FINALLY (CAN'T BELIEVE I HAVE A 2ND GRADER AND KINDERGARTENER) FRIDAY!!

School started back this week! Bottle Rocket was excited to go back and got back into the swing of things without a hitch. He was tired at the end of each day though...almost falling asleep on the five minute drive home! For Kindergarten they have staggered entry so each child goes to school one full day with 5 other kids and then they all come together as a big class next week. Smoke Bomb's staggered day was Friday and he was cool as a cucumber! I was glad as the months leading up, he has been on the fence. Our traditon is to give the kids a cross to carry in their pocket on the first few days of school. In fact, last week Bottle Rocket "just so happened" to find the very cross he carried 2 years ago in his pocket. It was stuck inside an old radio the boys decided to take apart for fun. Hmmm.....you can't deny that!

We all took the boys to school today and the family walked Smoke Bomb to his room. He gave us a hug and ran off to put his book bag away. I made it all the way back to the parking lot and then I lost it! It is hard to let your kids go no matter how many you have. It might get a pinch easier, but it is never easy. Thinking back to the day he was born, I would never have imagined just how fast 5 years would pass by before I walked him into his first day of school. Parenting teaches so much. It is as if carrying a mirror around all the time.....constant evaluation of yourself and what you are doing, what you need to be doing, what you don't want to do and how you can improve what you are doing, etc. Sending Smoke Bomb off to school reminded me that life goes by fast. Blink and you will miss something. Today I promise to make more of what really matters and less of things that don't. I will show my kids "what it's all about". I will say yes, I can play more often, listen a little closer, play games a little longer, snuggle a little tighter, read a little longer, give hugs more frequently, laugh a little harder, answer questions more in depth, pat backs a little stronger, hold tight a little longer, turn off my computer a little more often, be patient a little longer, and love a little deeper.

I know my kids are in good hands when they are away from me. I know someone much bigger and powerful loves them, even more than I do. I know that He is with them, side by side, in everything they do. I know that He protects them and guides them each and every day. And that makes being a mom a whole lot easier!