Big Bear is a Preschooler!

Last night, we packed Junia's elephant backpack with a spare change of clothes, put out her new outfit (a cheap one that is cute but can get trashed) and got her all washed and moisturized for her big day today. The whole ritual made me feel so much like a mom because I so remember my own mom helping me pick out my outfit and hang it on the door the night before a school day. We didn't have to worry about setting an alarm since we have pretty much stopped using our alarm clock now that Big Bear is potty trained. It appears that her bladder is wired to go off at 6am - on the dot. This is quite the bummer given that in diaper days, she would sleep until at least 7, maybe 7:30 on a really delicious morning. Add to that the fact that she can now climb out of her bed herself and you have a recipe for one groggy Mommy and Daddy. Today was no exception.

Junia bounded into our room as she now does daily (at least this time she wasn't in full costume with pearls, a headband and a tutu on top of her pajamas like she was yesterday) ready to take on her first day as a preschooler. We managed to somehow cajole her into laying in between Mommy and Daddy so that we could eek out a few more cherished moments of "sleep". At some point, she decided to climb over me by delicately putting her knee on my throat (ouch). Once she got resettled on my side of the bed after a whole lot of squirming, I put my arms around her and was trying - in vain - to go back to sleep. The next thing I hear this quiet little voice says "I love you." I opened my eyes and looked into her big brown eyes looking right into mine. I said, "What?" thinking I might have misheard her. She just kept looking at me and said, "I love you". It was THE most precious thing ever - her first unsolicited, unprompted "I love you" and it was obvious she knew what it meant. I laughed and told her that I loved her too and that she had made my day.

We did somehow manage as a family to get everyone fed, scrubbed and dressed in time to be out the door by 8:45 for Junia's first big day at school. We were even able to snap some adorable pics of her with her cute little backpack (this is a miracle given our penchant for lateness these days). At one point while we were setting up to have a friend take a family picture, Eden went missing. I went back into the house only to find her coming down the hall barefoot with her giraffe backpack. I guess she didn't want to miss out on the fun.

When we got to school, Junia went right into her class and started checking out all of the stations loaded with interesting things for little people. She was carrying on a very involved conversation with someone on an official-looking red phone (Obama, maybe?) around the time we had to head off for work. People kept asking me if I was going to cry on her first day of preschool and I didn't really understand why they kept asking that. She was really happy to be there and if she's happy, then I'm happy. It seemed pretty simple to me, especially as the logical/rational type of person that I am. However, I must confess that I found myself strangely overwhelmed with emotion watching her pick up her backpack and hang it on the peg in her cubbie. I guess it just made it real that she is already moving toward a time when she will leave us and head out into the world on her own. Part of me wants to say "But wait! You just got here!" Davis and I hugged and kissed her goodbye in the midst of her call from the President and she waved goodbye to us with a beaming smile through the classroom window as we left her on her own for three long hours.

She came home chatting away all about a new friend she met - a boy that we aren't sure what his name is (I hope this won't become a trend!) and going on and on about how she didn't get to ride bikes today (the school has a bike track she was really looking forward to). So, it appears that our eldest child is going to survive the transition to preschool just fine. She appears to be thriving already. Little Bear seems to be having the hardest time of all because her best friend left her today and she isn't quite sure why. We continue to pray that God will bless the time they are apart as well as the time they are together.

On a final note: Here is one more reason I LOOOOOOVE preschool. The Little Ladies have been sleeping now for THREE AND A HALF hours with no sign of waking (hence this blog post!). I'm tempted to rouse them but what kind of crazy mama would do that when it is so QUIET around here?!

I love preschool.