The little guy's turn

Months ago we made the decision that Mason would start preschool this fall. I know most children don't start until age 3, but we knew he needed it. His only real socialization has been with Aubrey and her friends, with the occasional child his own age thrown in. The preschool Aubrey attended offers a 2-year old program and we loved the school so much with her we had no hesitations in sending Mason there as well. I sent the registration form in the same day I got it in February and didn't realize quite how fast those 7 months would fly by us. Before I knew it, I was getting an email with teacher assignments and supply lists. We prepped Mason all summer by telling him he was going to Aubrey's old school in the fall and he seemed pretty excited each time we talked about it. He always wanted to stay in her classroom and play when we dropped him off so we knew it wouldn't be a big change for him.

We went to open house a few weeks before the big day. He was so excited to finally play with the toys he coveted during Aubrey's preschool days. In fact, he was the child screaming when it was time to go because he wanted to keep playing. It seemed a little surreal to me to see his name on the board and see a little spot for his backpack and jacket. I tried to keep reminding myself it was just preschool and this was a good thing, but that lump still formed in the back of my throat. 2 open houses in 2 days made this momma a mushy mess.

Unfortunately, we had to wait almost 2 weeks between open house and the first day of school. He asked me everyday if it was time to go to school and would get downright mad when I told him it wasn't.

Finally, his big day arrived. Unlike all the other first days of school, it was just him and me taking pictures. He wasn't as excited to take pictures by himself as he had been with Aubrey, but I managed to get a few.

When we got to the preschool, he wasn't quite sure about everything without Aubrey and Todd being there. He pulled my hand to the table to look at some toys and then seemed ok. He ran off to look at other toys and I had to call him back to give him a hug and kiss bye. I was a little sad that he didn't seem too bothered by the fact that I was leaving. My little boy is quite the big kid now and that's a tough pill to swallow. 

I had to go straight to work after I dropped him off, so my mom picked him up after school and said he had a great day. He was excited to show me his school work when I saw him later that afternoon, but otherwise didn't seem to care as much about the big day. 

Now that we have 2 weeks under our belt, I would say he is doing a great job. He's still a little unsure of himself when we get there, but that lasts about 15 seconds before he runs off to play with the toys. He always seems happy at the end of the day so I think he's enjoying it. 

So, both of my kiddos are officially school kids now. I have kept myself busy with errands while they are both at school because I don't think I'm quite ready to be at home by myself yet. I'm sure I'll get used to the quiet, but for now I'll just enjoy the kid-free time while I shop and distract myself from the fact my kids are getting older by the minute.