Things I've learned from school...

as an adult...

School started Monday.

Don't those boys just look cute! I don't remember teaching my two oldest how to use a belt, but Adam needed a few lessons. I guess I forgot about teaching a child to get dressed. Adam has to wear his belt backwards. They have to have black, brown, navy, or white belts to go with the uniforms, but I couldn't find one in any of those colors for Adam. Fortunately, I noticed that a black belt with a big yellow stripe in the middle was reversible and plain black on the back.

This guy's in 3rd grade this year. And he's DYING to get that blasted cast off his arm. Tuesday morning after Labor Day is the big day!!

Technically I didn't take Mary's first day of school picture until Friday after school. It just sort of never happened. Of course by then I made some attempt to be "pinteresty" and told her to hold up six fingers to show she was in 6th grade. That's as good as it gets peeps! Truth be told I'm COMPLETELY intimidated by pinterest so I avoid it at all costs. (Don't try to change my mind. Your attempts will be fruitless.)

Here's Mary with her acceptance letter for student council. She decided to "try out" for that this year. They don't actually have elections. You just write an essay for the teachers in charge and they select five or six per grade from 5th through 8th grades. (Yep, their school is K-8.)

Here's the second thing I learned about school. The teachers promised if the kids are good they'll get to put on a dance at the end of the year. That's when it dawned on me that my daughter is now old enough for middle school and middle school means things like dances. (Yikes!) On the plus side, Mary didn't want them to have a dance because she didn't want to have to go on a date. I did explain that only on TV do you NEED a date for a middle school dance and that she could just go have fun with her friends. (Yes, I'm aware she'll be 16 in a mere 5 years and will then be allowed to date.)

I couldn't find the school lunch menu online before the first day of school so I made a lunch for all the kids. So the third thing I learned is that I should have done a better job of explaining school lunch to Adam. I shouldn't have assumed he knew what was going on. When I picked him up on Monday he said, "Mom, not everyone takes their lunch to school. Some kids get hot lunch. And when you get hot lunch you get fish!" He was really excited to eat hot lunch on Tuesday until he realized they don't have fish sticks every day. Tuesday's chili wasn't as exciting to him. Later in the week while we were eating dinner he asked why we hadn't had lunch. I told him he had it at school, but he informed me that's not "real lunch." Apparently it's only real lunch if it's at home with me. So we had a little date at Target, and he got a cookie as big as his face!

I also learned that switching from half a day preschool to full day kindergarten didn't make Adam sleepy. Nope, his tiredness manifests itself as ANGER, ANGER, ANGER, and more ANGER. Let's hope that settles down. I had to bribe him with a donut from the 6th grade fundraiser to get him to go on Friday!

Well here's hoping for a good year!!

P.S. I also learned that the backspace button on my laptop is threatening to die. Maybe I use it too often??