after our day on friday, i probably should have seen this coming

Just look at this sweet munchkin face.

From this angle, you almost can't tell that she found Jack's scissors this afternoon and decided she needed a bit of a trim...

The other missing chunks are mostly disguised in her curls and I'm sure no one will even notice if she wears her hair in a ponytail.

Thanks for keeping me on my toes, sweet girl.

it's time to step away from the craft supplies

First, I had to dislodge a bead from her nose.

And then:

Sigh.

i'm pretty sure he doesn't get the sports jokes either

Doug: So, Ryan, how was your day?

Ryan: It was fine, except we had to do pacers.

Doug: What are pacers?

Ryan: Oh, basically there is a beeping noise and everyone starts running and you have to get to the other side of the gym before the next beep or you're out.

Doug: Oh, so it doesn't have anything to do with Reggie Miller?

Ryan: (shakes his head and eyeroll!) Dad, you know I don't get your 70's jokes.

i knew what he was talking about, but i can understand how she was a tad confused

Jackson: Hey, Emily! Have you seen my thing? The thing that is supposed to be my stomach, but really, I wanted to make it an ant farm with other bugs?

Emily: Huh?

preschool - before and after

Happy and excited...

One last hit of chocolate milk before we get in the car...

Just...can't...wait!

Now, off we go!

This is the part where I thought I would tell you that she gave me a kiss and a hug and ran off to play with her new friends, because she's been talking about this day for over a year. So excited for when it would be her turn to go to school. Except it wasn't quite like that. We got to her classroom and my leg became her life preserver. I knelt down and gave her a hug and a kiss and told her that I would be back to pick her up when school was over. "But what if I need you?" I explained that if she needed anything she could ask her teachers and they would help. "But what if I want you?" Sigh. I gave her another hug and another kiss and reminded her about all the fun things she would be doing...Coloring! Puzzles! Playing on the playground! And then I passed her off to her teacher and let her go. I could hear her screaming down the hall, and so I paused for a moment outside the school administrators office. She smiled and asked, "Which room?" I told her and she took off down the hall to have a peek. When she came back, she said, "Well, she's still a little upset. But she'll be fine." And in my heart I knew that she would be better than fine. I knew she would have fun. So I held it together...until the barista at Starbucks asked me how my morning was going so far. I'm sure I'm not the first to shed tears into my Caramel Macchiato, but still...

Anyway, I managed to keep busy until it was time to pick her up. When I stood in the doorway of her classroom, I smiled. Because she was smiling. And playing. And her face lit up when she saw me and then I heard her say exactly what I hoped she would say. "Mama! I had fun!"

And then she crashed...

Update: We were doing fine this morning (day two) up until it was actually time to get in the car, at which point she began wailing that she didn't want to go to school because "school is soooo tiring!!" Heh. She cried a little longer this morning than yesterday, but the outcome of the day was the same. "I love my school! I had so much fun today! I got to dress up like a pink butterfly! I'm not going to cry next time." We shall see...