Back to School

For days now we have been prepping Abby for her return to school. Every time we would mention it though she would let out an emphatic, "NO! Don't wanna go school!" This in itself isn't very unusual - she got her mother's "homebody" gene, but usually we can get her excited to see friends and teachers, but this time around she didn't want to talk about any of it. She wanted to stay home - and that was that!

This morning we got up and I told her (very excitedly) that she would get to ride the bus and see her friends today - some of her favorites, but she hid her face and began shaking. I asked her what was wrong and she finally told me, "No Mama, 'fraid of kindergarten." A-ha, I was wondering if that was a part of the reluctance to go back. Because of the way that Spring Break fell, and the 'finger down the drain' episode, she hadn't been to school in two weeks. Her last memory of the place was pretty frightening and painful - in essence she was afraid to go back.

Now, despite the fact that there was a part of me that thought: You know, I don't have school today, so I could keep her home one more day. The smarter part of me thought: She needs to get back on the horse, or things will keep getting harder. So, I enlisted the best person around when it comes to motivating Abby - Jason.

Waiting for the bus. This is by far one
of the cutest pictures I've ever taken of her!

Like a superhero he swooped in and saved the day. He came up with the brilliant idea to celebrate her return to school with a birthday-type party after school - complete with presents, cupcakes, and pizza! Is it bribery? Yes! Did it work? You bettcha! She became excited and we were able to get her ready for school and participate in doing a little Hokey Pokey as we waited for the bus. She started to put the breaks on when the bus arrived, but then her face lit up at the suggestion that her good friend might be on the bus waiting for her. She was a champ as she climbed the steps and gave the driver a hug, then bopped off to her seat. Despite the fact that all we could really see of her through the bus window were her pink glasses, Jason and I kept waving and signing "I love you" until she was out of sight.

I was sure that she would be fine, but that didn't stop the worrying. Luckily, I have a great relationship with her wonderful teacher and was able to email her throughout the day to see how she was doing. All reports were good! Jason was able to take a few minutes before his evening meeting to pick Abby up from school and chat with her teacher. He said that they mentioned she was quite fearful of going into the bathroom, but otherwise it was a good day - whew!

We got that pizza and Jason got her an adorable pirate outfit from the toy store - a perfect present. She had her cupcake (and a couple of popsicles) and is now happily watching one of her favorite shows. A good end to a good day!

Tomorrow she heads back to the doctor to check out her finger. This time it's Dada's turn to take her. I know he isn't looking forward to it, but it will be over quickly and then hopefully things can start to get back to normal - whatever that means!

I had to get one more of my stylish little miss.