A New First Day of School Experience

I still recall the first day of school with fondness. New books and Trapper Keeper loose leaf binders. Sharpened pencils and unused pens in my back pack ready to be used. Friends to reconnect with after the summer break. New slouch socks and LA Gear high tops with my denim skirt and t-shirt rolled at the sleeves.  Wait, I’m giving away my age
with that last one. Suffice it to say, it was all exciting. The first day of school signaled a new beginning and a fresh start at earning good grades and remarks. I always found that first week quite exciting.

Years later, far beyond the days of my childhood school years, this school year brings a
new kind of excitement. My firstborn will start his very first day of school! Aside from the fact that he’s been begging to go to school all year long, there are so many reasons to celebrate this momentous occasion.

First I’m curious to see how much of my home training will be taken to school with him each day. I’ve tried hard to see that he has learned to speak and act politely, to mind his manners, to share, and be kind. I hope to see the fruit of my ongoing labor pay off.

This is also the year that he makes his very first best friend in school! I’m so curious to see who I will be hearing about on a regular basis. Will it be a boy? A girl? Will they teach us about different cultures? Will they be outgoing and gregarious? Will they be shy and sweet? It’ll be a new level of learning for me as Joel’s mom, to see the type of person that connects with him and has fun with him. This will be one of the first friends he’ll make outside of my own social circle of Mommy friends and their kiddos.

I’m excited to see all that he’ll be learning when he gets home from school. He knows his colors, shapes, numbers, animals, etc. But he’ll learn even more how to connect these items into pictures and stories and much more.

Also if I’m honest, I’m relieved to have someone else take over the schedule of engaging his attention for a few hours a day. As much as I love spending time with my boys, having to manage engaging their attention all day everyday can be quite exhausting. I think I’m excited to get a daily break and share that job with someone other than me during the weekdays.

My older son Joel also had me all to himself the first two years of his life. My younger son now has an opportunity to have me all to himself for three hours a day. I’m looking forward to that connection time as well.

It won’t be long now. A new pair of shoes, a book bag, and lunch gear is all we have to get to be ready. Then it’s a matter of waiting for that first day!  We are all eagerly looking forward to its arrival.





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Lid

Image
When I was a child, my siblings, cousins, and I would spend our evening hours in the summer in hot pursuit of lighting bugs. The ideal lighting bug trap was a jar with a lid. When that wasn’t an option, we’d settle for clear plastic cups covered with aluminum foil for a lid.   It was always very important to poke holes in the lid. We did this to keep the bugs alive while in captivity. Then, after we had our fun enjoying their lights, we could uncover them and release them back to nature.   Seven weeks ago I gave birth to my own little lighting bug. Alvaro is as cute and precious as they come. And like a lighting bug when I was a child- he already fills my life with awe and wonder. Such is the nature of being able to witness the birth, growth, and development of my children. We as people come in all shapes and sizes, just like jars do. Some jars are dark, some light, others are tall, some short. You get the picture. Alvaro’s jar is wrapped with an extra chromosome. If his ja
Read more

Well Said

Image
I've been wanting to share a "Conversations about Down syndrome 101" on my Facebook for some time. So I decided it was time to contain it in a blog. Most of you know if you are a regular reader of my blog, that words are important to me. I seek to communicate clearly: to be heard and understand for what I am actually saying and meaning. I also seek to understand what someone else is actually saying and meaning, beyond their choice of words. This particular blog may make some people uncomfortable. You my read the following and say, " Um.... I said that - but I didn't mean it that way !"....   or " Why didn't you tell me that's how you felt about what I said ?" Please take note this is not a blog to address any specific conversation with any specific person. Before Alvaro I didn't know many individuals with Down syndrome (DS). In fact, I've met only one person and encountered him on less than a handful of occasions.
Read more

PTSD: A 6 Month Update

Image
It’s been 6 months since Alvaro’s accident. Six months since we were THISCLOSE from losing him. Six months since I have counted every day a blessing and have been more grateful than ever to have this child in my life and care. Interestingly enough, this 6-month mark is when I became aware I was suffering from PTSD. The shock of the trauma from his accident began to wear off a few weeks after it happened. Unfortunately, a whole new series of stressful and discouraging events immediately followed. This prevented me from being able to stop and breath and slow down. Simply put, I was in survival mode, dealing with one draining situation after another. Until one day I woke up and wondered how I had arrived at this place again? A place where I lacked self-care and rest. A place where I looked OK on the outside. I smiled and made jokes and told people I was hanging in there. But inside I was drained, dry, and depressed. On more than one occasion, I would admit the truth. Tha
Read more