When the shoe is on the other foot.

Teachers.  I love you guys.  I was one for almost a decade, and I still work in education.  I mean--you're truly the best.  But some of you want to steal my five year old.  And it's making me hate my former self.  

Georgia's headed to kindergarten (all day, every day here in Michigan…..#ridiculous) in about a week and I just can't……..

even put into accurate words how that makes me feel.  I've cried in the middle of the grocery store this summer on a Tuesday morning while she asked me for another My Little Pony realizing that she won't be around to go to the grocery store with me on a weekday until  the first time I let her skip school  a school break.  I've panicked almost every night during August when I've checked on her one last time before I go to bed because I worry that we haven't sucked every last thing we could have out of this summer.  And my husband has had to tell me on more than occasion this summer to "get a grip."  

I will never be that mom who thinks the goobery dad in the Staples commercial gallivanting down the aisles singing "It's the most wonderful time of the year, " as he throws school supplies into his cart is right on.  I just won't.  I'll be the mom who is even more excited about a snow day from here on out--not really because it means I get to stay home from work--but because it means Georgia will be here too.  

My friend sent me an article about kids going to kindergarten a couple weeks ago that talked about how great it was when kids could walk confidently into their classrooms, introduce themselves to their teacher, and have a good time………it meant they were secure, self-assured, strong, and that they felt safe in what mom and dad were asking them to do because mom and dad had proven to them over and over already that they only cared about their child's best interest.  My friend, in her wisdom, knew Georgia would be that kid.  I, of course, spent the next week worrying about whether that would happen….and if it didn't what that said about me as a parent.  I'm truly neurotic.  

Tonight at kindergarten orientation when Georgia's teacher asked all the kids who were in her class to follow her to the classroom my one week old five year old walked right up to her teacher, introduced herself, turned around and gave me a smile and wave and disappeared around the corner.  When we rejoined her in her classroom 1/2 hour later she was great.  Happy to see us, but happy to be right where she was too.  

Sometimes I get a little tired of the 'rejoicing in the streets' memes, videos, and advertisements about back-to-school. Right now--I honestly can't relate and I don't think I need to. I love this girl more than I ever knew it was possible to love another human being.  I'll miss her like crazy, but I'm so proud of the person she's becoming.   

On the way to orientation….she has a dreadful cold and an ear infection.  She can rally like no one I know. 

So here's to our first  year of 'real' school.  

Here's to hoping I don't get a truancy letter in the mail by mid-October.  

Kidding.  

Sort of.  

Stuff I'm Loving…...

First….
THESE family pictures from my friend Lisa.  She's my Annie Leibowitz.  And she managed to capture some of Georgia's most of-the-moment expressions and I love freezing those in time.

Second….

We ran (walked--no one can really run with 11,000 people in a 5k) the Color Run this past Saturday and had a great time with friends.  Georgia was a little unsure at first; it's a lot of people, really loud music, a super ton of crazy, and being 44'' tall means you can't see much of what is going on at the start and you just have to trust mom and dad.  

Third…..

I introduced Georgia to Full House this morning.  My friend Lianne's girls have been watching it for a few months now so I thought I'd give it a whirl since G is getting more interested in 'real' shows.  However, there is a serious lack of good 'real' shows for five year olds--heck--thirty six year olds.  So back to the archives we went and hearing her laugh at Uncle Jesse and Kimmy Gibler from the other room was awesome.  The early episodes where the girls are way young are perfect!  I can capitalize on this forever, adding new shows as she gets older; Family Matters, Cosby Show, Growing Pains, Step by Step, eventually (a ways down the road) Boy Meets World and Wonder Years…..it's a gold mine!  That's right--NO ONE wants to watch Dog with a Blog.  I know……mind blowing.  

In related news….stuff I'm NOT loving….
Georgia starts kindergarten…all day…every day…in less than a month.  I may or may not cry actual tears about this when I go to bed some nights.

More on that later.

Pure Michigan. {Lake Ann. Year 7 in the books.}

Seven years we've been heading up to Lake Ann as a family for vacation. And it's been great every year.  We've got our traditions down in stone; a day in historic Leland, a day at the dunes, a day at Good Harbor beach along Lake Michigan (the most amazing stretch of isolated beach I've ever seen), some downtown Traverse City, Moomers for ice-cream, and a whole lot of laughing in between.  I'm extremely thankful for parents who still make sure this happens every year, a sister who makes a point to get there from Pittsburgh each summer, and a family who loves each other.  

A little video of our week……..

Happy Monday!  

Firework Day {In Pictures}

4th of July, like Christmas, is one of those holidays that is hands down the most fun with kids.  Kids make small-town parades cool, red/white/and blue everything amazing, glow-in-the-dark (insert everything under the sun) the accessory to have, and watching fireworks the biggest thrill of your life.

We head to historic Greenfield Village at The Henry Ford every year to picnic on the lawn with friends, listen to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra play to the fire-works, and celebrate America.  Here's our day in pictures.

Hope you had a happy 4th!  

Randomness Schmandomness

Random post alert coming at you……with some scattered info and some FAQ's.

1.  We surprised Georgia last weekend and took her to a big (bigger than our local theater where she first fell in love) production of The Wizard of Oz.  We all wore ruby slippers….because we're also the same family that all wore Mickey Mouse shirts on our first day at Magic Kingdom when I was in sixth grade.  It's how we do.

2.  I get asked constantly what color gray paint I have in my house.  Gray paint is killer to get right.  It either errs on the blue side, the brown side, or the purple side.  I picked my gray out of a builders swatch in about ten minutes when we were choosing everything for the interior of our house during the building process.  I have no idea what the name of it was.  However, if you want something similar use this one from Olympic Paint at Lowes….Secret Passage.

I used it to repaint the staff conference room at my school this year.  There is a ton of natural light in the room during the day and whether it's day or night this gray always looks gray. And really….is it 'gray' or 'grey?'

3.  My favorite places to get IG pictures printed:

• Foxgram: This site is great for basic square pictures either 2x2 or 3x3
• Canvas Pop:  I use this to get 12 x 12 canvases printed from my IG feed.  They are always on sale and they'll usually send you a $30 gift card in your order…..for the next time. 
• Mixbook:  Fantastic for making books out of your IG prints.  They are big too--so they make a statement.  And so easy--you can just dump a whole bunch of prints into a book template and hit 'order.'

And of course there's about a hundred or so more that I've used, but those are the ones I keep going back to.  

4.  Have you heard anything about your adoption?  

No.  Nothing new to report here.  We've been officially waiting just over two months now and we're truly, truly okay with that.  The end of the year at work for me was crazy, even being only part time, and I'm acutely aware that everything I do with Georgia at this point may be the last time I'm doing it with just 'her.' So, I'm soaking those moments up and not wishing them away for anything.  

5.  Your chalk stuff?  What kind of chalk is it? 

Crayola baby.  That's it.  The best side-walk chalk that has ever been made.  And if you're reading this and work for Crayola--please send me a box of straight up black chalk.  I go through that faster than any other color.  

6.  "Where do you get Georgia's clothes from?"

I get a ton--a ton of them from Brickyard Buffalo.  It's hands-down one of the best daily deals sites out there for kids and adults.  I've gotten many of her summer dresses from the site this year--each of them cheaper than $15.  The one she's wearing in this picture was $12 I believe.  And they have a very fast shipping schedule--way better than most of the daily deals sites out there.  

7.  I Like Your Mala……..

Check out the new button in my side-bar right under the word sponsors--the one of the really cool necklace. My sister just launched an Etsy store selling the most gorgeous Mala necklaces.  And whether you're a hard core yogi or not these necklaces are super gorgeous and popular right now so you should probably check them out.  

And I think that's it……..

Like I said---holy random--but some questions I've gotten a lot recently via Facebook, IG, and e-mail.  

Hope you had a great weekend!  It's July this week!