Raise your hand if you sent a child to school these past couple of weeks. I sent three. Three! THREE kids to school and I have so many feelings about that. My baby started Kindergarten, you guys. How is that possible? Lila started 3rd grade, and Parker started 7th. Time is flying.

I have mixed feelings about back to school. You all know that I love my kids more than life itself, but let's be honest. I work from home. So take your three kids to work with you for eight weeks straight and you'll have an idea of my summer. :)

Now that we've been in school since mid-August, we've found our bearings and we are settling into a nice routine. 

This is our first year of trying Virtual School for Parker, and I think it's going to be a really good thing. It's our county's program, and he was able to stay in advanced and honors classes, even a couple that count for high school credit. Pretty cool for a seventh grader. And it's tough to beat a flexible schedule, Skyping with your teachers, and Minecraft breaks once you've finished your algebra. Parker has essentially moved into my office, with the desktop computer all set up for him. So I have an office buddy again, after several years of working from home alone. It's kind of fun! I'm getting used to listening to his techno music while I work, although I've embraced my own pair of headphones so that I can continue to edit in my peaceful place. ;) We are totally okay with skipping the drama of Middle School this year. Sixth grade for sure wasn't the coolest, but we lived and learned. So we'll see how it goes and update you again come Spring.

I can't get over how grown up Lila looks. That braid. Her dimples. Those perfect freckles! She's in her third year of Spanish Immersion at her school, and it's amazing to hear her read in another language. This year, she is all about her friends, and it delights my heart. She is responsible and good, and is always the one who finds Charlotte's constantly misplaced glasses for us. :) When she was about three, I would often ask her, "Lila, what would I do without you?" and she would sing, "You would cry and cry and cry." And it's still true. I rely on her for help with Charlotte and she never fails me.

And Miss Charlotte. Our tiny firecracker. She was just four when she started kindergarten (she has since turned five and she tells everyone who will listen). She smuggles that well-loved Baby Ariel, with her silky tag, into her backpack every morning. She promises that she doesn't take her out at school, so I have just pretended not to notice for a few days! She is so confident, despite her smallness and reluctance to leave her baby at home. All the safety patrols fawn over her in he carline already.

I have loved seeing the hilarious photos and videos of these excited moms doing happy dances in front of their kids' school buses, etc. My friend Bree even threw her kids a Back to School Party to bribe them with cake, I mean, get them excited for school. Although I did not craft something so funny or wonderful or embarrassing, I can absolutely relate!

How about you? Were you singing, "Boo hoo," or shouting, "Woo hoooooo!" this year? I'd love to hear from you!

xoxo,
Stacey