Dear Emmi,

Dear Emmi, 

Those first few days and even weeks of school were so hard on you.  You left that first morning looking so cute, but you called me crying from the office that day, wanting me to come and get you.  I hated the tears in the morning getting ready the next couple of days, and it broke my heart to send you anyway.  I was so happy to see you like it more and more little by little.  We don't have the tears now, and I find it funny that your only real complaint is that it is "too long."  Coming from Kindergarten, that is very understandable you would say that.  Already you have gotten used to it.  

I love how you tell me about P.E., which you have twice a week now, and how you "killed the red team" every week.  I love how you eat all your vegetables and fruit in your lunch and don't eat your sandwich, how you somehow manage to come home every day with what looks like chocolate milk spilled down your blue dress, the songs that you have been learning and sing to me every night such as "The Ants Go Marching," how out of the blue on the way to school the other morning you said "my favorite part of school is rocket math!!" with your fist in the air, and how all the teachers that watch me drop you off from school look at me and say how adorable you are.  

I will never forget the morning I took you and your brothers to the bus stop to ride into school, with the idea being I would just be picking you up in the afternoons.  You were crying before we even got there, but I had hoped you would settle down when you got on the bus.  You rode buses all year last year, so it was not a new thing.  But no, the bus driver was somehow in no hurry and you all sat there on the bus for what seemed liked hours.  I could see you sitting with your brothers, still crying and waiting.  It broke my heart to see you still crying as the bus pulled away, and the scared look on your face.  That was the first and last time you have rode the bus this year.  

I did not put you in dance this year either, and pulled you from gymnastics.  You didn't want to be there unless I was there with you, and had your share of meltdowns at gymnastics this summer. I realized that with a new school this year and all day, I didn't want to overwhelm you and thought this was a good time to take a break.  I am very glad I did just that, since school seemed to be hard enough in the beginning.  I will miss seeing your cute smile on stage in a recital, but you have plenty of years ahead for that if you want to.

Sometimes I just want to squeeze you.  You are just so adorable.  I love your toothless smile, and how you will tell me how cute your smile is.  I love your cute curly head, and your feistyness.  

Love, 
Mom