The requisite back to school picture

I already saw one this week that made me cry, and I've never met the towheaded boy who was headed off to kindergarten, right after he shrugged his little sister off his shoulder and stuffed the sign his mom made him hold for the camera. By virtue of raising our children in the South, we launch the wave of back-to-school pictures that graffiti Facebook walls. In a month, we will glance at our  New England counterparts like they've just been the frivolous grasshopper playing his fiddle, while we carpenter ants down here in Tennessee soldier on, getting ready for school.

Oh, those requisite First Day Pictures for the Social Media's Pleasure.

Here is what I want to see: the pictures of the parents taking the pictures. Posturing their children to appear a certain temperament, or frowning at the uniform that was so well-fitting at the end of last school year, or at the outfits chosen for first day impressions.

Appendix A:

I will spare you the picture of me. I haven't slept all week--and I am a person who values sleep! I've been so anxious about this school year beginning and all of the ramifications therein that I haven't slept. Last night? Not a wink. I finally decided at 4:30a.m. to put on my clothes and hit the gym.

I have a kindergartener this year. My kid. Not the one I babysit. Mine. My child. That one I gave birth to last week and brought home from the hospital in her snuggly onesie yesterday.

Baby Girl starts kindergarten this week. Ok, so I should spare myself some of the theatrics. My kid is in the same classroom she's been in for two straight years already, with the same delightfully gifted teacher who invented early education as far as I am concerned. I have no worries about this situation and neither does Baby Girl. But oh that adrenaline of the first day! The anticipation! The jitters! The smell of gluesticks that smacks you immediately when the doors of knowledge fling open!

My heart was quieted tonight as I found one of my favorite passages in a favorite book of mine that every parent should read. My boyfriend sent it to me during his last semester of college. My boyfriend with whom I share that baby who's going to kindergarten.

Now for a word from our sponsor, 1-800-SENTIMENTAL-MUCH?

The author writes to his son's teachers present and future:

If you only knew how nervous we all are, I thought. How hopeful we are that you will be kind, that this isn't something you've grown tired of doing, that our children will soar with you and not in spite of you, that they will still believe it all when you're done with them--that you will let that be true in their world for this one last year. You could never know how much we hope that you will please, please--to the very depth of all the word means--please, be kind.

- Marc Parent, Believing it All

*** Forthcoming: August 2013 First day portrait.

Here's one to tide you over until then.

Updated:

Camp Joe Joe's in #CHA

Last week our little lady was quite trepidatious as Tuesday approached because she was headed to "Art Camp." She wouldn't know anyone. It was on the other part of town. And she'd never been before. We had confidence, based on the high reviews of our friends at Cobblestone Rue who sent their daughters there last year, that Art Camp, aka Camp Joe Joe's was going to rock our girl's socks off.

We were not mistaken.

We picked her up on Tuesday afternoon and she literally dove into the car yelling, BEST ART CAMP EVERRRR! Her confidence was a mile high and her enjoyment of all the activities was superlative.

The camp takes place for 3 days, from 9a-12p at the Clay Pot on the Northshore (which I call NoSho to be cool...so join me in the pool of cool and start saying it. Propagate it, baby. Ready? On three: 1-2-3, NoSho! Yeah, wanna be startin' sumthin'....). The Clay Pot is just such a funky and fabulous little shop of home decore and floral arrangements. I want to move in and learn the ways of the festive mason jar arrangement.

The counselors all seemed genuinely tickled about spending their mornings with exuberant young'ns and tweens. Counselor Nikki was a fan favorite of our girl's.

As for the camp's namesake and fearless leader Joe Jumper, the man is a cartoon. I really think he just walked out of an Archie comic book and opened up an interior design shop and appointed himself Captain Fun of the art camp scene. His enthusiasm for teaching children to love art and make uber cool things at an hour in the day when most folks haven't even drained their coffee mug is just really admirable.

Our girl and our little man can't wait for next summer when they can both go.

In the meantime, we'll enjoy the memories and the masterpieces. Thanks, Camp Joe-Joe!

P.S. Don't forget to enter the Easy Canvas Prints giveaway!

Dynamite

Dear Baby Girl, So far you've had a pretty dynamite summer. Not just because of the places you've traveled and the vistas you've seen, which include a trip to the greatest amusement park on earth where you survived a huge scary thunderstorm, but also because of the fears you've overcome.

Just in the last month, you've shed your training wheels and you confidently ride your bike, like you are the Gywneth Paltrow of biking. Talk show hosts are probably getting ready to call and ask you to come sit on their couch and relate the story of your harrowing defeat of training wheels.

You've also become quite the mermaid in the pool. Last year at this time, you were loathe to get your face wet in a body of water, which may or may not have included the bathtub. Now, you barely come up for air. This is awesome. Except for when we need to--tell--you--some--BABY GIRL, YOU AREN'T AMPHIBIOUS.

I am glad that you are realizing what the second book of Timothy tells us: that we are not given a spirit of fear. Rather, we are given a spirit of power, of love, and of a sound mind. There are so many wonderful things to experience in this life, and it is such a gift to be a girl, it really is, and I am glad you are discovering these things and letting me rediscover them right along with you.

Tonight we were watching "Soul Surfer" and you were very brave through the shark scene and the subsequent blood scenes. You had started watching the movie and were adamant that you were going to visit your uncle Joe in California and take a surf lesson. Mid-way through the movie, you had sworn off surfing to infinity.

Then there was a scene where Soul Surfer goes to Thailand for a mission trip to help the people recover post tsunami. You remembered that a tsunami was a "giant tidal wave." You asked if you could go to Thailand someday and I said, Sure. So you said you were going to go pick out your outfit for Thailand. Which seemed not so mission-minded to me, but okay.

When you came back into the room, you informed me that you had your outfit ready and wanted to go help the children whose city had gotten covered by the salami. In Tykes Land.

I tried super hard to keep a straight face.

You asked if you could go to Thailand on Wednesday.

I said, No.

But I was really proud of you, my little Soul Swimmer Biker Missionary Girl. You are quite the intrepid.

Love,

Mama

P.S. Oh yeah. And this happened. I don't know how I feel about it yet. The important thing is that you felt dandy about it.