OK, parents: How are you feeling today? Teary? Or were you more than ready to nudge those kids onto the school bus? Or is it a bittersweet day of mixed emotions?

Gotta say, my throat is tight and working hard at holding back the tears. My daughter started her first day of middle school. She got up before her 6 a.m. alarm. She made her lunch last night, and even helped to make breakfast this morning. (I wouldn't mind if that continued.) Her clothes are laid out for the rest of the week. And when I took her to the bus this morning, for the first time, I hung back -- across the street from the bus stop where she had, moments earlier, walked with a good friend to climb into the vehicle that would take her to the new world beyond elementary school. (Anyone have tissues.)

But I still got my first-day photos! Last week I was looking at pictures of her first day of kindergarten. Honestly, I couldn't tell you how we got to this point in time, seven years later, so quickly. My parent friends run the gamut this year -- some sending 5- and 6-year-olds off to their first day of school, and others with kids going into high school and college. A time of new beginnings for us, and especially for our children. Wishing you a good start to it all! Don't forget the Kleenex!