33/52: First Day of School

I just can't. I can NOT. The series of pictures at the bottom of this post is KILLING ME. 

Last year I didn't bother with a "first day of school" post beyond this one (in which I recounted how horrible our first day was!), but this year I decided to do "school pictures" out by one of the maple trees in the yard, and the kids were ALL excited, even Peter!

Name: Peter Damian

Age: 21 months

Grade: Toddler

Most excited to: Color with crayons and NOT eat them

Future occupation: "Dive Dada car! Dive TUCK!" So... Truck driver? Chauffeur?

Name: Mary Claire

Age: 3 years, 9 months

Grade: Pre-K

Most excited to: Learn about ladybugs

Future occupation: "Just a grown-up! Or... *giggling* Maybe I'll be an air conditioning!!!"

Name: Elizabeth

Age: 3 years, 9 months

Grade: Pre-K

Most excited to: Learn more about birds

Future occupation: "I don't know..." John Paul whispers, "Do you want to be a lawyer with me?" "Yeah!!! A lawyer!"

Name: Cecilia Therese

Age: 5 years, 7 months

Grade: Kindergarten

Most excited to: Write in cursive

Future occupation: "I don't know... A mom?"

Name: John Paul

Age: 7 years, 1 month

Grade: 2nd

Most excited to: Learn about maps

Future occupation: "An electrician, a football player, I'll get my PhD in robotics, a dad, a lawyer (with the oldest son of one of the partners in Andrew's firm, although they've never discussed this...)."

Then we decided to take an all-school picture. John Paul insisted on age-order, which worked pretty well but Peter ran away after the first shot... 

Then I promised him a mini-wheat, and he came back.

So I had to take the pictures fast before he ran away again! 

Cecilia kept vamping, and it KILLS ME. This series of pictures is one that's gonna live on in Hill Family History, I think.

Yesterday John Paul buried some plastic gold medals in the garden, drew a treasure map, and dug them up right before we took pictures. That's why he and Cecilia are wearing them!

But don't ask me to explain why Mary Claire is hiking her jumper up higher and higher in each picture...

I *do* think it was good of her to wear a denim jumper, though - really, we wouldn't be a proper homeschooling family without at least ONE denim jumper in the picture!

And there you have it! The first day went swimmingly, and let's hope the rest of the year goes just as well!