Stepping Up Ceremony

"Mama, can the first grade student eat candy?" 
"Am I a big girl now?"
"When am I going to be 6?"



As always, my daughter Obi bombarded me with questions. That morning we were rushing to one of the highlights of her days in Kindergarten.
After almost a year learning and enjoying her days in kindergarten, here comes the day when she will be ready to be the 1st grader.
Or as abang Bo said, to be "the real student."



The Stepping Up ceremony started at 8.30 AM.
Early? Not really.
If only you saw the queue that morning.
Well, the invitation said so but we had to line up outside in order to get into the hall. And what a queue we had that morning! I started lining up at 8.10 and already I was way in the back >_<. Some might start lining up at 7 or 7.30.

the lining up..

At 8.45, parents and all invitees were filling up the room. The Hall is big but everyone was trying to get the best spot to witness this important milestone. Surely not easy to decide one until you were there in the room, stucked in the middle of squirming and screaming, super-excited parents and grandparents. But we managed to sit happily in the middle row :).

the invitation

We waited for a while before the students entered the room. The Auditorium had been transformed into a big stage which will accommodate 8 kindergarten classes. And while waiting, the assistant principal had reminded parents to stay at their seats and not to move forward to the stage during the performance as it will make the kids nervous and surely disturb others. We would get plenty opportunity to take pictures later after the ceremony.

before the ceremony..


So we sat tightly on our seats, enjoying the performance. After the processional march (the theme song chosen for this is You've got a friend in me from Toy Story.. Love it 💜), we have the opening part which included salute to the US flag while singing along America the Beautiful and God Bless the USA. Then a short welcoming remarks was given by Ms. Anna Prea, the Assistant Principal.

Then there came the performances.
Lovely to hear the performances of all the kids singing some of their favorite, beautiful tunes like Hello to all the children of the world; All we're meant to be; Big,big dreams; This little light of mine (one of my fave!); Who do we appreciate (2,4,6,8... Who do we appreciate? You..:)); Everybody has music inside; Sing and a wonderful rearrangement of the famous New York, New York, First grade, First Grade.
Such a wonderful song itinerary.
And Mrs. Robinson, the music teacher, surely has done fantastic jobs in preparing the kids for the performances.
Kuddos!

Nadine, in the middle of her classmates..

After the ceremony in the auditorium, all students (and parents) were invited to join the presentation of the certificate in the school yard. It was crowded but beautiful. 

in the schoolyard..
The certificate was presented by Ms. Honahan to all the kids and it was really a bittersweet moment. All the kids love Ms. Honahan and we will surely miss her. We can't thank her enough for helping Nadine exploring her passion and learning a great deal of fun at school. Thank you so much, Mrs. Honey.


Our dearest Mrs. Honahan..


Then there came the ice cream!
Yaaaay.. Ice cream, as the kids screamed with joy.
Surely the ice cream was only for the kids as we were fasting as well.

Nadine was spending some times with her girl friends before we were heading home. It was so touchy to see all those smiley faces, Nadine, Zoe, Daphne and her twin, Eleni. And how fast they have grown up! I feel like crying again :).

the girls :)

So Nadine, ready for the 1st grade?
I bet you are!

How do you feel when you see your kids' graduation?

13 comments:

  1. Baby boy ku coming soon nih mba hehehe.. Asiknya melihat anak sudah wisuda first grade, itu kalau disana artinya lulus SD atau gimana mba? Btw congrats for nadine ^0^

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  2. Waw lucunya, keren mbak selamat ya.

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  3. Obii, how sweet and wonderful you are! I feel like crying too, mba Indah.
    Congratulation, you are the first grader now. Yipiiii... hehehe

    Happy fasting and Ramadan kareem dear mba Indah and family. :)

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    1. Thanks Zia...same to you and your lovely family yaaaa

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  4. Ada rasa bangga dan senang menyaksikan/perhatikan gerak/perkembangan anak sang buah hati. Termasuk hal pendidikan. Rela berdesakan dan ngantri.

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    Replies
    1. iyaa betul banget :)..kalau hanya antri mah rela banget :)

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  5. Hello, pretty images of the sweet girl. Congrats to Nadine. Times flies, my son is 23 now and it has been a long time since he was in Kindergarten. All I can say is enjoy these early years! Happy Sunday, enjoy your day and the new week ahead!

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  6. Those Kindergarten graduations are such a sweet time. I always love their performances of song and dance, then watching them get their "diploma" at the end. It is a moment in time that will always be remembered.

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  7. such a cute kid! I bet she loved those little sandals

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