This year is Jack's last year in preschool and Owen's first. Jack's an old pro these days, and Owen's been going to Jack's school since he was a baby, so he thinks he's an old pro, too.
We have a little tradition on the first day of school. Matt stays home from work, and he makes a delicious breakfast and I write up a little note for the boys. It's not much, but it's just a fun way to start the year. Here's what the boys see when they come down for breakfast.
They both were so excited about the breakfast, meeting new friends, carrying their new backpacks...I just love the first day of school! Even as their mom, I still get that same nervous excitement about the start of a new year. And by the way, that breakfast is Matt's handiwork all the way...isn't he just the best dad?? Digging through my box of 100+ cookie cutters to find just the right combination of letters and numbers. Precious.
And here they are doing the obligatory sign-holding picture...
You can tell Jack's an old hat at the whole thing. He just wants to get to eating his breakfast.
After we finished breakfast, everyone got dressed and ready to go. The boys were so excited to finally grab their brand new backpacks and lunch boxes that I wouldn't let them touch all summer long.
And we finally headed to school, where we had to get even more pictures...
Oh my goodness, how cute are they in their matchy-matchy outfits?? I adore those boys.
They both did well--Owen, surprisingly so. I was proud of them for walking in their classrooms and getting right to work...playing. Matt headed off to work, and I...well, I did not know what to do with myself with 5 hours of uninterrupted, child-free time! I went to Kroger and spent more than 2 hours and $200 buying groceries. In total piece and quiet. It was heavenly.
And by 2:00, I honestly could not wait to pick them up. They had great first days and we went to celebrate with ice cream. Another great tradition.
In the month they have been in school, they have both settled into their classrooms and their routines quite nicely. Owen wasn't crazy about the naptime at school, but he seems to have adjusted okay for now. Owen seems to have already found a lady friend in his class, which is no surprise to me. At just the mention of school, his whole face lights up and "I play wid Eva!" His teachers report that the two love birds sit in the book corner and read books and whisper to each other everyday. Just last week, little Eva walked in as I was leaving, and Owen stopped in his tracks, got all googly eyed, and started following the adorably tiny little brown-haired girl all around the classroom, until they both settled on a pillow right in the middle of the reading center. It does not help that Owen is one of only 3 boys in his entire class! When he's not talking about Eva, it's Hannah Claire and Addie...he'll be married by kindergarten.
Jack is enjoying his new friends and new classroom a lot. He loves the science center and the cash register in his class. His teachers say he is "all-boy" but uses good manners and is sweet, which makes me proud. He can almost never tell me what he learned in class but gives me a play-by-play of who had which toy that he wanted and how many friends he played with on the playground and what the other kids had for lunch. He's got his preschool priorities straight, I tell you.
And so begins the last year of preschool for one and the first year of preschool for the other. I treasure these days that I still have them with me so much, as I know they are limited. Even though some days, I would rather pull my hair out one by one than break up another fight or listen to them play drums or pick up the sofa pillows off the floor for the nineteenth time, I really love having this time with them when they are little. They grow and change so fast, I'm constantly wishing for time to stand still so I can just hold them a little longer, read them one more bedtime story, hear their little voices saying the cutest things a few more times. They are just so precious. And I am so blessed to be their mom, and I look forward to many more first days of school...
