Did I cry?

On my son’s the first day of school I did really well hardly shedding a tear. I was more worried about him than me because I knew if he started, I’d follow.

As mentioned earlier, his preschool days helped prepare him for leaving me at kindergarten. The other thing that I’m sure helped was his teacher. She was brand spanking new, right out of college. At first I dreaded that because of her lack of experience. But once I met her I had no more concerns. 

In my opinion kindergarten is all about the teacher and how well she handles the kids. There’s always going to be some kids who have a harder time being separated from their parents, that’s just the way it goes. When you have a teacher with a sweet nature, that goes a long way towards comforting the kids. And sweet she was! I can’t say enough good things about her. She was super sweet, patient and nice.  No worries on my end at all.

2^nd day dropped him off, no tears, a nice teacher.

So what did I do that day? Did I break down in a sobbing bawling mess? I thought for sure I would but having an outing planned with my other mom friends whose little ones also started kindergarten helped!

We decided to meet at one of those “paint your own pottery” places. Some of my girlfriends I have to say are champion painters, others just really enjoy it but are still good. Me? Not so much!  I don’t think I even painted that day instead choosing to chat. I did make the lunch run when it was time to eat.

Thank goodness for girlfriends! Being around them that day really helped keep my eyes dry. They were all doing good too, especially those who had been through it before with an older child.

We’ve moved on from painting but now it’s become a tradition to meet for breakfast on the first day of school.  We secretly celebrate having our freedom back while still missing our kids.

Our First Day of School Adventure

Yippee! School is out already! That was just the first day. The district went easy on us with only a half day.  We had time to kill so why not have fun?

A friend of mine and I decided to pack up the kids and head on down to the Dallas Zoo. Living way up north in Frisco we don’t venture down to the zoo very often.  What child doesn’t like looking at the animals?

Luckily for us the weather was really nice that day, not a scorching August day like we often get. But the best part? It was virtually empty! I don’t know what all the other parents who had half days were doing, but we went to the zoo and were glad they didn’t! No offense to everyone else, it was pretty neat having the zoo pretty much to ourselves.  One disadvantage – the TRAM wasn’t running. Oh well, not a big deal. The kids got over it.

We had a great time watching the flamingos and their funny poses. Of course the kids had to mimic them bending one leg out to the side. Then off to see the penguins. They are just so cute swimming around in their tuxedos! The kids pressed their faces against the glass because that’s how you get the best view you know.

I won’t bore you with the rest of the details, but it was an awesome day! We finished it off with a carousel ride on the way out.

Next day…mom’s first full day alone. Did I cry then? Find out next time!

My son’s first day of school

I honestly can’t say I recall my first day of school so I’ll tell you about my son’s first day.

When my son started kindergarten Frisco had a unique rule of only half day of school.  Parents stayed for orientation while the little ones went off to their classroom.  Then the parents went home, only to return a few hours later for pick up.

I thought for sure I’d be “boo-hooing” all the way home. I did it! I actually did it! I left pretty intact, not much tears on my end or my son’s. Having been in preschool for several years he was used to being separated from me and enjoyed playing with the other children. What a relief! If he started bawling I would have lost it!

Knowing that he only had a half day for his first day I planned a special adventure with a friend. Can you guess where we went? Stay tuned to find out!

It's Back to School Time!

I always liked school like a lot of girls do.  Summer is the ultimate fun when you’re a kid, but it ends. So what are you gonna do? You can’t stay home and your mom wouldn’t let you even if you could. “School is good for you,” is what the grownups always say. Lucky for them I liked it, right?

The best part of going back to school is to see your friends and make new ones. Parents always say routine and structure is good for you.  Yeah, I didn’t get that as a kid but now having my own, I totally get it! I mean, what’s fun about giving up your days of sleeping late and or staying up late with nothing much to do but have fun? But, like I said, summer ends so we don’t have much of a choice. School it is.

Back when I was a kid teacher gifts weren’t what they are today. I’m not even sure if it was much of a tradition back then. Other than my very first day of school I don’t remember giving the teacher a gift. I only remember it because I’ve seen the photos. I’m sure we gave teachers gifts in other years, but I don’t recall.

On my very first day of school mom picked some fresh flowers out of her garden for me to give to my teacher. Mom had the best garden ever! She totally had a “green thumb.” It helped my dad liked to garden too so they always made sure we had a garden stocked with rich soil. Mom grew the most beautiful flowers.  Still today when I see certain flowers I think of mom’s garden. She was “the bomb” when it came to gardening!

I digress. Stay tuned for more “back to school” memories. 

What’s All the Screaming About?

Did I mention it was a “let down?”  Well, it was in some respects. I really thought they were cutting off body parts (kids’ imaginations DO run wild you know!) or pulling each other’s toenails out like my dad always threatened to do when we really got on his nerves. (Discipline was a little different back then I might add.) Heck, maybe my dad came out there and personally pulled out their toenails! There was one neighbor kid in particular I know my dad always wanted to pull out his toenails! I think one year he finally dumped him in a snow bank (and his mom knew he deserved it!), but that’s another story.

Turns out they were playing a kid’s favorite game, but in the dark. Regular tag had evolved into flashlight tag.  And there was also hide-n-seek in the dark. Ok, so it didn’t involve toenails being pulled out or body parts being cut off or some weird satanic ritual (as if kids really know about satanic rituals anyway!), but the more we played, the more fun it got.

So fun I found myself shrieking and letting out high pitched squeals, especially when someone grabbed my foot in the dark to tag me out. That was a bit spooky I have to confess. I never saw him coming! He was the sneaky one in the group (there’s always one, isn’t there?). He didn’t turn on his flashlight to tag me out. Instead he grabbed my ankle. If I didn’t have such a strong bladder (my mom always said I had the strongest bladder of all the girls) I know I would have peed my pants! Instead I think I just jumped out of my skin. I probably looked like I saw a ghost!

After I got over that initial creep out, the game got more and more fun. And the more I screamed. And then, yes, the “secrets of the universe” were revealed. Now I knew what all the screaming was about. The random lights were just their flashlights lighting up the evening sky. The big kids did a lot of what we all did during the day, but in the dark.

Being a “big kid” was pretty fun!

The Night of All Nights Has Come At Last

After a week of “technical difficulties” or rather “scheduling conflicts,” sickness and weather the gang was finally able to assemble. The night of all nights was finally here!  What would I learn? I was a “big kid” now so bring it on! Give me the goods! Tell me the secrets!

It was a “let down” of sorts.  With all the blood curdling screams (well, they sounded that way to me!) I thought maybe they were doing more than just sticking a pin in their finger to bring blood to seal a friendship. Maybe they cut off somebody’s hand or something? Or maybe an ear! Never mind that my imagination ran wild and I never noticed anybody with a missing hand or ear in the daylight! Everyone had all their limbs intact, all their 20 fingers and toes. So what was with all the screams?

It took longer than usual that night to divide up the teams because now us “newbies” had to be claimed. No one wanted the newbies. In the end we had to resort to “rock/paper/scissors” to see who got who. Apparently it was a big deal to the big kids. To us younger kids it was the excitement of a lifetime!

Now the teams were divy-ed up.  Let the fun begin! We still didn’t hear the whispers I think because they were about us this time.

And then the screams began….

“Big Kid-dom” Revealed….Almost!

Finally, I made it to the “big time!”  I graduated from “little kid-dom” to “big kid-dom!” This was going to be the BEST summer ever!  Now the mysteries of the universe would be revealed! Just what did they really do after I went to bed? What did they talk about? What secrets would I learn?  What was all the screaming about?

Just when it was the night of all nights, the night I would learn it all, it wasn’t to be. One of the “star players” was out sick. Another was called home for a family emergency and another was out for whatever reason. They started to drop like flies. In a panic I wondered, “Why can’t we go on?” Do we really need “so and so” to be here? Or the other few “so and so’s?”  This has to be! This is MY night!

Even my best friend from next door was getting excited. She didn’t get excited very easily unless it was a new doll or hair bow or something!  Don’t get me wrong, I was no tomboy and I loved dolls, but big kid-dom? Well, that was the ultimate! Maybe because she was the oldest of two, big kid-dom just didn’t quite hold the same cachet for her as it did for me.  She was usually asleep a lot earlier than me anyway. Her mom made her go to bed earlier. When I got older I realized it was because her mom was ready for her “me time,” but more on that another time. With our large brood my mom rarely got “me time” so that wasn’t a motivator for my mom.

Now we’re on hold and I have to wait a few more nights until the “mysteries of the big kid-dom universe” will be revealed!

Stay tuned....

The Summer of “Big Kid-dom”

Being the youngest in the family I couldn’t wait to grow up and do what the older kids did. I always had to go to bed earlier, just when the fun seemed to be starting! What did they do after I went to bed?

Sometimes my older sister would be nice enough to tell me. (Oftentimes she wouldn’t tell me because SHE was the older sister and she wanted to make sure I remembered that!) Sometimes if she was in a good mood and I was still awake when she came to bed she’d tell me. Sometimes I’d sneak out of bed and peer out the window. I quickly learned if you kept the lights off in your room you could see out but they couldn’t see you! Our bedroom was on the corner in the front of the house so I only had a partial view of the side yard, not really good enough to get the full scoop. But enough to tell…

I could hear their screams and sometimes be lucky enough to see a random neighbor or one of our own race down the side of our “football field” sized yard. Well, when you’re a kid it seemed like it was the size of a football field. It was long and rectangular with no trees to mess up the center field. It was the perfect field actually.  So perfect that we had the best backyard in all of the neighborhood. That’s one reason the kids always came to our yard to play.

As darkness fell the big kids all congregated in our backyard. It seemed like there were swarms of them. If I was still taking a bath I could hear them from the bathroom window. I would do my best to listen. No splashing in the tub now! This was time to eavesdrop and find out their secrets. They were forming teams. Sometimes it was “us” vs “them” (we had enough kids in our family for an entire team) or sometimes it was “boys” vs “girls” or other times, just random teams.

Once the teams were settled there was some whispering (darn it, I couldn’t hear!), then they’d all split up. What came next? I couldn’t see! I was stuck in the tub and the window was too high to see out. I had to rely on their sounds. When you’re deprived of your view, sounds become more important I quickly discovered. I got really good at listening.

Never fail it seemed like the knock would come on the door for me to move on out of the tub and on to bed just when it was getting good! The screams started and haphazard lights emerged in the sky. What were they doing??? I’d race to my room and peak out the corner window. Oops, forgot to turn the light off!  If they spotted me they’d clam up. Gotta take cover! Turn off the lights! In a few stolen moments before I had to climb into bed I’d crane my neck to figure it out.

Then finally the day came, I was old enough! I had graduated into “big kid-dom!” I could stay up late  and play with the big kids! Now the mysteries of the universe would be revealed! This would be the BEST summer ever!

The Dance of the Lightning Bugs

The lazy days of my childhood summers may be long gone, but the memories are not. In the blink of an eye, it can seem like only yesterday.

Yesterday when we got to sleep late, stay up late and wile away our days without a care in the world. Such fun memories of catching lightning bugs (or some people call them “fireflies”) in a Skippy peanut butter jar with holes poked in the lid so they could breathe. Our careless laughter echoed in the warm summer nights as we pursued lightning bugs. We frolicked and we chased, seeing who could catch the most. These tiny luminescent beings guided us through the dark summer night, a miniature beacon of light flapping their wings. 

Once we were satisfied with our catch the hunt was over. Now it was time to decide the winner. Who caught the most bugs? With the winner determined, we could lie back in the soft grass and enjoy their show. Watching them dance and light up our jars was sheer delight.  We would imagine them talking to each other as they danced for us. “What kind of dance are they doing?” we wondered.

To sustain them through the night we added grass in their jars. When it was finally time to turn in we gently placed our prized possession by our bed as our very own night light. With a few more stolen glances, their dances were our last memories before sleep overtook us and our eyes got heavy.

Upon waking our first order of business was to check on our tiny dancers. Sadly, they weren’t usually lighting up anymore come morning. But that didn’t stop us from trying again another night.

Oh, those lazy summer nights….

Stay tuned for more summer memories.

Is Your UPS Man a Hottie?

OK, ladies - don't get too excited. This isn't a "50 Shades of Gray" post! LOL

When coming home today we passed the UPS man who was busy delivering packages in our neighborhood. Seeing the truck reminded me of a UPS man I had a long time ago.

Years back, yes, in my single days, I had a very hot UPS man. I worked from home and received alot of packages at home so I saw my UPS man frequently.  He was totally a hottie & looked great in his uniform, especially the shorts! We're not talking Kevin James who worked for "IPS" in that sitcom "King of Queens." We're talking totally hot - lean, dark and handsome.

All the ladies in the neighborhood talked about him. He didn't wear a wedding ring and since I was single, that was a green light to flirt! Later I found out he was married & had several kids! He got injured on the job and had to take a desk job. Wow, two blows in one day! I'd no longer see my hot UPS man AND he was married!

Well, it was all for fun anyway and sure broke up my boring day!

Is your UPS man hot? :)