A Busy Thursday!

Yesterday I was able to go on a field trip with Marina to a Japanese cultural center. Vycci also had her baby shower at work. It was very eventful. Here are some pictures from the day.

This is Marina and her friend Faythe waiting for the light rail. We rode the light rail into downtown. It was crazy watching almost 100 1st graders get on and off public transportation. Some of the parents were completely paranoid about taking the light rail which is why I think half of the parents showed up.
These were our tour guides. Not really that Japanese looking but they were helpful and we got to meet the owner/director later in the tour.
Some "artifacts" in the cultural center. Not too exciting but it gives you a flavor of the experience.

This is the best shot I could get of Marina eating with chopsticks. She actually did a very good job with them. Better than her classmates and most of the parents.

Later at the shower this was the diaper "cake" made by Vycci's good friend and co-worker Jen. There were blankets, bibs, sleepers, and other baby things all wrapped together around diapers. Very fun!

Marina Moving on to First Grade

June 5, 2009 marked a special day in our lives. Marina officially graduated from kindergarten.

As many of you know she had a particularly difficult time with starting school this last fall. She cried for several days(weeks) every morning leaving mom. She cried a few times during school when asked to do work. Her teacher even expressed her fears and concerns in regards to Marina's readiness for kindergarten. However, I knew that she was supposed to be there. I had prayed about it for several months last summer, and knew without a doubt she was supposed to start. I figured that even if that meant repeating kindergarten, that she was going to start fall 2008. Well, I began to question my own sanity after several nights of 1-2 hours of homework (that should've taken 15 min.) sitting side by side coaching her on while she cried. Well, with lots of prayer, perseverance, extra support at school, and a fantastic kindergarten teacher...we made it! She had reached proficiency by the 2nd trimester, and started wanting to buy lunch at school everyday (because she memorized her lunch number). Wow! What amazing changes in a short period of time. So needless to say Marina's kindergarten graduation had special significance for us. We are so proud of her and her growth this year. (I'm proud of Mom (me) too for not giving up.)