Tales from the first day

We have survived the first day. We managed to get both in school on time and no one got attacked by zombies. So here's the report in specifics.

For Jordan

Her school refused to allow any parent to set foot into the school compound. We could stand at the gate in the sun and kid-watch hoping to get a glimpse of her braids swinging by but we didn't. We stopped the car and let her walk in by herself. She did good though there were great pangs of guilt plus everything else watching her walk away and watching every other mom insist on walking their girls in till they got hit by the invisible forcefield of the school also known as the security guard.

For the 7 hours after that her day remained a mystery to us. And we only have her word to go by.

So this is her version of what happened in school.
1. Her buddy is Kelly. She might be in Primary 4 or Primary 5.
2. She had fish ball noodles for recess. And there wasn't a lot. But it did come with an apple.
3. Her fish ball noodles cost $1. We gave her $2. She came home with $1.20. Magic Primary 1 math at work here.
4. The girls on her school bus have the Frozen soundtrack on their phones.
5. The toilets are dirty and she wishes she could go to Evan's school because the toilets there are clean. (I told her they were clean because Evan's school had no girls in it).

For Evan

His school was the complete opposite of hers. It was a total zoo with the PAPArazzi in full force. We thought that since Jordan walked in on her own, we would let Evan do the same. That thought lasted for about 5 seconds after he got out of the car because the place was swarming with parents and he was the only kid without even one. So I hopped right out, caught up with him and took him to where the boys had to be dropped off. It was a good thing I did because that poor 4 footer of boy would not have been able to push through the walls of parents barricading the door in a bid to photograph their son sitting in line with his class.

The whole experience had the air of celebrity stalking to it. People were jostling for the best spot at the barricade. Yes, the canteen had to be barricaded to prevent parents from stepping forward to carry the bowls of noodle soup for their boys. Parents were about 4 deep in the barricade and in the half an hour long recess, we spotted Evan for a grand total of about 15 seconds; walking to his class' canteen bench, walking away to buy his food, walking back, walking off to deposit his plate. (His inhaling his plate of Chicken Char Siew Rice was not witnessed because he was completely blocked from our already obstructed view).

So what did Evan get up to in his 7 hours of school?

1. He managed to get his shirt untucked in the true school boy way 15 seconds after getting out of the car. (Packrat assures me that it is inevitable unless he tucks his shirt into his underwear and that was when I snorted tea into my nose).

2. He managed to unknowingly get into trouble even before recess came to an end; we could not find him in the oceans of boys in the canteen and found him playing in the playground under the watchful eyes of his buddy. Within a minute, they got hollered at because they were apparently not allowed to be there. Both looked suitably contrite and lost as to where to go next.
3. He does not know the name of his buddy nor his seat partner. It could be Trevon or Trevor though Jordan swears that his name is "Dunno" or "Don't Remember".
4. He has by some stroke of genius managed to lose his new set of colour pencils.
5. He is first off the bus and to him. In his book, it is counted as a victory, against what I have no idea.

For us.
1. Jordan is way more a morning person than Evan is. He moaned and groaned about being tired all the way to school. Both had stomachaches but we put that down to nerves.
2. We need to leave the house earlier than we did today. It has been a long time since I've worried about being late for school. And this time, detention isn't meted out on us.
3. We are not hardy parents. We cannot stand for hours craning our necks just so that we take a nice photograph of our kid on his/ her first day. We will suck at being stalkers or the paparazzi. We surrendered the minute he was safely under the charge of his Primary 4 buddy. My back hurt from slouching in the crowd and I cannot imagine how that Bottega-toting, Manolo mom beside me outlasted me in perfect posture.
4. Were we to do this again, either tomorrow or when it is Muffin's turn, I need six inch platforms so that I can see above the heads of other parents. But I will also need a stretcher and a foot reflexologist on call.
5. Parents buy telephoto lenses so that they can photograph their kid from the gate. Packrat claims that it will end up clonking people on their heads whether purposely or accidentally.
6. I am thankful that Evan's buddy was so watchful and helpful. Packrat thinks I watch too much TV because I was worried and worried that his buddy would steal his lunch money.
7. There was much anxiety when Jordan's bus arrived an hour late and the poor girl was almost in tears due to a bladder 1ml away from exploding. It has made me wish once again for a school nearby.

So the first day has ended. They are a little bit more ready to face their second. And for that to happen smoother than it did today, I have to go to bed now.