Is it really that time of year again?? I swear it seems just like yesterday that my 6th grader was coming home from her last day of school - ready to start her summer vacation. Virginia Beach schools don't technically go back till Sept 7th but already the stores have their school supplies out. So we have stocked up on the basics such as paper, pencils, crayons, markers, folders, etc. My soon to be 7th graders is anxiously awaiting her school schedule to see what new teachers she will have this year. The one thing that will be different this year is she won't have her 2 BFF's w/ her due to moving away or military transfers. As I have always told her.... That's the military life for you. Friends come and friends go, its the way it is living in a military family. I have also reminded her that she needs to cherish every friendship she has because at one point or another they will either end up moving or she will. Life for school age children who have a parent in the military can be difficult. Always moving, always being the new kid, always making new friends. So w/ the start of this new year I have encouraged her to befriend the "new kid" and let them know that they aren't alone and that she too has "been there - done that".
Not only do I have a upcoming 7th grader in the house... but this year we have a preschooler starting school. Yep... Troy is 3 and will be starting preschool 2 days a week at our local church. I thought I would start him out w/ just 2 days a week so as not to traumatize him too much. He has been home w/ me since the day he was born. Unfortunately he hasn't always had other kid interaction like most kids his age that attend daycare. I have tried to teach him the fundamentals... you know.... how to share toys, how to be polite, how to have manners. I have taken him places where he would get some interaction w/ other kids, like the mall playground or the children's museum, or story time at the library. All of which are nice but I think the first week of Preschool will be an eye opening event for him. I have been checking out books from the library that talk about preschool and how fun it is. He has even gotten ok w/ walking into sunday school like a big boy and not crying. So maybe he will surprise me and be the big boy on the first day leaving me in a puddle of tears in the parking lot.
