First Day of School

I think as we get older, we miss out on the small miracles of our youth. For example, not only summer, but the first day of school. Remember how great that was? I remember lying out my immaculately selected outfit the night before (OK, so I still do that, shush) and then being unable to sleep the night before because I was so excited about what the next day had in store for me. The whole first day brought new surprises - your teacher, your classmates, your schedule. It was always so fun and eventful.

Today was the first day of school for my niece, Phoenix, and my nephew, Spenser, so I called to find out how their day went. Phoenix gave me the blow-by-blow for the whole day (including her new crush....um, hi, she's seven. Isn't that a little bit early???). Hearing her excitement for the day's events made me reflect on years gone by and how I miss having that one day a year to be filled with so much anticipation, fear, and hope. I suppose the closest thing I have now is the first day of Sundance, but it still doesn't compare to the wonderment of a youthful eye.

This picture was from kindergarten, where I became "Friend of the Week" during one of the first weeks of school. My mom taught me to go up to everyone and ask them if they'd like to be my friend. So, I did. I'd go up to every child and say, "Can we be friends?" and they'd say yes (I hope, but if they didn't I don't remember, so that's good) and then I'd walk away. Long-term friendships I was forming, obviously. :) The other pics were both taken on the first day of school (and you'll notice having flowers for the teacher was a really nice touch).