Baby Dude’s First Day of Kindergarten

I was pregnant with him during the infant stages of this blog, and now, a month shy of turning 6, he started kindergarten today. Many of you who have been reading this site from the beginning have watched him grow up.

Somehow I blinked, and this diapered-crawling, baby food hating, light saber lovin’, well-traveled sidekick of mine went from this…

… to this.

Yesterday, I was a wreck. We had lunch with his older sister – the last time he’d have lunch with her like this EVER. (I’m not good with “last times” at all.) I walked away from the school, so grateful he was so unobservant, because I was choking I was crying so quiet-hard. I posted this to Facebook later:

We did wonderfully this morning, getting ready. He was eager and excited, and I was doing my best to stay busy to keep from getting teary. But he marched on bravely, perhaps almost too bravely. I was ready, in case there was a meltdown, but there was none. Nothing like his sister’s first day.

All the parents waited until they went inside. It was eery, just how many of us were there, quietly waving, holding back tears with smiles and pride, holding cameras and smartphones instead of our kindergartners’ hands. Once they entered the building and we parted, we all left one child lighter. It certainly didn’t feel lighter, only heavier.

I stayed longer than others. I was afraid he’d turn around to see me walking away. He didn’t. That didn’t help me. I clutched my coffee cup in my hand, almost breaking it (or my fingers). I tried to swallow my tears with coffee, but I couldn’t. “Are you okay?” my husband asked me.

The floodgates opened. “No.”

Thank God my husband was there, he made me laugh all the way home, and kept me company for two hours until we go to school to have lunch with him.

I was met with a beaming kindergartner, friends. He wouldn’t stop smiling and showing me every one of his new friends, telling me all about how great his day has been so far. It did my heart so good to hear.

He came home with equally awesome first day stories. The music teacher said he was “better than the first graders,” he said to me excitedly. “Our class was split, some went to music, some went to art!” He shook everyone’s hands. “Happy to meet you,” he said. He was met with a few shy kindergarten friends who were too shy to shake his eager hand this morning upon lining up, but by day’s end, they were BFFs. I am so proud of him. I missed him terribly, but I couldn’t be prouder of my happy, kindergarten dude.