1st Day of Kindergarten

Tuesday was Michael's 1st day of Kindergarten!  He is part of a program that includes both homeschool/classroom instruction so in a way he gets the best of both worlds =0)  He goes to School Tue-Thur and I get to be the teach on Mondays & Fridays.  Dropping him off for a full 6 hours was a little emotional for me.  He is still my baby and it is hard to hand him over to other influences that are now out of my control.  I actually had a bit of a panic about it.  After going to an orientation the reality of unknown/outside influences became very apparent.  I don't know who he is going to meet, what they are going to say, or how he is going to feel.  My mama bear instinct kicked in and wanted to just shelter him a little longer.  He still has such a sweet childhood innocence to him and I don't want anyone or anything to burst that bubble just yet.  While we have certain rules/standards in our home I fully realize and see children whose families don't share the same values/beliefs that we do.   Michael doesn't even know that "bad words" exist, yet some kids his age have quite an expansive vocabulary.  I know one day he will be exposed to these realities and more... but at 5?
Cue realization of how much more I need to pray for my children.  Prayer is huge.  We have watched it work miracles in our lives and this moment of "panic" opened my eyes to the opportunity I have to pray for my children through each and everyday.  Unfortunately I can't sit next to him and protect/help him in class and throughout the rest of his life (thought that would be nice) but I can pray constantly that God would protect his spirit and give him the courage and strength he needs for each day.  It will be my goal this year to develop a better prayer life as I continue to learn to trust God with life's unknowns and stop worrying so much.
As for Michael he LOVES school and has 2 of his best buddies in his class.  I of course wanted to hear a long story about the day but got a few ingredients:  everyone is nice, Ezra and him are in the Orange group, I need to pack 2 drinks next time, he got to play games on a computer, there is a listening center where he gets to wear headphones, and he didn't need to raise his hand because he had no questions because he knew what he was supposed to do.  I love it.  I don't want to be the prying mom who asks too many questions so for now I will be content with that.  I look forward to volunteering in the class in the future so I can have a better clue what goes on =0)
Here are a few snap shots of the day...

Tomorrow will be Lizzie's 1st day of Preschool!  She is so excited.  She tried to live vicariously through Michael's experience last year.        All summer long has been a count down for her and the day has finally come!  More on that soon...