More first day pics

 

 

 

 

When we all walked in to school on the first full day (Wednesday, September 5, 2012), there was a long line of kids and parents waiting to have this requisite shot!  Our girl was ready to go!

 

 

Rebecca's kindergarten teacher is Mrs. Croyt.  Interestingly, she was also Jessica's kindergarten teacher.  Her husband also happens to work at San Bernardino DBH and was at the Upland clinic.  When I first went there to train, when I was newly pregnant with Rebecca, I trained with him on doing clinical interviews.  My first day there, with him, was the first time I sat with a flouridly psychotic person.  Ah, good times.

 

 

 

Here's her desk!

 

 

At 8:20, it was time to line up with her class.  They line up in the girls and boys lines and then walk into their classrooms.  At that point, no more parents!

 

 

 

Mama was seriously blinking back tears at this point.  Rebecca was a little anxious. I think having the line up and all the parents waving and hugging and a few other kids having tears was a little overwhelming for her.  No tears for her though!  She was ready to get this show on the road.

 

 

Mama waited until she was safely in her classroom before some tears fell.  Overall though, I did pretty well.  One tissue worth!

The kindergartener

The first week of school was a great success!

On Tuesday, we all headed out for Rebecca's first day of school. We had all her school supplies in tow and got to meet her teacher and some of her classmates. 

I did this chalkboard as a little crafty project.  I hope that we can use it every year as she goes through school.  She wrote her name on it.  I also like the idea of having her in front of the front door with the chalkboard every year on her first day of school as a marker of how she grows and her handwriting changes. 

We were only there for a short while, but then Mama and Daddy had to go back that night for parent kindergarten orientation.  Kindergarten is nothing like it was when I was a kindergartener!  They have centers, spelling tests, homework, quarterly projects, and memorization assignments.  I think it is going to be a great year for Rebecca! 

Big Day Tomorrow

Tomorrow, my little girl starts kindergarten.

How can this possibly be?  Where did the time go?  Who is this five and a half year old who has preferences about which "hanitizer" scent is the best to go on her lunchbox and whether her white sparkle sandals or black sparkle sandals better match her dress?  Didn't I just finish my last "first day of the new school year?"

She is looking forward to it.  Her only worry about starting kindergarten is whether someone might think she is too small to be in kindergarten.  Apparently, in Pre-K some hoodlum suggested that she should be in the 3-year-old class instead of Pre-K.  Otherwise, she is looking forward to meeting new (and old) friends and learning new things. Her goals are to learn to read and to learn about animals and the body.

As for me, I'm trying to think of this the way Ramy does, a natural progression. When I let my mind wander to the significance of tomorrow, I get a little choked up.  It means the beginning of her separation from us, the start of the time in which her peers and friends have more and more influence and we have less and less, a first stop in a line of milestones that will lead her out our front door and into the big, scary world on her own. I know that if these five and a half years have flown so quickly, the next thirteen will just as fast.

So I really try to not think too much about those things, because soon I'll be a puddle of tears, reminiscent of my own kindergarten days!

Mostly, I'm thankful.  I'm thankful that my clingy, high-needs baby who needed to be held constantly has turned into a happy, confident kindergartener.  I'm grateful that she is healthy, when there are children who are too sick to start school. I'm happy that she is intelligent and the world is her oyster. I'm blessed that we are able to send her to a wonderful school that will give her a nurturing, supportive, and challenging education.  I'm happy that our big school girl still loves to have snuggle time and crawls into bed with us in the mornings.