Summer is over?! WHAT?!?!
Somehow the summer flew by and it's already time for back to school!
This summer was super fun but it had an underlying sense of anxiety and fear.
For the past three years school has been a beautiful little bubble of parties for no reason, unlimited volunteer time in the classroom, and homework consisting of little to nothing.
But times, they are a changing!
Third grade is here and we have literally been dreading it since Kindergarten.
Lots of changes come with 3rd grade.
New teachers.
Big kid hallway,
Standardize testing.
Lots more homework and projects.
Less parent interaction in the classroom (for the kids on good).
And switching classes!!!
It's really a big jump from what we have known.
We spent the summer sort of avoiding talking about the situation and the other part totally hyping up how awesome it was going to be for Hensley.
Hensley struggled a lot with anxiety last year including separation anxiety.
That in itself made us uneasy of how he would handle all the change.
He is not a fan of change and always asks us why he can't be home schooled.
Don't get me wrong Hensley does love school and he totally thrives there.
He is smart and most things at school come easy for him. He is also super friendly and social and makes friends with no problem.
However, he is a homebody and ultimately likes his personal space and alone time.
Routine and order are his ideal situation.
As open house approached we encouraged him to go into with an open mind and positive attitude.
He had a teacher in mind that he wanted to have based on who his friends had the previous year.
We took the time to explain to him that God was going to put him wherever he wanted Hensley to be and wherever he would thrive and succeed.
We helped him be a little more prepared by having all his supplies ready to take with us to open house so he would have even less to worry about the first day of school. We also prepared a little gift for each teacher to sort of "break the ice" and let them know we are excited for this year.
We filled this cute little mason jars we found at Target with lots of candy and chocolate which every teacher loves!
Hensley was looking so handsome! And grown!
To our surprise, as soon as we got to school Hensley went right in with no hesitation and looking as confident as ever!
We headed to the gym to get his teacher assignments and see who was in his class!
We were pleasant surprised to see that he was placed in Mrs. Bambury's class with some the best kids in his grade. It as already shaping up to be a good year!
The great thing about going to a small charter school that goes from Kindergarten through 12th grade is that, Hensley knew exactly where his classroom and how to get there. The fact that we knew pretty much every single teacher, staff and parents as we walked down the hall is also another huge perk!!!
Hensley went right in and introduced himself and started looking around, and I really felt immediate peace. It felt so right!! All of our fears slipped away!
Mrs. Bambury was so sweet and gave us a lot of great information and really made it her duty to talk directly to Hensley and encouraged him and reassured him about how great this year was going to be!
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| He is always proud to be a Grizzly! |
Another great thing about open house at our school every year is that they always have Pelican's Snoballs! Perfect considering it was 100 degrees!
Each year after open house we always go to Steak n' Shake for dinner and chat about all things back to school!
Andy was way to busy looking at the menu to get in our picture. You can totally tell how happy this kid is here!
We went home feeling at ease and very blessed to be able to be a part of such an awesome school family!
FAST FORWARD 6 DAYS TO THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!
Before we knew it a week had pasted and a it time for school. Time for routine and up at 6 am each day.
Hensley got up easy which was super surprising to me considering we were getting up past 9 am each morning all summer (and sometimes 10!).
Breakfast, teeth brushed, new clothes on. lunch packed and out the door!
I found this super cute board at Target in the dollar spot of all places!!!! It's wonderful and it saved me from making one like I do each year, and we can use it for years to come!
HOW CUTE IS HE!!!
We had a wonderful ride to school and watched funny pig videos on YouTube all the way to help ease any first day jitters! And it worked!!! He laughed and smiled all the way to school!!! No tears, no obvious anxiety just a hop out of the car and a quick "Goodbye!".
It's always hard for me on the first day of school. I spend every single day with him and our summers are super special to us. It's back to being away from him all day and finding things to fill my days.
Letting him grow up and be independent is so very important and I know that, but it doesn't make it any easier on my heart. I am extremely blessed to have such a great, close relationship with my boy and I pray all the time that we can continue that as he grows older. I work hard to talk to him about everything, making sure he knows we are always here for him. He is my cuddle bug. My sweet freckled face kid. My favorite boy in the whole wide world. Letting is go is hard but I have to stay focused on what's best for him and how very lucky we are to have a child who is healthy and happy and excited to grow up!
He is ready for 3rd grade but I'm not sure if 3rd grade is ready for him!!!
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