It's Official

I'd been expecting 'the letter' and it came today. My baby is officially going to Kindergarten. The letter says so : )

You can see by the smiles she is happy and excited and for that, I am grateful. I would hate for her to have anxiety about it and fortunately she doesn't. She has been talking about going to kindergarten for months. We have a routine. Here's how it goes....

People: Are you ready for kindergarten?
Preslie: Yes

Mommy: Yes, she's ready but I'm not going to let her go.

Preslie: *smiling* Please mommy, I really want to go!

Mommy: Nope I'll miss you too much!

Preslie: Mommy, please, I'll be home at 3:30!

Mommy: Well, okay, I guess I'll let you go ~ Hugs from Preslie~

Anyway, I came in from the mailbox with the letter. I announce to the girls who were deep in American Girl playtime in the den that I had a special letter for Preslie and they all come running! We open it and see in big bold letters her teachers name...Mrs. Rummage aka Miss Carole - her Sunday School teacher for the past year! What a great answer to prayer! I am so thankful that her first official formal school experience will be with Mrs. Rummage! Funny story........when we found out several weeks ago that Mrs. R would be one of the kindergarten teachers at Hoover I told Preslie......guess what you might get to have Mrs. Rummage. She stomps her feet and screams, "I don't like Mrs. Rummage" which totally surprised me and I said, "you don't, that's Ms. Carole" and she says completely calmly, "Oh, Ms. Carole, I like her" LOL Can you say bipolar!!!! Just kiddin!

She gets to go see Mrs. Rummage, see her classroom, take her school supplies and have a little pre-Kindergarten assessment next Thursday~ She is excited and already wanted it written on the calendar. Next week is a big week - Hunter enrolls for 10th grade, Kyleigh enrolls for her first year at the middle school and Preslie for kindergarten! Addison thankfully is just going to 3rd grade and will meet her teacher the next week~ 13 days of summer break - it sure has gone fast!

I'm really trying to be excited. Part of me is because for Preslie this is a very exciting time! Certainly I'd never let her know or see these feelings I keep hidden - Kindergarten is a great experience and she is going to learn so much academically and socially. It will be a lot of change for her though and going every day all day is a lot for a 5 year old but she is such a happy go lucky child and I know she's going to enjoy school. It's after she has held it together and worked so hard all day and comes home I feel we might have the troubles.......when she is back in her comfort zone and free to be Preslie!! I just want our time with her to be quality and not full of meltdowns and emotions which have been running HIGH these past few weeks! Anyway, I digress.......

For me, I feel a huge range of emotions none of which at this point are on the happy end of the scale! Aside from my excitement for her most of my feelings are on the other end of the spectrum! Anxiety, apprehension, nervousness, loneliness, emptiness, being out of sorts, a new normal for sure. For the first time since 1997 I will be without any of my children at home with me all day - I have always had someone here with me every day. I know millions of moms do this every day but for me, it's new. Certainly a time for adjustments and I am thankful for a wise husband who told me weeks ago to just not make big plans and to just give myself several weeks and/or months to get in a groove. Having said that, I am looking forward to volunteering in her classroom 1 morning a week!

Anyway, I am working through the feelings and I know it will all be good. I will get in a groove and in and through it all I am thankful that she is excited and looking forward to this new phase in her life!