Our little Pike

This was a week of firsts for Joe – mostly, his first classes where he must follow directions from someone other than mom or dad. Art class was first. They smeared grape jelly on construction paper (a sensory experience they tell me – and one he certainly wouldn’t have ever had at home!) and they also made tiny cheese heads out of yellow construction paper and staples. Yes, only in Wisconsin.

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Wednesday, he had his first swim lesson - his class is called the "Pikes". Uncle Brian and Aunt Kelli would be proud. They blew bubbles, held onto the side and kicked, did “bobs” and floated. The last two, Joe was not one bit excited about.
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His teacher Miss Kate tried her hardest to get him to float, but he clung to her like a spider monkey.

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He eventually gave in, but with much fear, as you can see from this picture.
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Other than art and swimming, he is taking a "Sports for Little Ones" class. I got to watch that one from the walking track above the gym. They talked about in and out of the lines, "go" and "freeze", and other remedial but totally necessary skills one might need before beginning kiddy sports. Joe couldn't quite figure out the terminology for a while. When the teacher would say "freeze", Joe would keep moving until he ran into another kid (who was following directions). Finally, the teacher asked, "Joe, what do you do when I say 'freeze'?" "Um, I run around?" Yeah, not exactly, Joe.
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Finally, today, Joe and the twins took a class called "Wiggles and Giggles." I'm not really sure what they do, but when I peeked into the room, they were doing hand motions to a song while watching themselves in the big mirrors (it was in a padded aerobics room) It was SO cute to see all three of them participating with the rest of the class. Joe even remembered a girl's name - his new "friend," Grace. I have especially enjoyed my first real free time during the day with these kids. I've walked the track and on the treadmills, although, I'm embarrassed to admit, I couldn't even figure out how to turn it on at first. I'm not really the workout type. Surprising, I know.