School Days, School Days Good Ol' Golden Rule Days

Today was officially the first day of the 2008-2009 school year! Noah and Jackson have officially begun their years of 3rd grade and 6th grade a.k.a. Junior High. It seems only fitting to tell that the night before school started, everyone was excited and having a hard time going to sleep. Understanding this, I was a little more easy going than I usually am about that with Noah. He finally drifted off to sleep at 11:00 p.m. and had to get up at 6:30 a.m. Truth be told, I was having a little bit of a hard time sleeping too, and didn't get to sleep until 2:00 a.m.! Even then, I tossed and turned until it was time to wake Noah up at 6:30. Well, we both got up bright and early, and Noah was up and at 'em rearing to go with his bookbag ready, supplies gathered, dressed, breakfast eaten. We putzed around for the next little while thinking we had plenty of time to catch his new bus on the new schedule. As he was brushing his teeth, his middle brother yelled up the stairs, "Hey, uh, Noah. The bus is coming down the street. Yep, it's slowing down....right...in....front...of....the...house......YEP! You missed it!" I was stunned and wondering how the bus was SO early! Hey, Missy, newsflash! The bus comes at 7:15, not 7:30 like you thought! UGH! Needless to say, I hurried to take the first day of school pictures of my junior higher, and rush him off to school in the family car. As, I was dropping him off, he hurriedly gave me a kiss, grabbed his school goodies, and hurried out the door without looking back. I ended up being glad that we missed the bus for him today. Because I was able to snap a picture of him entering the junior high on his first day, filled with so much excitement, and I snapped his picture with the junior high school sign near the top of the photo. As, I watched him walk away and towards his new journey, I couldn't help but think how quickly time had gone and how was it possible he was starting junior high today? He entered the building, and I slowly pulled away as the first tear trickled out of my eye! Geez! I hate to see what happens when my "last" baby starts kindergarten on Monday!

Meanwhile, back at the homestead, Jackson was getting ready for Round 2 of the Back to School bus schedule. I got back home in time, to get his pictures snapped and to walk him down the driveway EXTRA EARLY so we wouldn't make the same mistake again missing the bus. We had the time to chat and he told me how he was sad summer was over and wished it could be like, 3 more days! So funny! But, I loved having those few stolen moments with just him and I in the car, chatting about what he was most excited about and what he was looking forward to the most for his 3rd grade year. Alas, the bus arrived, and this time we were ready!

After they got home today, with them, they brought the MOUNTAINS of paperwork that always accompanies the first day back to school. Of course, with 3 children, we're so very fortunate to get to fill each duplicate form out in TRIPLICATE!!!! So, needless to say, that is how we spent much of our evening. Enough so, that we filled papers out until it was time to go to Daniel's soccer game (which he WON by the way 3-1) and completely and totally FORGET to go to 2 piano lessons! Geez! Maybe if we had had a few more hours of restful sleep, we wouldn't have forgotten those little details! Here's to a great new school year for all of the boys! And, here's tomorrow that we will remember soccer, music, AND what time the bus comes!