School has been back for nearly three weeks and I we have finally settled back into a routine. Where we come and go. And the cat waits for us to return.
All my appointments I put off doing this summer with kids – dentists, hair, vet check ups – are done. And we have already had one case of Strep Throat. So yes, it’s back to the school routine here.
It’s back to packing school lunches. Which I really despise. We try to do it the night before because it makes the mornings smoother when we do. But sometimes after the dinner cooking and cleaning, one more thing is just too much.
Sometimes the girls help. My youngest helps in a way that she says, “I’ll do it myself.” Because that is how she is. My oldest packs her lunch entirely on her own now. She’s shying from the camera these days. But my little one is always up for showing off her independence.
The first day of school photos didn’t happen here. I took them. But then I learned I forgot to put the memory card back in the camera. I tried to recapture them after the first day of school. But I mostly got grumpy, fake smiles in winked dresses. Until I told them I had first day of school celebration cupcakes. My oldest is in 3rd grade this year. The middle girl is in 1st grade and the little one is in 3 year-old pre-k.
Even after a first, long day back to school, they are still wonderfully mine in all their cuteness and grumpiness.
Part of getting back to the routine is getting back to dinners all together on a timely schedule. Some nights the girls choose to help. They prefer the prep work like breading eggplant and cutting vegetables.
When they discover things are fun they are more willing to help. They really, thought doing the dishes one night was FUN. And I’m trying to build extra time into our routines for little hands to help. It’s always faster when I do it myself. But they are so proud when they do a good job at something. And I love that.
She loved doing the dishes so much she wouldn’t stop to go potty. Incase you noticed.
In the mornings my oldest helps the youngest get dressed sometimes. They love doing things together. This morning my middle girl was home sick. These two went upstairs to get dressed together and came down like this.
It’s not a back to school photo. But it’s pretty darn cute. And it won my oldest girl’s approval to post here. As these girls grow, I really love the age gap between them. They have an amazing bond and relationship. They barely ever fight. My middle girl has her special place with them both too, but days like this really make me wish their was a fourth pair of feet around here.
When the youngest gets herself dressed it looks more liked this.
She wore this “church dress” to church Sunday. It had been in her closet all summer – a hand me down that was my oldest wore to my middle girl’s baptism. The youngest never wanted to wear it. Until she decided on Sunday that she LOVED it.
On Monday I told her we don’t wear “church dresses” to school. To get muddy, paint on it and and romp in the sand box. She said, “oh man!” Tuesday my husband had the same thing happen, talking her out of choosing it again. On Wednesday I told the girls to go get dressed, after breakfast. She RAN upstairs saying she was going “to do it all by myself today.” She got her biggest sister to button the back and help her with her ponytail. She came downstairs and declared, “I’m dressed!”
There was no way I was saying no to that. But you need bike shorts under it I said. For when you hang upside down from the monkey bars. “Fiinnnne,” she said and hughed up stairs. She returned wearing a skirt (with build in bike shorts) under her dress then proceeded to put on tie-die socks and red shoes.
And off to school she went. Because that’s how we roll.
To see other how another one of my favorite blogger rolls – check out this back to school post from Memories on Clover Lane. It is one of my favorite posts ever – so honest, funny and real.
