First Day of Jr. High

This morning I drove my daughter to Jr. High for her very first day, and although there was a part of me that felt sad and nervous, I also had to restrain myself from peeling out of the parking lot while laughing hysterically, shouting "See ya!" Yahoo, another summer licked! And yes I know how precious the time I spend with Queen Teen is and how every summer down is just one more bit of childhood gone, but by the end of August she and I are both so tired of each other we can hardly hide it anymore. Not one more game of Uno, please! Time for other people to entertain the Queen.

For the first time in her life, this transition didn't seem to frighten her. I was expecting tears and sleepless nights, but instead she talked about school like it was the greatest place on Earth and she couldn't wait to go. We picked out her clothes the night before and she washed her walker, wheels to handles, chatting happily about what school will be like. She had a good sleep, got up on time, ate a good breakfast, got dressed and cheerfully got into the van for me to drive her to school.

Once there she walked to class using her walker and I followed with her wheelchair. She knew exactly where to go, thanks to Laura. Laura met us at the classroom and we all went in together to greet her new teacher, whom Queen Teen had met before. Queen Teen had a grin on her face the whole time, so I gave her a quick hug and left, feeling a tiny tug on my heart as I walked away. I looked around at the other students as they sleepily sauntered to their first class, seeing how grown up and tall they are. My daughter looks so tiny in comparison, but she's just as grown up and ready for school as they.

The next few weeks will be bumpy, I'm sure. Queen Teen has to learn how to navigate quickly from one class to the next in different buildings across uneven ground on the campus. Half of her classes are in the Resource room where she will work on Science, Math, Sign Language and other skills, with Language Arts, PE, and Social Studies in other classrooms. It's a good balance of inclusion and support, I think, and we can adjust her schedule as need be.

As for me, I have the next two weeks to get organized and catch up on Medusa's Muse work before I start Graduate School. This is going to a very busy Fall!