Sage's 2nd Grade Field Trip

Sage's grade went on their first field trip of the year yesterday, and I was so glad that I was able to go with her.  I have always tried to be able to go on them with her, but this year, the nurse needed to know weeks ago if I could go so that she could make arrangements for herself to go or another nurse.  I asked Travis a million times if he would be able to watch Jaggar so that I could go because siblings aren't allowed to go.  He told me yes over and over again.  When I reminded him this week that the field trip was Thursday, he said, "Oh no...I have a game that day." You can imagine the conversation(S) that followed.  I was not happy.  Thankfully, our friend, Angelle, was able to come and play with little J that day.

This field trip was called the Outdoor Classroom.  One of the 2nd grade teachers lives on a huge lot of land and a cotton field out in White Plains, AKA the middle of nowhere.  Beautiful area, but I couldn't live there.  But they had all of these people from forest conservatories, the museum, and nature associations to teach the kids about different things.  It was a lot of hands on, a lot of moving, and a lot of fun.  They were kept busy all day, which was nice.  They also got to pick as much cotton as they could carry out of the cotton field.  Sage LOVED that.  

This is Sage with her wonderful teacher, Mrs Robbins.  I'm so thankful that she is Sage's teacher this year, and I personally genuinely like her.

Sage and her friend, Mallory, listening to some of the explanations that the different speakers gave at the beginning.

 One of the stations about forestry.

 This was one of the most fun stations, skins and skulls.  This lady had all kinds of skins of different animals and their skulls.  Beavers, squirrels, foxes, deer.  I was really impressed with one boy who seemed to know what every skin and skull once belonged to.  This station went by way too fast for the speaker and the kids.  All of the speakers loved what they did, and I like ANYONE who enjoys their job and does it well.

 All of the students LOVED the museum's presentation.  He brought a snake, an owl, a bullfrog...and this crocodile, which he let them all pet.  That crocodile was sending out major distress calls, which the speaker told us meant, "Help me, Mommy."  Smart crocodile.

 Sage picking cotton.

 She has an entire bag full, and she is determined that she is going to make something out of it.

 At the end of the day, the teacher who lives there took each class on a "tractor ride."  This was basically like a hay ride without the hay on a flat tractor bed attached to the tractor that she drove.  Mrs. Robbins asked me if I wanted to go, so I was like sure.  Little did I know that riding a bucking camel would have been like riding in a Bentley compared to this.  I didn't think it would ever end, and the teacher driving never even looked back.  Any hay ride or tractor ride I've been on has always been on a path.  This chick was driving through creeks, over tree stumps, through the woods, and over every bump that was available.  It was pretty torturous, and I sat up on my feet until I couldn't feel them so that the baby wouldn't get knocked out of me.  BUT the kids loved it.  :)  They own a TON of cows, and when she drove through their field, each one ran toward us mooing for food.  Good times.  It was a fun day.

2nd Grader

As of this week, we have a 2nd grader in the house. In my mind, I still keep thinking 1st. I don't really know why. With the past few weeks, this school year brought an anxiety that far surpassed anything I could have imagined when she went to kindergarten. Forget what she's learning. Are they keeping her alive? Do they know what they're doing? Can I trust them not to screw up? Of course, Sage is oblivious to all of that. I called the school shortly after we got out of the hospital to meet with the teacher and nurse beforehand and set up what's called a 504. This just legally binds them to do what needs to be done for her and basically not discriminate against her grades should she need to stop doing something (a test, PE, whatever) based on symptoms of high or low blood sugar.

God literally smiled upon us with the teacher Sage got this year--Mrs. Robbins. I instantly felt good about her when we got her letter in the mail welcoming Sage to her class. I felt her passion in reading that in how she felt about her job and children. In orientation, I watched her go around and individually introduce herself to each child. She reminded me of Sage's kindergarten teacher, who I loved so much. In the meeting with the nurse and teacher, Mrs. Robbins was taking notes, asking questions. I SO appreciated that. And the nurse is wonderful too. I let her show me what to do in drawing up insulin, and we talked about all of my concerns for a LONG time. She said that she wouldn't hesitate for a second to call me. And this week? They've all worked so wonderfully with Sage. The nurse called me twice on the first day of school and emails me regularly. Sage is doing great at school. I've never been more thankful for our first Friday because I am exhausted, but we have made it. And though it's a lot of work for now, I am thankful to have these people--Mrs. Robbins and Nurse Hubbard--caring for my girl and considering it a privilege. Because that's exactly what it is.

Ready for her first day. She was so excited, a complete contradiction of how I was in school.

And Jaggar? He was actually THRILLED with Sage at school. That's terrible, isn't it? He really loves to play alone. Sage is not like that at all. She wants Jaggar playing WITH her. So she tries to force him to play with her all the time, and if he's into a show or a certain toy, he is not interested. This causes for lots of fighting. So on her first day, I said, 'Jaggar, do you miss Sage?' Without hesitation, he said, "NOOOPE."

2nd grade. Jaggar's head is down because he chose that moment to spit. Awesome.

I am a full 5 months and a week...I think...pregnant now, by the way. I'm doing an awesome job chronicling that. I had so many pinterest ideas for photos and capturing pregnancy...and it's just not happening.

You can see how thrilled he is about this kiss.

Baby. She was so excited to have a desk this year. I walked her in because she SAID that she didn't remember where the classroom was. Turns out, neither did I because I passed it up. I'm glad that I was able to walk her in though and get a picture of her at her desk.

And here's Jaggar on our morning car rides to school. He likes to take a small toy in the car for the ride. :)