Our Oldest’s First Day of First Grade

Two down, one to go.

Yesterday was our oldest’s first day of first grade and, as expected, he loved it. Before we get into it, though, can I just say how crazy it is to me that he is in FIRST GRADE? It doesn’t seem possible. What is time anymore? It potentially doesn’t exist.

When he and his brother and sister came to live with us, he had just turned four years old a few months before, and was nowhere near where he should have been developmentally for his age. And now he is probably beyond where he needs to be and in the first friggin grade. Next year he’ll be in high school.

Anyway, back to reality. Like the day before with little brother, we all walked our oldest to school in the morning as the rain gently let up long enough for us to make it there nice and dry. Also like the day before, the drop off was extremely…underwhelming. We walked him to the door where a nice lady who was not his teacher greeted us, asked what grade he was in, and took him inside to join his class. We couldn’t go in (I assumed because of COVID?) and we barely got to say goodbye.

That’s no issue with the school, in fact I actually prefer them to take as many precautions as they can with COVID and keeping the kids safe. I think it just wasn’t what I was expecting is all. But it was fine all the same. We walked home with the younger two and got busy knocking out the day’s tasks with one less kid in tow.

When it was time for him to be picked up, I went to get him while little brother and sis were napping. I walked up to the front of the school to stand with the seven or eight other parents who were eagerly waiting to greet their kids as they came bursting through the double doors.

There was an extremely long line of cars on the side of the school all waiting to pick their kids up and I don’t think I’ve ever been more grateful to live so close to anything in my entire life; the thought of waiting in that line in the middle of the day for godknowshowlong is not exactly my idea of a good time (though I know there will be many years in the near future where I will be one of those parents in that same line waiting…and waiting…and waiting for our kids to come out).

After seeing all the fellow parents I was standing with hug their kids and start to walk home hand in hand, I began to wonder if I was at the wrong entrance. Where was older brother? I started walking around to the side entrance when his principal came out and stopped me and asked if I was “here for Walker”. I was confused and said no, I am here for [older brother]. And he said, “no, are you here for a walker, as in, will you be walking him home?” I couldn’t help but laugh at my complete misunderstanding 😂. I said OH! Yes, I am. And then older brother came right out.

This school stuff is all so new to us, so there’s bound to be a few hiccups along the way, right?

On the walk home and even once we got home, he couldn’t stop talking about his class and what he did and how excited he was. He came home with a little goodie bag filled with hand sanitizer and a sucker and some other little candies, so needless to say he was thrilled. He goes back for a half day tomorrow and then next week is his first full week.