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.