New School Year!

After yesterdays more serious post, I wanted to do a fun post! We’ve had a really fun and busy summer! Too short, for sure! But lots of memories and fun. It was so busy, that some days I was really looking forward to the structure that school brings. I hate that the trade-off for structure also means the kids being away, though. Technically, school started a few weeks ago back in August, but it still feels new to me! To me, the start of a new school year almost feels the same as the start of a new calendar year.

This school year, our family transitioned to a different life stage. I guess it really started last year with Logan starting kindergarten, but this year feels like the transition was more official. All three of our kids are in school all day long! Which leaves this mama with more kid-free time on my hands than I’ve had in 12 years!   It’s a strange new world!

And you guys…. Bria is a middle schooler! I’m not sure how I feel about that! Wasn’t I just a middle schooler myself? And is it just me or do middle schoolers seem so much different these days? They are so well put together – almost like they skipped the awkward, clumsy stage. That was the WORST time for me! Worst! My awkward stage was bad. I didn’t even know how to use a curling iron properly. I clamped it down and turned it backwards so that it left a little kink at the end of my hair. And I wasn’t even aware that I was doing it! Oh, and I had a perm. So, I was trying to curl my hair with a curling iron and I had a perm.  And, oh…it gets worse!  I loved my fanny pack. Loved it! And I wore it all the time. I was a mess! But looking back, it really feels like a right of passage that I needed to go through that helped me become who I am today.  So, how do I be a mom that lets my middle schooler go through an awkward stage without interfering? I don’t know…At this point I’m pretty skeptical that she’ll even have one!

So far, Bria loves middle school! She brought a map of the school home from registration and spent tons of time memorizing where her classes were so that she wouldn’t ever feel lost. She was an expert by the time school even started. The extra freedom that middle school provides (like picking where to sit at lunch) is exactly what she needed. She’s was so thrilled when she found out that she got into choir as her elective and talks non-stop about how fun it is. She also, somehow, worked her way into student council as the only sixth grader! She is much, much more outgoing than I am for sure! And I’m happy with her getting as much extra curricular as she wants as long as she can keep her grades up.

Max saved his “best” clothes to wear for the first day of school. They were sitting on top of his dresser for a full week before the first day. According to him, his best look is a bright orange t-shirt and brown shorts. I think if I let him, he would wear that look every day. Even through the winter. If I’m going to pick a battle, this is definitely not the one to pick, so I’m good with it! Haha! For 4th grade, the school has him in a group of 3 teachers. So, he rotates and spends time equally with all of them through the day. I think it’s supposed to help the older elementary kids transition to middle school easier. It seems to be working and he seems to like it pretty well!

Logan was so excited because he has a man (male?) teacher this year. Is that the right way to say it? I’m happy because his teacher is wonderful and things seem to be working really well for him. He is a young first grader – he turned 6 at the very end of August, so he barely makes the deadline. Our goal this year is that he will learn to read. So far, he has shown absolutely no interest in it (maybe because he has an older brother and sister who are more than happy to step in and read for him?). But, since school has started, he has been pointing out site words to me. That’s some progress for sure! My other kids were totally on board with reading at his age, so this not being interested is new territory for me. He also is completely happy talking the day away. The only problem with talking is that there isn’t very much listening going on, so we’re working on that as well.

But, all in all, we’re all pretty excited for the new school year and all of the fun things that come! It always amazes me how much my kids grow and learn in just 9 short months. Here’s to a wonderful school year!