Monday, February 02, 2009

First Day of Term One

How peaceful the mall seems now that all the kids are at school.

It was weird being able to shop again without having to stop every 5 minutes to mediate between two bickering girls or think up satisfying responses to "I'm so hungry I could die!"

This morning, J and I waved Big Jie Jie off to a new year. (Come to think of it, J was more interested in copying Trudy and stepping on the stencilled patterns on the concrete floor.)

It won't just be Beth who is making new friends. Mummy will have to prep herself up for some socializing too (which for an introvert, always seems to take twice the effort).

Am very glad that there are so many familiar faces in Beth's class. Sarah who used to go home with us; Ethan, Triston and Cassandra from her Prep class; friendly Danielle whose mum used to watch over J when I read to Beth's class last year; Joey, Beth's kinder bestie and the most gorgeous 6 y.o. boy I know; Daniel from church...

The general sentiment among the mums I spoke to was one of RELIEF. The summer hols were too long, one said, particularly towards the end. I know exactly what she means.

There will be mums who will feel just a bit sooky because their youngest starts school today (big hug, Sharon! :-)).

As for me, I'm determined to complete my 30 hours of volunteer work in the first semester so I won't have to think about it when winter comes. Reading, yard duty and a couple of Parents & Friends meetings should do the trick. We're also taking advantage of the 6% discount for those who pay the school fees upfront, although this will mean redrawing from our home loan. That will save us about $500.

Thank you God, for new beginnings and the promise of hope.

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