My First Day of School

Today started out much better than I anticipated. I signed up to help in Kylene's kindergarten class at the open house the first week of school. At the time, I was fine with the idea of devoting every other Thursday morning to helping a class full of kindergartners and actually thought it to be the perfect opportunity to get to know other moms in the community; not to mention the added bonus of being able to "spy" on my daughter to see what she was really up to while away at school. :) So when this morning arrived, I didn't expect the slight anxiety that caused small butterflies to swirl around in my stomach. "What if the other moms don't like me? And what if all the kids are terrible and talk back to me?" I found myself reciting these ridiculous notions in my head. I quickly combatted the negative thoughts that crept into my mind, grabbed the leftover waffle from Tanner's plate, and headed off to my first day of school. After the first five minutes of being in the classroom, I was totally at ease with my assignment of "mommy helper". I took on my tasks with enthusiasm and got to know the other mommy helper as well. I soon realized how silly it was to be afraid of these amazing children. After playing a simple game with three of them at a time, I got to know each of them on a more personalized level. I didnt' realize that a simple 5-minute game involving the alphabet and a basket of plastic picnic food would cause my popularity to shoot through the roof! Before I knew it, I felt like a celebrity and the children were begging me to stay for recess. I, of course, stayed and took turns pushing kids on the swings and helping them slide back and forth on the "zipper". After the whistle blew, we filed back inside to eat lunch. Kylene and I grabbed a chocolate milk and a hot lunch tray and sat at a table full of girls. One adorable boy took his place next to Kylene and whispered and giggled to Kylene the entire time. The table full of boys just across from us displayed their disappointment when I took my seat next to my daughter. "Next time, you should pack a cold lunch - you need to buy a lunch box!" They said with huge smiles across their faces. The time came for me to leave but I really could have spent all day every day with that class. Amazed at my rejuvination, I headed to my car and drove home to my other two kids.