The First Day of School at a brand new school

This year's first day of school was a bit different than in years past.
The little brother in pajamas saying goodbye is pretty typical.

So were cute looking girls.
Catherine is starting 5th Grade and Emma is starting 3rd.

The big difference is this year we are starting at a brand new school by the house we are moving to in American Fork. It's not an easy thing to go to a new school (as any Smart relative can bravely attest) but we have been so proud of the good attitude of both girls as they start this new adventure.
We have a tradition of Dad walking the girls to school on the first day, but since they would have had to start walking in the wee hours of the morning, we opted to drive this year.
A week after the girls started school, Spencer started Kindergarten!! I can't believe our boy is so big. The day before school started I took him to the school for a private 'assessment' with his new teacher. It was hilarious. In many aspects he did better than I ever thought he would. Counted to 100 all by himself - except he proudly said "1,000!" at the end instead of 100. :) The teacher also asked him about letters and sounds (out of chronological order). He did well, but I heard him get stumped on recognizing one and wondered which one it was. Turns out it was 'A'. Guess we need a little more review. :)
Until we move, we will be commuting for another week or so. Which means a 40 min round trip each trip to the school. Which is now three trips a day since Kindergarten started. Good thing it is a pretty drive. The view from the school is gorgeous. I will grab a photo next time I go.

Moving update: we thought we were closing this Thursday, but that has been pushed back. We don't have a specific date yet because of all the new lending laws that have gone into effect in the past month giving us lots more hoops to jump through. Other than the commute to school, we're feeling patient. We love our current neighbors will miss them a lot when we move. However we're excited about our new house and neighborhood and living only 3 blocks away [walking distance!] from school.