Today is officially the end of an era, the closing of a chapter in my life. Kiddo starts kindergarten tomorrow, which is full day. She will be getting on the school bus at 8:10 and not be home until 3:22. Yes, she has been in preschool for the past two years, and last year she went five days a week, but it wasn't the same - preschool was just 2.5 hours a day and I drove her, so I was there for every drop off and pick up. From here on out, she is officially a Big Kid, a kid who waves goodbye and hops on a school bus without a backwards glance, no longer part of the Mommy-and-Kiddo team that we've been since she first came home from the hospital at 15 days old. I am really, really sad about this. (Seriously - I've got tears in my eyes just writing this.) I know that every chapter ending is a new chapter beginning, and this next one will be a long one - thirteen years or so - but this is the first significant change to our life, and especially with Kiddo being my one and only, I'm really feeling it.
It doesn't help matters that Kiddo developed a runny nose yesterday that this morning appears to be a full-on cold. I blame the airplane ride on Sunday - three hours of breathing recirculated air is something that all the Purell in the world can't combat - but dagnabit, I didn't want her first day of school to come with Niagara Falls Nostrils! Ew! I debated letting her sleep in this morning because of the germies, but opted to wake her up at 6:30 because she will have to get up early tomorrow for school. (Ordinarily she is up by 6:30 on her own.) Hopefully the excitement of the first day of school will counteract any germ-induced sleepiness or crankiness tomorrow...
This morning, we're going over to school as we missed the big Check Out the Classroom and Meet the Teacher day last week since we were in Florida. Kiddo will get to meet her teacher and the aide who will be providing her sensory diet three times a day, and I will have a chance to go over the sensory diet with them, as well as hopefully with Kiddo's new OT. I'd asked to meet with the OT and PT as well as the teacher, but my one email account is giving me problems so the emails I'd sent a few weeks ago never got to the teacher (and presumably the principal, with whom I also spoke about meeting), so this is all happening on shorter notice than I'd wanted. Thank goodness her teacher was willing to spend a week playing voicemail tag with me while we were in Disney World, or we wouldn't even have this morning's meeting set up.
Kiddo and I went to the butcher shop yesterday and picked up some cold cuts and cheese for her school lunches (she'll be brown-bagging it, or more accurately, pink bagging it) and per her request, she'll be bringing a bologna (ick) and provolone sandwich on whole wheat tomorrow. This is the first time I've ever bought bologna, as I can't stand the stuff, but I figured she should have whatever she would be most likely to eat as she'll be eating on her own without Mommy watching to make sure food is actually going into her body. So, her first day of school meal will be the aforementioned bologna sandwich, green grapes, pretzels, a cheese stick and water (she prefers water to juice). I'm going to put money into her school cafeteria account so that she can get milk at school. If we have time this afternoon, I may bake cookies so she has a cookie for dessert tomorrow... All her school supplies are labeled and packed and ready to go in to her cubby this morning, I've got an outfit in mind for her to wear tomorrow, her bus pass came in the mail while we were gone so we got that with yesterday's mail bonanza (we sure get a lot of mail in one week), and we're all set and ready to go tomorrow.
One day more, wow. It's going to be hard to get through today and tonight - for ME, not her. I've got choir rehearsal tonight so I won't be home for bedtime, which is probably a good thing. Hubby is much more calm and less emotional about this than this pathetic, emotional puddle of goo I've turned into in the past few days! I just hope I manage to not cry in front of Kiddo - it will take a lot of will to keep the tears at bay in the morning!
Oh, I'm so pathetic. I don't recall my parents being sad over any of our first days of school, though my dad told me yesterday that it was. I'm the wimpiest Mommy ever, I think! I'm sure that a few years from now, I'll be doing that Staples commercial "Most Wonderful Time of the Year" dance when the first day of school rolls around, but for now? This is my baby, how can she be such a big kid? Where have the past five years gone?
I can't wait until tomorrow is over, as much as I wish it never would come...
9 comments:
Oh, I hope kiddo feels better for tomorrow!
I definitely do the happy dance now, but then again, my kids are in 5th and 8th grade.
While I never cried at the bus stop, I will admit to following the bus to school and then taking even more dorky first day of school photos. :-)
Well, I feel better. We followed the bus to school last year and thought we were the only ones who did that!
Tomorrow is Tita's first day of first grade. I will be driving her just to drop off the humongous bag of school supplies and to check in with her teacher.
Sose and I figured out that in 3 years, all 3 kids will be in school all day and we can have a date during the day!
hugs, hugs and more hugs! i could tell you how i bawled my brains out Malcolm's first day of daycare. but that won't make tomorrow any easier for you. i got thru it by going to starbucks, and ordering a cup of carmel sauce with a spoon. i think the barista snuck some milk and espresso in there, too, but it was mostly carmel. then again, i'm a comfort eater.
It all hits us differently, the moments that get us and whap us upside the back of the head and realize they aren't babies anymore. I did fine on the first day of school... but bawled like a baby when she (Gert) got her ears pierced!
Big hugs and such for tomorrow. Just think of how fun it will be when she gets off that bus (hey - here's a thought - save the cookies for when she gets home - they're always a little pooped out then, and you can sit and have cookies & milk and talk about her day)
Aweee you poor thing!! Just remember HOW excited she's going to be when she gets home and gets to tell you all about her big day!!
Awww... I felt the same way when Graham started preschool... he went full time starting at age 3.5... as in 9am-3pm... His first day of kindergarten was yesterday and I did the happiest jig up the driveway when that bus pulled away!!!
I'm curious about Kiddo's sensory diet... Graham is just learning to eat... and has been in feeding therapy most of his life.. he's tube fed still... blah blah...I could go on ... he gets OT and PT at school too...
I was thrilled when school started with my first daughter. I couldn't wait for every new thing she did. With my second and maybe last, I just hang on and want her to stay little. It's kind of sad when they grow up and get all independent! Thanks for visiting me yesterday.
kindergarten is a full day now?? wow it was only a half day when I went so long ago.
hope kiddo is feeling better AND how did the first day go?? = )
I cried at birthday #4 because I knew the following year he would be in K. I cried at birthday #12 because I knew he would be a teen the following year. I cried at birthday #15 because I knew he would be driving soon.
Let's just face it. We'll be crying about it the rest of our lives! LOL
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