The last day of 1st grade

Today Collin finished 1^st grade. The last day of school is filled with excitement for summer and an amazing pride for all that Collin has accomplished. When I took his photo today outside our front door I found myself just standing there staring at him. He seems so tall. So old. It happened so fast.

With Eden in the house now, I find myself balancing these memories of when Collin and Owen were infants as I cradle her and smile at her beautiful face, with the new adventures Collin and Owen have brought us as growing, maturing, boys. I’m having a hard time with it- its probably a mix of my hormones going back to normal and not really believing that we got to this place in the blink of an eye. As Collin finished school today and we walked out of the building, he grabbed my hand, and I wondered, - how much longer can I count on him to hang on?- We talked about the excitement of summer, of vacation, and what that means for the coming weeks as we visit family and lake houses and go camping. He was excited for all of it, but it was part of a routine for him. To be expected. It was no longer new. He’s had a few years experience and now, he knows better than I the ebb and flow of the academic year. And when I noticed this about him, I again thought, how did we get here? How did he get to be this old?

I’m so proud of all Collin’s done this year. He’s really made strides in focus, attention and control, which makes my heart soar and he’s climbed incredibly far in reading. At the beginning of the first grade we had not yet established a love for chapter books, or even books without pictures, and by the end, he was independently picking up the second Harry Potter book to start reading it to himself. Reading is such a big part of my life, my career, that I can’t help but beam with pride when he chooses to cuddle up with a story. He’s also made big gains in writing and spelling. At the beginning of the year writing was his least favorite, and it showed. His penmanship could use some work and he ideas to write were brief experiments in seeing how few words he could get away with. By the end of the year though, he had taken a liking to writing. Mrs. Amundsen’s class published a book of stories the kids wrote and he was so invested in the writer’s workshop process. He independently began to pursue cursive writing and amazingly, his penmanship took a huge turn for the better, ending the year with neat and complete writing.  At the same time he’s really starting to make lasting friendships. It has been exciting to see these relationships blossom because these kids will likely be the kids who he knows for the rest of his life. So many of my friends entered my life in early grade school and I’m so grateful for those relationships, as I am sure he will be when he is older, looking back on who his first true friends were.

And so, we jump head first into summer. Taking it in like one deep inhale and savoring every moment as we move toward second grade. Onward to every moment and memory we build together, cementing our pride with love and admiration for the young man Collin is striding towards.