Cathleen Allison/Nevada Appeal
When she saw a mom crying at Fritsch Elementary School on Monday morning, Principal Mary Garey walked over and gave her a hug.
"It's OK," she soothed. "We take good care of them."
Ashley King had just dropped off her only daughter, Alexis, 4, for her first day of kindergarten. Although Alexis was eagerly anticipating the new adventure, her mom was reluctant to join the celebration.
"It's not exciting," she cried. "It's sad. It's my baby. It happened too fast."
King met up with longtime friend Amanda Pinter, who was dropping off her only son, Riley, 5.
"It doesn't seem like it should be kindergarten time yet," she agreed.
But she was happy the two lifelong friends, who shared one last hug before splitting into their individual classrooms, would at least be attending the same school.
"They're each other's little support system," Pinter said.
Over at Seeliger Elementary School, Darrin Miller brought his 2-year-old son Tavin along to pick up Kai, 5, after his first day of kindergarten. The two boys rushed into one another's arms after spending two hours apart.
Miller said it is hard to see his little boy growing up, but he's encouraged by Kai's enthusiasm.
"He loves school. All summer long he's been so excited," he said. "He's a bright kid. Everything he does, he amazes me."
In Sue Breen's first-grade class, students spent part of the morning coloring squares to be used to play back-to-school bingo in the afternoon.
After six years of teaching first grade at Fritsch Elementary School, Breen knows to keep it fun in the afternoon while students adjust to spending a full day in the classroom.
"They will definitely run out of steam," she said. "They're not ready for academics at 2:15."
But the excitement hadn't worn off yet for Jacob Crossman, 6.
"I'm in first grade, and I never had a desk before," he said. Although his brother Gabriel is in the second grade, Jacob is still unsure what to expect.
"My brother didn't tell me any of it," he said.
Abbygail Seyster, 6, said coloring and recesses were what she was most looking forward to, and she wanted to show off her new look.
"My mom bought me a lot of new clothes, and my mom also bought me the same shoes as my friend Madison," she said. "She also got me a new haircut."
Fifth-grader Marin Woomer, 11, also had gone shopping for new clothes before school started. Although it's her sixth year in school, she said, the first day never gets old.
"It's still exciting," she said.
To see a gallery of photos from the first day of school in Carson City, visit