Norah's first first grade grades

How's that for a title?

So last week we had the first parent-teacher conferences of first grade, and as we expected, everything went fine. Norah is kicking much butt in first grade, which is nice to hear. Every year we wonder if she'll adjust, and we're always happy when she does. She's working hard at school, learning to read nicely and making good progress, and working hard on arithmetic. The teacher is very happy with how she's doing.

She did get an "S" (for "satisfactory") in "citizenship" rather than an "O" (for "outstanding") because the teacher says occasionally she chats in class, but she also said it's so negligible that we shouldn't worry about it. Norah, happily enough, wasn't too bummed out because she didn't get an "O," which is nice because she often wants to have the best grades ever and if she doesn't get them, she's sad. But this time she just nodded when we asked if she could try harder to be quiet in class. We really don't have an issue with her behavior, because I can't believe she misbehaves all that much, but we'll see if next time she gets an "O."

She got close to perfect grades on every subject, and she's enthusiastic about learning everything she can. She's very excited when she understands things, and she likes telling us the answers to all the questions she herself comes up with (she writes addition problems on her chalkboard and then solves them). She's working very hard to learn how to read, and she's excited about that, too. So I'm glad she's doing well in school, because from what we see at home, she ought to be working hard at school!

We'll have to see how she does going forward. It's fun to watch her learn!

Our weekend in the north

Mia's occupational therapist got married on Saturday, and we were invited. We drove north to Sedona for the wedding and stayed overnight so we wouldn't be rushed (it's two hours away, and we left the reception around 7.45, so we would have been home very late). We stayed in Cottonwood, which isn't too far from Sedona, and yesterday we spent some time at Out of Africa, the wildlife park near Cottonwood.

The wedding was at a place called Rancho Los Lagos, which is tucked away in a valley near Sedona, surrounded by the red rocks that make the area famous. It's a gorgeous place, and while the weather was a bit hot, it wasn't uncomfortable at all (and I was wearing a long-sleeved shirt, a jacket, and a tie, so if anyone was going to be uncomfortable, it was going to be to me). The ceremony was right by a small lake, with a nice cliff off to the right, and the bride and groom released a bunch of butterflies right before saying their vows (don't ask). The reception was under a tent and was also very nice. Mia and Norah were excited to see the bride (she babysits for us quite often, and they both adore her), and they both got to dance with her. Mia was flagging a bit toward the end, so we didn't stay too, too long, but they both had a very nice time.

The next day we went to the preserve. I've never been a big fan of zoos (I appreciate what they do, but I always feel bad that they need to exist), and while this is better than most zoos, it's still a zoo. Mia wasn't particularly happy to be there, but she's been having some issues with her muscle tone recently and isn't particularly happy to be doing anything (I'll get into that when we decide what to do about it). Norah had a grand time feeding the giraffe and camel from the bus that takes you around part of the park, and Mia did actually love seeing the animals (she's always liked animals). Both kids got to pet an anaconda and a lizard, and Norah tried to feed a porcupine but the danged thing kept wandering off. We saw some tigers up close, but most of the predatory animals weren't around too much. We were going to stay for the tiger show, but Mia started whining about leaving, so we left. Whenever we go anywhere with Mia, we have to be ready to leave at any moment, because she becomes annoyed very quickly. We had put sunscreen on her, but it was very sunny (it's Arizona!) and fairly hot (it's Arizona!), so I think she was just getting uncomfortable. She won't keep a hat on, though, so that's the way it is!

It was nice little weekend, getting out of the Basin and seeing some of the less horrible parts of Arizona (the Verde Valley is a nice area). Of course, as we're wildly selfish, we're just worried that Mia's OT will have less time to babysit now. Consarnit!!!!

We took pictures:




















(That's Norah's hand holding the carrot)











So that was our brief vacation up in the northlands. Fun stuff! I'll try not to go three weeks between posts next time. Today we have Norah's first grading period meeting with the teacher, so I'm sure I'll have something to say about that!

(Norah, by the way, asked Krys last night while Krys was looking at something on her phone if she was "texting her BFF" and setting up a sleepover with Justin Bieber. Norah heard about all these things from her classmates, who are 6 or 7 years old. That makes me sad. The good thing was that Norah was making fun of her classmates who love Justin Bieber, so that's something. It was quite funny, though. I told Krys she needs to start a Twitter account for Norah's proclamations, because she always forgets to tell me about them. Yesterday at the hotel, after breakfast, Norah told Krys they could go to the bathroom together, "because we're both women." That Norah - quite the master of the obvious!)