Yesterday, we came to our daughter's home near Kansas City to begin a five day baby-sitting adventure with our grandchildren. Mom and Dad have gone to Cancun for a few days on the beach. They left on Friday, and the other grandparents stayed with the children until we came to start the second shift.
We met at an Italian restaurant to make the exchange. After dinner and conversation, we brought Jordan and Cole home and were greeted by Macy, the dog. We managed to get the bedtime routine done with no problems, thanks to Karen's many pages of helpful hints. They both went to bed on time and with no complaint. One thing their parents have given them is consistency, so they know what is expected of them. Good job Karen and Steve!
Jordan is in second grade and Cole is a kindergarten kid this year. The picture above was taken when school started in August. This morning, the driveway looked quite a bit different. It was covered with snow and Jordan went out to the bus alone at 6:45 a.m. with Poppy watching to make sure she got on the bus. It seems so early for a little girl to start the day. She wakes up to an alarm clock at 6 and gets herself dressed, fed, and ready for school. Cole still needs a bit of assistance in that department.
The bus ride takes about an hour by the time all the kids are picked up and delivered to Rockville Elementary School. It turned out to be too long a ride for Cole, so his mom or dad takes him in the car shortly after 7:30. This morning, Grandma and Poppy delivered him to school and walked him to the area where his classmates were seated and quietly waiting for the teacher to come to take them to the classroom. We were so impressed with the look of the school. The floors were so clean and shiny, and the walls were filled with child art and Valentine's Day decorations. We passed many smiling, happy children which gave us a very good feeling about our grandchildren's school atmosphere.
It's still snowing but should stop before noon. Wouldn't you know that, in a winter of next to no snow, we'd have it on our first full day of babysitting? Back to 40's for the rest of the week, and 50's for the week-end, so only one bad day to contend with.
The children will both come home on the school bus. They'll want to try out shiny, new spiral sleds when they get here. Christmas gifts that have sat idle in this nearly-snowless winter. Then, they'll help frost the heart-shaped valentine cookies I've made. Some are for Jordan's class party tomorrow, and the rest for the four of us to eat. Ken and I will go to school tomorrow afternoon to help at Jordan's party and then will visit Cole's class party for a little while.
This is a week of making memories for all of us. Karen and Steve on their vacation, Jordan and Cole having the full attention of both sets of grandparents, and for Ken and me spending this Valentine week with our two youngest grandchildren. I might even find some story material while these memories are being created.
Spending time with the grands is wonderful. I miss mine, but hope to see them next weekend. I've been working so many hours, I have little time for anything else, which means I'm way behind in my blog reading. A co-worker left to take a job closer to her house and our boss is battling breast cancer. She isn't well, which leaves 2 people to do the work of 4. When we get the 3rd person hired and trained things will ease up a bit. Have fun!
ReplyDelete