Daughter, Daughter Misses Momma!

As week two of first grade begins, so does my daughters reluctance to go.  I should begin this by noting that both of my kids had horrible colds over the holiday weekend and Sasha woke up with a fever today.  Obviously, I'm letting her go back to bed and stay home from school today, but I hope this doesn't encourage her to cry hysterically every morning with the hope that mom will keep her home for the day.

Last night when I put her to bed, she insisted that we have a very serious talk.  She had a bit of trouble spitting it out, but then out of nowhere, the tears began and she told me that she hates first grade because she misses me way to much.  She doesn't see the light at the end of the tunnel on this one.  She doesn't believe that she'll adjust to the first grade schedule.  She's certain that she will never get used to being away from Momma all day.  She even went so far as to ask that I home school her.  Home girl desperately wants to be a Home Girl! ( I don't even know how to add fractions!  How could I ever guide her past the third grade?  And the home schooled girl on this season of America's Next Top Model is a bit of a freak show.  I don't want that future for my kid!)

I totally understand all this and I don't blame her, because I vividly recall wanting the exact same thing when I was her age.  I wanted to spend every day with my mom.   My home life was way more fun than rotten old first grade and I knew I'd rather stay home with my mom than advance my education at school.  I loved going to the gym with my mom and skiing with her in the winter.  I would have loved to have layed on her bed every morning and watched Regis and Kathy Lee, followed up by a little Geraldo Rivera.

My child is feeling just like I did, only her home life is even better.  She has the Wii, tons of DVD's, all her tablet games, cable T.V., a bike and a flat driveway, a house that regularly turns into a dance club, a menagerie of stuffed animals and a first rate playmate for a sister.  All that is plenty, but she also gets to go to the library every week,  go boating at the dam, go shopping at stores that have mini carts and take frequent trips to the park playground.  Her life here is totally kick ass.  Why would she want to go sit in a classroom all day, being dictated to by a stranger?

I get it, but how do I convince her to buck up and deal with it anyway?  I hope her fever goes away and with it, her apprehension.  I don't want to worry about her missing me all day.  Certainly there are tons of other parents dealing with this right now and it's awful.  I know that she'll come around and she'll adjust, but I wish she'd just enjoy school from the giddy up and go.  Seriously folks, this is just the beginning!  She's one week into first grade, we have a long way to go and I can't wait for the first grade water works  to be a distant memory.