First Day of School, Einschulung, and the Tute

So . . . getting the kids signed up for school was traumatic enough. It is forever far away.  It takes 2 buses plus a 20 minute walk just to get there.  And the week before school we dragged our jet lagged bodies there 3 days in a row, for school tours, back to school nights, and new student orientation.  It was the afternoon before school started and I thought I was good to go. The school bus could transport the kids to the school and I could sit and relax.  WRONG!!  I was informed by my neighbor that there was a Einschulung ceremony for Brooklyn in the morning.  Which is a HUGE deal.  1st grade is like Kindergarten in Germany.  So to mark the

entrance into 12 years of school there is a Einshulung ceremony, and at this ceremony the parents must present the children with a tute. A tute is a massive cone filled with toys, candy, and school supplies.

I was freaking out.  I had no way of getting to the school, the stores in Germany close at 5:30, and the stores around here are just small shops.  There is no such thing as one stop shopping. So with only a  few hours to buy and fill a tute I took the bus to a place called Mcpaper and the Eurostore (dollar store) and. . . . $80 later we have a tute!  Plus my sweet neighbor arranged a ride for me.  It was with a single dad that I had never met before but desperate times call for desperate measures!

My 4th Grader.  AAaaaah she is so old!! And so darn cute! Her teacher is from England.  Hallie is determined to have a British accent by the time we leave Germany.  She wasn't kidding either it is driving us all nuts :)

My Cutie Pie's at the bus stop.  Hallie was allowed to take the bus on the first day, but Brooklyn wasn't able to take the bus until the second day. Apparently Einshulung isn't considered a regular school day.

Boo was extremely excited about getting her own locker.

Brooklyn in her class waiting for the ceremony.

All the Tute's before the big event

So the kids had to be at school at 8 am. Then there was a coffee for the parents while the kids went to class.  The ceremony wasn't until 11 am. So I had to hang out with my ride for several hours.  He was extremely fun and nice, it was just a LONG time to be hanging out.  So I was so glad when it was finally time to start.

Boo and her Tute. Just yesterday she had never heard of it, now suddenly she is walking off with a massive cone full of toys and candy.  Lets just say she was pretty happy.

Brooklyn felt pretty cool after her ceremony. It was very cute! See that Tute was huge! It took a lot to fill it. 

Brooklyn with some of her Tute loot.

Even  though it was really stressful I am so glad that we were able to take part in the Einschulung Ceremony.  Cultural experiences like this was the reason why we wanted to move overseas.  It was fun to be able to participate so soon after getting here.