Weekend Wrap Up

Here's a rundown of the past few days...

Friday morning we woke up super early and were on the road shortly after 5:00am. Heading for Kelowna. For a very important and super special reason. Kindergarten Orientation! Some might feel it's frivolous to drive 4 hours one way to attend a one hour orientation session and then a 4 hour drive back home. But you know, we felt it was very important for Max to be able to check out his new school, classroom and meet his teachers and fellow classmates. As well, Keith and I wanted to to check out the school/teachers as well and find out more about the school he'll be attending. We're so glad we went. When we got there, Max received a paper crown with his name on it and some some "jewel" stickers that he stuck all around the crown. The children were introduced to the teachers, librarian and principal and then divided into two groups and off they went to the classrooms to experience kindergarten. For the hour they were gone, all the parents were in the gym being introduced to various administration and staff and receiving general information about the school. It's probably the same drill that goes on at all kindergarten orientation sessions across the country. It's a big Elementary School. They actually have two campuses. The primary side is for Kindergarten to Grade 3. Across the road is the elementary side for grades 4 to 7. Lots of students at this school. There are 4 kindergarten classes. Apparently it is the second biggest elementary school in the province. Eeeeek! That makes me a bit leery just hearing that fact. But it's a very sought after school with an excellent reputation so that's what I'm focusing on. There is a brand new elementary school being built with a scheduled open date of September 2009....they haven't defined the boundaries or catchments at this point. But there is a good chance that next year, based on where we will be living, Max will be transferring over to the new school. Guess we'll all have to see how it pans out. Regardless, we are all glad that we went to the orientation. Max really enjoyed it and on Saturday was asking if he could go to kindergarten today.

After orientation was over, we drove by our "new" house. It had a nice little "sold" sign on it so we had to take a little pic! Then we went out for lunch at East Side Mario's and relaxed before heading back on our 4 hour drive back home.

Saturday morning Keith went into work to catch up from taking the day off when we went over to Kelowna. Max and I went for a nice walk down to the village to pick up a few miscellaneous items and a few treats. He insisted on wearing his kindergarten crown everywhere we went. We got lots of smiles everywhere we went. I guess there's lots of worse things he could insist on wearing! In the afternoon Keith worked on the lawn and flowerbeds while I ran down to GardenWorks to pick up some veggie plants (tomatoes, peppers, spinach, onions) and flower plants to plant in our pots. Then our neighbours dropped by for an impromptu playdate and the rest of the afternoon was spent biking and scootering and playing soccer in the backyard.

Today (Sunday) we went to church in the morning. I was the scheduled helper for Max's Sunday School class. The kids were good as gold. The craft/snack combination involved making tabernacles with graham crackers, icing and candies to decorate. So we totally had their attention and they were so quiet and good as they were making and eating them. We did this at the end of class - I can only imagine what they were like after the parents picked them up though! Sugar High?!

This afternoon marked a big milestone for our little Max-Max. Guess who's riding a two wheeler now?! Keith took the training wheels off his bike, helped him on and in almost no time at all he was riding down the street on his own. A bit wobbly mind you. But totally has the concept down pat. We've figured he's been ready for a while because he's balancing and riding around on his scooter with no problem. Today we finally had some time to take the training wheels off and get him going. He's pretty pleased as punch with the whole thing too!

And without further ado, I'd better address the most important thing before signing off tonight. The 1 year blog-iversary draw! First of all - thanks to everyone who commented. I was truly amazed at all the comments! And so here's the deal. I've decided that everyone who's commented will be getting some goodies! :-) So sit tight - I'll try to get them mailed out this week. I think I have most of your addresses - except for Miriam (Julie's mama) and Michelle (Scrappinglife) and Jenn M. Can you guys please send me a quick email (jantzikp@shaw.ca)with your current addresses? Thanks Everyone!! Now aren't you glad you left a comment?!