Well, we did it. Oliver is registered for kindergarten!
I have been more emotional about this than I would have expected. It's weird! When the kids were infants, it was hard for me. I wasn't good at the middle-of-the-night wake-ups, I stressed over them not napping and not getting enough sleep, and I yearned for more physical space in between all their nursings. I wanted them to get bigger and run around and play. And they did. The toddler years have been my favorite. I
love these times with the kids. Jo has been building things out of LEGOs with Oliver. Here are Jo's LEGO creations (a school and a house). Pretty amazing creations for a 3 year old!
I also love how they play little games and sing songs to their stuffed animals. They help me in the kitchen and with anything else I need. They get so excited over everything. Just going outside is something to get happy about! They constantly make me laugh, and I think I drive them crazy with telling them how adorable they are and all the hugs I give them as they do hilariously cute things.
But they keep getting bigger. I am so sad about the idea of Oliver being in school full time this fall. I mean, I don't want my kids to
not grow up and be independent and happy and have their own lives. I absolutely want them to. It just seems like it's happened so fast. That's such a cliche, but it's also true. I've been so lucky to have these years at home with my kids, and it feels like a punch to the gut that it's coming to an end. For a (very) brief moment, I even considered homeschooling, but I realized I'd be doing that for purely selfish reasons. I know Oliver is ready for this next challenge. I just can't believe that time is almost here.
I hope I love this next stage, too. The next decade is going to be so busy with sports and after-school activities and friends and play dates. In the mean time, I just have to say, "Poor Joanna." I have a feeling she's going to be babied a lot over the next couple years.
