It’s my duty

As the mother of a kindergartener, I feel duty-bound to share certain things with you: a decent first day of school photo, perhaps a couple of fancy-looking-but-effortless-to-prepare homemade school lunch ideas, the obligatory account of how I had to choke back tears as I escorted my baby girl to her classroom on her first day of kindergarten.

But since I’m me – always running 30 seconds behind schedule, no camera at hand when I create anything in the kitchen worth sharing, nary a sentimental bone in my body — this is not that post.  I did shed tears – of joy! of freedom! —  but I like to keep that special moment to myself.  It was bliss.

Instead, I present to you a grainy, blurry, somewhat overexposed photograph of Nina twirling in front of our wisteria tree, taken with my mobile while I juggled a backpack, a purse, a gym bag and two lunches.

And another, taken with an actual camera, that’s so overexposed it looks like I took it during a nuclear explosion.

Technology is not my strongest suit.

What I can tell you about Nina’s first week, photo-less, is this:

• The one person she didn’t get along with in pre-school is not only in her classroom, not just at her table, but sits right next to her

• They are getting along splendidly

• Maybe too splendidly, as they were both put in time out on day one for playing “too enthusiastically”

• She loves riding the bus home

• She still has boundless energy (if anyone tells you that school wears kids out, I’m here to counter that it’s a big, fat urban myth).

• We have confirmed that she’s not a morning person.

This photo was taken during one of this summer’s camping trips, and I love every surly little hate-the-morning bone in her body.

Hooray, kindergarten!

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