Bring on the Yellow School Bus

“Keep them little,” they say. “Cherish every moment. You’re gonna miss this.”

Those statements may be true, and maybe I’ll read back on this blog in 10 years and cringe at every word, but can I just be honest for a moment?  I’ll just come right out and say it.  I LOVE seeing my kids growing up more than I will ever desire for them to stay little. My baby is heading off to kindergarten in 7 days and I cannot wait. In fact, I plan to celebrate putting him on the bus by cooking myself a fresh little breakfast, brewing a hot cup of coffee, and drinking every drop before it gets cold. And I plan on doing all of that… in silence.

Bye Bye Littles

Pregnancy, the newborn stage, and toddler-hood were not the best years of my parenting life. Like some of you, I struggle with anxiety and depression. And during those early stages, I struggled with PPD. I struggled even harder when I would cruise through my social media feed reading about how much I should love it. Because I didn’t love it. Now don’t get me wrong… I loved my kids. I loved them deeply. But I did not love the season.

But guess what I DO love? I abso-fruitly positively love the “kid” season that I’m in. I may not have loved having babies, but I adore having kids. This school age stuff… it’s my JAM. I “mom” well in this season and I choose to celebrate it.

Boredom be Gone!

I have two boys, ages 5 and 7. Most of the time, they are best friends. Fighting imaginary battles in our basement, making treasure maps, and building kingdoms together in Minecraft. But by the end of summer… those moments are far and few between. The whining. The fighting. The antagonizing. It has taken over. They need some time away from each other. Time to learn different things and play with different friends. Time to miss each other so they can come home and be best friends again. So bring it on teachers. Feel free to wear my kids out and suck the energy out of them. Please. And thank you.

My Bursting Heart.

Let me take a fun little step back in time for a moment. I have always been a dork for back to school season. As much as I love the excitement and fun that the start of summer brings, I have always enjoyed the order that this season brings back to life. As a kid myself, August meant new clothes, catching up with friends, and band camp. (Yes, band camp.) All of that mixed with the smell of a freshly cleaned classroom, new books, new teachers, new projects, new goals, new… Ok. Now I’m just embarrassing myself.

Point is… I hope my kids love school like I did. I hope they love growing up, learning new things, and having new experiences. I long to raise respectable, driven, and happy young men. Wishing for them to stay little instead would be selfish of me. I want them to grow. As my friend, Audrey would say, I want them to keep their feet off the ground. 

My little Noah is so incredibly excited to get on the bus with his big brother next week. And his big brother is equally as excited to take him under his wing and show him the ropes at their school. They’ve been waiting for this day for TWO YEARS. How could I possibly wish for it not to come when it’s the very thing they dream about?

Now, matching their dreams of being big kids with my dream of drinking coffee while it’s still hot? That’s what I call perfection.