Gracie's first day of Kindergarten

We can't believe it's here.  Neither Steph or I couldn't sleep last night.  It doesn't help that no one in the house hasn't felt all that great, but there was anxiety about this morning for sure.  Gracie was so excited!  She colored a picture for her teacher, Mrs. Brown.

We all loaded up in the van (we're taking Keke to school every MWF, then Morgan is picking them up after school those days, so we had Keke in tow), and headed off to school about 7:45.  Once we got there, we all went in, dropped Keke off in her classroom and then all marched to Gracie's.  She was one of the first ones there.  It was a big deal for everyone.  We weren't the only ones who wanted to take pictures.

I don't think Mrs. Brown wanted all of the parents in the room, but there's only 1 first day of Kindergarten.  And then we left.  Gracie was just fine. She couldn't wait to start school.  She was seated at her desk, in her place, as we left, ready for everything to begin. 

She loved it!  They learned about rules.  And Genesis 1.  Beyond that, they read and played.  This year, she's going to learn and grow so much. She'll learn how to read and write lowercase letters and count to 100 and no telling what else.  I really can't believe it's already here.

Transition is on!

Boys' meet the teacher was Tuesday night.  They have no idea what's going on.  It's going to be a lot like church, where they have a safe place to play, good people to watch after them, and they'll get used to it.  Hopefully, they'll learn some things, even though they're only going 1 day a week.  Structure, craft-time, how to play well with others - all of these things, I hope they'll learn and embrace. 

Gracie's meet the teacher was last night.  It's so much different - looking at a kindergarten class, meeting the teacher, seeing the way the room is set up, the other kids - it's just not the same as pre-K.  Mrs. Brown is her teacher and she seems like a good one.  I'm happy for Gracie because I think it's the right place for her to be this year.  I pray that she'll continue to grow and learn and excel in the situations she finds herself in.  She's a good girl, well-mannered, smart, inquisitive - I anticipate those qualities will get stronger over the next year and she'll continue to be the leader that she is.

Tonight, we gave her her first haircut.

She loves it!  She looks clean and cute.  That long hair was just ratty and long. 

Tomorrow, we're taking her out for a special day with mommy and daddy.  We'll take her to eat wherever she wants and then take her ice-skating.  She picked that over everything else.  It will be an awesome time.

This is a big transition so we're trying to enjoy it for everything it is, make it about Gracie (and the boys in their case), not about us, and trust that we'll get through it all.  I know we will.  And we'll do our best to have fun through it all.

Managing this blog and our emotions :(

Hard to manage, this blog.  It's been a busy summer, and specifically last 4 weeks - there are so many things going (and gone) on, I'm a little frustrated to be dusting off the cobwebs now.  Better late than never, I suppose.

The thing staring us in the face right now is Gracie starting kindergarten.  This is her last week at home, no-school-on-the-weekdays for at least 18 more years.  Wow.  Obviously a huge milestone.  She woke up today and yesterday asking if this was the day that she gets to start kindergarten.  Slow down, missy.  We need to savor this week.  In general, I'm not having as hard a time with it as Stephanie is, but now, writing about it, I'm getting a little sad and nostalgic.  

While the days of coloring and asking lots of questions will no doubt continue, it won't be the same ever again.