1st Day of Junior High

 

I cannot believe that today I sent my Andrew off to junior high school!

 

I can still very vividly remember my first day in 7th grade. It was quite honestly one of my worst days in school EV-ER.  I was, however, greeted at the back door when I got home from the bus stop by my mom who handed me a Sprite and I'm glad THAT is the lasting part of my 1st day of junior high memory. ♥

Yesterday we headed out to get Andrew's haircut...you know, last minute. Just like right before graduation. ;) His only requirement is "short".  Truthfully, he just likes not having to brush his hair.

 

We stopped to pick up a couple last minute school supplies while we were out and the rest of the evening was filled with prepping backpacks, organizing school supplies, choosing first day of school outfits and hanging out watching Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone before showers and bed. 

 

He was both nervous and excited to start 7th grade which is pretty much what I expected.

 

Alarm set for 6:20am is nearly an hour earlier than last year, so he was definitely still tired this morning.  I promised him his favorite breakfast this morning ~ biscuits and gravy. That meant I was up at 6:00am and of course, was up too late last night. Of course early rising, was completely worth it when he said, "I like that we have Mom & Andrew time."

 

Me too, kid.

 

He ate breakfast, brushed his teeth, grabbed his backpack and out the door we went for picture taking! At this point in his life, he knows the drill and there's no getting out of it. ;) I did cried when we were heading back inside after taking pictures... I just got hit with this overwhelming surge of emotion that my first baby isn't that far from graduating high school. Fortunately, he made me laugh and my almost ugly cry turned to my favorite emotion~ laughing through tears.

 



     

  We drove down to the bus stop for today {his choice}. I think he was tired. haha!  I was glad to see a few other kids this year. I think they're all 8th graders, but glad he's not the only one.  Afew minutes later, the bus came and he was off for a new adventure! Here's hoping he has the best first day!!

 

love you to the moon...

Playdate at the Farm

Before I'm officially the last one to blog about our last complete summer playdate with my friends and our kids, I'd better get it in gear. ;)

All summer we've had standing Thursday playdates that have had varying degrees of attendance depending on all of our schedules, kids and you know... life, but it's been a really enjoyable time for both the moms and the kids.

For the last complete group, we decided to meet at a local farm before Amy headed back to the classroom and Lily's partner in crime, Victoria, wouldn't be there. The rest of our older kids go back to school next week, so we're holding on to this last week of summer!

Lily has been getting up a little earlier lately, which has thrown her schedule off and is also cutting all four of her 2 year molars at once, so she's had some crankypants moments lately. But, despite her wearing those crankypants part of the day, we had a great time with friends! It was a week that I had all three of my kids. ♥


Lily started her adventure out checking out the water where you look for gems in a bag of sand/dirt you can buy. She was just interested in the "wah-lee" water.  {this turned out to be foreshadowing}


More friends arrived soon. :)



After all the running and playing, there was an attempt at a baby group shot.  Lily was the lone wearer of the crankypants and there was no hope of happiness even faking from her. Bahahahhahahaha!





After the meltdown, and right before we were heading out, Lily and her partner in climbing crime Victoria decided they wanted one more water playdate before their summer time was up. :)

These two keep their mamas busy, to put it mildly.

We stopped in at the bakery and got the kids their free cookie before heading home. Lily had a few bites before completely conking out on the way. 

I am so happy to have met these women {and their children} via twitter and blogging and even more happy to call them my friends.

Are You There?

~Last time I was here too long ago, I was blogging about Lily's last week of one. I have a few posts to add to that last week along with nearly every single other thing we've done this summer, but I'm starting to feel a little less in a funk and more like journaling and capturing. Thank God for my camera this summer.


Here's what's on the horizon:

~I've got a few giveaways coming up!

~Guest Post over at one of my favorites.

~Life in a stepfamily and coparenting has taken a positive turn that I officially say is successful that I need to write about a new life for Reagan.

~Lily's 2 year birthday party!

~Andrew's summer adventures and all his travel.

~4th of July trip to Scout Camp for family day!

~A few tales of the outlaws.

~Lots of playdates!


And just for good measure here's a cute picture:

Thanks for bearing with me!