Back At It

Imagine this; waking in the morning to the sun shining through your bedroom window.  You stretch and say a quick morning prayer.  Then, while still lying in bed, you reach for your phone, or computer, and check your daily calendar, the weather, and the latest happenings on your social media of choice.  Then, still in your pajamas, you wander into the kitchen and pour yourself a cup of coffee.  You drink this while sitting in your favorite chair, feet up, gazing out the window.  Slowly, your children begin to wake and one by one they come to you for a morning snuggle and all together you watch a few morning cartoons.  Eventually, someone states they're hungry, so you head back into the kitchen, pour a second cup of coffee and work as a short-order cook; two want oatmeal, one wants an egg, one wants peanut butter toast, and two want yogurt and granola.  After breakfast, you determine what to do with the day.  Some of the children want to go to the library.  Some want to go to the park.  A few want to ride their bikes.  One just wants to have a "pajama day."  You walk to places more than you drive.  Somewhere in your day you take the time to do a load or two of laundry, maybe even push a vacuum around.  Your biggest concern is what to prepare for dinner, which happens to be served late in the evening.

Now, fast forward a few months and this serene picture is painted very differently.  You arise to a very annoying, screeching alarm to which your body revolts.  You stumble around haphazardly, trying to pull yourself together for the day.  Should you dress warm for the cool morning or cool for the hot afternoon, since you didn't have time to check the weather report.  You walk into the kitchen, make a pot of coffee and proceed to wake up the children.  Two of them jump right out of bed in great anticipation of the day ahead. Two hide their heads under the blankets, trying to squeeze just a few more minutes of sleep into their morning.  The other two wake up to all the commotion, rubbing the sleep out of their eyes.  You quickly pour yourself a cup of coffee and begin to take a sip when one of the children shouts that she can't find her shoes.  Another needs help pouring her cereal.  No breakfast choices today. Everyone gets cold cereal and juice.  You yell to the two sleepy-heads that they have 5 minutes to get upstairs and to the table.  You reach for that full cup of coffee once more when your youngest spills her juice.  You run to the table in an attempt to corral the mess before it drips down to the floor.  With minutes to spare, miraculously everyone is ready to head out the door.  You load up the van, only to find out that someone has left their mid morning snack on the counter.  You volunteer to run back into the house to retrieve the item and find your un-drunk, now cold cup of coffee sitting alone. You nuke it, because it is better than nothing. Somehow, you leave on time and head to school.

After school, there are a few papers the kids bring home that need to be signed.  You have had to plan an early supper, because football practice begins that evening.  Once again, your loading up the van, making sure that everyone has their proper equipment, water bottles and other necessities.  When all is said and done, everyone is back home, showered and in bed by 9:00 PM and in one day you have put 120 miles on your van.

Welcome to a brand new school year.  Although the first scenario may be slightly exaggerated, the point is that it feels as if we went from zero to mach sixty in just a moment of time.  As it took us a little while to get used to the freedom of summer vacation, so will it take some time to get back into the routine of school and schedules.  And I have great expectations of drinking a fresh, hot cup of coffee each morning too!

Honey Bunches - 4th Grade, Sweet Potato - 5th Grade, Gummi Bear - 3rd Grade, Cucumber - 1st Grade

Sweet Pea begins Kindergarten tomorrow, but her and Pumpkin still wanted their picture to be taken.  Pumpkin had a major meltdown (we're talking kicking and screaming) because she didn't want the kids to go to school.  Let's hope she handles Sweet Pea's departure better.