First Day of School

The first day is always so sad for me. It reminds me of how quickly time seems to be moving. But there is also joy. My little boys are already becoming such wonderful little men. (picutres to come) They both love learning, meeting new people and experiencing new things. When I picked them up yesterday they were so pumped. They couldn't pick just one thing that was their favorite during the day. My impression of both of their teachers is very good. They seem to be women that will inspire them to learn.

Christian was his typical type-A self. When I picked him up, he had been in after school where most kids just play their time away, but he had managed to finish his reading and writing assignments. Joel may be a different story when it comes to homework, but we will work on that. His biggest victory of the day was that he got an A+ for behavior. (It didn't matter to him that the whole class did. A victory is a victory.) He proudly told his last year's teacher that his "monkey" (the symbol that gets moved down a grade if you misbehave) did not get moved at all today when he saw her in the hallway. I think that this is going to be a very good year.

(Picture taken by hubby)

One plus for me with the beginning of the school year is that I get some extra moments of serenity. My work week is only Monday through Thursday, which means that now that the boys are in school, Fridays are all mine again. I already have some lunch dates in the works with my girls and creative projects lined up. Maybe I will even catch up on the house work, which makes my life feel a little more ordered than chaotic.

On another subject...Joel recently taught me a little lesson about prayer-Don't just talk about prayer, do it! He was having trouble getting to sleep a couple of nights ago because he said that he kept having bad dreams. I talked to him about thinking happy thoughts as he was falling asleep and saying a little prayer. As I started to walk out of the room, he asked if we could pray together right then. Why didn't I think of that!?! So, I prayed and then him. His head barely hit the pillow before he was peacefully asleep. Not only do I need to pray more, but I'm sure that my soul could use some comforting just before bed too. It seems that my mind is always racing at that time with all of the pressures of life...projects undone, bills unpaid, youth ministry needs...just pray. That's better. Children can offer so much wisdom.