LIfe Comes At You Fast

Life comes at you fast, according to one insurance commercial.

It's amazing how things can change seemingly within the blink of an eye.

It's been a bit of a whirlwind around our house lately, as an unexpected development came about.

The result? I just sent Little Guy to his first day of preschool at his new program.

About 10 minutes ago. On a bus.

Little Guy doesn't even turn three until next week. So how did this happen so soon?

We've spent the last two weeks preparing for this transition, and fully expected it to happen next week. However, it was discovered during his recent IEP (individualized education plan) that due to a family vacation and Thanksgiving break, Little Guy would be unable to start school until 9 days after his birthday if we waited until after he turns three. This would essentially render useless all of the time we'd just spent preparing him for this big transition. The consensus was that it would be best to start Little Guy soon, and we decided to begin this week.

As for the bus, that was initially not in my plans. We live about a mile from the school and I was totally prepared to drive or walk him to and from class. However, in discussing Little Guy's separation issues, the teachers felt that it might be better to initiate the separation at home with something to look forward to (Little Guy LOVES trucks and buses) rather than a drawn-out scene at the school.

I agreed. So I loaded my toddler onto the bus this afternoon, took a few pictures, then kissed his cheek and said goodbye. As I watched the bus drive away, I had to swallow past a big lump in my throat.

I HATE not being there for Little Guy's big first day, sending him into an unknown and threatening (to him) situation without my strength to rely on. But Little Guy needs to begin building his own coping skills because as he grows older, the opportunities for me to physically be there to help him will grow fewer and fewer.

I knew it was coming; it just seemed to happen so quickly. I don't feel ready for this.

It would have been nice if I could have been given a transition plan, too.