Someone give Mum a hug

Can't you see that her nerves are in shreds?
Finnzy, it may be your first day in "big" school.
But it's her fourth.
Her own was traumatic enough.
And then she has relived the first-day-in-school drama for each of you. With interests.

For a few minutes I thought that she was going to faint after dropping Finn and Mimi in their new school.

Luca was exemplary in his behaviour. I was so proud of him. He held Finn's hand all the way from the yard to his seat at the table that had the most toy cars on it, explained to him that it was fine to have butterflies in his stomach, that he had them on his first in big school, that he gets them each year when he starts in a new class (his turn is on Monday).

I wish I had thought of asking Luca to hold Mrs Raheny's hand on the way to school.
Except that he couldn't as we all cycled to school (what a Green Party poster that would have been...) because we were running late. On day one... (and not because we are of a Green Party persuasion... Green Partyism in Ireland is mostly about lentil soup parties, and getting slowly but steadily pissed on organic wine in a gas-heated gazeboed back garden in Dublin 6, while discussing Saoirse's progress in the Irish school, the one without a single Polish immigrant's kid in Junior Infants).

Finn, Mimi, and especially you Luca, I am incredibly proud of you today.

Chica, I think you need a glass of vino to settle the nerves, and perhaps an episode or two of House of Cards on Netflix.