*** 1st Day of the 6th Grade *** I wish I looked at least half as good when I was this age. She is quite the fashionista. I don’t think we looked this good in the 80’s.
Somehow every year the summer whizzes by like a speeding locomotive that only Superman can stop. For whatever reason this summer was the fastest of all. Today is the first day of school for my daughter and it marked the beginning of the dreaded middle school years. She refused to let me walk her into class this year, another marker of just how independent she is starting to become. I am still in shock at how old she is; it’s like just last year she learned how to walk. It’s very bittersweet.
We are very fortunate to have an arts based school that is K-8, meaning that she gets to stay with all her friends and at the same campus location for all of her pre-high school education. I wasn’t so lucky. I had several different elementary schools, then I went to junior high (7th – 9th) where all of my friends ended up at another junior high, and then a different high school than all my friends went. I guess we always lived on the “wrong side of the tracks” and I was destined to repeatedly make new friends.
My birthdays were always difficult that first year in the new school as my birthday is in September. Back when I was in school, we actually started after Labor Day, which doesn’t give much time to make close friends. We had no computers, no cell phones, no Facebook, Instagram, and all that jazz. It was frowned upon to get a phone call after 8 pm and you never answered the phone during dinner. People were less connected back then.
I wish I could slow down time and take in every moment of my daughter’s life, take note of all the funny things she says, remember all the cool clothes she wore and all the sweet friends she makes. Anyone with more than one child I think deserves some kind of award or trophy, because if one if one child is this difficult to raise with this hectic a schedule I cannot fathom how much more crazy and difficult it gets with more kids.
We parents should really stick together and give each other as much support as possible. We can all use a kind word and help from time to time. So to all mothers & fathers out there who are sending their kids to school today or this week, I applaud you; stand up and take a bow. Your child got to school, is dressed and wearing shoes, has something to eat for lunch, has a backpack, and you made that happen. YOU – got up extra early to help your daughter do her hair. YOU – stayed up late to make your son a perfect lunch. YOU – ran around all day yesterday getting the last minute school supplies that are required by your child’s teacher. Go do something nice for yourself this week, go out to your favorite restaurant, get that yummy dessert you have been eying, go get coffee and lounge in that coffee house all day (until you have to go pick up your kids), stay home and take a nap, give yourself a pedicure or go out and get one, or go get a massage – you know you deserve it. You made all this happen. YOU ARE PRETTY AMAZING!
Adventures in Tika-land 