As if I didn't know it already...

I had yet another reminder that Emma is growing right up. Today, she (and all the other kiddos starting next year) was invited to spend the morning checking out kindergarten. Too cute! She's been looking forward to this for DAYS now!

So, you can guess, I'm sure. Yep. I took my camera. I mean, I know this isn't a HUGE thing, not like the actual first day of school will be, but, hey...I can't control myself. There's nothing stunning here (besides my girls, of course - I mean nothing stunning photography-wise. Ha!) But, I thought I'd share. I know mom will enjoy seeing these! I do have to point out, though, that Emma has got a ton of new nervous little expressions. Used to, her tell tale sign of anxiousness was putting her fingers in her mouth. I guess all of our hounding to "GET YOUR FINGERS OUT OF YOUR MOUTH!" has finally sunk in. But, now, she does this new thing. She kind of sucks in her bottom lip. I think it's sweet. So, though there's nothing stunning about these photos, I do love that we captured that little face in each one of these.

She was excited to go, but naturally nervous. It was really sweet. She never let on to me that she was nervous, but this mom can tell. And, the fact that she doesn't let on at all when she's nervous kind of makes ME nervous. I mean, I want her to feel like she can always come to me for reassurance & encouragement. It makes me scared that she might just try to power through things on her own. She IS independent, after all, but I just...I don't know. I don't want to see her go through things alone.

Anyway, here's Emma just outside our front door before we left this morning.
Walking up to the school with Daddy. (There, D. Brown. You happy? There he is.)
Oh, man. This was too sweet. I asked Maya to stay with me so that I could just get a picture of Curt & Emma walking in. Well, she was HEARTBROKEN! She wanted to be with Emma. Maya just stood by me & WAILED! Seriously. So, next thing I know, Emma turns around and RUNS to Maya to give her a hug. Awww. My girls...so sweet. Although, Emma's face in this kinda screams "obligatory," doesn't it!?! Haha! But, that's Emma...very nurturing.
And, Emma getting ready to actually go INTO the school. You can see that she's really getting nervous now! Look at that face! :-)
And, finally...in the classroom. She just looks so sweet & innocent. I can't believe she's gonna be a school girl...
She did enjoy it so much, though! I'm pretty sure that she didn't want to leave with me! Haha! She really, really loved her new teacher, and she already ADORES her principal. They have a sweet little relationship, & they go WAAAAY back.

So. One of my biggest worries about all this was sweet little Maya. Emma is her best little buddy. They're so close in age that they share clothes, shoes, toys...everything. I've been trying to convince Maya that next year will be party time with mom while Emma's at kindergarten, but she's just not buying it. She was sad today, and, in fact, she said to me, "Mom, do you miss Emma?" Now, I'm thinking to myself...yeah...not so much. It's only been about 10 minutes. Yes, I'm sad about my girl growing up, blah, blah, blah. But, come on. A couple hours away from the kiddo(s) every now & again...well...I'm not arguing. And, it was LITERALLY in the car after dropping Emma off at school that she asked me this. But, of course, I say, "yes, of course I miss Emma." Then I hear a quiet little response. It was so quiet it sounded like it wasn't even really intended to be heard. She says, "I miss Emma, too." AWWWWW! Dang, she breaks my heart.

Fortunately, Curt had a grand idea this morning. He suggested I take Maya to Burger King for a little early morning french fries & playtime. Just like the good ol' days! Any of my long time readers might remember the post titled "My Every Wednesday" and a continuation of that story in THIS entry. So, yeah. Perfect. Do you think I could get away with taking Maya to Burger King DAILY next year when Emma's in kindergarten? I'm thinking my waistline & checking account will NOT be thanking me, not to mention the more serious health issues at hand when we're talking DAILY french fries. Ha! But, for today it works to soften the blow of Emma abandoning sensitive little Maya. :-)
And, let me just say...I KNOW these blogs have been getting outta hand. They're a little lengthy. I'll admit it. I'll work on that. :-)