I had been feeling something recently but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I had an inkling that maybe it was because my son’s 8th birthday was coming up soon. Then I read an article that his second grade teacher posted on Facebook tonight and it all made sense.

The article really hit me in the gut. It made perfect sense. When I was at orientation for the school he will be going to next year I had a freakish moment as I was standing in the gym. I was listening to the Principal presenting slides to is about all of the great things the kids will do at that school but at the same time I was having flashbacks of when I attended that school and stood in that very gym for my first school dance. I played gym, gymnastics, band concerts and talent shows in that gymnasium. I had my first crush with Ricky Fiengo at that school. How could my son be going to a new school already!

There is a difference though that eases my mind only a little. When I went to that school it was for grades 5-8. Thankfully, the school is only for grades 3-5. But I’m still bothered by the change in schools. I was told that you can’t go have lunch with your kids at the new school. It is a time where the kids need to be separated from their parents a little more.

Well now that the year is coming to a close for my son at Jerome Harrison I am making sure to participate as much as I can in his events. I will also go there to have lunch at least one more time before he leaves. I was able to visit him briefly at the library where he was having a field trip this week and his face lit up when I walked in the room. He clung to me and couldn’t love on me enough and that was such a special feeling.  

Tonight after we got home from our traditional family night out he and I took a walk up our street in the moonlight and talked about his day at school while we held hands. I don’t want to let go of that hand. I’m not ready for him to be 8 yet. The time that he was born is going by very quickly and he is changing and growing a lot lately.

It’s hard to see them growing up but it is also a good thing to see them grow and prosper and learn. I am glad Adrienne will still be my little one. But it feels like yesterday I was weeping when she got on the bus for kindergarten. She has had a huge year of growth and maturity. She reads to us every night and sometimes when she gets on the bus she is too busy socializing to wave back to me. Even though that makes me a little sad I am so proud of her.

I want to relish and enjoy the last day of school for my kids but it is going to be hard saying goodbye to the first big kid school my son went to. Just like it was hard when he was graduating from St. Therese nursery school. I remember now that I had the same feelings 3 years ago before his graduation. Those 3 years went by in a blink. It feels like just yesterday we had that graduation. I have to cherish and savor every moment. Time is passing by far too quickly!