Back to School!

Forgive me for being so late...life is a BIT crazy these days. School started a week-and-a-half ago and I am just now getting to posting the pictures! Ugghhh!!

Every year, I make the kids stand on the front porch for the traditional first day of school pictures. This year was different...no Meggie. Another difference, that actually shocked me when I realized it? It was raining when I woke up on the first day of school and I realized it has NEVER rained (that I can remember anyway) on the first day of school since 1998, when Meggie started Kindergarten. Is that possible?! I found it a bit appropriate that our first back-to-school without Meggie should be rainy and depressing.

But then it cleared up and turned into a gorgeous day. Oh, yay!

As is my typical routine, I just HAVE to pull out the old back-to-school pictures so we can see just how much my kids have changed over the years. I am always amazed.

Molly started preschool...
...less than three weeks after we returned home from China. Cute as a button with her pixie haircut and her Kai Lan doll, she had a rough start in school. By the time Kindergarten started for her...
...her hair had grown out to a respectable "girl" style without bangs, she preferred skirts over comfy shorts, and she LOVED school. Now we have my big girl 1st grader...
...with super long hair (although not long enough to suit her), bangs, and a definite sense of her own diva style. Can you even BELIEVE the transformation in her since preschool?!

But wait until you see how much Carson has changed!

My Little Man started Preschool in December of 2007, about a month after returning home from China...
...and I still can't believe he used to be that little! Year two of preschool...
...debuted his awesome "Spiderman boots" (aka ankle-foot orthotics) and an adoration for Winnie the Pooh. The first day of Kindergarten...
...shows a taller and much more confident Little Man emerging. By the time 1st grade rolled around for Carson...
...he had REALLY sprouted up...and he was pretty sure he was a super stud. And now we have my big 2nd grader...
...who is honestly getting so tall so quickly, we can barely keep him in pants that fit!!

Since Molly's first back-to-school was soon after arriving home from China, we couldn't get her to cooperate for much more than one picture. But last year, she and Carson insisted on getting a picture of them together, which is now a tradition as well. From last year...
...to this year...
...I am simply amazed at the changes in these awesome kids!

Since they are taking the bus every morning (from the day care center), I dropped 'em there...
...and decided to grab a quick picture with Ms. Joy (Assistant Director) and Ms. Linda (Director)...
...and with Ms. Rachel, who is in charge of the bus riders in the morning...
...before I headed out to the lobby of the day care center...to stalk my Littles until the buses arrived.

Molly was super excited...
...to be the 1st grade line leader...
...until she realized that it made her last in line for the bus when they got to the stop! Carson learned from his sister's mistake...
...and ended up first in the elementary kids' line at the bus stop. (It truly is the little things that matter most to my kids!) I got the obligatory getting-on-the-bus shots...
...and the school year was officially underway!

So how is it going? We've had some issues...they put Molly on the wrong bus home the first day and Carson couldn't convince the lunch ladies to let him buy milk the first two days...but my little troupers are doing great!

Molly said her favorite thing about 1st grade is homework because "homework is awesome!" (Brainwashed, anyone?) Carson's favorite thing? Well, he is at a new school this year and he is super impressed with their "ENORMOUS playground"!

Since Meggie is in the dorms now, we hired Taylor, a neighborhood teenager, to get the Littles off the bus every day. The best part of that deal? She has a twin sister, Lauren, who is willing to be a backup babysitter in case there's a need! (So thankful to my awesome neighbor, Julie, for having twins the appropriate babysitting age!) The Littles LOVE Taylor and they think they are pretty cool since a cute teenager is getting them off the bus, instead of their big sister or their Mom. (Again, the little things...)

Just for this semester, I am working a full-time teaching job, a part-time teaching job, and taking a full Grad school course load, so I am really struggling to get everything done. But the kids have been absolute angels! They are so good at helping Daddy in the evenings (I have class on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, then teach clinicals on Thursday and Friday evenings) and rarely complain about how much Mommy has to "work" in my home office. And honestly none of this would even be remotely possible without my amazing husband, who has stepped right up to help with...well, with everything! Thanks, dear!!

So, we're off! Hoping for a safe and happy school year for everybody out there!