A good day!

We made it through the first day of school.  Whew.

We all learned things today.  What did I learn?  Well, just because your child is the last stop on the way to school, that doesn't mean he will be the first stop on the way home.

I learned this the hard way, as I sat, stood, and paced around waiting for the bus to arrive after school ended.  If he gets picked up 20 minutes before school starts, it's a reasonable assumption he'll be home approximately 20 minutes after it ends, right?  Even on the first day of school??  Especially since the transportation dept emphatically tells you the bus departs 5-6 minutes after school ends, and your stop is about a 4 minute drive away, even if you hit the one stoplight wrong?

Zach's bus pulled up, coming from the opposite direction I was facing, 37 minutes after school ended.  Because no, he isn't the first stop on the way home - he's the very last kid off the bus!!!  I hadn't really considered that while the school-bound bus picks up all the elementary school kids, the home-bound bus is only bringing home the AM kindergarteners, which is a maximum of 20 kids.  So if Zach was right, all of the kids in his class who ride the bus home got on the same bus!  And they drove right past the turn-off to our neighborhood after they left the school!

Zach wasn't particularly perturbed by being the last one on the bus, although I think the long ride wore him out a little.  He was literally trudging up the street next to me, more exhausted-looking than I've seen him in a while.  This is a boy who can barely sit still, who can run around outside all day long and never appear and certainly never say he's tired.  But I think the new adventures of kindergarten sapped his energy a bit.

Don't get me wrong - 15 minutes later he was full of spunk again!

I don't have a lot of first-day stories to share, as I'm doing my best not to grill Zach, and let him tell me whatever he finds interesting.  My favorite gem so far is that he thought the sinks in the bathroom were cool; they're big round circles with water spraying all around them so everyone can wash their hands at the same time.  How cool is that?  :)

I do know that he had a good day, and is looking forward to going back tomorrow.  Yes.

Oh, and I forgot to mention one other thing that made me smile.  We have been telling Zach for a while that he'd have to get up at 7 for school, and that he wouldn't have as much time as he usually has to just chill and eat his breakfast leisurely in front of the tv.  He was fascinated with the idea that he had to get up at a certain time, and wanted me to set his alarm.  I had planned on gently waking him every day, since in my experience he doesn't exactly wake up a ray of sunshine when it's not on his terms, but I figured we'd give it a try.  So we set the alarm to a radio station, at a volume he thought would wake him.  I was up a few minutes before 7, so I waited outside his door to see what would happen.  At 7:00 the music started, Zach's arm twitched a little, and... nothing.  Gonna take more than a little music to wake this boy every morning!

And then there was Charlie.  He was out of sorts this morning as we walked down to the bus stop, oddly clinging to Scott, just kinda whiny.  He perked up again when he and I went back in the house, and he settled down happily playing with his cars.  But whenever I mentioned going somewhere or school, he'd say "No. I want Zach."  Ahhhh... poor dude, wanted to go to school with his brother.

So off we went to Charlie's first day of "school" - a one-morning a week "Terrific Two's" program at Zach's old preschool.  He did not want to be there at first, clinging to me, and then when he got brave enough to go check out some toys, He'd run back whenever one of the teachers would dare to approach him.  This is not typical Charlie behavior, he's generally quite comfortable in new situations, happy to check out new toys, especially when there are cars.  And he's only shown separation anxiety on rare occasions.  But I guess this morning was just too full of change.

Anyway, I stayed for a while until he seemed comfortable, and then told him what I always tell him - that I was leaving, he was going to stay and play, and that mommy always comes back.  He said "no" - but didn't cry and seemed ok with it, so I left without making a big commotion.  I hesitated in the hall, but didn't hear the sound of crying.  Yay!

In the rush of the morning, I forgot to take my camera when I took Charlie to "school."  So I took several horrible pictures with my phone - this is the best one!  But it's proof he went, and played with cars while he was there!

I didn't know what to expect when Zach and I returned to pick Charlie up.  For those of you who don't know Charlie well, he isn't the type of kid who loves to do what others want him to do.  Sometimes he goes along, and sometimes he doesn't.  You just never know.  When our ECFE classes ended last spring, he was still the kid who would rarely sit during "circle time" and sing along with the others.  He was off exploring, playing with whatever toy captured his interest.  He generally is MUCH more interested in playing by himself than with others (which drives his older brother crazy), especially when it comes to kids his size.  A bigger kid?  Yeah, he's more likely to play with him or her, but there's still no guarantee.  A kid his age?  Practically a zero chance.

So, I peered around the doorframe not sure what I'd see.  And there he was - smiling as he followed the teacher and other kids around the circle... participating!  Willingly!  Hurray!  He didn't see us for quite a while, so it was fun to stand there and watch as he happily followed the directions in the song.  And, of course, it was a delight when he finally noticed us and greeted us with a hug at a run.

The report from the teacher was that he did great.  He made it through the class without hitting anyone (more on that in an upcoming Charlie post), enjoyed his snack, played outside, and really enjoyed the cars.  The teacher commented on how good he is at playing by himself (I'm telling you, it's amazing), and that he's an excellent cleaner-upper.  All good news!

It's going to be interesting to see how things go as we begin to settle into our new routine... Charlie and I start a new ECFE class on Tuesday, Wednesday mornings will be his speech therapy, and Thursdays his Two's program.  And, of course, Zach will have to get used to going to school EVERY DAY of the week!  We'll keep you posted!