Monday, August 25, 2008

I BLINKED!



Today I became the mother of a middle schooler.

I am not really sure how that happened.

I blinked.

That is all I remember.

I am not ready for this.

He is not ready for this.

I thought HE was ready.

We took him to orientation last week.

We met his teachers.

We toured the campus.

We are carpooling with a great group of friends.

We bought his school supplies.

He told me last night HE was not ready.

He was nervous.

And full of questions.

At 9:30 pm, when he should have been asleep, he was pacing the floor and needing answers.

"What time do I need to be up?"

"What if you forget to get me up....should I set a clock too?"

"What if I don't remember where my classes are?"

"I don't remember where my classes are!"

"Will someone tell me it is lunch time?"

"They never showed us where the cafeteria is ...what if I can't find it?"

" No one assigned me a number...how will I pay for lunch?"

"What if I can't remember my combination to my locker?"

"How will I know where to go for you to pick me up?"

I will stop there.

There were more.

Many more.

My poor Chase.

He is breaking my heart.

He is so grown up in many ways...and yet, he is terrified of going to this new school.

How I wish I could simply make it all better for him.

I am not any better.

I am wringing my hands and pacing the floor too.

Wish us both well as we enter these new waters.


*UPDATE:
Chase survived his first day.
He came home with NO homework.
All is well in his world!

37 comments:

Unknown said...

Well at least he's pullin' off the "calm and collected" look in the picture! He'll do fine, just fine... : )

(oh and so will you!)

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
C and C Mommy said...

Oh Wendi!

I can't imagine...

I hope you made it through the day okay. Chase will LOVE middle school!!

Susan said...

Yea!!! So glad it went well.
I can't imagine how tough that must be when your baby has to go to the scary middle school with all those big kids for the first time, especially when he is nervous or scared. Not to mention that you now have to deal with the realization that you are the mom of a middle schooler. Woah!!!

Lisa said...

Oh man....can't even imagine! It broke MY heart reading about how nervous he was - I can't imagine how hard it was for you! Glad to hear it went well though. It does go by in a blink!

Blessings From Above said...

Glad you both survived the first day!!! :)

Simply Shannon said...

I remember feeling exactly like that before my first day of High School. I was fine by the end of the day and never looked back.
I'm glad that Chase made it through ok! Oh, and you too. :)

Grammy Staffy said...

Good luck Chase! I bet he will like his new school and grown up schedule better than elementary.

I blinked too and my baby boy turned 32 yesterday.... How did that happen????

Kelli @ writing the waves said...

No homework??? That is a definite bonus! I hope he's just as lucky the rest of the week. :)

Wendi said...

It does seem like it all happens in a blink, doesn't it!

I taught middle school for 6 years. I love boys that age. You're a lucy mommy!

Kristen said...

Oh you poor thing! I would have been dying inside. Aka crying my eyes out! Crying my eyes out!

How hard these new transitions are. Whether we are ready for them or not.

Glad to hear that his day went well. Hoping yours did as well. Did little Cole have you all to himself??

TheAustinEmpire said...

Aww...I think I'm going to go staple my eyelids open, so I don't blink! Really I have a feeling that it's going to hurt either way.

duchess said...

Oh how I wish we could make it easier for them. They are our babies after all, but alas...they have to make their own way.
Such a sweet post & yay for no homework.

The Reeds said...

Glad to see that all went well.

No homework?

That's was nice of them, but,that will change.

Stephanie said...

What a frantic day for you both! I'm so glad it ended up well for him & he survived. With no homework to boot! Was he ready to go back today??

Forgetfulone said...

What a milestone. My twins started 7th grade yesterday. Great picture!

Krystyn @ Really, Are You Serious? said...

I'm glad it ended up well for him. What a little worry-wart. Where, or where does he get that?

Unknown said...

I hope his first day went wonderfully, honey!
He looks like he was ready in the picture...he hides his nerves well :)

Erin said...

Oh that breaks my heart for him. Boys act so tough... when I have new 9th graders I would never suspect they were nervous the night before to be at a new school.

I'm gonna be one of those mama's that is hiding on the playground when my little one starts school- to make sure he/she's alright. When the police take me away... please let them know I'm not crazy!

amanda said...

oh friend - so glad to hear you both survived such a big day!!

can't wait for all those fun middle school stories that are yet to come!

Laural Out Loud said...

Our babies grow up so fast! Middle School is such a huge transition, for everyone. Glad you both made it through!

jOni lAnE said...

Cheers to a successful day!

He sure looks handsome in his first day of school gear!

Amy said...

Wow, I can't believe Chase is already in middle school. It's amazing how fast time goes by. Good luck with it!!

Melissa said...

middle school!!!! What the!?!!? How did that happen soo fast!

Marla said...

the questions sound just like the questions i have in that dream where i have to go back to school after 20 years because they realized i really wasn't done...
i have that dream a lot...

glad the first day went well.

Anti-Supermom said...

It looks like you BOTH survived!

Penelope said...

Aw! He was so worried! I don't know what I'll do when my son goes to school; I don't know if I could handle it!

I am a new reader of you blog! I've tagged you on my blog so I can learn more about you! Head over there for details!

Katie said...

Oh! I'm glad he survived!

Rach (Mommy Learns to Blog) said...

As I read this, my heart was breaking a little - for you AND for me. I am just at the beginning of this little adventure!

Why didn't someone tell me that when you're a mom you never stop worrying about your kids *wink*

The sad part is, it gets harder for them as they get older - and therefore harder for us to watch them go through it. I have many many years ahead of me to watch. Like Dana, I want to stop my eyes from blinking!

I'm glad he had a great day after all. And no homework - BONUS!

leah said...

Oh so sweet. I, too blinked - however, my sweet boys turned into little HELLIONS!

kelly said...

they grow up so fast!

Cecily R said...

Oh, Wendi...you have NO IDEA how freaked out I am about the next two years. I know I won't be ready either. In fact, I'm breaking out in a cold sweat just thinking about it!!!

I'm glad he survived. And I'm glad you survived. YOu give me hope! :)

Briya said...

They grow up so fast. Yesterday I registered the Brat for 8th grade!!! She's going to be graduating this year...Middle School is old hat for her...but I am SO not ready for her to be in High School. I get teary-eyed just thinking about it.

Lauren in GA said...

I know!!! I blinked, too...and I have a middle schooler...it is like a cruel trick of nature.


*sniff*

*whimper*

*grovel*

*whine*

Lisa said...

This post brought back so many memories. It is a huge jump to middle school and I remember the locker combo and class finding anxiety well.
I hope every day gets easier!

Laski said...

Go Chase! Clearly his survival is based on excellent parenting :)

Anonymous said...

So glad to see the update and that everything went well. Middle school is rough but I'm sure he'll do fine. He looks so cute in that pic--I bet the girls will be calling your house soon! :)