Tomorrow is Rosy’s first day of school. “Real school” she calls it, meaning not kindergarten. She went to kindergarten last year which felt to me like her first year of school, this year though she goes for full days.
Oh how my life has changed. Three years ago was the first time ANY of my children went to a school of any kind. From the beginning we homeschooled, and eventually were part of a parent run homeschool co-operative that was multi aged and very home spun. When Ayla was 11 she put her foot down, she wanted to go to “real school”. She and Lily started at Alta Lake, the Whistler Waldorf School. I taught there that year as the handwork teacher. A year later we moved to Nelson, Chris got into his accident and “real school” became our saving grace.
Things were rough after Chris’ accident, really rough, so rough in fact that even I have not fully admitted to myself all that went on. Having a place for the girls to go during these times was of immeasurable support, homeschooling was no longer an option for our family. Rose though, she was still little, she tagged along and was a big part of Chris’s recovery, they were buddies. Even last year, when she was in kindergarten for 3 hours a day 4 days a week, most days Chris and her hung out. He was able to get time to himself in the mornings, the rest of the day he took care of he and Rosy’s needs and little else, this was part of his prescribed recovery from his Neuro-Psychologist. I haven’t asked him yet how he feels about loosing his little buddy. Makes me wonder what this year will look like, how this will change us. What this new era in our lives is all about.
All my babies in school full time...wow, I know it sounds cliché, but they really do grow up so fast.
“How has schooling played a role in your life?” is the question in 12 days journal #147
It has given me time alone with my youngest, who didn't get much of that from the time he was born until my oldest started Kindergarten. I value that so much! On the flip side, I am so annoyed and disillusioned with her school and school district and find myself getting annoyed and angry more often than I care to because the school's policies are just so stupid and unrealistic, and the people teaching my children either don't proofread or can't spell and punctuate but think they can teach my child how to!
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