Off to School, Off to School

Monday August 23, 2010 started with the buzzing of the alarm clock at 6:25 a.m. I squinted at the clock, reluctantly rolled out of bed and stumbled across the hall to the boys' bedroom, I had barely pulled the covers off Caleb's head when he sprang up from under the sheets. "Time to get ready for your first day of school, Caleb!" I announced in my most encouraging mommy voice. Not that any encouragement was needed—despite his short response, you could sense he was excited for the big day ahead.

Caleb immediately reached for his clothes from the dresser that we so carefully picked out the night before—a pair of blue jeans and the bright red guitar t-shirt that his teacher had commented on at registration. With minimal distraction and only some of the regular dilly-dallying, Caleb was washed and dressed in no time. Meanwhile, Kevin was busy in the kitchen fixing Caleb's favorite breakfast—pancakes and syrup! The boys sat down and ate together (I inhaled a pancake while Caleb tied his shoes), we took a few pictures and we were on the road, backpack and all, by seven thirty sharp!

School didn't start until ten after eight, but as a stay-at-home mom this was my first experience in Fort Wayne rush hour traffic—which thankfully turned out to be no rush at all! We arrived at Emmaus Lutheran School with 20 minutes to spare and we were the first family outside. Although, we quickly learned that they don't unlock the doors until eight o'clock (thank goodness for the sunshine ;).

When the principal finally unleashed the heard (wearing his large pencil-shaped necktie) we meandered down the hall to find Mrs. Tassey's Pre-Kindergarten classroom! We (okay, I) cheerfully greeted the teacher and then found Caleb's seat at the table—clearly marked with his name and a blue paper frog. Our first order of business was for Caleb to take his wooden attendance stick to the yellow cup on the teacher's desk (clever!). Then Mrs. Tassey checked the supplies in his backpack and we headed back out to the hall to find his locker (also marked with his name and another blue paper frog). As Caleb posed in the hallway for a quick picture, I started to sense some apprehension in his expression. Thankfully, it quickly receded when I asked for a nice big smile! He squished his backpack into the locker, intrigued by the variety of hooks inside, and then it was back to the classroom to get ready for the day!

Inside the classroom, each child's seat was adorned with their name, an over-sized Popsicle stick (aka attendance stick), a different critter shaped piece of paper and a puzzle. There must have been about 20 kids in his class. In observance of the big event we will celebrate this Friday, Caleb had a special birthday puzzle in front of his seat! As he started to pull out his chair, he looked up at me with wide eyes and asked, "Mom, did you hear that?! Somebody said Malachi!" (The same name as one of his good friends from the seminary, who has now moved to Wisconsin). I excitedly acknowledged his observation and pulled out the camera for a couple quick classroom pics.

While I attempted to capture the momentum of the morning, Caleb worked quietly on his puzzle, although, it was clear that he was much more interested in the bustle of the kids and their parents shuffling around the classroom. Acknowledging my window of opportunity, I gently rubbed the top of his fuzzy little head (none of that mushy kissy-face stuff ;) and explained, "I better get going so you can start your day." With his attention fixed on his puzzle, Caleb nonchalantly replied, "Okay, Mom." So I headed toward the door, sporting my proud mama smile! I glanced back for one last good-bye (and, of course, to confirm the absence of fear), but his attention was everywhere but on me.

"WE DID IT!!" I cheered to myself! And I'm quite sure I let out a blatant sigh of relieve as I headed back to the car.

Back home, Ethan and I took Shelby for a walk, exploring our new found freedom and independence! As we headed down the street, I realized I now had to repeatedly point Ethan in the right direction, as there was no crazy curly-haired kid luring us on his Big Wheels (apparently Shelby does not posses the authority to hold Ethan attention the way Caleb does). Regardless, we continued down our usual path. All the while, I couldn't help but wish I was a fly on the wall in Caleb's classroom. What was he doing? Was he having fun? Who were the other kids in his class? What was he learning today? How did Ethan feel about big brother going to school? Well, I asked Ethan, but he just repeated my question with his elbows bent, and hands in the air—"Caleb?" and then, again, repeating me "School!" I guess he probably didn't mind having all the toys and attention for himself, but I wonder if any of that will change as he learns that this is an everyday affair...

Well eleven o'clock arrived quickly, and I excitedly packed Ethan in the car to go pick up my boy! Along the way, Ethan played tour guide, shouting, "Digger!...Worker!...Plane!...Garage!..." This time I repeated him :) We arrived just a couple minutes early and waited anxiously in the foyer. As the teacher walked up with the kids in line behind her, one little girl—and then Caleb—attempted to rush through the door before getting properly signed out. Despite the slight scolding, he was glowing with smiles!

Of course, all the way to the car, I poked and prodded him about his day. Often times he replies with a nondescript one-word answer, so I was surprised when he had so many good things to share about his day—"We went to the gym...We read a REALLY funny story called 'The first day of school!'... I only got two papers today (something about those school papers makes him feel pretty grown up ;). And then—my favorite—this afternoon out of nowhere he says, "Mom, do you know about lips and hips? When the teacher says lips and hips we stand like this"—one hand on his hip, the other with a finger over his lips. "Yeah, Mom, that's what we do when the teacher says lips and hips." Ha!

And just when I thought I had heard everything there was to hear, I laid down with him after prayers tonight and he informed me that he had EVEN MORE fun at school today than he does at home! But that was only the beginning—his mind was still going: "Mom, there are squares and footprints on the carpet...And we went to church today...Mom, they have even MORE books than I do!" I never dreamed I would have to cut him off to say, "Goodnight, honey. Now get some sleep."