Sending my little girl out into the world!

So, this is more for me to get it out and down somewhere, but I am feeling reflective these days and thought I would share. Meredith started Kindergarten in August of 2009 and stirred up all sorts of deep thoughts on parenthood, human nature and the inner workings of children's minds. As is always the case with our Mer-Bear, she surprised us on her first day of school. All night the night before she kept saying that she was nervous and that she "wasn't quite sure about if she would like Kindergarten or not." That day, we read books, got dressed, ate lunch, did cute little puppy dog ears (as she calls pig tails) and we were off to school. We met up with Matt in the parking lot so we could walk in together for this momentous occasion. We rounded the corner of the hall leading to her room. At the very end of the hall, Meredith's teacher, Mrs. Gregg, was waiting at the door. Meredith dropped Matt's hand, put both hands on the straps of her backpack and marched right through the door. We tried to say good-bye, but she was too busy hanging up her bag in her cubby (she knew right where to go) and finding something to play with at a table. I called out "Good-bye!" and she didn't even look back. It was very anti-climactic!

Watching my little miss independent march herself into school made me reflect on how she has always been so self-confident. Ever since she could sit up, we have sort of been superfluous to her. When she was 2 1/2 she started the washing machine by herself because her blanket was dirty. I walked in and she was standing on a chair filling the cup with soap, and she acted like this was an every day occurance! We have joked many times that if Meredith could drive herself places and pay her own way, she wouldn't need us any more.

Now that she is in Kindergarten I feel like we have officially transitioned into Meredith living her own life. On a daily basis now she will be coming into contact with people who will impact her life and shape her into who she will become. And sadly, the odds are pretty good that I will not meet (or approve of!) every single one of these people, because I can't shadow her through her life and try to protect her from everything. There is a huge issue of trust sending your child out into the world. I am trusting that other parents will have taught their children how to behave. I am trusting her teachers to give her all the skills she will need in school. I am trusting her bus driver to bring her home safely. I am sending my little girl out into the world and giving her the chance to flap those little wings, and trusting that she will make good choices and return safely to us each afternoon. If I feel this emotional about the beginning of elementary school, how in the world will I feel about it when she goes off to college? I just try to savor the moments I have with her, the morning snuggles, the reading stories, the pretend play and tea parties, and try to be proud of my confident daughter when she says things like "I don't need you to meet me at the bus any more" or tells people who are trying to pressure her to do something she doesn't want to do "You're NOT my mommy OR my daddy, so you can't tell me what to do!" We have done what we could to give her a good foundation during her years of only being around us, and we will enjoy watching her turn into her own person more and more each year.