1st day of Kindergarten!

Wyatt had his first day of Kindergarten today. It's hard to believe this day is finally here. It's been such a busy week of milestones!

The bus came to pick him up bright and early this morning. He is riding a small bus with only preschool and kindergarten kids on it, which is great. It comes right to our front door step, which is even better. No schlepping everyone down to the bus stop in -40 temps! The bus driver is very sweet lady and had called a few nights before to introduce herself and explain the time schedule. The more details I know, the more comfortable I feel. It's a big step for me to send him alone for the first time!

We've been talking about school and riding the bus, so Wyatt was pretty excited. Dayven went to work later than usual so he could watch him get on the bus and see him off. We got a bit of a late start this morning (or I underestimated the amount of time it would take to get us all ready) and I was still finishing up breakfast dishes when Dayven announced the bus was here. I scrambled to get my camera and raced out the front door to snap some pictures. Wyatt ran right up to the bus and said hi to the driver. He picked the first row seat and sat right down. We all waved and watched them pull away. Dayven and I both agreed it was very emotional watching our little guy, all on his own.

I guess that counts as a smile?

I had intended to follow the bus to school, but I didn't have Hadley buckled in the car yet and the bus took off before we could get situated. Dayven headed to work and Hadley and I just drove straight to the school to meet him as he got off. She did not like that Wyatt was riding the bus without us and kept asking about him the whole way to school.

It was interesting to watch the buzz of activity in front of the school while we were waiting for him. There was a line of buses dropping kids off and parents milling around everywhere. You can definitely tell the parents of the preschool and kindergarten kids. Both parents were there, and sometimes even grandparents, snapping pictures and making a video of their kids walking up the front steps of the school. The parents of older kids didn't even get out of the car. The kid just jumped out, slammed the car door and ran into the school.

When his bus pulled up, I could see him peering out the window with a quivering lip and tears in his eyes. The bus driver said he was tearing up before they even left the neighborhood. When she asked him what was wrong, he said "I just miss my mommy." That broke my heart a little. He was glad to see us when he got off and Hadley was glad to see him too. I gave him a big hug and told him how proud I was of him riding the bus like a big boy. That seemed to cheer him up and he was excited to get in and see his classroom. All three teaching assistants always come out to meet the bus and walk the kids into the classroom, which is nice.

 

There was a lot of excitement and commotion in the halls too, with all the kids getting situated and parents chatting with teachers. His class has 21 kids in it. At least 2/3 of the kids are girls, which is great since they're often more calm and mature. There is one teacher and three teaching assistants, so four adults in the classroom at all times. I was so glad to hear this ratio since this the largest class Wyatt has ever had (we were used to a preschool class with only 12 kids). They're all really sweet ladies. His teacher has a really long last name that he's having trouble pronouncing, but he'll get there. They do a staggered start so only half of the kids were there today. I'm sure once the rest are all in there tomorrow, it will be a busy classroom!

I chatted with his teacher and walked around the classroom with him, exploring all the new things. He was a little sad when it was time for Hadley and I to leave and even cried a little bit. We decided to just go, knowing he would settle in a few minutes. Hadley was so upset leaving him like that. She kept saying "My Wyatt is sad!! My Wyatt is crying, Mommy!! Wy Wy!" and whimpering. She was really upset and talked about it the whole way home.

 

Hadley didn't do so well with her brother's first day of school. She was asking about him all morning and talking about where he was. She was bored without him at home and wandered around the house all morning, looking for something to do. At one point, it was so quiet, I went to check on her and found her lightly dozing on the sofa! We'll be starting some morning activities together soon so that will be something fun to look forward to. His Kindergarten is considered "half day" so he's done by 11:20am.

We drove back to the school to greet him when he came out of the classroom and walk him to the bus. Yes, I'm a nut. I know it defeats the purpose of the bus, but I like having that connection while we're still settling in. I know I'll love the bus in wintertime, but for now, I like chatting, even briefly, with the teacher and hearing more about his day.

He was all smiles when he came out of the classroom and his teacher said he had a great day. He ran right out to the bus and hopped on. We followed it home this time and it made Hadley feel better having him in her sight. She kept saying "Wyatt's in dere! Mommy, Wyatt's riding dat bus up dere!" Tomorrow we're bringing cupcakes to celebrate his birthday at school (will the celebrating ever end??) and he's excited about that too. We love school!