6.5 more teaching days...

I am very excited that I am the Someone New Sunday! Welcome to the new followers I have already heard from this morning!
Now on to the post I have been thinking about.

These last few days will be bittersweet. I have had a very challenging year but I'm not ready to say goodbye to these kids yet! I have had a total of 28 students this year with kids moving and kids coming. I am sitting at 25 right now...I think. Rumors are that one of mine up and moved last week with no notice.
As I was reading blogs the last couple days I came across a post here that brought me to tears. She puts it so perfectly. I know I will have more classes and that I will love them too-but this is my first class.
The other day one of the students in the other kindergarten class was in my classroom for reading. She noticed that I had a hello kitty bandaid on my finger-she asked why I had that kind and that wasn't what she was getting. I had to tell her that it came from my house not from school. Her response, "you have them for your kids?"
"No, I don't have any kids..."
"But A always says that you do."
"Nope no kids."

Then I thought about it. It could just be A making up stories (she is VERY good at this) but it could also be that she is going off of the discussion we had in class the other day. I was reading Love You Forever. (FAVORITE BOOK!) I was once again asked, "Teacher when are you going to get married?" I smile and respond with, "I don't know." "When are you going to have kids?" Again smile and "I don't know but that will be even longer. And I don't need anymore kids right now I have all 25 of you. That is all I can handle right now."
I mean this. They are my kids for 6.5 hours each day. They are exhausting, loud and sometimes drive me crazy. But then one of them will come up to me and just hug me. It makes everything better.

The Para that works in my room asked me the other day, "how do you do this all the time? why did you want to be a teacher?" Just then one of my littles that has caused many a headache came up and gave me a great big hug-for no reason. My response, "Yes I have rough and frustrating days but then that happens and it makes it all the boogers, vomit, tears and frustration worth it."

I am not one to cry in public but I can't guarantee anything on that last day-especially as I make that hour drive home...

Now I need to work on report cards and write letters to each of my kids. What I can't decide is if I should pass them out on the last day or wait and mail them with their first and last day of school portraits...Suggestions?