the first day

My little boys had their first day of school today... Tyler started first grade with Miss Dannewitz and Jake started kindergarten with Mrs. DeBruyne (Tyler's K teacher last year). As many of you know, I was sad to send the kids back to school. I went through this last year too, and I have a feeling that it will happen every summer before school starts. I remember my mom telling me that every September all of her friends would be so excited to send their kids back to school and she would be the only one that wished they could stay home. She loved having all of her kids around her during the summer. Funny coincidence- I was talking to my grandma about this exact thing a couple days ago and she said she did the same thing. I guess it runs in our family!

We had a special dinner last night, our Back to School feast, to celebrate the upcoming school year. I decorated the table with our china. My Dad bought this china in 1971 in Vietnam when he was there for the war. He brought it back for my grandma and after much use, she passed it on to me. I absolutely love it and it is such a treasure. It has service for 12 people and contains all the serving dishes. It is beautiful and I love the history behind it. We also used the crystal goblets we got for our wedding. I hesitated as I was pulling them out, but then I realized that we have never used them in 10 1/2 years! That's terrible. I decided tonight was as good as any and if something broke, then oh well- we'd buy a new one. We had candles and roses and I had a little gift for each of the school kids. Aaron had taken them out for the afternoon and when they came home they were just thrilled and so excited for our celebration. We ate all their favorites: homemade lasagna, garlic bread, caesar salad and watermelon with rice krispy cakes for dessert and sparkling raspberry lemonade to drink. After our yummy dinner, we went around the table and each person said their goal for the year (mom and dad, too!) and we toasted each other. It was fun to have this special dinner together and to kick-off the upcoming school year. It really was a celebration! Then Aaron have them their special school blessings, we read "The Night Before Kindergarten" and they were in bed by 7:15.They were definitely excited this morning- when Aaron woke them up this morning Jacob yelled "Yee-Haw" It was hilarious! They looked so cute and handsome in their school clothes. Jake was more than ready to get to class and say good-bye. After we dropped him off, we headed over to Tyler's classroom. He was definitely more hesitant and wanted us to hang around until school started. I was worried about him. He is more timid and quiet than Jake. He kept grabbing my hand and laying his head on my side. It was sweet. The bell rang and we walked him to his classroom, he found his desk and after hanging out for a minutes, we left him there. I hve to admit, I did cry as we left his classroom. Just a little. I really worried about him all day. Jake- not so much. I knew he would be totally fine. But I couldn't wait to pick Ty up and hear all about his day. He didn't disappoint- I got all the details while I took the boys to get ice cream cones. They both loved their first days and are excited to go back tomorrow! Tyler loves his teacher and said that "she is the best teacher he's ever had" and "this is the best first day of school ever." I was so relieved and honestly, I am glad this day is over. I am strange... change has always been hard for me and causes me some anxiety, so I like it that we know what to expect now and that everyone will have a great year!They asked us to take this picture of them. Best friends... and brothers, too!Jacob- patiently waiting for school to start.
Tyler at his new desk- I think this is his nervous smile. Cute boy.