third grade

when this day rolls around each year, i view it the same way.  1.  i can't believe it is happening.  2. where did the time go?  and 3. i am not at all prepared for this so soon.  same story different year.  today is alex's first day of the 3rd grade.  she is an inch and a half taller.  two shoe sizes bigger.  and can see 100% better than last year.

i on the other hand am exactly as i have been in each of the previous years: completely overwhelmed, excited, a little bit sad and very, very hopeful.

the good news is, even though she started at the big campus this year, she wasn't completely humiliated by having her parents walk her inside and take pictures of her - a thought that kept me awake for much of last night.

this is my baby.  my dreamer.  my animal lover.  my butterfly catcher.  my artist and my world. and now, she is my third grader as well. sigh.