Yesterday was the picnic for the incoming Kindergarten class to meet and get to know one another a week before school started. Olivia and I walked in hand in hand and I felt her grip tighten when her teacher said hello. We sat together for a bit and then her teacher took the kids to do some “get to know you” exercises. I saw Olivia wipe her eyes a few times when she was encouraged to answer questions she didn’t really want to. I had a hard time choking back my own tears; I know I’m SUCH a baby when it comes to my kids. I also know that this is a necessary rite of passage but I just want to grab her and run back home and spend another year or two with her. School changes children and I’m not sure I’m ready to “lose” Olivia.

The hardest part is seeing how shy she is. Knowing what the instructor at KinderCamp said this summer about how she’ll do fine academically but socially… Other kids tried to talk to her - she was silent. The teacher tried to talk to her - she was silent. Thank God there are only 12 kids in the class or she would get lost in the shuffle for sure.

I hope it’s just a matter of it taking a few weeks for her to get comfortable. We’re going to the school wide cookout tonight so we can see Nick’s teacher too and just chat with everyone and catch up after summer vacation. That’s the thing I love about this little school - they have a great sense of community and there are lots of activities throughout the year that include the parents and a lot of the parents participate.

School starts Tuesday *sigh*