It's a very short week to start, which is probably a good thing, since by Friday afternoon she was pretty wiped out. In anticipation of the start of school we were at ISB on Monday and Tuesday for different events.
Monday was a lunch, hosted by the embassy, to welcome new families and welcome back returning families. It was in the elementary cafeteria at ISB which is nice because it's air conditioned, but not so nice, because it's enclosed and the noise of all the people talking echoed, so it was hard to hear. The food was nothing special, but it was nice to see how many people turned out. Once the kids finished eating, the returning students led a migration to the playground. It was fun to hang out and watch all the kids play. I could tell Vivian was particularly excited to have so many friends to play with. It was hot though, so after a while we went to the library, and then headed home.
Tuesday afternoon was the big class list reveal. It feels kind of last minute, since it's essentially the day before school starts, but that's when they post class lists. They email them out, but they also physically post them in the grade level quads, so families gather around to see which teacher they got. You can then go and meet your teacher briefly. Vivian was really excited, because she got the teacher that two of her older friends had last year and really liked. We walked over to her classroom and said hello. Vivian looked around and (of course) immediately settled down to read through the classroom library. I've heard good things about the teacher as well, so I'm hoping for a great year.
Last week, Vivian was nervous about the start of school. She was being clingy and asking if I was going to bring her to school in the golf cart. After Monday and Tuesday though, her full confidence had returned, and she was just excited to get started. Wednesday was the queen's birthday and Thai mothers' day. It's a holiday for the embassy too, so Jeff was home, which was great. He's had a crazy work schedule lately, so we haven't seen him much. It was nice to just have a day to relax.
Thursday morning, the alarm didn't wake Vivian up, so I had to do it myself. She was groggy, but perked right up when she realized it was the first day of school. They've revised the bus routes, so we only have one bus for our street now, which makes a lot more sense. What doesn't make as much sense is that they pick up each kid at their own house, so the bus stops at our house and then drives to the house next door, and then turns around and stops at the house across the street, keeping in mind that "across the street" is a distance of 15-20 feet. It's kind of silly, but it's nice to have that security net in the morning knowing that it's pretty much impossible to miss the bus. With all her friends on the bus, Vivian's anxiety completely disappeared to the point where she just jumped on the bus and barely said good bye to me and Elena who were there to wave her off.
She was excited last year too, but it's nice for both of us to have the confidence that comes from returning to a known school. We haven't had that for the past couple years, since Kindergarten and 1st grade were both new schools. Now she knows how to navigate the campus, and I have a better idea of how to navigate all the options the school presents. It's nice too that I'm at a break between quarters, so I can really focus on getting both girls into their new routines. I'm excited to see what the school year will bring.
Yay, Vivi! I'm so proud of her, and so glad that she's getting to return to a place that's familiar AND that she got the good teacher! Hope she has a great first few days of school!
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