First Day of School 2012

The first day of school this year was a blessed day! It was a long and hard summer for so many reasons. We had fun, but by the time school started I was ready for the munchkins to be back in school and to find some sort of routine again. August 27th was the day. We woke up early, ate breakfast, got ready, and waited. We were up a little before we needed to be, and first day jitters were present for all.

 Preston is 10, and in the 5th grade this year. He got Mrs. Widdison as his homeroom teacher. Our 5th graders rotate through 3 teachers throughout the day. Mrs Widdison teaches reading and writing, Ms. Newman teaches math, and Mrs. DeLaFrance teaches social studies. And of course each day they go to a different specials.

Just before school started Preston got glasses. Maybe this will be its own post at some point. I sure think he is handsome with them. :) Preston enjoys learning, and his favorite subject is Science. Over the summer he found a love for reading, and I can't get the books into his hands fast enough lately. He loves the Percy Jackson novels, and seems quite intrigued by Greek mythology. The concepts are cool to him, and I am excited that he has found something he loves to read!

Emma is 8 and in the 3rd grade. Mr. Dorsey is her teacher. She says she likes her teacher, and was excited to have several of her friends in her class this year.  

School shopping with this girl was such a chore this year! Anyone who knows me knows that I actually HATE shopping. She feels the exact opposite, and could have spent days doing the job. We tried on so many clothes, and she decided this year that the "in" clothes actually don't fit her personal sense of style. I love that she knows what she wants, but it was really hard to find what she wants.

Stockton is 5 this year and started the grand adventure of Kindergarten. We had an interesting summer trying to get him mentally prepared to go to school on his own. There were tears, and sadness, and some days there was excitement. I had no idea what the final outcome would be when the big day finally came. He woke up EARLY, and nervous. He kept saying that he didn't want to go to school, but wanted to stay home with mom instead. I reminded him that he was going to go to school, and that I would be there to get him when he got off the bus after school. But he didn't want to ride the bus either.

I was sure that when the time came I would have to pry him off me, but in the end he chose to be a big boy, and even though he was nervous and worried, he decided he could do it, and was brave and got on the bus. Preston and Emma were under strict instructions to take care of him and make sure he was okay. They did a great job, and kept him calm. It was super sweet watching them look out for him.

 I drove to the school on the first day to get some pictures and see him into his classroom. When he got off the bus he didn't want to play on the playground like most of the kids. He wanted to stand right there by the door and make sure he was there when his teacher came out. So there he stood!

Waiting in line with his new friends to start the first day, he kept waving to me and saying "I love you Mom." Who doesn't love that?

Mrs. Hammons is his teacher and she is wonderful. He survived his first day and managed to get home on the bus all by himself. When he got home he could not wait to tell me all about his class, and his friends, and his teacher, the rules, and anything else he could think of. He talked for about an hour straight (and no that is not an exaggeration.)

The first few weeks of school were an adjustment, but now that we are in the swing of things, all is going well. All three kids have settled into our new routine, and we have only shed a few tears over homework so far. I love watching the new adventures of my children, but this year is a bit of a new adventure for me. It was hard to send Stockton to school, even with as much as I was looking forward to it. I have had at least one shadow all day every day for over 10 years now, and it was hard to let him go, even though it was good, and needed. It made me that much more grateful for the new little one that will join our family soon. I am not ready to be done with this phase of my life. As hard as it is to have little ones, and as easy as it can be to complain about it, it is also a pretty amazing experience to be the  whole world for a little person.