This Is the Day...

Andy finished preschool yesterday and received his diploma. The kids did a great job showcasing all the wonderful songs they learned this year. Pastor Eric reminded us of Psalm 118:24 which says, "this is the day which the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it". He encouraged us to celebrate this milestone in our child's life and enjoy the day. Live in the moment. We often long for a particular phase of a child's life to be over, hoping the future holds self-sufficiency, less diapers, fewer messes, more "me" time. Yet in the blink of an eye we will be standing at a much different graduation or perhaps watching this same child walk down the aisle. Wishing it all away only leads to regret.
I heard what he said and I put on a smiling face. We gathered all of his projects, treasures, artwork, photos.

We even enjoyed a little cake. I was proud of myself. Look at me. I'm rejoicing. I'm glad he made it.
But today was a different story. I procrastinated packing his snack. I cried when I dropped him off. I sniffled my way through chores and cried some more while I shopped at Trader Joe's. When his teacher hugged him and brought him to the car, I was a blubbering mess. Ridiculous. I can't wait for kindergarten to start (because let's be honest, what I really want is more free time) yet I'm sad that he is about to spend 7 hours a day with lots of other somebodies. Fickle, this mommy heart of mine.
In the spirit of rejoicing, here are some of my favorite pictures of our little party animal's preschool days.

 Playing outside (his favorite activity)

Hanging out with his good friend Patrick

 So proud of his project

Bringing Sammy the sock monkey home for the weekend

Congratulations, buddy! Can't believe how much you've grown and changed. You learned so much, I know you are going to rock kindergarten!