When Teresa starts kindergarten this week, it will be, in all likelihood, the last first day of kindergarten for our family. Teresa’s the baby, nearly 12 years younger than Caroline and nine years younger than Frank. She has had and will have all of the firsts the other kids had, of course, but hers are different. Hers are our last firsts. We’re years past our last first steps and last first words. Now we have our last first day of kindergarten. Coming soon will be our last first lost tooth. Caroline, meanwhile, is starting her senior year of high school. All of her firsts are still our firsts, but this year, as she applies to colleges, she is giving us a series of first lasts. A last visit to the pediatrician for shots before school. Yes, 12th graders now must be vaccinated against meningitis. The last time I’m signing school registration forms for her. The last time I’ll have to sign a permission slip for her. Maybe this year the last time I give her a ride to school before work. Frank’s got milestones of his own — he’s starting high school — but being the middle child, his firsts and lasts are his own. In some ways, having Teresa just starting her academic career makes me think less about the last times I’m having with my older kids. When Frank’s elementary school classmates’ parents talked about how they would miss the school after their children moved on, I laughed. We have nine more years of elementary school. At the same time, when I saw Teresa’s classmates parents worrying over the little things in preschool, I wanted to counsel patience. These years fly by for adults, but there’s plenty of time for the kids. Don’t rush them. They won’t eat paste forever. Enjoy the hugs and the kisses and the swings and even the protests that you’re “the meanest mommy in the world.” Soon enough — too soon — they’ll be more familiar with just how mean the world can be. If they think being told to turn off the TV is as bad as it gets, for now, revel in that. In lots of ways, Teresa’s a more sophisticated child than her brother and sister were; with two adults and two teenagers in the house, she picks up on things that children who live a more sheltered life don’t. We’ve already had serious discussions about the nature of Santa Claus, followed quickly by talks about the Easter bunny and the tooth fairy. She’s not afraid of the monsters on “Doctor Who.” She thinks “Sesame Street” is for babies. She watches it anyway. She still has so much to learn and so much to discover. So do Caroline and Frank, for that matter. I’ve always loved the beginning of the school year, with the smell of new pencils and the sense of new beginnings. Pray that for all of our students, and all of their teachers, this year is a safe, blessed and productive one.