First Day

I thought this day would never come. I know how bad that sounds, but let's get real--when school doesn't begin until AFTER Labor Day, it's like anticipating Christmas the first of December, and it simply feels like it will never arrive.

Now, don't get me wrong. I absolutely love summer! And after nine months of a rigorous schedule, I want nothing more than to lay low and enjoy my children, which is exactly what I did (more on summer to come later). But then there's this inevitable itch that starts forming inside of me around the first part of August--the itch to have organization again. It might have something to do with the fact that my children seem to run out of creativity and enthusiasm for free time, resulting in a lot of TV watching. Or maybe it's due to the fact they all start whining to me about how bored they are. Then again, it might be that I am tired of picking up Popsicle wrappers and other snack residue all over the house. Whatever the reason, school starts looking enticing again.

When everyone else in the world started school and we still had nearly two weeks of summer left,  I thought I might go crazy. Football was in session. Soccer had started. Volleyball was underway. Still no school. But alas, the day arrived--finally!

First off--Jr. high! Hallee was so excited she could hardly sleep. Talk about ready to move on in life. She came home from school the first day and told me she didn't know how she managed to endure elementary school all these years:). Here is a picture of her with her good friend, Zowie Robinson. Poor girls--I made them stand with the sun in their eyes.

An hour later, my elementary kids were ready to go. No, I can't believe Nate is already a fifth grader, Regyn a second grader, and my little Boston is in kindergarten. Wow! It just happens so darn fast. We decided to have a little more fun with their pictures. And apparently Nate had already spilled something on his shirt and had tried scrubbing it off since it wasn't hot enough that morning to sweat that badly.

This one is my favorite.

Man alive, I love these kids! And I'm not like some moms. You know, the ones who cry when their kids enter school. I have always felt like each child was so ready to take that step in their lives, I couldn't help but feel anticipation and joy right along with them. Sure I missed them. And yes, I felt a little nostalgia at the fact my baby had grown right up without even asking me if that was OK, but overriding all of that was the sheer excitement that he/she was ready to be away from home for a few hours and learn like crazy.

After waiting weeks for this day to come, you would think I would have it all together that first morning, but golly darn, I sure didn't. Of all the days, I woke up that morning with a severe headache and couldn't even get out of bed. My husband came to the rescue with some medication and tried to take over until I felt I could force myself up, but I felt behind schedule the entire day. Still, determined to make it special for my kids, I managed to hand-select a cupcake for each of them at the bakery to put on their plates at dinnertime. Plus, we drank lemonade instead of plain old water with our dinner. I know. I know. I really splurged. But let me tell you, the kids thought I was the best thing since Velcro! They told me I was the best mom ever when they saw the lemonade. I couldn't help but chuckle inside, thinking how nice it would be if lemonade for dinner would always be such a treat to them because something tells me it won't.

Regyn couldn't help but pose, pretending to ogle over her tutu donut.

If school starting wasn't enough of an adventure, wouldn't you know, it was also Dan and my anniversary that day. Fourteen years. Man, have they flown! I knew I had to pull something out of my hat for my sweet husband, but I had been so absorbed in preparing for school, I hadn't thought ahead to come up with something great. I've learned when you don't have something great, you do the next best thing--something ungreat. So that's what I did.

My dear friend Sara volunteered to watch Boston and Berkley so I could take Dan to lunch. Looking horrid (not really the way you want to look on your anniversary--it's kind of one of those days you'd like to pull off stunning, just so your husband has some inkling of a remembrance of why he was attracted to you all those years ago), I picked Dan up at work with thoughts of grabbing a quick lunch together and smiling at each other over milkshakes or something.

Wrong. He got in and told me we needed to go to the DMV to register our new car while he was on his lunch break. Not exactly what I had in mind, but being as flexible as Elastagirl, I went with it. As luck would have it, everyone else in the county had the same idea and the DMV was swamped. We took a number, stood in a long line to get food at Zupas, ran back to the DMV to find they had already called our number, got a new number, and shoved our sandwiches in while sitting in our car in front of the DMV. Very romantic, let me tell you.

All in all, I survived the day, which I felt was no small accomplishment. Now we've been in school three days of school, and by golly, I'm feeling a little more stable every day. I just might get in the swing of things yet.

One more thought--today marks the two-year anniversary of my brother losing his wife, Zoe (more about that back here). I never want to forget her or what I learned through losing her, and so I just want to end today by saying how grateful I am for every day I have with my husband and children. Some days are just hard and some days feel like utter failures, but mostly, this life I have is so fulfilling and so amazing and so worth it. I am grateful from the bottom of my heart to be a mother to my five children, to have that privilege and opportunity, because it forces me to be better and to live life to the fullest. So, if anyone reading this blog is a mother, know you truly are irreplaceable and that the work you do every day really does matter. So, soak it up. Make today count. Find all the little pieces of pure joy and satisfaction this day brings because you just never know about tomorrow.