Reagan's First Day of Kindergarten

Bright and early this morning (7:15 a.m.) we all (Daddy, Mama, Reagan, Presley) piled in the car and took Reagan to her first day of kindergarten. The area surrounding the school was so crowded that we had to park on a neighborhood street across the road! Hundreds of students and their parents were milling about, checking out classrooms, catching up with old friends, and filling out more paperwork. (I seriously think I've filled out about a ream of paper's worth just for Reagan.)

When we got to her room, Mrs. Willhite was there with her camera to take a photo of the whole family. (We took a few pictures too.) We dropped off Reagan's classroom supplies in the bins, and then Reagan found her cubby and put away her backpack. Each child had a container of Play-doh at their desk, so their morning got off to a fun start. We stayed for a couple of minutes and then said our good-byes. Reagan smiled and said, "Bye! I'm going to have a great day!"

The rest of us went to the Media Center for a reception with the principal, then we had to see the school nurse about Reagan's Epi-pen. Finally, after 8:30, we were on our way home.

It seemed like the day went very well for Reagan. She told us about reading time and named a few of her new friends. But the day came to a sad end. As we were waiting in the endless car rider line, I could barely see the kindergarteners being marched outside by the teachers. We were so far away that Reagan couldn't see us. (We arrived 15 minutes early, and we barely made it into the parking lot. Within about a minute of our arrival, traffic was in the street and through the intersection!) I had warned Reagan that she might have to wait, that there might be other cars in front of me, but apparently that information didn't sink in. By the time she was led to our car, she was in tears.

Even though pick-up didn't go so well (and, really, it was just a crazy mess out there), I do feel a bit better about sending her to kindergarten, now that she has her first half day under her belt. I know she's going to have a great year--after all, she's smart and funny and totally loveable!