Kindergarten Round-Up

I've been remiss in blogging lately. So remiss that I forgot my username. That's pretty remiss. Lots of things going on in our lives lately. The end of the school year is always a busy time. The big event of the last week was registering George for kindergarten. He's the last of the four to attend kindergarten round-up. People ask me if I'm sad. Am I a bad mother to say no? How can I be sad when he's SO excited about starting this phase of his life? Wouldn't being sad in that case make me a bit selfish?

Well, back to kindergarten round-up. George is four right now. He won't turn five until May 22. I have talked to WAY too many parents lately who are "red shirting" their preschoolers until next year so their kids can have an "advantage" or so that their kids can "be a child for a little bit longer." When did sending a child to kindergarten result in the end of childhood? And why is my kid going to be a full year younger than many in his class because other parents want an "advantage" for their child. Somehow, this doesn't seem quite right. Mary Claire (who is in first grade) won't turn 7 until July 17. Does that put her at a "disadvantage?" When did we start holding kids back from school until they were almost old enough to drive themselves there?!