First Day of Kindergarten

We did it!!! We made it through the first day of kindergarten and it was great! Last night Emily was so excited and a little anxious that she could not go to sleep yet she was up super early all dressed and ready to go. On Wednesday we had Kindergarten Orientation and we met her teacher. Her teacher is going to be great. I'm so happy with her! She remembered Emily's name from Meet the Teacher and she seems so organized yet flexible. When we left Emily said to me, "Mom, I'm excited for Kindergarten." Words so dear to my heart.

So today was the big day. She was all ready and we walked down to the bus stop (early because she said she would rather wait there than at home). The bus decision was a big one for me. As a former teacher, I was aware of all the mischief that happens on the bus but I felt like there would be times that I would need Emily to ride it. I thought it would be a good idea to have Emily learn how to ride the bus while there is a lot of supervision and learning of procedures. I was also concerned that we knew NO ONE riding the bus. I was a little nervous putting my baby on a bus full of strangers. Yet, Emily was really excited about it. We attended a bus class in May to learn about riding the bus and I think this really helped. I was really happy to see my neighbor arriving at the bus stop with two kids that she watches during the school year. One was a 4th grader who said she would help Emily. So the bus arrives and the kids line up. I'm videoing the arrival and Emily turns and waves with a huge smile on her face. I then turn off the camera run up with her and introduce her to the bus driver. (By the way Kindergarten starts 2 day later than the rest of the school.) I discover that there are no seats by the driver and the kinder kids are supposed to sit by the driver. I could see Emily become a little nervous. But the sweet 4th grade girl motions to Emily to squeeze in next to her. Both of us felt a huge sense of relief. I hop off the bus, wave goodbye and watch the bus drive away. I then start to tear up and my neighbor offers me a hug (she has 3 kids and was very understanding of the emotions of sending your kids off to school). There she went and I hoped and prayed it would be a good day.

A couple of hours later, Sam, Ben and I walked down to the bus stop and wait for Emily's bus. It arrives and my sweet little girl hops off with a HUGE SMILE on her face. She runs to me and says, "I had a fun day!" So it was a success and she told me all about what she did. She got to be the line leader from the playground. She got to be the helper at her table. She had chocolate milk and crackers for snack. She practiced the letter R. She told me her teacher was sick and they had a substitute. I was surprised to hear this and I'm sure this teacher was really upset about it. But it did not seem to phase Emily and she had a great day. She was happy to hear that she gets to go back tomorrow. This last picture is of her after her exciting first day of Kindergarten!