School's Out For Summer! [Warning - Brag Post Ahead]

This morning, my wee little girl, Miss Maddy, graduated . . . from kindergarten! The whole school (K-8) and assorted parents attended a lovely mass and then the kindergartners had graduation in the church hall. Those kidlets are just so cute! Nearly each one raced to the teacher to get his or her diploma and then hurried off the stage. No decent photo -- she went by too fast!

And what a year it's been! When kindergarten started, she was very tentative and more than a little scared, though she put on a brave face. Either the Husband or I had to walk her in to class nearly every day. While many kids got used to the routine within days, weeks or months, there was no way that she would jump out of the car in the school drop-off lane for some time -- actually, I think it was March when we were able to master the drive-through lane, drop her off and get the car moving and out of the way. She was very quiet in her room at first and that's just part of her sweet personality. As a little time passed, she became more comfortable in her classroom, got to know her teachers and made many new friends. She had to deal with a couple things that were hard for her -- being the smallest in her class and having a hearing aid. No one wants to be different than schoolmates, but she came to realize that her hearing aid helped her and she might be small, but that didn't stop her from anything she set her mind to do. Her confidence grew and she learned so much! She yakked away in the evenings telling us all about it, esp. about who got in trouble and "had to move a slip of paper" (a rather complicated type of accumulation of naughtiness resulting in time out or the dreaded visit to the principal's office). We practiced reading nightly so she could mark the chart! Definitely a "prize hog" the incentive of reading for a little prize worked its magic on my girl.

She's had an amazing year and is truly a bright, amazing little girl. She's learned to read, write sentences and do a little math. She's learned a multitude of prayers and wonderful songs. We love her school, are so happy with her progress there and are so proud of our baby girl. Now, on to first grade!!