First day of school

I never realized how hectic the first day of school is for parents. I remember as kid having various degrees of nervousness and excitement. As an adult, I was but a casual observer, annoyed with the increase in traffic and headaches in getting to work due to back to school hubbub. As a devoted aunt, all I had to do was admire the pictures of my nieces' and nephews' glowing faces and wish them well. Even daycare and preschool dropoffs pale in comparison to the "real thing".

There is orientation/Meet the Teacher to attend. There is a mountain of paperwork to complete. A multitude of checks to write. And to top it all off, you have to figure out the best time to wake up in order to perfectly time getting dressed, having breakfast, mediating disagreements, cajoling children, and buckling car seats. Today we had to build in time to take pictures on top of all that nonsense.

We managed to do it with time to spare today, but I was ready for a nap by 8 AM. WOW! What an ordeal!



We did not receive the information about the bus schedule prior to the start of school today, so I drove both kids to school and then returned twice more today to pick each of them up. Tyler was done at 10:45 AM, and dismissal was quick and orderly. He came running out to see me, wearing a crown he made in school today with his stickers that he chose to stick and his name on it. His teacher said he came into his classroom, just sobbing his heart out. That really tugged at my heart, but she said he settled down after about 10 minutes and had a really good day. He said he had a good time :)

Justin got out of school at 3:00 PM. I left a little early because I wasn't sure how long it would take to get there. I ended up getting there with about 15 minutes to spare, but it was a good thing because there was an incredible sea of vehicles waiting for exiting students.



The school kept things orderly, but it was kind of confusing for this first-timer. It was cute watching the kindergarteners come out hand-in-hand with their teachers, looking for their moms and dads. Just as they walked out the door, the skies opened and poured down rain on everyone. Not nice, Mother Nature. What was that all about?

Justin reported that he had a "great" day. I asked him what he did, and in true tween style, he said, "I don't remember." When we got home, his dad asked him what he did in school. Finally he said, "I learned. That's what I did. I just learned!"

Tomorrow, he will ride the bus both to and from school. That's going to be a little intimidating for both of us, I think. I'll be glad when this first week is over and we have a little experience under our belts.