catching up with ahonui

this little boy has been quite the busy bee lately, which is ironic because he is not the type of kid that enjoys having a tight schedule.

he needs to wake up early each morning to get himself ready for school, eat breakfast, and make his lunch for the day.  (I've done away with buying him school lunch...he's a VERY picky eater so all he consumes is the fruit and milk!  what a waste of $2.25 every day.  that's $45/month!  so he now has the responsibility to make and bring his own home lunch.)  sometimes he has to walk all the way home when school is done. when he gets home, the first thing he's supposed to do is his homework. this usually includes reading a chapter from "sideways stories from wayside school" and math.

I'm guessing that all his "hard work" has paid off, because he was finally chosen to be super citizen for the month of April in his first grade class!  it was his last chance to be super citizen for the year and this boy pulled it off.  whether he was chosen by default or by hard work, I'm proud of him.

 

on tuesdays & thursdays he had baseball practice at the cricket field, and on wednesdays & saturdays he had games at hauula elementary school's baseball field.  when brandon & i told him that we signed him up for the baseball season, he cried.  i mean literally cried and threw a fit. i had to calm him down and explain to him that nobody on the team really knew how to play, and they would all be new to the game, so he didn't need to worry.  the coaches would help him.  he seemed to feel better and he did awesome this season!  even though he dragged his feet every time i told him to get ready for practice or a game, he'd give it his all while on the field.  this past saturday was his final game of the season and we are SO SOOO proud of him for sticking it out!!

a few weeks ago, laie elementary held their may day program.  each grade performed dances from different countries around the world, and the first grade performed mexico.  when he told us that he'd be SALSA dancing, i couldn't help but giggle thinking of his dancing skills (or lack of).  when he finally got onstage with his dancing partner, he did amazing!  he seemed to remember all the moves and he didn't have any stage fright at all.  once again - proud mama hen status here.

and very soon summertime will be upon us...which means he can set aside his busy bee schedule and make room for free time and hot, sunny beach days!!  we love our sweetheart of a son.

adjusting to the real world - of first grade

today is the last day of ahonui's first quarter for first grade.  i have to say - it's been a tough couple of weeks for our eldest.  although this is technically his fourth year attending school (with 2 years of preschool and last year in kindergarten), this is really the first time that we actually expect a lot more - academically - from him.  so i think that he was probably feeling a bit shocked and somewhat surprised about how school is truly supposed to operate.

if he could articulate his thoughts, i'm sure it would go something like this..."you mean i have to actually THINK, FOCUS, WORK, and APPLY myself?!  that doesn't make any sense...school is all about playing with friends and toys and coloring.  right?  riiiiiight?!!"

the excitement at the end of each school day is evident in the time it takes to get to the car after the last school bell rings.

the real world (well - as real as it gets for a first grader) of applying math concepts, reading comprehension, science facts, and writing full sentences are coming into play now.  and he didn't like it.  the sad thing is that i wasn't aware of how much he didn't like it all - until i received an email over a month ago from his teacher informing me of his status in class.  apparently our little boy needed a little nudge in the right direction...because he had no idea where he was supposed to be - focus-wise.  and i don't think that was his fault.

this redirection of focus began a full-on pleasure purge for the boy.  relieving our 6 year-old of any and all video games, iphone access, and television.  the initial result of this?  an uncontrollable, arm-flailing outburst of technological withdrawals. it wasn't very pretty, but in the long run has proven to be pretty effective.  during a trip to the school playground one saturday morning, we bumped into ahonui's reading teacher (different from his general teacher) and she let us know that he's been put in the highest reading class!  if that news isn't enough to make a proud parent jump for joy (or in my case shed a tear of pure happiness), i don't know what will.  well, maybe a 100% on a math quiz...

outdoor play with cousins has replaced horrendous video game sessions

with the eradication of distractions, and the combined efforts of his teachers, counselors, and us!...i'm hoping that he is continuing to improve overall since that fateful email.  we have set goals for him.  we have a LOT of reminders in place.  we try to encourage gently instead of by force.  and from what we can see, homework moves along a lot smoother, concepts are recalled with more ease, and there's definitely a lot less tears and outbursts.  so i'd say that's a good indication of improvement thus far.  wouldn't you?

cuddle time & selfies are essential for good study habits...didn't you know?

back to school: 1st grade

I remember my first day of school each year.  it was usually met with a great deal of anticipation, preparation, excitement, and expectations.  there was so much newness to look forward to: new teacher, new classroom, new friends, and new things to learn!

but in contrast yesterday when I tried to wake the boy, knowing that it was his first day of first grade - all I got in return was a slow drip of drool.  interesting...

it was all quite a blur following that though.  ahonui had a mushroom cap of hair growing atop his head, so as soon as the boy got out of bed, Brandon got to work on chopping off that unnecessary and unsightly cap.  I got the boy into the shower to clean off the bush, then promptly had him brush his teeth, get dressed, eat breakfast, and have a quick family prayer.

we rushed out the door (as usual, running late) so we could help him find his class and meet his new teacher.  turns out that his classroom is in the building that was once the school's main office so I got a bit lost trying to figure out where he was supposed to be.  it was comforting to see that he had a few familiar faces in his class so he wasn't too intimidated with the new surroundings.  i'm hoping his new teacher will be patient and caring and able to instill in our boy a passion for learning.  because i'm definitely still working on that with him.

when I picked him up at his classroom at the end of the school day, he looked like he had a full day: happy, yet happy to be going home.  I asked him how his first day of school went and of course, he gave the typical young boy answer: "it was good." nothing more, nothing less.  of course.

crossing our fingers for a fabulous new school year for my handsome.  and maybe in English class, they'll teach him how to be a little more articulate and expressive.  ha!  love this kid.

may day, bay-baayy!

ahonui participated in laie elementary's may day program last week Friday.  although this is the third time he has been in a may day (2 years in bright beginnings preschool) program, I think that he may finally be getting the hang of performing in front of a large audience...because this time - he blew me away!

 

if you didn't already know this about ahonui...he is one shy kid.  extremely sensitive, often emotional, the epitome of an introvert, and prone to avoiding any and all kinds of attention, if possible.  in his previous may day programs he's kind of just thrown his limbs around and watched the other kids dance during the performance.  so the fact that he got onstage (in front of hundreds of people, mind you), remembered all the practiced tae kwon do moves, and worked it when it was time to jam to "gangnam style", colored me quite impressed!!  we were SO proud of this shy guy.

 

 

one of the surprises of the day was how incredibly packed & crowded it was that morning.  apparently if you're not there at least an hour and a half before it begins, you're left with seats in the nosebleed section.  no bueno.  luckily we've got ohana saving us seats!  thanks marcus & nue!

 

if you ever get a chance to experience a may day, I think laie elementary's would top the list.  but i'm just biased like that.  seriously though, where else in Hawaii can you find a may day that performs on a full stage with sound & lighting, kids in awesome costumes, and great choreography?  I love this town!  and to our little Korean Kindergartener...you were amazeballs!!!  love you ahonui.

 



 

nahe loves you too...she's just tired.

the first cut is the deepest

ahonui has been going to preschool since the beginning of august. even though he is only 3 years old, bright beginnings preschool in hauula accepted him and i felt that it was time he fill his days with more activities than just "curious george" on tv or hours of gaming & you-tubing on my iphone.

a few months prior to the first day of school, we tried to prepare the little guy as much as we could. we would talk to him about what he can expect, who he will see, what he may be learning, etc. we bought special snacks for him to enjoy in his lunchbox, bought a toy story backpack for him, and even arranged for him to be in the same class as his cousin, tehani, so he would have a familiar face in an unfamiliar place.



after our many attempts of "preschool preparation", the first day of class finally rolled around. we tried our best to get him excited about this new experience. unfortunately, our enthusiastic efforts went unnoticed and unappreciated. i'm not sure if it's because he is after all, a boy...or if he simply didn't yet understand the fact that "school" = "mommy & daddy won't be with you to hold your hand all day long".

we all woke up at 6:30 that morning so that brandon & i would have time to get him ready, eat breakfast, make his lunch, get ourselves ready, and take him to the school a little early so we could check out his new digs for the year, introduce him to his teachers, and settle in with possible new friends.

and that's exactly what we did...

 

...a stroll around his classroom: check.

...discovery of the 2 million cool toys: check.

...introduction to the teachers: check.

...and an invasion of new faces and personalities: check and check.

finally, it was mommy and daddy's turn to leave. i don't believe ahonui quite grasped the fact that we weren't going to be in the same vicinity as him for the next 6 hours, because he was very content playing on the little table & bench sets without us for a few minutes. when i noticed that he was "fine", it actually hurt me. i mean, it literally hurt. i felt the sadness coming up into my throat that my little boy was not so little anymore. i felt his dismissal for his parents from the sudden independence he was exhibiting to myself and brandon. but i knew i had to pull myself together. for his sake, at the very least. i fought back those tears of rejection, and the hurt i felt in my throat moved quickly down to my heart. so i gave him a big bear hug, a long mushy kiss, and rushed the heck out of the classroom.

i waited for brandon outside while he said goodbye and sure enough, about 4 seconds after brandon comes out...a shriek, a scream, and some thumping. we glance into the classroom window, and there's one of the teachers - holding our little boy who is not so little anymore - looking like the darn crocodile hunter wrestling with him...all the while attempting to send us a reassuring wave and yelling out the window saying "he's fine! he'll be okay!" riiiiight.

so off we went. back to our minivan and our regular schedules. leaving our writhing crocodile in the hands of those poor teachers. and that's when i broke down. all the way back home, i bawled my eyes out thinking of my 40 pound baby and how he must be thinking that his mean 'ol mom has just abandoned him. when we got home, brandon held me as i cried and calmed down so that i could go to work. it took me a little while to get a hold of myself and to realize that he's in good hands and that it would get easier for both of us very soon.
 

and it did get easier. he now runs away into the depths of his classrom from his mean 'ol mom after dropping him off every day. i think he's fine now, and so am i. which means the first one really is a doozy.