My wife and I had our first child, Lawton, nearly 5 and a half years ago. At that time, Kindergarten was about as far off the radar screen as his eventual summa cum laude graduation from Harvard is now (no pressure, son).

But that radar blip is now alarmingly close. Kindergarten Enrollment Day, March 6, is less than 3 weeks away. With 6 months of preschool under his belt, Lawton is ready... but are we?

We learned about Kindergarten Enrollment Day on the district's web site. The same information is also sent as a news release to the more traditional media outlets.

We found we only needed three things (besides a child born on or before September 1, 2001): proof of age, proof of residency and an immunization record.

I vaguely remember paying the county a fee for a birth certificate all those years ago, and fortunately my mind was not playing tricks on me. That took care of the first item. For the proof of residency, as our good luck would have it, the city just sent us a water bill in January.

The last item seemed like it might be the trickiest, but a quick call to our health care provider easily got us Lawton's immunization record. (Not that he needed a piece of paper to remind him of the last round of shots he got.)

This spring and summer will bring many new things for Lawton: new clothes, new "big kid" school supplies, learning to ride a bus, becoming a more independent, socially interactive person.

But before we enter that rush of new events, as we wait to enroll our child into one of the best school districts in the nation, I'll simply savor what I see in my son's eyes: a love of learning and an excitement about school that will hopefully be life-long.