We finished off the night by watching videos of Rio as a baby. Prior to that we celebrated by having a nice dinner with veggies from our garden and apple pie from our trees, and earlier in the day Rio and I filled the freezer with healthy snacks. We talked about how nervous we both are and how sad mommy is that her little girl is growing up. Both of us cried, a bit leery of the unknown.
Tomorrow begins a whole new world for all of us. Rio starts with only an hour tomorrow but full days beginning Wednesday. That means a new routine of earlier bed, getting out the door in a hurry, and no nap. Wow, is that going to be a transition. She is a bear when she doesn't nap, so going to school until 2:45 each day is going to be a huge shock to all of our systems. I can imagine the evening hours are not going to be so fun as she adjusts.
I have anxiety about many things. First and foremost that my baby is old enough to venture off into the world by herself. Will she be too shy to answer the teacher's questions? Will she make friends easily? Will she be scared to go off to the bathroom by herself? Will she be able to button her jacket? Will she like the lunch I packed her? And the list goes on.
And then I wonder how things are going to go with the boys in her absence. For their entire lives (outside of the hospital), aside from therapy and appointments things have revolved around her - where she's going and what she's doing and activities to keep her busy. Now suddenly I have two 22 month old babies full time, without their sister to entertain them. What do 22 month old babies do all day on their own? Will they get enough stimulation? How will they adjust to an earlier wake-up, shorter nap, and an overall more boring day without Rio? I'm excited to have the day to devote to just them, but at the same time wondering how we'll fill our time in a way that is interesting for all of us.
Tomorrow brings many changes, all of which will be positive I'm sure. But I'm still nervous. And a little bit sad.
How is this little sprite old enough for school?
I will be there with Lee next year, yet all of what you said rings true for my feelings of Lee starting Pre-School on the 12th. I think as Mom's we have anxiety about everything when it comes to our babies no matter what the situation or how old they are.
ReplyDeleteI hope it goes well for both of you.
Ann
Hoooo boy, I have 4 years before I have to deal with kindergarten but I can feel the anxiety pulling at a piece of my heart already! I will return to read this again when my boy's big day is more near. Thank you for sharing & I can't wait to read future posts about the fun you & Rio are both having navigating school!
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