The First Day of the Rest of Our Lives

So it is that time of year again...back to school. Every year this greets me with a bag of mixed emotions as I am sure it does with every parent. I am happy that summer is over and the kids will be gone during the day instead of here bugging me and fighting with each other. But at the same time it saddens me that my house is empty of the noise, no Disney movies blaring, no video games going, no sounds of shreks as kids run through the sprinkler. All is quiet. I thought to commerate the first day of school I would do a flash back post...now I don't seem to have back to school pictures from the first day of school for all the kids (I have them just not on my computer :( but here are their Kindergarten class photos as well as their first day of school this year photo...

Brittany

Brittany started grade 5 this year...

Ariel

Ariel started high school...this was a big deal for her as it was the first year for the new high school, and she was leaving the school she had attended since kindergarten to attend the high school, she was a little overwhelmed at first especially since she knew very few people in her classes but she seems to be taking it in stride...grade 10

Now Nathan...

As you know Nathan graduated in June so he is done...this is his graduation photo

Being a mom of four kids I have done this first day of school thing before...okay I am lying sort of...I have done it once before when Nathan started kindergarten September 1994. I missed out on Ariel's first day and wasn't involved with Brittany until half way through kindergarten. So this is only my second time having to say goodbye. It was very hard with Nathan because I was admitting that my baby was old enough to go on without me, but I had a baby at home to fill my days and keep me busy...but now. Well today was the day, the day I let go of my last baby. The day that I took Connor to kindergarten. It is so quiet in my house right now, and although it is nice to be able to do somethings around the house and not have to worry about what he is up to, it is sad that he is all grown up. I know he will still be here on the weekends and we can still hang out on Fridays when he doesn't have classes but it is hard to believe he is ready for this...I know I am not.

The minute he got up he was jumping up and down and singing "I am going to school, yah" songs. He was so hyped I could barely control his emotions. But then he got to school and I saw a child I had never seen before, he was quiet and shy. He hide in the pretend kitchen looking at the girls from his preschool class through binoculars...he was afraid to get close to anyone, except the teacher of course. He was loving it, and I am sure when I pick him up at 3:30 he won't be able to contain his excitement. Here is hoping it will be a great year :)

Now just for fun I thought I would throw a crazy picture at you...think back to 1975...yes that was how many years ago it was that I was in kindergarten. And please when you look at this picture remember I had nothing to do with this look :)