The start of a new chapter

I can feel the anxiety coming.
It is almost making me shake.....

Another year for Amelia and a new beginning for Tom.
A new beginning for me.

Amelia begins school tomorrow and Tom begins on Monday.
Tomorrow Tom and I will spend our last PRE-school day together before he leaves for full time school.

So many thoughts and so many worries.
So much anticipation and excitement about what is ahead for both children.

But my little man Tom.
He is different.
I worry about him for different reasons than I do Amelia.

Below is a poem I stole off a friend.
I think it explains everything beautifully..............



Dear World: 
I bequeath to you today one little boy in a school uniform. . . with two brown eyes. . .
And a happy laugh that ripples all day long, and a batch of  brown hair that bounces in the sunlight when he runs.

I trust you'll treat him well.

He's slipping out of the backyard of my heart this morning and skipping off down the street to his first day of school.
And never again will he be completely mine. . .

Prim and proud, he'll wave a young and independent hand this morning, and say goodbye and walk with little-boy steps to the nearby schoolhouse. . .

Gone will be the chattering little boy who lived only for play, and gone will be the delightful little boy who roamed the yard like a proud prince with nary a care in her little world.

Now, he will learn to stand in lines. . . and wait by the alphabet for his name to be called. . .
He will learn to tune his little-boy ears for the sound of school bells, and for deadlines. . .
He will learn to whisper and gossip. . .
And to look at the ceiling in a disinterested way when the little girl across the aisle sticks out her tongue.
Now he will learn to be jealous. . . and now he will learn how it is to feel hurt inside. . . and now he will learn how not to cry. . .

No longer will he have time to sit on the front porch steps on a summer day and watch while an ant scurries across a crack in the sidewalk. . .
Or will he have time to pop out of bed with the dawn to kiss lilac blossoms in the morning dew. . .
Now he will worry about important things. . . like grades. . . and what shoes to wear. . . and whose best friend is whose. . .
Now he will worry about the little girl who pulls his hair at recess time. . . and staying after school. . . and which little girls like which little boys. . .

And the magic of books and knowledge will soon take the place of the magic of his blocks and cars.

And he will find new heroes. . .
For five full years I've been his sage and Santa Claus. . . his pal and playmate. . . his mother and his friend. . .
Now, alas, he'll learn to share his worship and adoration with his teachers (which is only right). . .
And no longer will I be the smartest, greatest woman in the world. . .

Today, when the first school bell rings, he'll learn how it is to be a member of the group. . . with all its privileges, and, of course, its disadvantages, too.

He will learn in time that proper young men do not laugh out loud. . . or kiss dogs. . . or keep frogs in pickle jars in bedrooms. . . or watch ants scurry across the cracks in a summer sidewalk. . .

Today, he will begin to learn for the first time that all who smile at him are not his friends. . . That "the group" can be a demanding mistress. . .

And I'll stand on the porch and watch him start out on the long, long journey to becoming a man. . .

So World, I bequeath to you today one little boy in a school uniform and two brown eyes. . .
And a happy laugh that ripples all day long, and a batch of  brown hair that bounces in the sunlight when he runs.

I trust you'll treat him well.


AUTHOR UNKNOWN


xxx

Friends

After repeatedly trying to upload photo's each week....
I GIVE UP.

I can do it on Facebook but cannot do it here.

So I decided to share another persons piece of writing with you.
It is something that someone posted recently .
The original author is unknown.

Many of my friends have struggled with "true friendship" recently.
Friends that love and accept you for who you are.
Friends that stand by you through the good and the bad.
Friends that make you feel comfortable and help you to smile.

I think this poem explains all types of friendship perfectly.


Reason, Season, Lifetime

People always come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime.
When you figure out which it is, you know exactly what to do.

When someone is in your life for a REASON,
It is usually to meet a need you have expressed outwardly or inwardly.
They have come to assist you through a difficulty,
Or to provide you with guidance and support,
To aid you physically, emotionally, or even spiritually.

They may seem like a godsend to you, and they are.
They are there for the reason you need them to be.
Then, without any wrong doing on your part or at an inconvenient time,
This person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end.

Sometimes they die. Sometimes they just walk away.
Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.
What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled; their work is done.
The prayer you sent up has been answered and it is now time to move on.

When people come into your life for a SEASON,
It is because your turn has come to share, grow, or learn.
They may bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh.
They may teach you something you have never done.

They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy.
Believe it! It is real! But, only for a season.
And like Spring turns to Summer and Summer to Fall,
The season eventually ends.

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons;
Those things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation.
Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person anyway;
And put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas in your life.

It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.
Thank you for being part of my life,
Whether you were a reason, a season or a lifetime.

Author – Unknown

School/s

I have just returned from another weekend at the "flat".

I know how lucky I am to have the opportunity to get away and rejuvenate.
Lucky enough to have a place to escape to and lucky enough that I have a husband who says "GO".

I spent the time alone, watching "gossip girl" (sad I know!) and thinking about everything.

Every time I go it is for one reason only.
I am negative, snappy and need to remove myself from everyone.

Upon my return today I was ready for the next chapter in our lives.

Feeling positive and content again.

The next chapter?

Tom begins school.
Mentioned many times.

Amelia is also beginning another year of school.
Very difficult for her because she does find it hard.

But this year SHE has also requested to attend a local special school two times a week.

Many of you may remember I took Amelia for a visit last December.
It is a school that takes children with physical disibilities and deteriorating health.
The class Amelia was welcomed into was still learning to read and write.
They could all handle a conversation......and they were smart.
She fitted in immediately.
ALL of them have been dealt with such horrible illnesses and yet they loved life.
She was not the only one with a walking frame.
She was not the only one who owns a wheelchair.
She was not the only one that takes longer to speak.

She was equal to everyone else.

When I asked her which day she would like to attend in 2012 she asked to see the timetable.
Amelia decided that she liked the activites and subjects on Tuesdays AND Wednesdays so she will "go two days please".

Her choice.

I explained that she will only go to her "mainstream " school three days a week then.
"I know" she said (looking at me confidently).

So it is organised and she is excited.
She still gets to stay with everyone she knows in "mainstream" but gets to be with others "like" her.

So now I have two different schools to attend morning and afternoon on Tuesdays and Wednesdays but I look forward to watching BOTH my children grow and develop this year.

xxx