First day of school--Part 2

While I was taking Sophia to the bus, Bill was taking Caroline and Elizabeth to theirs.  Last year he drove them to school every day because for one reason or another we never figured out exactly what time the bus came through the neighborhood.  However, this year the information was easy to find and Bill and I decided they need to ride the bus both to and from school, which makes it easier for him to get to work early.

First day of school--yes, it's still July

Our girls get out of school early (middle-end of May) and have several 1-2 week vacations which all lead to a very early start to the school year.

The girls had to be to the bus stops at almost the same time and going in opposite directions from the house, so Bill took the older girls and I took Sophia.  Doesn't she look cute in her pink, pink, pink outfit?  (She LOVES pink.)

And here is Sophia and her friendly bus driver:

It's her last year of elementary school as her school goes from Kindergarten to fifth grade.  Wow.

Back to our schedule!

This summer was pretty free-form as far as schedules and plans went.  Now the girls are back in school our days have more structure.  Actually, that's a good thing.  I think some moms like the summer because they can sleep in later in the morning with the kids, but my job gets me up uber early year 'round, so summer is no advantage to me there.  Even though homework time can be a bit hair-raising around here, doesn't this look sweet?

Sophia's first day of school

No matter how you look at it, Sophia is an "upper classman" now. Her school is a K-5 school, so last year in 3rd grade it could have been argued that she was in the upper half of the school, but since most elementary schools are K-6, I really think 4th grade is the first upper grade.

All that aside . . . she wouldn't let us take her to the bus on the first day or even go along with her, so here she is ready to roll:

And she's off!

And I must say, I really thought this patio picture was cute too:

A few new clothes

Yesterday David, Alicia, and I took the girls to the mall, mostly out of boredom and partly to stay cool.

I didn't plan to buy anything, but I did stop in at GapKids because I found good things on their sale rack earlier this year.  This time I found a tunic top that Caroline is wearing above, a cream top with rosettes on it, and a sun dress which will be worn with a shirt under it.  Everything, including tax, was less than $13.

Years ago when my big kids were this age and younger, I shopped GapKids frequently.  I have never actually paid retail for anything there, but had a mental formula for how much I was willing to pay for something based on its quality, appropriateness for the season, and size.  Now that I have rediscovered GapKids, I think I'll have to dust off my formula and shop there a little more often.

Early back-to-school

The first week of school always involves a LOT of paperwork because I have three children for whom I fill out school forms.  I don't really mind, because I have wanted to be a mother to school children for a long time.  However, there is a bit of hand-cramping involved.

The older girls are moving on to the middle school next year and the elementary school is getting them ready.  They had a visit from the middle school principal today, telling them all the exciting activities they can expect next year (I already have a request to play on the school soccer team next year).

Hallelujiah, the school is letting the parents get a jump on all the paperwork as well.  Registration, emergency cards (hi, Amber!), medical forms, and more.  DONE.  The beginning of next school year should see me filling out just Sophia's forms.  :-)

The first day of school

Today was the first day of school for my girls.  Here they are all loaded up with backpacks FULL of school supplies.

 Usually I like to get a shot of the girls in front of the bus as I did in 2011 and 2010.  Do you notice anything about this picture?

 Like . . . there is no bus??  And one never came?  Good thing dh and I were planning to put the girls on the bus, then follow it on its route and greet the girls when they got off anyway.  So today the "bus" was Mom's Honda.

Here they are inside the school.

 I told Sophia's friend Kira that she is in most of Sophia's first day of school pictures!  Check the 2011 picture in the link above.  She is Sophia's favorite friend.

 Caroline was at the head of the line this morning.  She was really excited to be starting school again.

 Elizabeth was farther back in line, but almost as excited to greet her old teacher who is their teacher again this year.  We are so very lucky to have her!

Getting ready to go back to school

Today I finally got both class supply lists and school starts tomorrow, so guess what I did after dinner?  Yeah, along with half my city, I think.  Walmart was kind of like, oh, a typical December 22.  A madhouse.  I dropped $45 there.

I was still missing several items but thought I could get them at the grocery store and I was right.  That was another $15.

Anyone know where I can buy a "small dry erase board?"

Back-to-school rite

I've never specifically gone out and purchased school shoes for the girls in the weeks before school, but the girls' shoe situation is pitiful at the moment. Practically everything is worn out or outgrown. Since we have lots of shopping options now that we are in a big city, we went to Stride Rite at the mall. I expected to pay about $40-$55 for each pair but I didn't! They were having a buy one/get one half off sale and many of the shoes were on sale as well. Because of that sale we were prompted to buy C a pair of dressier shoes as well as some sneakers. As the biggest child, she doesn't get hand-me-down dress shoes and usually gets new ones (like Mary Ingalls). Those ones were actually the only ones we paid full price for. They were $50. (ouch)

Her sneakers were the least expensive at $7.97 with the half off and a store sale, but I don't see them on the Stride Rite site. I don't love them but she does and they have leather uppers, so we got them.

E tried on a couple pair of sneakers and chose these ones. I like them a lot and think they look cute on her.

S chose some Nike sneakers that also are not on the Stride Rite site. They were dh's favorite and he was hoping one of the girls would choose them. They are similar to E's but not as pink. Total, including tax was only around $100 which is not bad for four pair of quality shoes.

I also bought a light green Gymboree shirt for school as well. It fits C now, but the quality is such that eventually all three girls will wear it, I'm sure.

I'm not worried about other clothes because it is so hot the girls will be wearing shorts and skirts for a couple of months, I'd guess. I'll worry about new jeans and that sort of thing when it cools off a bit. The other night dh and I bought all the girls' classroom school supplies. We are just about set for school on August 17th.