{"id":2523,"date":"2026-05-18T08:09:56","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T08:09:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/?p=2523"},"modified":"2026-05-18T08:09:56","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T08:09:56","slug":"lasting-memories-my-youngests-final-days-in-elementary-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/?p=2523","title":{"rendered":"Lasting Memories: My Youngest’s Final Days in Elementary School"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n<\/p>\n

\n

This week, my youngest child finishes fifth grade, which means my family graduates elementary school. It feels different with my youngest. Everything does. This closes a chapter on a major influence on my children\u2019s childhoods. And it all feels weird. Our lasting memories and final days in elementary school are palpable.<\/p>\n

To begin with, I\u2019m not good with change. I play it off to my kids like every transition is this fun new phase, but I worry. Then again, I\u2019m always worried about them. That\u2019s part of being a mom and there\u2019s no growing out of that.<\/p>\n

Having my youngest leave elementary school, I feel sad, nostalgic, proud, happy, worried, excited, exhausted, stressed, and ready for summer. I will feel all these emotions and then some again in August when he walks those middle school halls. I\u2019m proud of both of us! As a parent with chronic illness<\/a>, it\u2019s been a blur.<\/p>\n

How Did This Happen So Fast?<\/h2>\n

My first thought is, \u201cHow did this happen so fast?\u201d I look back at the first day I walked my oldest into kindergarten and at the last day for my youngest, and it went so fast. Yet it feels like lifetimes ago that we were the people we were and are today.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s this end of an era, another chapter-type moment that is so bittersweet. It\u2019s not just the transition to another school, which feels big, but also saying goodbye to ones we\u2019ve known for so many years.<\/p>\n

Lasting Memories of Elementary Teachers<\/h2>\n

I look back at the teachers my children had in elementary school and some will stay forever in our hearts. Over the years, I saw some teachers go the extra mile by saying something that resonated with them, believed in them, and understood them emotionally while pushing them academically. They heard and believed what you were telling them. Thank You! You are so appreciated and your influence will last with them a lifetime!<\/p>\n

There were also not-so-great ones and situations I didn\u2019t love. We will remember that too. And grow from it.<\/p>\n

Final Days with Our Bus Driver and Parent Volunteers<\/h2>\n

There are many people overlooked in the elementary thank yous. Some of them are bus drivers and parent volunteers. We have been cursed with a bad bus driver and blessed with the best. And let me tell you, there isn\u2019t much more I appreciate than someone who loves and cares for my children while I rely on them to keep them safe.\u00a0 My kid\u2019s elementary school bus driver loves my kids. She is the type of person who drives them but also is another safe adult for them to come to and feel protected by. This is very rare and in our final days, I know we may never get it again. Leaving the safety net of our transportation is hard.<\/p>\n

Volunteering on my last days feels very sad. It\u2019s not that I can\u2019t volunteer when they are older, but elementary parent volunteering is special. The classroom parties with these tiny voices. Watching them want attention and squeals of laughter. And the moms (dads and grandparents) who give up so much of their time, effort, and money to make the entire school better. Volunteering is a privilege. Many parents can\u2019t, and to be honest, don\u2019t want to spend time out of their schedules to be planning and working for the school (for free!). The volunteers that run our school are a group that I\u2019m very thankful for. These volunteers make these great events happen and ensure that our kids are having an extra special time. They are wildly overlooked and underappreciated by most. My thanks go out to all the people who helped put smiles on our babies\u2019 faces.<\/p>\n

Big Kids, Big Problems<\/h2>\n

By the time my youngest is leaving elementary school, I have been a parent of a middle schooler for a couple of years and that has hardened me. As a middle school parent, I\u2019ve had conversations that I wasn\u2019t ready for but faced. The big kid big problems phase kicks in and parenting somehow gets harder. But in a different way. I no longer relate to the kindergarten parent<\/a> who has babies at home. I miss it. But that\u2019s not me now.<\/p>\n

\"The\"The\"Lasting\"Lasting<\/p>\n

In fact, that\u2019s not us now. My family isn\u2019t revolving our lives around nap schedules and meltdowns. We are revolving our schedules around sports<\/a> schedules and social calendars. And still the occasional meltdown (by all of us)! There\u2019s a saying, \u201cBy the time your youngest is ready to leave elementary school, so are you.\u201d As someone who doesn\u2019t like goodbyes, I feel it a bit. The fifth graders feel big for the school and it feels like it\u2019s time.<\/p>\n

Moving On and Leaving Elementary School<\/h2>\n

So I guess by the time my youngest finishes elementary school we will all be ready. Right?! But it\u2019s weird. I loved my days as an elementary parent and the little school that laid its foundation. It\u2019s weird that I won\u2019t be volunteering there. Weird that the field trips are over. Weird that I won\u2019t see the teachers in the halls or at parties. I\u2019ll miss seeing those faces and the hugs from my kids and friends who are now so much bigger. It\u2019s strange that I won\u2019t be driving to that school and weird that we no longer go there.<\/p>\n

Overall, it\u2019s heart-wrenching that my babies are growing up so fast.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Are We Ready?<\/h2>\n

Still, remains the question, \u201cIs he ready? Am I ready?\u201d I\u2019m nervous about this next phase. This may be my youngest, but he is so different from my older one and it all, somehow, feels brand new. That\u2019s something I\u2019ll worry about more this summer.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m Not Crying, You Are!<\/h2>\n

In the final days, I\u2019m going to focus on being present and enjoying my last moments as an elementary mom. I signed up for every last field trip, field day, party, or celebration event that I could. His graduation and clap-out will give me all the feels. I want to be present for as much as I can and be as present as I can in these moments. Transitions make me want to hold on to each moment a few seconds (minutes, days) longer. They are hard but necessary. I\u2019m not crying, you are!<\/p>\n

The bottom line is, I\u2019m not good with change. This all feels weird. Why are they growing so fast? And when did I get old?<\/p>\n

\"I'm\"I'm<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n


\n
Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This week, my youngest child finishes fifth grade, which means my family graduates elementary school. It feels different with my youngest. Everything does. This closes a chapter on a major influence on my children\u2019s childhoods. And it all feels weird. Our lasting memories and final days in elementary school are palpable. To begin with, I\u2019m not good with change. I play it off to my kids like every transition is this fun new phase, but I worry. Then again, I\u2019m always worried about them. That\u2019s part of being a mom and there\u2019s no growing out of that. Having my youngest leave elementary school, I feel sad, nostalgic, proud, happy, worried, excited, exhausted, stressed, and ready for summer. I will feel all these emotions and then some again in August when he walks those middle school halls. I\u2019m proud of both of us! As a parent with chronic illness, it\u2019s been a blur. How Did This Happen So Fast? My first thought is, \u201cHow did this happen so fast?\u201d I look back at the first day I walked my oldest into kindergarten and at the last day for my youngest, and it went so fast. Yet it feels like lifetimes ago that we were the people we were and are today. It\u2019s this end of an era, another chapter-type moment that is so bittersweet. It\u2019s not just the transition to another school, which feels big, but also saying goodbye to ones we\u2019ve known for so many years. Lasting Memories of Elementary Teachers I look back at the teachers my children had in elementary school and some will stay forever in our hearts. Over the years, I saw some teachers go the extra mile by saying something that resonated with them, believed in them, and understood them emotionally while pushing them academically. They heard and believed what you were telling them. Thank You! You are so appreciated and your influence will last with them a lifetime! There were also not-so-great ones and situations I didn\u2019t love. We will remember that too. And grow from it. Final Days with Our Bus Driver and Parent Volunteers There are many people overlooked in the elementary thank yous. Some of them are bus drivers and parent volunteers. We have been cursed with a bad bus driver and blessed with the best. And let me tell you, there isn\u2019t much more I appreciate than someone who loves and cares for my children while I rely on them to keep them safe.\u00a0 My kid\u2019s elementary school bus driver loves my kids. She is the type of person who drives them but also is another safe adult for them to come to and feel protected by. This is very rare and in our final days, I know we may never get it again. Leaving the safety net of our transportation is hard. Volunteering on my last days feels very sad. It\u2019s not that I can\u2019t volunteer when they are older, but elementary parent volunteering is special. The classroom parties with these tiny voices. Watching them want attention and squeals of laughter. And the moms (dads and grandparents) who give up so much of their time, effort, and money to make the entire school better. Volunteering is a privilege. Many parents can\u2019t, and to be honest, don\u2019t want to spend time out of their schedules to be planning and working for the school (for free!). The volunteers that run our school are a group that I\u2019m very thankful for. These volunteers make these great events happen and ensure that our kids are having an extra special time. They are wildly overlooked and underappreciated by most. My thanks go out to all the people who helped put smiles on our babies\u2019 faces. Big Kids, Big Problems By the time my youngest is leaving elementary school, I have been a parent of a middle schooler for a couple of years and that has hardened me. As a middle school parent, I\u2019ve had conversations that I wasn\u2019t ready for but faced. The big kid big problems phase kicks in and parenting somehow gets harder. But in a different way. I no longer relate to the kindergarten parent who has babies at home. I miss it. But that\u2019s not me now. In fact, that\u2019s not us now. My family isn\u2019t revolving our lives around nap schedules and meltdowns. We are revolving our schedules around sports schedules and social calendars. And still the occasional meltdown (by all of us)! There\u2019s a saying, \u201cBy the time your youngest is ready to leave elementary school, so are you.\u201d As someone who doesn\u2019t like goodbyes, I feel it a bit. The fifth graders feel big for the school and it feels like it\u2019s time. Moving On and Leaving Elementary School So I guess by the time my youngest finishes elementary school we will all be ready. Right?! But it\u2019s weird. I loved my days as an elementary parent and the little school that laid its foundation. It\u2019s weird that I won\u2019t be volunteering there. Weird that the field trips are over. Weird that I won\u2019t see the teachers in the halls or at parties. I\u2019ll miss seeing those faces and the hugs from my kids and friends who are now so much bigger. It\u2019s strange that I won\u2019t be driving to that school and weird that we no longer go there. Overall, it\u2019s heart-wrenching that my babies are growing up so fast. Are We Ready? Still, remains the question, \u201cIs he ready? Am I ready?\u201d I\u2019m nervous about this next phase. This may be my youngest, but he is so different from my older one and it all, somehow, feels brand new. That\u2019s something I\u2019ll worry about more this summer. I\u2019m Not Crying, You Are! In the final days, I\u2019m going to focus on being present and enjoying my last moments as an elementary mom. I signed up for every last field trip, field day, party, or celebration event that I could. His graduation and clap-out will<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2524,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2523","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-migraine-headache"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2523"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2523\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}