One of Many Finish Lines

Every day, Facebook shows me photos and posts for that day in previous years. It's fun because I get to see awesome pictures, silly statuses, and blogs that I wrote in years past. So many of them are still very relevant and tug at my heart strings.

I read one this week reflecting on Jackson's foot/leg surgeries and his recovery. This time last year, he'd just finished up his second soccer season after having major surgery just after his 5th birthday. He was amazing then and still amazes me every day.

We are approaching the end of kindergarten. It went really quickly. And yes, I can see all you experienced mommies and daddies out there with older kids shaking your head and saying "I told you so" as I type this.

It was a fun year. None of us were super emotional during the first days. I was a bit surprised. I thought I'd shed more tears - there were a few but not many. After dropping him at his first Mother's Day Out program on his first day when he was 13 months old, I went for a run only to stop about a quarter mile in and sit down and sob. After all, he was my first and that was the first time he wasn't with me all day.

Truthfully, I thought Jackson might be a little more hesitant to get going. That said, I was super impressed on his second day when he opted for me to drive through so he could just get out and go in. Nope. He didn't need me to park and walk him in like we'd done on day one.

My number one goal for both kids is that we nurture them, love them, and teach them to be good adults. I long for them to be independent like Altman and myself.

Of course I'd be lying if I said that I didn't want them to always need me and I think they will but I want them to know and understand responsibility, the importance of getting an education, and how to interact with others. School is a great place to learn all of those things.

We've had all the fun kindergarten offers and I sure will miss it. He's at an awesome school and had an amazing teacher who has given him the opportunity to be himself and to learn new things in a safe environment. I've tried to go to the classroom once a week or at least twice a month to help out. I've been amazed at the progress in all of the kiddos. They're so cute and so smart and they have such great futures ahead of them.

Jackson's completed weekly homework assignments with some being fun and others not so much. I think he's going to take after Altman and lean towards math over English and literature. He does well with sight words but isn't jumping up and down to do them. But, he can knock out math problems like nobody's business. We'll see how things shake out. He's still young and I'm sure he'll surprise me over and over.

He's had days where he didn't get along with friends, where his feelings were hurt, and times when he accidentally hurt the feelings of others. It was rare but he did come home on yellow a couple of times. Mostly for talking. I can't imagine where he gets that trait. Otherwise, he's kept his clip on the "good" colors. In the afternoons before dinner, he tells me about his "expert" job in the classroom and other school happenings.

And so, in just 12 days, we'll cross the kindergarten finish line and head into summer. It's bittersweet as my sweet boy grows a little taller and becomes a kid. He's a kid now but it's different. I can see his mind processing things differently than he did a year ago.

Cheers to Jackson for not just surviving but thriving during his first year of school. This momma is so proud of him and both Altman and I are looking ahead to 1st grade and beyond.

See ya on the roads!
Kristy