My first post on this blog was about how I wasn’t ready for Cydney to start daycare. After lots of going back and forth and needing the space Monday was the day. Cydney started preschool. I have been getting everything together for the last couple of weeks. Medical records: check. Uniforms: check. Money: for the first week, check. Cydney has known that she was starting school for real this time all week. She had been looking forward to it and keeps talking about it.
Sunday after having brunch with a friend of mine from college Cydney and I got home and excitement was in the air. I gave her a shower, did her hair, showed her the uniform she’d be wearing that we tried on a few days previously. After a long day she went right to sleep but I couldn’t. I was up until about 4:30 AM. It felt like the first day of school when I was a kid all over again.
I woke up at 7 AM on the dot. I said “Cydney, it’s time to get ready for school!” She all but jumped up. We put her clothes on and took pictures. As I drove her to school I just couldn’t help but think what was actually happening. We got there and she was introduced to her teacher. They sat her down to have a bagel with the kids and being the social girl she is she fir right in.
In my head and heart I was starting to get emotional. I had paperwork to fill out; but while I was doing so I kept looking at my baby being one of the big kids. After she finished her bagel her teacher took her over to the carpet where almost all of the other children were seated. Erica, held her hand and asked everyone if they remembered her name. They said “Cydney!” Cydney introduced herself to everyone as Elsa. I laughed to myself and continued to fill out paperwork while looking at her from across the room sitting down pretending to read with the boys and girls.
I left feeling all kinds of emotional. I was definitely in my feelings. All major milestones are bittersweet. While I am extremely happy and elated to see my baby growing up there’s a part of me that is reminded that I am doing this without Timile. It isn’t in the sense of wishing that she were here to share it with me, per se. But I do wish she were alive to see it. I believe that she’s looking down. I’m well aware that I’m going to think about Timile on days like her first day of school to weddings and Cydney becoming a parent and such. It gets easier as time goes on and the thought is usually fleeting.
When I got back home I kept busy. I didn’t want to be thinking too much about what Cydney was doing and continue to be in my feelings. I kept the house exceptionally dirty over the weekend so that I could clean it all day Monday. I got lots of calls and texts asking about how’d it go. My friends Kia and Christian who both work at Spelman College made a sign congratulating Cydney and sent me a picture of them holding it. That was love and they’re amazing for that. We all know that Cydney’s first day of school is the beginning of the road leading to Spelman…
I picked my mother and nephew up from school. We all went to pick Cydney up that first day because everyone wanted to be a part of it. As soon as I walked in the door Cydney jumped when she saw me. She got up out of her seat where she was snacking, ran over to me, and gave me a big hug. She was more than happy to see me. I asked her how it went and she told me as much as she would about it because Cydney isn’t one for giving details.
Her teacher told me she participated pretty well. They went over shapes, colors, and number and she knew all of that. What they said was that she marches to her own beat and listening wasn’t really her thing. Whatever she wanted to do was more important than what she was told. Classic Cydney.
We all drove straight to Friendly’s to celebrate with ice cream. Friday I will delve into the rest of Cydney’s week.
Single Dadventures 