Back to School (and blogging)

I received this email from my mom this morning:

Alright, alright, I know your busy, but I'M GOING THROUGH BLOG WITHDRAWAL!!!!!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!  MOAN!  PERSPIRATION!   SHAKES!  NAUSEA!  THRASHING!  SLEEPLESSNESS!  GROAN!  ANXIETY ATTACKS!  GURGLE!  COUGH!  AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!  HELP! 

Have a nice day. 

Love, Mom

I guess I'd better get back into regular blogging again before my #1 fan dies from withdrawal. (Of course, who would ever know she reads it since there is nary a comment. That goes for several family members and close friends.Why are you people so comment-a-phobic? Or are you just technically challenged, shy, pretending you don't read, what?)


Even though I took gobs of pictures this summer and have tons of blog posts rolling around in my head (some in drafts), I just haven't been feeling the blogging vibe lately. Too many other things higher on the list, I guess. Actually being with and enjoying those summer days with my family was huge, and now that we're transitioning into a new school schedule/routine immediately after a two week family trip, I've been spending an inordinate amount of time doing school paperwork, getting everyone signed up for stuff, arranging carpools, and trying to come up with a new family schedule/routine to go with all of that. (Lots of parts to that puzzle - I get a bit OCD.) Then there's my more-than-usual exercise routine for this Phat Challenge Brandon and I are still doing, getting more disciplined about getting more sleep so I can be more productive and feel more balanced, and getting back on track with my Power of Moms stuff . . . it all adds up. 

The other biggee is my current obsession with cleaning up and organizing iphoto. Yikes! Today while Rachael was at pre-school (woo hoo!) I downloaded MacKeeper to clean up my computer as well as iphoto Library Manager so I can start organizing my photos into smaller folders. I also copied my entire iphoto library to an external hard drive, and if it's still there and looking good in a few days I'll take the plunge and trash the photos on my laptop. (It's running so slow!) Once I'm done with all of that, I just may try to clean up and pimp my blog one these days . . . (Can I say "pimp" on this blog? You know what I mean, right?) I'd really just like my friend Scott to bring his family and come stay at my house for several days and do it for me, but I think the best I'll get from him is that nice link to the book, "Mom Blogging for Dummies". (Thanks, Scott!)

Anyway, here's my re-introduction into the regular blogging world: first day of school pictures! 

The older kids started school on Tuesday (Kate-8th, Will-5th, Elizabeth-2nd) and RACHAEL started PRE-SCHOOL on Wednesday! It's just 3 days a week for 2 hours at time, but this is a monumental thing for me. Next month will mark 14 years of having a little person home with me at all times, so to have 6 hours a week to myself in the middle of the day without having to find someone to watch my young 'uns? Seriously, monumental. 

Kate. This smile came on and off in a heartbeat. The entire summer she would throw a hissy fit whenever anyone even mentioned the word 'school'. Kate is a girl who likes to do things on her own time clock, so the pace of the school year doesn't exactly fill her with excitement. Not to mention she is kind of a loner by nature, so the thought of being surrounded by 100's of people all day long is not really her cup of tea. (I think we all felt a little of this during those jr. high and high school years, right? It's like being at Costco or Disneyland all day long for me. Exhausting!) But she came home with a genuine smile at the end of that first day (thank goodness) and now that she's got a week under her belt she seems to be "dealing" just fine:

Will. He was a little nervous, but mostly excited. None of the Kate-like dread. (It is still elementary school after all . . . ) Neither one of us could believe he's now in 5th grade! He was also very happy to find out at the Open House the night before that his favorite female friend didn't move after all, that she was in his class, and that the teacher put them right next to each other! Ah, to be ten again: 

Elizabeth. Pure excitement. She was up first (as usual) and out the door before I could get ready to take her picture: 

A small miracle occurred this year. Despite my late request (met with disdain by the good women working the front office), my children were granted entrance into the coveted (at least by me) "B" track. Start time? 9:15. 

Oh. Yeah. 

We have getting-in-bed-at-a decent-time issues at our house. (Goes with having a teenager and a pre-schooler.) Last year when the middle kids were on "A" track (start time of 8:00), I dreaded every morning of rousing Elizabeth from her deep slumber - especially on cold and dark winter mornings. And getting Will to orchestra in the winter at 7am? Pure torture. The other bonus of being on "B" track is that both Elizabeth and Will have time to practice the piano in the morning. This makes the after school hours go so much better. Somehow it's just easier to practice piano in the morning. Here they are biking to school together:

Purely by chance, these two dressed in "Mickey & Minnie" clothes the second day of school, so of course I had to take a picture: 

Last but not least, Rachael. To avoid the hassle of backpacks for little hands, her pre-school gives the children bags to put their stuff in. I should have still put a backpack on her just for the class first-day-of-school picture, but here she is nonetheless, right before we left. The kids get to bring "show and tell" every day, so for her first time she brought her favorite stuffed dog, Caramel: 

This child has no stranger anxiety whatsoever, so the only tears shed that day were mine as I drove away. It only lasted about five seconds though, and then I thoroughly enjoyed my trip to Costco with me, myself, and I. 

While we're talking about Rachael, I've got to record her nutty little game she's been wanting me to play with her lately. It's kind of along the same lines as the morbid orphan games all my kids have liked to play over the years. About fifty times a day Rachael asks me to "tend" she's a baby/puppy/kitty in a trash can and I am then supposed to say out loud, "I sure wish I had a baby/puppy/kitty. I need to go to the bathroom. And I need to throw these papers away." At which point I am supposed to discover her, show dismay, feel sorry for her, take her into my care, and name her "Sunny". Are my kids weird, or do other people's kids make up games likes these with morbid themes? (No, they do not watch the news.)

So there you have it, Mom. I'm back in action. Now I just have about 50 more posts to go before I'm all caught up. I'm sure you won't mind.