Tears in Carpool

. . . I was crying after I picked Audrey up from preschool. It started out as a completely normal carpool experience and then out of the blue it became, well. . . blue.
Audrey has this really cool teacher at her school (not her actual teacher) named Ms. Ginger. She has a spring in her step and you can tell she enjoys the kids and really likes her job. She wears a neat, cropped apron that says Ms. Ginger on the front and she's just uncommonly equipped to teach little ones.
Every day, when I pick Audrey up from school she always opens the door to let Audrey in the car and says with a regal tone, "Princess Audrey, your carriage awaits". Audrey always smiles from ear to ear and climbs in and Ms. Ginger wishes her a good day and closes the door.
Well, today I'm completely oblivious as tomorrow is the last day of school and a "graduation" of sorts from preschool. The kids won't go through carpool for pick-up because all the parents will be there for the program. Back to me being oblivious, I pull up and Ms. Ginger opens the door and says, "Today is a momentous day, the last day of carpool pick-up for Ms. Audrey" I felt the tears stinging in my eyes and then Ms. Ginger looked at Audrey and sweetly and sincerely said, "May your carriage always take you where you want to go" - she closed the door with a big smile. I was suddenly drowning in tears - my little Audrey Claire, such a big girl.
I drove through the parking lot as Audrey said, "Mom, are you crying?" Through my tears, "Yes, honey". "Why, Mom?"
She couldn't understand, she wants to grow up, to be a big kid - NOW. But, all I could think was that the time at home, the early years have flown by and I only hope I savored them, enjoyed them to the fullest. Did I? Ugh, I need a tissue, again. . .