Two children in school!?!

We dreamed of this day all last year. We thought for sure both boys would be in school last year, but with the timing of Tope coming home, that never came to fruition. And now the day is here, we have two children in school. TWO. It is slowly sinking in. Two children to get ready in the morning, two that need lunch money, two with parent meet & greets, two needing new tennis shoes, two coming home with fundraiser sheets, two GREAT BIG SMILES running out the door today ready for their first day of school. 

It was a bittersweet day for me. I really enjoyed my time home this summer with these two. We stayed busy with a lot of different activities, time in the sun and at parks, traveling to see family, and just sharing time together. But I am ready for routine again, ready to see my kiddos at work as well, and start having fun in music class. I was also ready for the boys to be around new friends and continue to learn in the classroom. Along with all of this excitement though has come a lot of apprehension. We just have no idea how Tope will handle being in school. I have my ideas of what type of student he will be and his learning style, but when children are surrounded by more than just their own family, sometimes they can surprise you. 

As the music teacher at the boys' school I had the priveledge to have a little insight to how the day went. It started with Caleb running off to the playground leaving Tope behind, at which point Tope grasped my arm hard and was refusing to go. And here is where this Mama started to loose it. All of the anxieties I've been having about starting school had built up to this moment and I was so incredibly ready to ugly cry, right there and then in front of ten school busses full of kids and many teachers! Instead, I shed a couple tears, pulled it together, and we walked to the playground. Eventually Tope spotted Caleb and went running to play and then hardly looked back. He was excited to run to his teacher to start the day and was quickly the one in charge of her clipboard and followed her around. He is feeling comfortable with his teacher, which I was so grateful to see. We had spent a couple different days in her classroom and talking with her, which I'm sure helped today. Sounds like Tope barely left her side, often holding her hand or carrying things for her. He even wanted to just hold onto her shoe/foot during circle time. It will be interesting to see how long this lasts and if he needs this type of support from her for a long time, or if it was just his anxiety of the day playing out. She said he did good overall though and really enjoyed the couple projects they did, proving to be very detail oriented! Good to hear! Caleb also had a good day, although he said it was kind of boring - ha! What did he expect for the first day!?!?! It is crazy to realize how much he has grown in just a year. Excited to see where his first grade year takes him.

The boys are now both sound asleep in bed. Both were tired this afternoon, in a good way... I might not say it is such a good thing later this week when the long days really wear on them... yikes! But for now, I'll take the peaceful sleep that came to them quickly and relish in the fact that I have two beautiful growing boys asleep in their beds, resting their bodies for their second day of school. Today I feel humbled by the gifts God has given me, through my family, friends, and work. So many reminders today that God provides and is in control, even when we can't see what is ahead. Today wasn't perfect, but it sure was good.

In Christ~

Mara

ps~Tope has been home 7 months now! God is Good!!!