Back to school! YAY!

I have vague memories of the days when my kids were sweet-smelling babies and I couldn't imagine the day would ever come when they'd leave me and go off to school...

Fast forward several years to Christmas Break of 2008... two full weeks with both kids at home each and every day. Loooong days they were. I did enjoy not having to get up at the crack o' dawn, rushing around to get two kids dressed, bundled, and ferried off to two different schools. But... a few days into their break, and I was a frazzled mom, ready for a break from THEM! I'm sorry, I know that makes me a bad mom, but they aren't sweet-smelling babies anymore... At 5 and almost-8 years old, Avery and Damon are loud, dirty, bickering, mess-making machines. And I've grown to love my quiet days at home without them (and I figure I've earned a little peace and quiet over the past 8 years, so I don't allow myself to feel TOO guilty!).

So, today was their first day back at school. Hallelujah!

The day didn't start off quite the way I'd planned. Before I fell asleep last night, I made Nick promise to get me out of bed EARLY this morning (yes, he laughed at me). I had great intentions of getting up early, maybe even having a cup of coffee before I had to start wrestling with the kids. But, our alarm didn't wake us up, for some mysterious reason... so instead of waking up before 7am, with plenty of time, we bolted out of bed at 8:15 screaming, "Oh, $@#%!"

Somehow I still managed to get Damon to school on time at 8:35, and Nick was late to work anyway, so he offered to drop Avery at her school on his way in.

So, the day started with a little more chaos than I'd planned... but that's just my life, right? Chaos is definitely something I've grown used to since becoming a mom (and since marrying Nick)!

Still, I was back home, had already walked Comet, and was thoroughly enjoying a QUIET house (aside from Lizzie's snoring) by 8:45 this morning.

Life is still chaotic, but getting the kids back to school is certainly a step in the right direction... for my less-than-stable mental health, anyway. Now if I can conquer the malfunctioning alarm clock tomorrow morning, that'll be another victory!