I love the beginning of a new school year. I remember the whole process well from my own childhood. We would do our shopping in early August and put our stuff on layaway for the month. It was so fun to pick out a few new clothes (I vividly remember a pair of super cool black penny loafers from Walmart, and, even earlier, a neon shirt that said NOT! across the front from Shopko) and get all of that fresh, clean schoolish stuff. And then the night before the first day I wouldn't be able to sleep because I was so excited (I loved school, what can I say). My kids really seem to share the excitement level with me. This was the first year that I had all six kids have a first day of school. Hero started her final year of Junior High (she's called a freshman, because she's in 9th grade, although she won't move into a true high school until next year), Allegra is in 6th grade (but she goes to an advanced math class at West Junior High in the morning, so she rides the bus with Hero and then comes back to her elementary school around 9:30), Ian started 4th grade, Colin's in 1st grade (with Mrs. Smith, who taught Hero in Kindergarten, which is kind of fun), Cecily's in Shepherd of the Valley Preschool's 4 year olds class (Mrs. DuVall has taught Allegra, Ian, and Colin too), and Elle started preschool as well in the 3 year old class. The two little girls go just two mornings a week, but it just worked out perfectly because I volunteer at the elementary school one of those mornings, and the other morning is the weekly ladies' Bible Study. It's hard to believe that we're already coming up to the halfway point of the school year, but, still, here's their shining first-day-of-school faces.
