Last week Reed and I went to his one-on-one teacher meeting in his classroom. We are lucky that his teacher this year is the same woman, Miss Rachel, who cared for him in her home from the time he was 6 months to about 15 months. I do not think he remembers her but I also have to think there's some place in his brain where he feels a level of comfort and ease with her. At the one-on-one event he saw Rachel and also met one of the teacher's aides, who seems very warm and upbeat. Rachel was able to show him, at a calm and uninterrupted pace, some of the "works" in the classroom and how to use them. I think it was a wonderful chance for him to gain a sense of ownership and belonging in his classroom before it was overrun with 13 other little souls.
Then on Tuesday we went to the meet-the-teacher event at the big boys' school to meet their teachers and drop off school supplies. I think they both had been nervous about their new teachers and being on a new floor of the school building, as well as getting back in the routine of school. But when we got to their classrooms we were the only people there, so I got a chance to talk to the teachers one-on-one and the boys got to check out the names of all the other kids in their classes and see where they were sitting. Beckett especially felt a lot more comfortable and eager about going back to school, and several times since Tuesday he has said he wished he could start school earlier.
After going to Latin, we drove across town to Reed's new school, a Montessori program in one of the elementary schools. Reed was able to show his brothers his new playground, the mural in the hallway, and how to get to his cafeteria and his classroom. It was awesome to see them follow behind him, with Reed as the leader and them as the followers. I think that really helped Reed feel good about school and this next step. We had popsicles in the cafeteria (where there is also a popcorn machine--the big boys are very jealous) and then went to his classroom. Reed was able to demonstrate how to do his works, where the bathroom is and how everything works, and where his cubby is and what to do with it.
Last night Theo lost two teeth and both big boys laid out their clothes for the first day. This morning they woke up and got dressed and had breakfast and were ready to go outside to wait for the bus about 30 minutes early, which is funny because we are usually running out the door when we hear the bus rounding the corner toward our house. They played outside and then when Reed's scheduled bus arrival time came and went, the big boys walked down to their stop with the other kids.
I think this picture captures Reed's ambivalence about going to school today. He was a little bit excited and a little bit worried as well.
Another one showing how Reed was feeling about going to school.
The boys got on the bus at their stop down the street with the five other boys on the block, completely uneventfully. Reed's bus came at almost the exact same time so the boys' bus had to wait while Reed's bus loaded him in. I had thought it might have been a smaller bus or even a Suburban or something, but instead it was a big yellow bus with a couple seats in the front with five-point harnesses. Reed bounded up the stairs and waited while the driver (surprisingly, without an aide) buckled Reed in and helped in another boy to sit next to him. All seemed to be going well until, as the bus began pulling away, Reed's face scrunched up and he started to cry. Had it been thirty seconds earlier, I probably would have leaped onto the bus and grabbed him. I had intended to drive him myself this morning and stay as long as he wanted me to stay, but he had said last night that he wanted to ride the bus, so I let him. I immediately regretted it, as I watched his bus drive away with my baby inside crying.
So I did the only thing I could think to do, which was to drive to his school and hide behind a tree until his bus arrived.
I was too far behind to actually follow the bus, so I had to just drive there directly. I waited for about 15 minutes before the bus arrived. Unfortunately the school district picked Reed's school to do a big PR push about the first day of school, so there were lots of TV cameras and local pols like the mayor, the superintendent, school board members, and city council members. I had to try to explain to as many people as I could why I was hiding behind a tree on the first day of school. I had a long talk with his teacher's aide, Kim, who has 11 year old twin boys herself. I felt even better having a connection with her and having her understand what happened to Reed that morning getting on the bus.
When Reed's bus arrived, I could see that he was not crying. He looked bewildered but okay. After the bus driver unbuckled him, Kim met him at the bottom of the bus stairs and walked him and another kid to their class.
At the end of the morning, Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Greg picked Reed up from his classroom. They heard that he had a good day at school, and he was very happy to see them and come home. Tomorrow he'll have another half day, this time with Grandma Joanie and Grandpa Stu picking him up, before starting full days and riding the bus home on Monday.
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