Nathanael's October school activities

I've learned over the last few years with Sam being in school that if you want to be involved in the kid's classroom, even in the least degree, you have to sign up to be the room mom. This year, I finally took the plunge for Nathanael's class (I actually would have done it previously for Sam's classes, but I've also learned that some teachers like to pick their own room mom or otherwise employ some secretive method of selection, for which I have not made the cut). It has afforded me the opportunity to participate in his class in ways I had always wanted to for Sam. In October, I went with Nathanael on two field trips.
The first field trip was to a farm. It was particularly windy that day and therefore, though the sun was bright, it was quite miserably cool. We took a wagon ride around the farm, making various stops for the farmer to teach us about plants the Native Americans used for remedies and the benefits of pesticides. Then the kids were able to attempt to feed some goats. However, the goats were clearly grossly overfed and would not even pretend to be interested. Afterward, the kids got to play a few games, including racing rubber duckies by pumping water. After a very chilly picnic lunch, we headed back to the school.

Later in the month, his class (along with two other classes) took a walking field trip to a nearby fire station. It was a couple of miles of walking from the school. I think the kids just enjoyed being out of the school and being free to enjoy laughing with their friends. The tour of the fire station consisted of one of the firemen donning his gear, the kids climbing into the firetruck, a quick walk through the kitchen and sleeping quarters, and then a class picture in front of the firetruck. Then we started the LONG walk back.

On the day before Halloween, Claire and I went to Nathanael's class to help with a special Halloween activity. The other room mom read a story, I was in charge of the craft, and another mom sent in cupcakes. I love how Nathanael is always so happy to include Claire in all he is doing when she comes to visit. He always pulls a chair up right beside him for her to sit in. But he's not just helpful towards Claire. Nathanael always often puts the needs of others before his own. During the craft portion, before he had finished his own skeleton, he noticed his good friend Whisper needed help. He went right to work helping Whisper finish his skeleton before finishing his own.