New Chapter

This is a couple of weeks late.... I wanted to share some pictures of a momentous day in our little world. My baby started school. There's no going back now. The growing up thing is happening faster and faster and there is nothing I can do about it.

Amelia has been wanting to go to "Jackson's school" for some time now. It was always for "big kids." The director offered me a spot in October for her. I am pretty sure that she would have loved it just as much then. But I wasn't ready. Right before Christmas, she told me that she had a spot available in January. I knew that it would be now or not again until the summer. Amelia is nearly three (sniff sniff) and is really ready. I knew that I was just going to have to suck it up. I had been taking her to a mom's morning out in order to get Christmas shopping done and the hours of free time it gave me was great. I suppose I was finally ready to admit that my baby is becoming a big girl.

I was prepared for her to be enthusiastic about school. I don't think I was quite prepared for how enthusiastic she was. She had to be reminded to say good-bye to me and give me a hug and kiss. That is not just for the first day. Every day since, she has run off to her friends without a second thought about mom. I suppose it is good. She is confident. She is independent. The only thing that makes me feel better is that she is excited to see me when I pick her up after lunch. On her first day, I was fine. I didn't have any tears like I thought I might. I just had an empty feeling while driving away. When I went to pick her up on the second day, she was sitting at a table with other kids eating her lunch. At that moment, a wave of emotion hit me. She really was a big girl.

Here she is, ready to go. She is dropping off her lunch box before going out to the playground before school.

Out at the playground being forced to pose for that "1st Day of School" picture. Jackson wanted to get in on the action. Once I was done making her pose, she ran over to the "merry go round" that several of the kids were on.

I stuck around until they lined up and went into the classroom for circle time.

She didn't look quite sure at first, but seemed to find her place.

She had a great day that day and every day since. For two days a week she gets to be a big girl at school. The rest of the week she is still my baby ;-)