking forward to tomorrow and another day of discovery.

gran and grand-da time

Getting Tim to pose for a photo these days without him pulling a face is a real chore.  Jenny managed to get several very nice photos of your little man.

with the swing at our neighbor addie's house

in the backyard

at a local park on a very hot afternoon

playing rush hour with grand-da

captain america

so mature

a gift from gran and grand-da

tim is a master of imaginative play these days - most of it has to do with superheroes or armies

an expert camper

Everything about this trip was easy with Tim from the long drive to the time in the campsite to the walks.  

a lollipop from Gran

'T' for Tim

he enjoyed the water but was just as happy playing army and superhero games in the rocks beside the river.  his imagination has quadrupled in recent months.

tim really took a liking to our rented mini-van which had push button doors.  he and luke spent a great deal of their time playing in the car

he narrates the stories of the armies that he is playing with

this was his first treasure.  the second one he carried a mile down the path with only a little help from paul.  gran brought it on the bus with him and it almost came back home with us

a strong walker

Tim walked at least five miles up and down a mountain.  maybe the supeman shirt, which he didn't take off for 36 hours, helped.

The next morning he wanted his eggs and sausage in the pan like dad.

first golf lesson

Back when it was spring, sort of, Tim had two short golf lessons with the pro at Collindale Golf Course.  Paul gave up his lunch hour to take him to the lessons and spent his time chatting with the grandfather of one of Tim's classmates while they watched the three students.  The other two students, a boy and girl, both came with their own golf bags and three clubs, but Tim managed to keep pace with them despite his borrowed equipment.

he has his mother's balance issues, which I'm sure he'll fix before she does

The lesson started at the driving range, and then they got to take the a ride in the golf cart to the 9th hole where they played a game of scramble, using the best shot of the three to progress down the fairway.

oops

apparently the body language that comes with a disappointing putt is not learned but instinctive

He says he wants to take some more lessons, so when the 22 inches of snow has melted (it's already half gone), we'll get him back on the course and see if we can't turn this into a family affair in the future - for totally selfish reasons, of course.

swimming

Tim commands the entire pool  now.  He walks anywhere he wants for half of it, and makes his way around quite quickly in this car that we bought for him in Turkey in 2008.  It survived being driven over last summer, but the steering wheel had to be taped together.  It came off completely on this trip.  It's one of those impulse purchases that has served us well.

five

Tim has been waiting impatiently to turn five for at least three months.  During those months, he had a lot of questions about whether the things that he was able to do (running, jumping, counting, etc) were the kinds of things that only five-year-olds can do.  This is the first of his birthdays that I've actually wished would hurry and arrive.  The day after his birthday, he started asking if he was six yet.  Sigh.

He got to celebrate his birthday three times.  The first was at GG and Gramps's house on his actual birthday.  He got a lot of cool Scooby Doo stuff and a great big cake.  His second birthday celebration was with Gran, Grand-da and Melissa on Skype.  His final celebration was with his brother and four of his friends at home: JT, Bobby, Zach, Addie.

He requested car minicakes (again), but only Finn this time which made it much easier for me.

 opening gifts

handmade super hero costume

 super tim and batman

tim, jt, zach and addie (bobby not in picture)

an oddly quiet moment

first ski lessons

Tim took his first ski lessons recently and did very well.  We were fortunate to have nice weather, which makes skiing a far more pleasant activity.

Kitted out in his ski gear.

Students are instructed to make a pizza with their skis to control their speed.  Once they master this, they will be instructed to make french fries.  Is this contributing to Americas obesity?

Tim is riding the magic carpet to the top of the ski school 'hill.'

The magic carpet in action

This is Tim's class. He is to the left in the photo, standing next to a smaller child with a yellow vest and red helmet.

They put vests on the kids that have handles on them so that the instructors can pick them up by the handle when they fall down or when they need to have a quick course change.  I wouldn't mind falling so much if there was someone (a large crane) to pick me up each time.