Aug 26 2008
Kick it One Time
(click to enlarge)
Benjamin’s first full day of kindergarten doubled as his first day of soccer practice. Unlike tee ball (which we “volunteered” him for at age three), he eagerly participated. When I wasn’t helping, I was taking pictures, and Shannon sat in a camp chair, busily filling out a stack of forms for Ben’s school.
That morning at the school, Shannon stayed in the cafeteria with a few other parents while children of several grade levels lined up with their classmates.
“Mommy, what are you still doing here?” Ben said.
It seems that our son is not in the separation anxiety camp. (She scooped me on this by adding a comment to an earlier post.)
The funnier part? While in the library for the “Kleenex and Coffee” session after the kids reported to class, Shannon leaned over a kid-sized table to fill out a form. She somehow lost her balance and fell, literally, on her butt, and her feet went up in the air. I’m just sorry I wasn’t there to catch her see it.
I blame it on her heavy purse. Or genetics.
*LOL* Now I wouldn’t have gotten away with a comment like your last one with my wife!!! (hopefully you won’t either!)
I’m glad Ben’s settling in without any seperation anxiety.
Now, what are we going to do about Shannon? *LOL* (the anxiety part, not the sore bottom!)
Thanks for calling me out on that one, honey - I’ll figure out a way to get you back, you just wait! It was actually a great way to break the ice - several of the other moms immediately chimed in with some of their most embarrassing moment stories.
I am amazed at how well Benjamin is doing with all of his new adjustments - besides some sleep/behavior issues we had been having over the last couple of weeks (but seem to be mostly winding down now), he has been a champ! I was so happy to see him having fun at soccer practice last night, which certainly never happened with t-ball. I was also pleased to see how excited he was to go to school again this morning - since he has only ever gone for 2 days a week in the past (to pre-school), I was afraid of how he might react when it really set in that he would be going to school EVERY day. So far, so good!
I do have a sore bottom, but actually not much anxiety. It really bothered me when he clung to me at lunch yesterday and said he wanted to come home, but besides that it’s been pretty pain free. I am just so very excited for him to be entering this new chapter of his childhood. It’s a little sad to watch him growing up so fast, but more than that it makes me proud to watch him grow and change into an even more amazing kid each day!
That was a bit long-winded, huh? Maybe I need to get my own blog now that I’ll have a bit more “free time.” ;o)
Great pictures, Mark. I’m glad to hear Ben is charging into all these new things with such gusto. It’s got to be less stressful for you and Shan to have him react this way than the fighting/kicking/screaming alternative. Well, with soccer, I suppose some kicking is to be expected…but you know what I mean.
And fear not, Shan. We think no less of you for your tumble. Tiny tables, tiny chairs…it just threw you off balance like a funhouse mirror. Besides, if I had to confess out here every silly injury I give myself….
That said…it would have been more fun if Mark had video of the spill ;)
Shan,
Ben’s independence at school is due to good parenting by you and Mark. He’s entered a new phase in his life that’ll change a lot of things.
(just wait… you have things to look forward to like helping with homework, baking cookies for school things, and then, the dreaded thing most parents fear for their boys… GIRLS! *LOL*)
Enjoy and embrace Shan…. and have fun on the ride!
Shan, you can rest comfortably in the knowledge that you have a sore bum largely because there is noticeably less of it to pad your fall. No need to be anxious about that.
I have been told numerous times (by my mother) that my own first day of kindergarten consisted of the teacher prying me off my mother, and both of us in tears as she walked guiltily back to the car. I think my teacher then had to pry me off the door post. I got better at it. Though it probably is harder for the parent than the kids. Kids are so much more resilient.
Go Ben!
Benjamin looks like a soccer star in the making. Kindergarten and Soccer…good stuff.
Using your head is a big part of soccer, so if he takes after daddy, he should be heading goals in no time!
Mark, I can hear it now from when we were kids.
Some various redneck coach from Heber:
“Put the Williams kid in there in front of the goal on that side out and just throw it up there in the general neighborhood…it can’t miss his head.”
GOOOOAAAAAAAAALLLLL!!!!!!!
Sorry man…I couldn’t resist. It was on a tee.