First Week of School, Hurrah

Today ended the first week of school for my second and fourth graders.  Many of you are

experiencing the same thing right now.  That feeling of job well done, one down, thirty four more to go.

Moms and dads, be proud of yourselves.  This week you’ve woken bleary eyed and anxious, packed lunches, dressed sometimes crying children, waved goodbye, said, “Hello, how was your day?” and spent hours thinking, “Was this the best choice for my child?”

I saw the way you hugged your child tighter that first day of school, I did too.  I saw how worried you were that they wouldn’t make friends or that the teacher would be too hard, too easy.  I saw you look back to make sure your child made it into class ok.  Were happy they had, sad they didn’t come running out for one last hug.

Moms, dads, let’s breathe deeply a few times and tell ourselves it’s all going to be ok.  Even though we know deep down inside they are going to have tough days, days when they didn’t make a friend, days when the teacher told them they misbehaved.  There will be days when leaving them with someone else is the hardest thing to do.

Yes, today ended the first week of school but it’s just the beginning of heartaches and joys, laughter and tears.  Still, when I ask my daughter, “How was school this week?”, she says, “It was so much fun.  I can’t wait for Monday.”  That makes all the rest a little easier.