My little Kindergartener

The last five years and 8 months have been leading up to this event. As a parent you worry did I read enough to her, does she know her abc's and 123’s well enough, should I have tried harder to teach her to tie her shoes. Really all your kid needs to enter Kindergarten is how to line up and listen to their teachers. But the ability to recognize their name certainly helps as does experience being away from you. As I looked across at all the kindergartners they, for the most part, looked like a confident bunch….the parents were the ones who approached this day with trepidation. Of course we were all the leg huggers who brought their children to school rather then just sending them on the bus today so I guess we are already doomed. But the kids were eager to be there, eager to make new friends and eager to learn.

I finished up clothes shoping for her a month ago, hoping she wasn’t going to have some serious growth spurt that would make all the clothes to small for her when it came to wearing them. I have had her school supplies piled up waiting to go to school since that time too. I really wanted her to get out of Learning Tree after she began getting terrorized by a little boy and his bratty older sister. I know she will flourish in school, she is a sponge for new information and loves learning.

So today there were Cheerios for my little cheerio. (Glee connection intended)

A backpack full of school supplies and a lunch.

This is the first of many first day’s of school photos.

Here we are walking into school together, this is were I first started to thought I might cry.

We all met in the cafeteria and awaited the principle and teacher greetings and directives.

We took her to her classroom, notice the teacher’s pet right in the front row, eager to please Mr. Reynolds.

She picked out her locker and Matt and I helped the other children who didn’t have their parents there. We also tried to introduce her to her classmates so she could begin the process of building her school friends. We had to leave all her friend’s from learning tree behind when I pulled her out so this is a very big deal for her. She likes to have friends and hopefully she will forge friendships that will last for years.

I was not the first parent to leave but not the last, I managed not to cry.

Matt has the responsibility from here on out of getting Carina on the bus in the morning and meeting her in the afternoon. Today it was hard to sit at my desk and work and wait for a report about the successful day. But my wonderful husband provided me with video of the event.

Carina is so excited to be in school. Not an ounce of fear or trepidation as she marched down the halls so proudly to her classroom. Mr. Reynolds said she has strong math skills which must be completely innate because I have been so focused on reading and writing I have neglected math. Mr. Reynolds promises to be pushing the math and science this year with an opening lesson today about bees. He is a bee keeper and tree farmer who lives in Rainer and commutes an hour each way to teach Carina and her classmates. Carina is so looking forward to this year and I couldn’t be more proud of her.