Of course I have many fears sending him off to school. I'm nervous for the bus ride- will he follow the rules and cooperate? I'm sending him off 90% potty trained, not 100%. While he can and certainly does communicate, he is still working on telling us exactly what he wants and needs. Will they understand him at school? I know he will be in good hands, but they won't be my hands.
For the stay-at-home mamas, sending kids off to kindergarten must have some intense detachment feelings that come along with it. But, for a working/daycare mama, that doesn't exist. I know that he is capable of following school routines. He's been at the same daycare his entire life, so today will bring many changes for him. I hope that he'll be excited and adapt. There will be many changes for me and I hope that I'll be excited and adapt, too! So far his teachers have been wonderfully responsive to the information we've provided. I'm excited to meet his full team and get to know more about how they'll work together to help Porter grow and learn. I'm excited to meet the kids in his classes. Our district has 1/2 day K and he'll spend the afternoon with 21 other friends in a typical classroom. In the morning, he'll spend the day in a special education room where he'll get to focus on improving his communication skills. This will build more of the skills he needs to continue on in regular ed and succeed! I'm not worried about him learning facts- he picked up colors, numbers, shapes and the alphabet at age 2. He's starting to read and is fabulous at memorizing sight words. He loves books! He's already found a comfy spot in the school library and is going to make himself at home there. I'm more worried about independence. About elopement in a school without classroom doors or a fence around the playground. About social norms. Because he spent infancy with many of the kids in his pre-K class, the other parents in his class grew up with him too. He had a village. And today, he's got to start building a new village. He's got some friends and neighbors who will be there to help. And he's already sneaking hugs from his new speech therapist and flashing his trademark grin to work his way under her little finger. And, he's got Penny by his side. I know he'll be fine. And that soon our village will grow by leaps and bounds.
This time of change also makes me reflect on motherhood. Motherhood looks nothing like I imagined it looking. I never imagined being a working mom. I never imagined how hard it would be to cook dinner while three ravenous children weave between your legs, begging for the food to be done...how difficult it would be to get them to eat nutritious meals. I never imagined the juggle. I never imagined that it would take such a village, but am so thankful for the village that's been there by our side every step of the way. There are so many people who've played a role in getting Porter and us to where we are today. To the parents and rockstars in MCDSIG/NDSS/DSDN and our world-wide Down syndrome community, thank you! To the doctors and entire CHOP community, thank you! To our therapy team, who taught us so much more than we ever imagined we'd learn, thank you! To our families, our daycare village, our friends and neighbors, thank you! We wouldn't be where we are today without all of you. So, Mr. P, get out there and show them that you are capable. Show them that inclusion is important. Show them that we should have big goals for your future. Show them all of it and more. And to the mom from DSDN's Rockin Mom group who created a template for us to use, thanks for helping us put our vision to paper. Here's Porter as he heads off into the kindergarten world today. We're so proud of him and all the people who've played a role in getting us to today! Love you Bubby!
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