Nicholas's First Day of School - Take 2

It was a big day for us!  Well, a big half day.  Nicholas, not surprisingly, had a difficult time getting to sleep last night so he was a little tired this morning as well as excited, nervous and scared - everything he should be on his first day of school.  Unlike last time though, there were no tears or begging not to go.  It was wonderful!

We left the house at about 7:20 and headed out to pick up our friends.  Judah was also starting school today and we thought that the boys have a little easier time if we all went together.  He was still a little unsure about this school thing.

We made our way to the school and noticed that the little road it is on was very, very busy and soupy.  The principal was out greeting people and making sure no one got hit by a car and he explained that a bridge was out somewhere and that's why there were so many more cars than usual.  Add in the buses and cement trucks and it was pretty crazy.  The road is always dusty and since it had rained last night it was a bit of a mess. 

SYIS

Nick's School Bus

 As we stopped for pictures I noticed that Nick was looking pretty worried while Judah was all smiles.  Ryan just wanted to run around and play.  I had to bribe him to stay still for pictures.  It worked!

Nicholas, Ryan, Ellie and Judah

From there we moved inside and made our way to the kindergarten classroom.  We stopped for a second to look at the staff pictures on the wall and pick out Nick's teacher.  When we moved on after a few moments I realized that Nick's teacher was standing outside the room talking to someone and it was Ryan!  He had run ahead and was having a great chat with her.  The boys hung up their bags and we moved into the classroom.

Finding their names on the mat.

Charlee and her adorable babies!

We stayed long enough to get pictures and for the boys to find their places and when they appeared to be comfortable with their surroundings we left.  Amazingly there were no tears from either Nicholas or Judah and the parents did pretty good, too!

From the school we took Tim to work then headed for a mall near Michelin to hang out for a bit.  It was only a three-hour school day so there wasn't time to go very far.  We did find a play place similar to Happy City and the three smaller kids had some fun playing there.  Before long it was time to head back to the school and along the way we decided we would grab some lunch for the kids before going home.  Since there was a drive through McDonald's (a rarity here) on our route we thought we would try it out after getting the boys.  I explained to Li that after the school we would come back to the restaurant.  

When we collected the boys they both seemed very happy and I asked them how they enjoyed their morning.  Nicholas said, "It was great!" while Judah sighed and said, "It was the worst day of my life".  Ha ha!  Luckily he's only five-years-old and doesn't have a lot to compare it to.  I think he did have some fun and likely will enjoy it more as he gets to know more kids.  I am just relieved that Nick liked it as much as he did.  What a difference a year can make! 

So, we piled into our van and made our way to McDonald's.  Li started for the parking lot but I pointed to the drive thru and he reluctantly went in.  He didn't roll down his window but turned and looked at me, wondering what he was supposed to do.  I tried pointing to the big menu to show him what we wanted but that didn't work so I quickly jumped out of the van, ran over to the board and started pointing at one of the meals.  He just sort of stared at me.  Finally he rolled down his window but instead of speaking to the very impatient lady trying to take our order, he said something to me and shrugged his shoulders.  There was a line forming behind us and I could tell he wasn't understanding so I crawled back in the van and he started driving.  When he came to a car that was stopped (because they were waiting for their order at the window) he just started honking his horn.  When he realized they weren't going to move he backed up and went around a different way to the front of the store so I could go in and order.  I hadn't considered that he may not understand the drive thru concept.  Luckily we almost never eat there so he shouldn't have to worry about it.

So that was pretty much the exciting part of our day.  After dropping off Charlee and the kids we came home to relax for a bit.  It was such a nice day we went out for a walk to the market and played around with the soccer ball.  Tonight I was able to get out for another nice, long walk and it was wonderful.  When I got home Ryan was sleeping and Nick had just gone to bed.  I went in to talk to him and although he's still a little "freaked out" about school, he thinks he is going to enjoy it.  I told him I still get a little "freaked out" about living in China sometimes, too.  He really likes his teacher, Ms. Jones, and I'm sure will enjoy her helpers/interns as he gets to know them.  I believe there are three or four adults in the class so there is lots of attention for everyone.  

Another great day and big accomplishment for Nick.  Starting school in China, who would've thought?