Mommy Moments
The Boo Hoo / Yahoo Moment
By Krista Martinelli
We’ve reached a new landmark in our family. Today marks the first day that both of our children are in elementary school – same school,
same schedule. My husband and I attended the annual school “Boo Hoo / Yahoo!” breakfast, which marks the beginning of your child’s journey into school and the end of the baby years. So the question I’m faced with is whether to be crying or cheering – will it be Boo Hoo or Yahoo for me?
A friend told me that she cried when dropping off her kindergarten daughter for the first day of school. Meanwhile her daughter was rolling up her sleeves, didn’t look back and didn’t shed a tear. It helps (a lot) that he has the same teacher as our seven-year-old daughter had for kindergarten.
I had a similar experience with dropping off my son for his first day. He said something like, “OK, you guys can go now.” My husband and I were still saying goodbye and he was ready to move on. I was also tickled with his summary of his first day and how much confidence he has. “Mom, I did a great job and everyone liked me!” Wouldn’t be nice as adults if we would allow us to feel this way more often, especially when we start something new?
So for me this year, it’s a total mix of emotions as the kids head off to school. I feel relieved that I can get some work done during the day again and actually concentrate (instead of having to catch up on my work in the wee hours of the night). I feel sad that the baby years are over. I feel excited for my kids – the new friends they will meet and the new things they will learn. I feel nervous for my son, who might have trouble adapting to the rules of school – after spending a lot of time being very silly and hanging out in his underpants at home. I feel proud of both kids, as they enter into the new school year with an eagerness to do homework and to be good. I’d like to bottle this moment actually – I’m sure that the eagerness for more homework will not last forever.
There are details that need to be worked out. Even though my kindergarten son is doing excellently with reading, he hasn’t mastered buttoning his pants or tying his shoe laces. So after the first day of school, he raced to the bathroom when he got home. He was too embarrassed to ask for help with his pants from his teacher, so he decided to just “hold it” all day. Poor guy. Time for an intensive buttoning and tying lesson!
Here’s my lousy two cents for any parents of kindergarten students, by the way. You are allowed to go have lunch with your child at school. So if you can possibly make the time, do it! Go through the lunch line with them. Experience the noise of the cafeteria. Find out what items they have trouble opening by themselves. My son cannot yet open the ketchup, salad dressings or spork/napkin packet they provide in the lunch line. I even recommend buying the cafeteria food and having it for lunch. Trust me; you will probably be motivated to pack lunch more often if you taste that food. At my kids’ school, parents are encouraged to take lunch outside to some private picnic tables. It’s quality time and you will learn a LOT.
So to all of my fellow Around Wellington parents, I hope you are surviving this Boo Hoo/ Yahoo time of year! And I hope your kids have an excellent year of school!
Krista Martinelli is the mother of a seven-year-old girl and a five-year-old boy. She is the owner/editor of AroundWellington.com. She enjoys swimming, tennis, reading, writing and doing crafts with her kids.