Back to School

Here were the troops this morning:


Just for a little perspective, here were Joey, Daisy and Annabelle one year ago, as they started second grade and kindergarten, respectively.


I really thought Lilah would cry when we left her this morning for the first time, but I was wrong on that one. We got there a few minutes early and her teacher did a wonderful job of enlisting Lilah's help to get her warmed up. It worked. By the time it was time to say goodbye, she barely noticed us.

Here's Joey parked dutifully at his new desk in his new third grade class. He seemed a little nervous and even forlorn, and I got more teary saying goodbye to him than to any of the other kids for some reason. I've begun to worry about him; he's always been sensitive and lately has been showing a definite anxious side, and he tends to keep things bottled up a little.


And Daisy and Annabelle. Daisy was raring to go; Annabelle was feeling a little scared - scared of a new class, of new kids, and of playing on the big kid playground.


All in all, the morning went off without any major hitches, save for a mini-meltdown over the wrong color lunchbox - geez. The house was very quiet, and Finn and I went for a nice long walk and then just chilled at home for a while. Before I knew it, it was time to pick Lilah up from preschool. She presented me with this:


Her very first school art project :) She had fun, but was clearly tired.

Later we picked the other kids up from school. Daisy proclaimed, "I had a GREAT day!" Annabelle said, "The only thing I don't like about first grade, Mommy, is it's just work, work, work." Sigh. I will tell you what I think about Annabelle: she is a very bright little girl, but I think she's always going to be one of those kids who doesn't particularly like school. She has a lot of trouble with self-discipline, and she doesn't like doing anything that takes effort. Which is not the best way to be wired when you have to get through life! We - and her teachers - have our work cut out for us with that one.

(An aside: I discovered when I gave the girls their baths tonight that Annabelle had done quite a number on her hair. She's done so well for the last few months, and bam, all undone in one fell swoop. Well, not completely undone, but the one side in the back where she tends to twirl/pull was suddenly noticeably shorter tonight, and I had to trim her hair to even it out for the first time in months. Not super short like in the past, but enough. I tried to not make a big deal about it, but I admit that I am sorely disappointed and sad over it. I imagine that the anxiety about starting first grade - which I knew she was having - finally got the best of her and I'm thinking she probably went to town on her hair last night in bed, and I just didn't notice it this morning with all the commotion. It took a lot of restraint on my part not to scold her about her hair; instead I asked her if she feels like she needs more help keeping her fingers busy, and she said she needs new finger toys because the old ones are boring. Sigh. Anyway, proof that this is going to be a road of ups and downs with her and her hair.)

Joey had a good first day. He seems to like his teacher and reconnected with old friends from last year. Though he was nervous this morning, I figured he'd be okay because he truly loves school.

Kevin's first day went well, too. He announced that now that he's an eighth grader (in a K - 8 school), he's at the "top of the food chain." He seems pleased about that.

I had forgotten how the witching hour hits pretty much as soon as all the kids are home from school. The whining was at an all time high this afternoon, and everyone was crabby and out of sorts. I guess we all just have to get back into the whole school routine.

So, first day of school done, and we all survived.