...Yesterday was the first day of school for my kids, and the first day at a new school for my youngest daughter.

B handled it a lot better than I thought she would. We walked with her on her first day so that she'd know what she's doing and where she's going. She was nervous and excited, but it never reached the point to where she was shaking or crying or refusing to go to school. She never really ever got to that point with any school in the past other than looking visibly scared and lonely. And small.

A, on the other hand, was her usual chatty self on the walk to school. She'd heard good things about the teacher she was going to have and it was someone that she wanted as a teacher in the first place. This was going to be no big deal for her, and she wasn't the new kid on the block anymore. Not like her sister.

I think part of why B wasn't as scared was because she would have the same teacher that A had last year, and she would know the tricks. But it was still hard leaving her there with her slingbag over her shoulder - she looked so lonely. And nervous. But thankfully, not small. She kept her shoulders up and head straight and smiled a very little bit. Very unlike the wide saucer eyed kid who walked into that 5th grade classroom just a few minutes earlier.

All the other kids were waiting with parents or friends around the classroom, but A just barged in and said 'hey' to her teacher and we introduced Becca and then left her outside after some hugs. She's a middle school student now and they don't get as scared. I guess. Some of the kids outside that classroom looked like they were about to be traumatized. I think she did all right based on how she was when she came home - her first day *ever* walking home from school.

She liked her teacher, she liked her classroom, she had one kid in the class who was on her baseball team last year so she already had a friend. And in the custom of that 5th grade classroom, she had a letter from a child from the previous class. She ended up with A's letter and I think that helped a lot.

What got me is that she grew during the day. She seemed taller, and older, but still the same "boo". So, here we are again at the start of the school year. We survived buying supplies (but only because I left the madhouse of one place to head for another that was blissfully almost empty), and putting together the binders and backpacks and such. The house is empty, but only for another 6 hours and we don't have to go anywhere to pick up the kids as they will come to us....

...but still, my baby is a middle school student now.