Growing Up

Ari started JK this month. He's in honest-to-goodness school now!

Not unexpectedly, he had a hard time with the transition. Transitions are hard for that little guy at the best of times, and this has been a time of lots of big transitions.

This new beginning was a fun chance to look back at his journey to this point though.

After being home with me for 18 months, he started daycare:

Was he the cutest, or what?

Then he graduated to the pre-school room:

...and welcomed his baby brother to daycare along with him! The mid-day hugs were just the sweetest:

When it was time to say goodbye to daycare (he took the summer off and went to our family cottage and attended camps), he made the most thoughtful gifts - that he came up with himself! - for his educators. For Alex, who loves to build: a hand-painted hammer. And for Jen who loves to garden: a hand-painted garden spade!

When the time came for the first day of school, he was ready. We had practiced all the things: opening lunch containers, wiping himself, putting on his own sunscreen... and he was so excited!

When the excitement wore off there were a whole lot of other big feelings waiting in line: uncertainty, nervousness, fear, hesitation, separation anxiety... just to name a few. But each day, and each week, has gotten better and better, and I just know this guy is going to love the friends, learning and stimulation that will come from school!