Back-to-School Mish Mash

Last week my middle two kids went back to school. It was really hard for all of us. I, personally, do not like the August start dates. I know alot of the country starts even sooner, but they also tend to let out earlier in the summer than we do here. Getting out in mid-June and going back in August just stinks. What makes it so hard is the abrupt transition from lazy summer days to the strict schedule of school. I plan to do a "day in the life" type posts soon, one for summer and one for the school year to show the huge differences. I used to try and transition them a couple weeks ahead of time, and it worked a little when they were younger, but now it is just a waste of time and I don't want to ruin those last couple days of vacation anyway. So the first week of school always kind of sucks.

Last week was no exception. I mean, it wasn't that bad in the grand scheme of things, but it definitely was no picnic, that's for sure. Kids were crankier. I swear they each had meltdowns every day. After school the first two days they were starving when they got in the car so there was totally fussiness from that. I started grabbing some snacks before I left the house, and that seemed to help. They still go to school where we used to live, so they have to leave earlier in the day, and then deal with the drive home in the afternoons. We actually had nice weather last week, but then they were tired and out of sorts and also in withdraw of all their electronics and TV. During the school week, there is no TV and no electronic usage unless it is school related. Yup, I am mean. But we had way more issues before we started this rule years ago for my oldest, and it works. We did adjust the rules for the oldest once she got to the point where she understood how to be responsible and still get her work done and get to sleep at a decent time. We still monitor things and if it seems way too late for her to still be up we definitely say something.

I had to get pretty strict last week on bedtimes, because those middle two were just really struggling so much with the tiredness. By the time we got dinner finished, I had to get kids moving to shower and wind down. I was also extra exhausted from the earlier mornings and serious time management. I needed to make sure dinner was early since kids were hungrier and our nights were ending sooner. It was just alot trying to get everyone to cooperate and work together much more than in the past, and adding crankiness to the mix never helps anything.

My oldest child has her first day of high school today. It is a new school in a new county so she doesn't know anyone. It is a huge change, but one I am praying will be good for her. I am actually really anxious to talk to her when she gets home today. She is within walking distance, and didn't want anyone to drop her off so out the door she went, like a grown-up. And my heart hurt a bit. She gets home just before I have to leave to go pick up the other two from school, so when she gets here we will have the drive to talk all about her first day. I hope she finds her niche here.

So that leaves just me and the toddler (for the next 9 weeks anyway!). Baby boy is confused because there isn't anyone else here to play with but mom and the pets. He is also a bit off schedule, along with the rest of the house, and his 2 year old molars decided to start coming in, so he is a bit more clingy and not as mellow as he usually is. Mondays are always my worst day coming off of my work weekends (my schedule is the opposite of everyone else's), with yesterday being an especially busy day at work. So I am feeling extra worn out today. My little guy was the first one up, and by mid-morning he was done with everything. He really didn't even hardly eat anything this morning, which is unusual for him.

It will probably take us all a good 3 weeks to get into a nice groove. This week is sorta a wash because the middle 2 kids have a 4-day weekend for labor day, so as soon as they get used to things, they have a long stretch off and have to start all over. Oy Vey!