Blue Eyes, Brown Eyes

My 2 blue eyed boys with their brown eyed brother.

This week Brody and Case started taking the bus to and from school.  I was a little hesitant about letting them do this so early in the year, but after much begging, I caved and decided to let them.  Let me tell you, it has been AWESOME!  First and foremost, having the boys taking the bus saves me a good hour and a half of drive time each day.  Although we live super close to the school, I would have to leave extra early to find a place to park, unload all 4 kids, get 2 of them to their playgrounds,  while making sure the other 2 aren't wandering off.  The parking lot at their school is a mess which is a whole other story so often I spend a half hour circling the parking lot trying to find the closest spot to park. As if the above reasons aren't good enough, I now have 2 little brown eyed cuties who get to take their WHOLE nap each afternoon!  I don't have to wake them up anymore, dress them AGAIN, and load them in the HOT car.  I simply leave them sleeping while I walk to the corner to get my 2 blue eyed cuties.  It's perfect and oh so convenient!   I do feel bad when my 2 blue eyed boys step off the bus and their little faces are BEAT RED and they have beads of sweat covering their noses.  I have told them time and time again that I am happy to pick them up, but they loooove the bus!  Oh and another bonus to the bus, Brody's little 5th grade bus buddy helps him with his homework on the ride home.  Do you know how wonderful it is to just check his homework instead of arguing with him about when he's gonna do it?  It's AWESOME!! 

Look at how big our stop is.  There are about 15-20 kids each day at our stop.  Our neighborhood is full of kids which makes riding the bus that more fun!

So last week after Miss B., Ledger and I walked the boys to the bus stop, we get home and Ledger says, "Mom, Brody and Case have blue eyes and they go to school.  Miss B. and I have brown eyes and we get to stay home with you!"  "I love that I get to stay home with you, he says." And boy do I love that I get to stay home with my brown eyed cutie pies! What else could I ask for? It's perfect!

First Day Of School and A Letter To The Teachers

Brody, Ledger and Case on the first day of school.  Ledger was a little confused as to why HE wasn't going to school today.  He was crying and all upset.  He can hardly wait for Miss Jody's preschool to start!  He is going to miss his brothers while they are at school all day!

Case was awfully quiet this morning.  I think he was a little nervous (even though he would never admit it!)

Brody was so ready to start school.  He is so smart.  School is right up his alley!

Case and Jefferson in line waiting for the teacher.  Case would not even smile for a picture.  Not sure what was going on in that brain of his!  

See the teacher giving directions to the class?  See Case and Jefferson?  Hmmmm...

Brody has a super sweet and happy teacher.  He is going to have a great year!

A desk all of his own!  He has been waiting years for this!  

It's gonna be a great year!  

Today I sent both Brody and Case off to school. I was super excited for them both but a little nervous.  I worry so much about these kids (especially Case).  I love them so much and want them to be happy.  I want them to be loved and to feel special.  So this morning I decided they would not be taking the bus and that I would just drop them off.  We pull into the parking lot and both boys jump out of the car like it was not big deal.  When Case realized he forgot his backpack, he came back but then was off again.  Brody has this whole school thing down so he headed right to the "big" playground.  Case walked over to the kindergarten playground, dumped his backpack somewhere, and then headed for the swings.  I loaded Miss B. in the Bjorn, got Ledger out, and headed over to take lots of pictures of my cute little kindergartner.  Case played until Jefferson arrived and then the two of them kinda walked in circles before it was time to line up.  Case's teacher came out, lined the kids up, gave them directions on what to do when they got inside, and off they went.  Case of course didn't hear even one of the directions about where to put your backpack or what to do when you get inside because he was too busy talking to the kid behind him who had on a super cool Mario Bros T-Shirt!  It was weird watching Case head into that classroom without me this morning. Not sure how I feel about it right now!  A little sad but so happy for all he will learn and do this year.  So during this time, Brody is off playing on his playground.  I had a huge sack of stuff for his teacher, so I headed inside.  His teacher is so awesome and sweet.  She is bubbly and cute and her class is super organized and clean.  She told Brody on Monday at Meet The Teacher that she likes to teach kids how to be organized.  Brody's eyes got as big as watermelons.  I even think I saw him salivate like one of Pavlov's dogs.  He was giddy beyond words since he too loooooves to organize things!  This is going to be a great year for these boys.  They both have fantastic teachers and they are both excited for all they will learn.  I am excited too but will miss them all day.  I love these kids, even when they are crazy and wild! Lucky for me today is Wednesday early release so I will get to pick them up at 2:25 today. Can't wait to see how it went. And now a letter to the teachers:

Dear Miss A., and Mrs. H., 

This morning I dropped my 2 sweet boys off to school for the first time this school year.  My heart is aching and my tummy feels nervous!  While I realize that this school stuff is part of them growing up, I am not ready for it.  I am not ready for them to meet new friends that will replace me.  I am not ready for them have to spend their afternoons doing homework instead of playing.  I am not ready for them to be away from me for 6 and a 1/2 hours a day.  That's a long time!  I'm not ready for the language they will learn on the playground or the songs they will hear on the bus.  I'm not ready for the kids who will make fun of them for what they wear or how spiky their hair is. Please be kind to them today, and every day.  Treat them with respect and love them like they are your own.  They are good kids.  They can be rowdy and rambunctious but sweet and loving all at the same time.  Have fun with them.  Get to know them and their quirky personalities.  Expand their minds and show them that they are capable of anything they put their mind too.  These boys are smart.  Teach them how wonderful books are.  Show them how science works.  Explain to them the importance of numbers and how they relate to everyday life.  Let them use all those crayons and markers you asked us to send in. 

 I hope you have a wonderful first day of school.  I hope you showed my boys what a great year this is going to be.  I hope they get in my car this afternoon with smiles on their faces anxious to tell me all they learned.  Please know I will help you in any way possible this school year.  This is going to be a great year, I can tell already! Thank you for all your hard work and dedication.  I appreciate all you do!

Sincerely,

Brody and Case's Mom

I Love The Smell Of Back To School!

Does anyone else out there love the way back to school smells? When I taught First Grade, I loved the beginning of a new school year.  While I was nervous about the types of kids that would be in my class and the thought of having to retrain a new bunch of kiddos overwhelmed me, I loved the excitement of getting back into the swing of things.  What I loved most was the new school supplies.  I love unsharpened pencils with the perfectly shaped erasers.  A new box of crayons makes me happy beyond words.  Who doesn't love the exactly perfect shape of the crayons when you first open the box? And the smell....nothing better then the smell of starting over, starting fresh.  The possibilities are endless and the opportunities for success are unlimited. I love notebooks that have never been opened.  I love how each piece of paper is super flat without a wrinkle or crease in it. I love new lunchboxes, backpacks and pencil cases.  They smell good and make me HAPPY!  

When I took my boys to Target to get their supplies I was in heaven!  All that brand new stuff put me over the edge!  I wanted it all.  The boys went through their lists and got everything they needed for a great school year.  Can't wait to go to Meet The Teacher on Tuesday to see all that fresh, unwrinkled bulletin board paper hanging on the walls.  Ohhhh and those (hopefully) super clean desks that they teacher cleaned for a new school year.  What about those super clean whiteboards and whiteboard markers ready for the teacher to write the class assignments on?  I can already smell the new workbooks and paper dictionaries that will be in Brody's second grade desk!

Back To School Supply lists.  On the lists:  Crayons, Pencils, Erasers, Whiteboard Markers, Pencil Cases, Ziplock Baggies, Paper Towels, Kleenex, Markers, Dixie Cups, Baby Wipes, Hand Sanitizer, Markers, Envelopes, and Glue Sticks. Oh and yes these boys are in their swim suits because Berkley and Ledger are still swimming with Miss Carolyn and they have to come along!

.25 cents for a 24 box of crayons?  Unbelievable! How can Crayola even make money off that? Still can't believe this guy is starting Kindergarten?  

Does anyone out there like glue sticks?  I'm an Elmer's girl.  It holds waaaaay better! 

By the way...how can I have a second grader this year? Ugggg!