First day of school!

"There has never been a day that I have not been proud of you, I said, though some days I'm louder about other stuff so it is easy to miss that."

-Brian Andreas

The boys survived their first days of school with no tears (from any of us) and no major mishaps. I walked the boys down the street to the bus stop well before the official stop time of 7:58AM. I wasn't sure how long the two minute walk down the street would take them with their dawdling and short legs. We were WAY early and the bus was running about ten minutes late. We waited for a LONG time.

I used the wait time to fill Spencer in on his new job - to watch out for and help take care of his little brother at school. One of the highlights of my day was watching him do his new job. After seeing the boys off I had to come back home and drop off Hailey with the sitter. Then I had to hop in the car and head to school to be there for the first hour of Evan's day. When I arrived at school, their bus was just arriving as well. The school is supposed to have someone at the front door to "corral" the kindergarten kids and take them in through the building so they don't have to run around the school and find their outside entrance doors. Since the bus was so late, the "corral-er" was gone. What I witnessed walking up to the doors was Spencer with Evan in tow going up the the door and telling the "grown-up" that was there that his little brother needed to go to the kindergarten and he needed someone to take him. The "grown up" was a Mommy at the school for her own kindergartner so she immediately went into "mom panic" mode to find someone. That was when I walked up and thanked the woman for her help, sent Spencer on his way and walked Evan down to his classroom.

I had to take a photo of Spencer's shoes. I can't believe what an effect advertising has on this kid. We went back to school shopping last week and he couldn't have cared less about anything that I picked out for him. It is beneficial for me because I don't have to buy much. I think I spent less than two hundred dollars total - for all three kids. I am sure that I will have to spend more as the seasons change but for now, if they don't care, they can wear last years duds. The only thing Spencer had an opinion on was his new shoes. He was insistent on Sketchers Airators. Though he called them "Air Heaters" and told me how his feet sweat a lot and they would help to cool them off. The "Air Heaters" cost about fifty dollars and there was no way that I was going to spend that kind of money on a pair of shoes that he will in no time turn into "shoe sandals". What? You never heard of those? That is when you are too lazy to put your shoes on the correct way so you just slide your foot inside and force the back part down with your heel. Eventually the shape will stay. That is what the fate of last years Sketchers is.

I watched for the "Air Heaters" to go on sale but I never found where they did. I used a devious Mom tactic and told him while he had a buddy over that I was going to the store to get him a pair of shoes. I asked if he wanted to come along. He had a buddy over - no way was he going with me. I told him that I would buy him a pair of Sketchers but they would most likely not be the Airators. Then I asked him if he had a color preference. His request...not pink. I told you, the boy is particular - NOT! The end of my long and boring shoe saga is that I found him this pair of Z-straps for thirty five dollars. It still seems like a lot for a kids shoe but I can't help thinking back to my Guess jean jacket that I had to have in high school. Seventy five dollars. My Dad really got his money's worth though because I still have the jacket. Shocking! I know....

Evan was not skittish about me leaving him at all. The parents stayed for an hour at the beginning of class and then when the kids went out for recess they had to say goodbye to their parents and give hugs and kisses. I was one of the last parents out of the room and when I got outside I could see Evan bobbing around looking for me. When we made eye contact he lifted up his hand and waved and yelled "Bye Mom!" and was off to the playground. When I asked him what his favorite part of the day was he said "recess". When I told him recess didn't count he said he liked when his teacher read a story to them.

Spencer's favorite part of the day was "lunch". When I told him that lunch and recess didn't count, he said it was when they went to science.

The only other back to school snafu was when the bus brought Evan home at noon. I was under the impression that the bus would come to our house like it used to do with Spencer. Hailey and I waited and waited. I was starting to get a bit panicked that maybe he didn't get on the bus or maybe he got off at the wrong stop. Then I saw the bus pull up to the end of our road. It was just sitting there. I grabbed Hailey and started walking down the road waving so she wouldn't leave and bring him back to school where I would get a phone call and have to go and pick him up. She didn't leave. I told her where my confusion was and she said that she would ask her supervisor if she could drop him at the house from now on. (She told me today she could not - so Hailey and I will be hoofing it down the street everyday to the stop - stupid budget cuts)


I am still in awe that they are both in elementary school now. What really blows my mind is thinking of next fall when they will both be gone all day and Hailey will have preschool two days a week. There is just no way that they can be that old! They have grown into such amazing little people that fill my life with tremendous joy and it has happened in a blink of an eye.