Wednesday, October 31, 2012

HURRAY VERONICA!!!

Hello Everyone!

Veronica's first 9 weeks of school ended very well! Since the last update we have had lots of firsts!

On October 19th Veronica brought home her first report card and school photos! The report card is graded as follows:

(4) Meets and applies expectations/standards independently
(3) Meets and applies expectations/standards with support
(2) Does not meet expectations/standards; shows growth with additional support

Veronica received a few 4's and 2's but mainly 3's. Her report card did specify that she was below grade level in reading and math but that was of no surprise. To be honest, her report card was better than i had expected. There was a place designated for teacher's comments and Mrs. Solomons was very encouraging for me:

"Veronica is a sweet and caring young lady and a pleasure to have in my class! She is a well-adjusted student and gets along well with her classmates. She has made allot of progress in the past nine weeks. You have done a great job of working with her at home and it shows. She is currently below where expected for this time of year in reading and math, but i expect she will continue to progress and catch up quickly. She loves to write/draw when we journal and does a great job every time. If you like, you may schedule a conference and we can discuss her progress in more detail. Thank you for all of your help in the classroom. Keep up the hard work, Veronica!"

In addition to her better than expected report card Veronica received an award on October 24th! That's right! Veronica received an award for Caring. She was originally set to receive an award for writing but was instead chosen for the Caring Character Award. Mrs. Solomon said that Veronica was the first person that came to mind when she had to pick a student. Veronica was unsure as to how and act and was reluctant to smile. In addition to that my camera didn't seem to want to take any decent pictures!

The awards ceremony had been held during school and early in the morning. I still wish they had held it after school so that more of her family could have made it. It also would have enabled me to bring her flowers and take her to dinner in celebration. Oh well, I'm just tickled pink she is doing so amazingly well!

On October 25th Veronica had her very first field trip. Oak Park Elementary is located right across the street from a local church that hosts an annual pumpkin patch. Her class got to walk over and buy pumpkins. She was so excited and must have asked me for days and days before hand that i give her the "moneys" because she HAD to buy a pumpkin.

This week at school is Red Ribbon Week for drug awareness. They have had allot of fun activities like bringing stuffed animals to school for "hugs not drugs" and hats and sunglasses because they are "too cool for drugs". Veronica is definitely having a blast with all the new experiences school has to offer.
Next week her class will be starting computer lab and I cant wait to hear what stories she has to tell us.

Well, this is all I have for now. Thank you everyone for your love and support. We miss you all!

Love,
Alanna and Veronica

Sunday, October 14, 2012

First Nine Weeks!

I wish I had started this on day one. Oh, Well! Veronica is officially 9 weeks into her first year of school ...::drumroll::... KINDERGARTEN!

It is definitly a crazy feeling to see her in the same school i grew up going to! She started the year with a subsitute, Ms. Briggs and now has her official teacher, Mrs. Solomon.

Since the begining of the year we have done alot and I feel I have grown alot as a mother. Veronica is learning so much. She started out at a disadvantage because of having never been in day care or pre-k. She has alot of catching up to do and I am trying very hard to help her get there.

Life has changed alot for us. With me working at Ace now and having Doug (my amazing boyfriend) to help with everything I have alot more time for V.  Monday through Friday is school (...and early mornings!) I have off on Mondays so I have started volunteering at school. On Wednesdays I close and we walk the 1.3 miles to school together. Every other Wednesday is floor night so I dont go into work untill 2:00 p.m., on these days I also volunteer. Wednesday after school Veronica goes to the Good News Club (its like a sunday school in the cafeteria). Fridays her Dad or Bella (her grandmother) pick her up and she spends the weekend with them. I pick her up on either Saturday nights or early Sunday morning. Sundays is our no excuse family day, which is usually spent fishing!

My house is changing too. My antique look is being replaced with artwork, school stuff, homework aids, newsletters and calendars.
My dining room post first nine weeks is imposible to keep clear of school clutter. It seems to be the collect all of her school work, homework, backpack, lunchbox and shoes!

On October 2, 2012 Veronica had her first school picture day! She seemed to be the only child in her class as dolled up as I had her. Picture day happened to fall on P.E. day so she had to wear tennis shoes but she still looked cute as a button.
Their pictures were taken around 9:15a.m. (school starts at 8:00a.m.) so hopefully her hair stayed curled and pretty. I was worried about the condition her dress would be in at the end of the day but luckily, to my suprise, her dress made it through the day without any stains, rips or damage.

On October 5, 2012 Veronica had her first school social which was an ice cream party put on by the PTO. They performed a song for the parents and ate ice cream. She had a blast playing with her classmates and looked too cute up on that stage. She got put behind a couple of boys but she still pushed through to the front!  I will upload a link to the video of her performance later! :)

Her first report card will arrive on October 18th. It is just so crazy to think she is already a quarter of her way through her first year of school.

Well, I think this is probably enough for now. Stay logged in for new updates. We love you all and for those of you who we dont see very often we miss you bunches!