So Proud of my Kids

First, an accomplishment of Jared's:

The past three weeks Jared's Elementary School was having a reading competition to see if all the students in the school could read at least 555,555 minutes combined or something like that.  So Jared came home with little reading logs each week where we would write down how many minutes each day he read.  Well, a couple days ago I found out that he read the most minutes out of anyone in his class, so he was invited to a special lunch at Chick-Fil-A with the principal and other "top readers" from each grade!  (He didn't really read an extraordinary amount, I thought.  It was usually just 25-30 minutes a day, but sometimes more.)  Jared was soooooooooooooo excited when he brought home the invitation.  He got to go to school earlier than usual today (because he has pm kindergarten), then he got to ride a bus for the first time, and the school bought each child not only a kid's meal but also a hot fudge sundae!  He was in heaven and knew it was special.  He was also a good sport because I talked with him about not mentioning this special lunch to other kids in his class so they wouldn't feel bad that they didn't get to go.  Today when he was giving me the report he told me that he didn't tell anyone about his special field trip except his teacher, who specifically asked him how it went.  

(By the way, a quick brag on Jared: Last week was parent/teacher conferences and his teacher told me that when they tested Jared's reading skills he was at a "level 10" and that they like the kindergartners to be at a "level 3" by the end of the school year. He is one smart cookie!  But, we do have our own challenges at school, lest you think everything is easygoing.  Jared still has a long way to go with writing skills and also things like responding to authority. Jared likes to follow his own rules.  Ha ha.)

An accomplishment of Maggie's:

She is doing so well with potty training!  I like to just "rip off the bandaid" and take away diapers completely.   Today was day 7 of wearing underwear.  The first couple of days were pretty rough, but then she hasn't peed in her underwear at all since day 2 or pooped in her underwear since day 3!  Not a single accident! (OK, she wet the bed during her nap today, but I think it's because she took an extra long nap.  She is also still in a pull-up--"nighttime underwear"--at night. I think I'm a failure at nighttime potty training my kids.)  The best is that she initiates going potty herself; I don't have to ask her every 30 minutes to go like I feel like I had to do with Jared.  Sometimes she can go 2 hours or more before she tells me she needs to go.  The only place she has gone this past week was church, but I still don't feel ready to take her shopping with me or anything because sometimes she sounds pretty urgent.  Hopefully we'll be able to leave the house again soon.  

This is Maggie watching "Elmo's Potty Time" in our kitchen during the initial phase of potty training.  What an incredibly cheesy movie with cheesy songs, but both my kids have ADORED it, and I've even had a couple of neighbors borrow it from me to use with their kids.  Here is Maggie dancing to one of the songs.