Back to School

Yesterday was the first day of school for these cute kids.  They were quite excited! 

Grace started kindergarten and is so excited to be in school! She has the same teacher Joshua had in kindergarten, Mrs. Ellis, which is who Grace was hoping to have and we were all thrilled that it worked out that way!

Joshua started 2nd grade (can it really be true!?) and he has Mrs. Campbell.  She seems like a really great teacher, but admittedly the most exciting part to Joshua is that his buddy Huston is in his class for three years running!

Here are a few first day pictures...how do they grow up so fast?!

I did pretty well dropping them off yesterday, and amazingly I didn't even cry.  

It was such a different experience than when I dropped Joshua off for his first day of kindergarten.  It was was so much easier knowing that Grace knew some of the people I was leaving her with.  We walked into the classroom and Mrs. Ellis says, "Grace!  There you are!  I've been waiting for you!" and goes on to tell us how excited she was to have Grace in her class. Huge difference.

I went and had lunch with each of them and they were both so excited about being back in school!  The school staff was getting quite a kick out of Grace.  She has been at the school with me so many times that she already knows a lot of the rules and how things work.  When I went to meet her for lunch the secretary told me I better hurry down to the cafeteria because Grace was waiting for me.  Apparently the teachers had taken them to lunch a few minutes early, so I wasn't there yet when she got to the cafeteria. Grace was insistent that she needed to sit at the special table for kids with visitors, but the cafeteria staff wouldn't let her because I wasn't there yet. She finally sat at the table with the other kindergartners, but kept telling everyone that her mom was coming and she had to sit at that table!  The school counselor said Grace had it all figured out and they might as well just move her to second grade, too. :)   We had lunch and she definitely talked more than she ate, which really isn't a surprise! I don't think I am ever going to lack for details of how her day went!

Lunch with Joshua was really sweet. He had been a bit nervous for the first day, but by lunch he was an old pro again.  Now he was just worried about me!  He kept asking me if I had cried yet, and what I was doing with my day by myself.  He asked how Grace was liking school and if she had made any friends yet. He asked if she was being good. :) What a sweet boy!  We are so lucky to have such a caring son, and these little sisters are so blessed to have such a caring big brother! 

I was so busy yesterday I hardly had time to realize my kiddos were gone.  

Then today hit...

Bryan took the kids to school and I am sitting in this silent house with nothing urgent to do all day...for 7 straight hours.  Really?  After nearly 8 years of not even being able to go to the bathroom alone, I am not sure what I am supposed to do with that many hours alone.  I did okay until about 10:00, and then I bawled! I miss my kids...a lot!!!  But at least I have cute little reminders of them around my house, like this:

Look how little! I love these two...even if they have to grow up. :)
At least I am only alone for a couple of months, then I will have a little baby to keep me company and keep me busy.
Of course that means the cycle of kids growing up too fast just starts over...Yikes!