My oldest daughter started school yesterday.  I have never really experienced this “new” experience.  I really didn’t understand the big hype as to why moms get so anxious about it all.  How bad can it be, right?

I was wrong.  I was very worried about how she would cope, especially because she is so shy.  Then she told me she didn’t want to take the bus by herself, she wanted to go on with me.

The day came, and she picked out a Disney Princess skirt to wear.  I did her hair up in pig tails, got her new Disney Princess book bag, and Ariel Lunchbag ready to go.  I took the First Day Of School pictures in front of our house, and walked with her to the bus stop.  I took the photo at the bus stop as we waited.  My husband waited in the van with my youngest, so that we could follow the bus after to school.

The bus pulled up to the curb.  We walked hand in hand across the street to meet it.  She waited patiently to get on, went up the stairs, sat down in the seat and smiled out the window and waved goodbye. 

The doors closed, and the bus drove off.

My baby was gone.

GONE!!!!!

Completely and absolutely independent and gone into the world.

When did she grow up?  Wasn’t she just a baby?  My tears fill my eyes as I hop into the van.

My husband says, “What took you so long, we gotta follow this bus.  Are you okay”?

“She’s gone, just gone”.

We then tried to keep up with the bus.  Believe it or not, its harder than you would think.  We drive up to the school, and my daughter gets off the bus, the teacher greets her, holds her hand and leads all the kids into the school. 

I spent the rest of the morning feeling like I had an empty nest.  It was quiet only having one child.  I didn’t  really know what to do.  We went to the park, for a walk, and then went to the bus stop to pick up Natara.

Natara got off the bus, and said “I didn’t cry at school.  I had fun.  I want to go back tomorrow”.

“What did you do at school?”, I asked.

“I don’t know”.

And so it begins…….

Enjoy your children when they are young, because in a heartbeat, you wonder where the time went.