Mommy's Helper

Tomorrow we head out for our second annual family vacation to Litchfield Beach with the Dekel, James and Monroe families. Woo-hoo!!

After a somewhat last minute trip to Hilton Head last weekend to help Eric's mom unpack and settle into her new place, and with this being the first week of school for the kids, I've been somewhat crazed these last few days and have been scrambling to get things done. Our suitcase from last weekend isn't even fully unpacked (why bother since it only needs to be repacked, right?).

Laundry seems to be something I can never keep up with anymore. Just ask Eric how many times he's run out of pants to wear to work and jeans to wear on casual Friday. It always ends up that there are plenty of whatever it is he doesn't actually need that day.

My "system" if you will is to take a load from the dryer and plop it on the couch to be folded. By the end of yesterday, I had done several loads but had not folded more than a few items due to various distractions - such as Jack stripping himself from head to toe (diaper and all) during "nap time", and peeing all over his crib. Pretty ironic that I had just been chatting with Liz about potty training and switching him to a big boy bed, don't you think? Is this sign that he's ready for both or neither one?!

Anyway, Sophie decided that she wanted to "participate" in vacation prep last night, so when Eric and I were tag teaming Jack at bedtime, she took it upon herself to sort and fold the laundry. It was a sweet gesture and she was quite proud. Every item had it's own little pile and some piles were weighted down with various construction vehicles and trains.

Here's the view from the upstairs hallway...






And my little helping basking in the midst of her masterpiece.

Off They Go...First Day of School

Today was the much anticipated first day of school. Sophie began Pre-Kindergarten and Jack had his first day as a Panda in the 2 year old class. It's hard to tell which of us was more excited about starting our new fall routine! While they both attended a few weeks of summer camps at Vinings Creative Learning Center, this is a new school for us this year.

Sophie and I got to have a Mommy-Daughter date yesterday in order to prepare for the big day. After we rounded up some necessary school supplies and grabbed some lunch, Sophie picked out a new backpack, some fall clothes and even a blender for the smoothies she's been asking me to make for weeks (I guess she's expecting she'll need some energy drinks after all that hard work). But the highlight of the outing for her was choosing 2 bottles of flashy nailpolish for a mani/pedi.



Both kids enjoyed their day. I have to admit I shed a little tear when Jack jumped out of the car to be walked to his classroom. In some ways I can't believe that he's old enough for pre-school. As long as I've waited for this in some ways, it's bittersweet for me to watch him enter this new phase.

As for Sophie, who I have proudly yet possibly prematurely labeled as a lover of learning, there may need to be a little transition time from summer fun to more structured school-time. When asked about her first day, she replied, "It really wasn't that fun...all we did was learn". To which I replied, "Isn't that the point?". When she went into more detailed description of what the day involved, it seemed that what she really meant was that while she enjoyed her time at school, there was little time for free play and unstructured learning. I'm hoping that she latches on quickly to the new structure and more academic element that VCLC will offer.

Her teacher Ms. Onsager certainly earned fast points with Sophie. Unable to find the snack I packed for Sophie, she gave her an extra breakfast bar that they probably kept on hand for this very reason. After locating the snack I packed, she let her have that too, which Sophie (who most of you know is also a lover of food!) thought was pretty great.