"First" Day of School

It doesn't seem possible that this year could actually be when Branna starts kindergarten.  I think some of it may be that we've done "school" for the last couple of years.  More than anything, I think it's that I can't believe that she's 5 and can officially enter school.
Our family has decided to homeschool, so this year was also a big deal in that respect.  Like I mentioned earlier, we've unofficially had school for the last 2 years, but this is the year that we've been working towards and preparing for.
I'm excited about our curriculum choice (My Father's World) and the fact that we actually have a room devoted just for school.  The curriculum is very straightforward, which is great for me especially this year due to having a very active 2 year old and expecting a baby in a couple of months.  A good portion of our school time is being devoted to "calendar time" which is pretty much a hands of application of the date, the days of school, surveying the weather, & the Bible.  I really liked the setup from 1+1+1 and is where I got most of my printables.

I took a picture of our school room the night before school started to show what it looked like before the girls got to it and it turned it upside down.  Surprisingly, we've done very good at keeping it organized & tidy.... I can't say that much for the rest of the house.

On the first day of school, Daddy took Branna for a special breakfast at McDonald's.  Every morning following, they do some aspect of her school before Daddy goes to work.  Branna has enjoyed learning more about coins, exploring God's creation outside, and setting up an ant farm.

(Branna is showing what she drew in her Daily Daddy Notebook.  I think this was the day they talked about things close to the ground.)

It's been our tradition to get Branna a new book as first day of school gift.  This year, we got her Green Eggs and Ham.  It's been fun since we can read it together now.

This year, Atlie got join in the fun and got her own book.  She loves the How Do Dinosaurs... collection, so we got her How Do Dinosaurs Clean Their Rooms.

My biggest challenge so far has been trying to keep Atlie occupied while we're working.  So far, we've done pretty good.  I have special "toys" that are just for the school room so that she can look forward to using those each day for a few hours.  She enjoys drawing at her desk, sorting through letter puzzles,  looking through books and really loves finding anything that can made into a huge mess by scattering it across the floor.

And, finally, after a long morning, the girls enjoyed some relaxing "downtime".  (This pictures was taken between the moments right after they spent running around the living room Usain Bolt style and right before they used the bean bags as sleds off the couch.)