The next stage is kindergarten

This is a way overdue post, delayed by either my (lack of) internet speed, or blogger's inability to accept video of a certain file size. I had the best of intentions of sharing video from Sydney's end-of-year preschool program, but it's just not working. And so you'll have to settle for some of the still photos I snapped in between songs.

Last Thursday was Sydney's final day of preschool. It was a very exciting day, made even more thrilling when she learned that all the songs they'd been practicing would be performed not on the stage in the lunchroom, but "in the feater where AJ got to do his show!" (She meant theater. How ironic that I once had to take speech classes for a lisp, and now have a child who can't make a 'th' sound.)

Here she is warming up for a song that had the kids attempting to move impossible to move body parts like the chin.

The kids partnered up for one of the songs. This picture is adorable now, but may prove priceless one day should Sydney and Patrick remain close.

Sydney has talked all year about her friend Patrick. She introduced me to him a few weeks ago when I came to her class to read. But I never paid attention to his last name. It turns out he's our neighbor and his mom, Annette, once made an appearance on my blog. (Coincidentally in connection with another stage performance.)

Sydney wasn't sure of a lot of the words in the songs, none of the kids were. But she loved making the corresponding gestures, and she sure remembered to stand on the spot on the stage where here name was marked. Several times I saw her look down and then take an obvious step to position herself correctly. She also helped Patrick find his spot on more than one occasion. Whether he wanted her to or not.

At the end of the show, the kids each presented a gift to their parents – a picture of themselves with a magnet attached – as a thank you for signing them up for preschool.

Next, the teachers played a slideshow of photos from throughout the year. It was very sweet, and I'm pretty sure the goal was to bring tears to everyone's eyes. They like to do that sentimental kind of stuff. They also gave us a binder of projects she'd worked on throughout the year, showing what she's learned and how she's progressed. A side note: according to one of the notes, Sydney grew an inch and a half since the first day of class back in October.

The kids didn't receive diplomas. Instead they got something much more exciting when we returned to the classroom: root beer floats.

Now comes the hard part. Waiting almost four months for kindergarten to start.