Homebodies

It's a monumental day here at the Elephant house.... Pink Elephant happily started her first official day of PreK... she ran inside without a hitch, leaving me the only one with a lump in my throat. Blue Elephant began his very first day of Kindergarten!  Going off of some good advice from another homeschooling mom, I made just as big a deal out of his first day as I did for PE's. They got their pictures taken, and last night we made special "first day" necklaces out of pasta and yarn. (I don't think I can get away with them wearing them when they hit middle school, but this year they donned them with smiles!)
BE is a willing and involved student. He wouldn't last a day with other kids in a normal classroom, though. At least, not at this age and maturity level. He was skittery and took alot of reigning in to keep him focused. But I knew to cut him plenty of slack... its not everyday that a four year old takes on Kindergarten, and its not every day that his teacher was the one that changed his diapers! ;)
BE and I have had a blast today! We talked about the letter "I" and the sound it makes, the definition of a community, the numbers 1, 2, 3... ( the curriculum isn't going to catch up to BE's level till late in the year) and the concept that God created everything in the world with a plan in mind.
My BE is capable of adding and subtracting, basic reading, and writes all letters in fairly good print. I wonder if I went overboard with him before we even pulled out the curriculum? But then again, I stop and remind myself; this precious elephant is only 4 years old. His brain is wired differently from other kids his age, sure. But he still has all the time in the world that the other kids do to accomplish 13 years of education. We might be "slowing it down" for awhile at the start of this year, but I think its good for BE to develop a "I can master this" concept toward school in general, so that when things do start to become a challenge, he already believes he is up to the task of learning!
I am proud of both of my elephants today. My little Pink Elephant was so confident and brave and excited! And I know she is having a blast... God really blessed us when He led us to the preK where both our elephants have attended. Still, my heart aches that my littlest elephant is old enough for the world of PreK. Didn't I JUST give birth to her, like yesterday??
We have a Kindergartener, a Preschooler, and (gulp) a teacher living in this house, now.
I started today with fear and trepidation regarding becoming an "official" school teacher... and after day number one of my teaching "career", I can definitely see where God's Hand of help was guiding me! Thank you, Lord, for the blessing and opportunity to help my child with his education. May I never take for granted that I am helping to shape a little elephant for the future!
I LOVE my elephants! :)