1st day of 1st grade...

Today was a big day for my little one. The 1st day of 1st grade. At last, after many weeks of asking 'how much longer', Maddie started a 'real' grade as she calls it. She told me that Kindergarten didn't really count as a 'real' grade because it didn't have a number.

She was so excited about today that she woke up at 5am and asked "Can we get up now, Mommy? It's the 1st day of school and I'm sooooo excited". It took all I had to get her to stay in bed until 6am. Then we had a special breakfast in bed - scrambled eggs and bacon. For me, that's a special breakfast on a school/work day. Normally she gets cereal or frozen waffles :-) Next, she put on her new dress and new black shoes and put a barrette in her hair. Then came the pictures. The dreaded pictures! She and Jason both would rather never have their pictures taken.

Finally at 8:10am we were off. We parked, walked to the playground and found Maddie's best friend, Darian. Sadly for them, they are not in the same class this year. The good news, they told me, is that they can see each other during lunch and recess. Then it was a quick picture of the girls and a swift "bye mommy" and she was off to play. I was proud of myself this year, no tears. Last year, they were streaming by this time.

According to Maddie, the best part of 1st grade so far:
(1) Each person has their own desk (not a table like in Kindergarten)
(2) Ms. Cangelosi gives you stickers for getting a 6 on the behavior chart (In Kindergarten, you had to get a 7 before you got a sticker)
(3) We keep a reading log and she receives stickers for reading a lot of books
and
(4) Her classroom door is closest to the recess/exit door

That's my girl. A few pictures to share...