It's the Most Wonderful Time...

My new favorite commercial shows a dad floating on a shopping cart down the 'back to school' aisle while the Christmas song "It's the most wonderful time of the year" plays in the background. It makes me chuckle every time it comes on. I never understood why moms were so excited for a new school year, that is until this summer. The first few weeks were a nightmare to put it nicely. The boys had forgotten how to be three. Jason loved having David home to do grown up stuff with but Braydon was too young to be a part of it. Then Jason would feel like being a kid again and that was too babyish for David. We are in tight quarters without the option of going outside and without a schedule or much going on I began to think I wasn't going to make it. Thankfully we settled on an agreement that none of us were going to be leaving any time soon so we may as well like each other. In an attempt to create some order and structure the boys began daily chores. They knew what needed to be done and would wake up and just do it. So nice. It wasn't always perfect so the new punishment for fighting became doing mom's chores. They sure got good at hanging up Dad's shirts and scrubbing bath tubs. There were a few days when the normal stuff was already done but they needed more. I am guilty of putting clean dishes in the dishwasher just to be unloaded again as well as taking clean towels out of the cabinet to be refolded. They are all little folding fools now and David can make a bathroom shine from top to bottom. We did have some fun amongst it all. Harkins movie day was on Friday and we went with the Stolworthy's nearly every time. Grami came a few times with suckers stashed in her purse. There were many swimming trips to Grandmas's as well as the new public pool with water slides and a "whirly" pool. {I am happy to report that all three are officially swimming by themselves. Braydon was doing great and then overnight (literally) he became deathly afraid of the water. I think he may have had a bad dream it was that sudden. He would cry and say that he was not getting in the water. He spent a week at Grandmas's and still didn't want to swim without a life jacket. Finally one day Grandma talked him into showing me that he could jump off the side and swim to the step. He came up and took a breath, which he'd never done before, and it seemed to click in his brain that he could swim. Whew! After that he was going down the slide, jumping off the diving board and even getting on the Shamu floaty.} I was beginning to dread having to go back to schedules and carpool and homework when all of a sudden the house erupted again. It was as if their little bodies figured out that all play and no work wasn't all that fun anymore. The last two weeks were counted down and "Meet the Teacher" couldn't come soon enough. The 1st day arrived with bright smiling faces all around. David was a little nervous but knew a little what to expect. Jason was awake by 5:30 and dressed by 5:32. He was very nervous but I could tell he was ready. He has been for two years. Braydon was cool and collected and told me right after walking through the preschool door that I "could go now." My boys are growing up and though it is a little sad it feels really good too.

I am loving the feeling I have that is similar to New Year's resolutions: new schedule, new routine, renewed desire to be better, try harder and recommit to myself, my family and my Heavenly Father. So far it is going great.