September 2008 Photos

The day of Zusha's orientation in cheider... playing in the park afterwards.






Funny boy Gedalya. Letting out his energy!


One of the very last times the kids played in the fountain for the season.


Playing in the park after cheider one day. Hopping up and down together! :D






I picked Zusha up one Sunday while Hillel stayed with Gedalya. One-on-one time is so valuable! It was so calm and pleasant. Zusha was happy, relaxed and not high-strung as usual.




This is one lucky grasshopper! I thought it was a brownish rolled up leaf on the ground and was about to run oven it with the stroller. When I decided to have a closer look! I picked him up and sat him on a nearby fence to get him out of the way of danger.


After cheider...


Our little park friend




Gedalya discovered an ant colony! He was fascinated.


And then, a friendly black cat came up to us and let the boys play with him.


Zusha draws a catterpillar while Gedalya proudly shows me how he bit the tip of the green marker. LOL


This is how boys play with strollers! :D


We found shoes for Zusha that are exactly like mine! He was so thrilled to have shoes like Mama.


Here's the friendly cat again.


We went on a trip to the bay. Of course, the Elmo rides are a mandatory stop!


There have been intense rains, and a large area of the bay-front was flooded.


An opportunity not to be missed!


Little boys being little boys!

Some More School Bus

Today I decided to send my little one on the school bus BOTH WAYS! He's been doing well with the trip to cheider, so we decided to give it a shot.
I have an appointment with Marcy tomorrow, and it was scheduled 3 weeks ago, with the assumption that Zusha would be coming by bus that day. So considering the time the appointment was scheduled, coming home by bus was the only option.
And I figured that I should give Zusha a "test run" one day in advance and not have to send him for the first time on a day that I really need to do so.

I prepped him in the morning, and he was really excited. I told him that the bus would come right to the house and I'll take him off just like I put him on.

Well... the poor kid came off the bus and burst into tears. :( He thought the bus on the way home would follow the same route as on the way to school. But it first went to the first stop, just like in the morning. And Zusha thought it was going the wrong way and that he won't get home. :(

He didn't cry on the bus, and he didn't approach the monitor with his concern. He just kept it all in, until I took him off. We went to the front steps and I hugged him and he cried.

I explained to him that it goes a different way in the morning and in the afternoon, and he shouldn't be scared. He calmed down soon enough and began telling me all the stores and landmarks he passed on his way home. :)

School Bus!!!

So he's off! Went like a pro. We got outside exactly one minute before the bus came. I didn't even have a chance to wait! Zusha seemed excited, and we came on to see that his last year's Rebbe was the bus monitor! YEAH!
I am so happy! He took him and helped him find a seat.

I'm only sending him by bus in the morning for now. I'll pick him up myself, probably for the entire week. What a huge, new milestone!

When I picked him up, the first thing Zusha told me was that he threw up on the bus. :( Poor thing. But then he went on to describe all the places and stores and parks he passed on the bus. I'm so happy he didn't cry! The bus director told me that the bus is way off schedule in the beginning because lots of kids cry. Zusha was excited to go!

And the highlight of the day was that Zusha finally got a sticker that he so much wanted- the bus label! He saw other kids getting them, and always wondered why not him. So today he got it, and all was good in the world!

Friday and Sunday in Cheider

Went very well! We all went on the city bus again in the morning. When I picked Zusha up, we stood outside and watched dismissal. I asked the bus drivers which bus is Zusha's and then showed it to him. We watched how the Rebbe sent the boys group by group to their buses. I offered him to go into the bus and take a look around. On Friday he refused, but on Sunday he did agree to run in for a second.

On Sunday he went to cheider with Tatte, and I picked him up. Then we went to 13th Avenue together. I basically spent the entire day one on one with the kids. Went to the park in the morning with Gedalya, then left Gedalya with my husband and spent some time with Zusha on 13th avenue. Meanwhile Gedalya had a looong nap, so when we came home, Zusha went straight to sleep, and again I spent a couple of hours with Gedalya alone.

Zusha also had his first homework assignment! :D He got a booklet with different combinations of Alef Bais on each page, and every day he has to read one page and I have to sign on a chart that he did it.

Tomorrow I'm sending him on bus for the first time. Yikes!

Cheider Yingel!

Yesterday was orientation! It's hard to believe that the summer is actually over. But it is!

On the way to orientation!

New backpack :)

We found Zusha's class and went in. Met his new Rebbe and got to business with the toys. I pointed out to Zusha all the boys from his class last year.

Unlike last year where the parents had to stay with the kids, this orientation was different. The Rebbe ran it like a regular day, (play, but no learning) and the parents were able to decide how long to stay and how long to leave their child for. So I stayed 15 minutes and left for about 45 minutes.
When I came back, Zusha played some more with me right outside the room. Then he decided to go home. I tried to encourage him to stay because I wanted him to get used to it with me there, but he really wanted to go already and burst into tears at my suggestion to stay.
We went to the park, and he was holding my hand SO tightly, I think my fingers turned blue. B"H he got over it and told me that tomorrow he will go nicely and be freilech. :)

This year I will be sending him on the school bus. Last year I walked him, but he did take a 4 month break, so it was different. Also towards the end it became almost unbearable. So considering the baby coming and all, it was the only feasible option. But I don't want to send him on the bus until he adjusts a bit to cheider in general. So today I decided to take the city bus. But there were trucks loading out deliveries to a grocery and blocking the entire street. The bus just skipped that stop, and there was no other one for like 1/2 hour. So we ended up walking, coming late in the middle of davening. Sigh.

When I picked him up, he got a bit emotional as soon as he saw me, but I was cheerful and he didn't cry. He was so excited to tell me all about his day! They eat lunch upstairs in the lunchroom, which is something new.

The cheider yingel after his first full day!

By Monday I hope to start sending him on the bus in the morning, but I'll still pick him up myself for another week or so. And then he'll be on the bus full time. Whoa am I exhausted.

Week 9 and 10/Trips 6 and 7

August 24-31

Monday:

Having fun in the sprinklers!

Tuesday:

This was the last week of the indoor park, so we went one last time, as our 6th trip :)

Thursday:

My friend came again (Tehilla from Imamother) with her girls.

Friday:

Playing with our downstairs neighbor's grandchildren:

Sunday, August 31:

We went on a fun trip to Ikea! This was our 7th and final trip this summer. There was a whole children's area where kids could play with the products on display.

After Ikea we went on a "water taxi." It's like a ferry that travels between Ikea and Manhattan. Zusha was beyond excited to go on a "ship."

Gedalya looking out the window on the "ship:"


Zusha enjoying every second of it!


On the other side (Manhattan) there was this fountain that the kids liked.


On the way back we got a chance to sit on the top floor of the ferry. We were all going to go, but Gedalya was too small to fit the requirements, so only Zusha and I went up.


The way back, Zusha looking at me in the rear view mirror! :)

Tuesday, September 2:

Playing with their phones... pretending to talk to each other. :)


On the way home from our walk we heard meowing coming from in front of someone's house. The kids wanted to see who it was, and looked around the area. We didn't see any cats, but the sound was right there. So I opened a garbage can that was in front of me, and inside was a tiny kitten! I reached in to take him out. He hissed a little to try to scare me off. It was so lucky that we happened to pass by and hear it. We brought it to the cat driveway, where he lives.