Back to school

Amanda's locker after about the first hour of planning and decorating....I'll have to get an updated picture now that it's finished!
Elementary kids gathering on the first day to sing praises and pray together. Last year I bawled my eyes out through the whole thing...this year I was singing along and snapping pictures.
Jr Sr High Chapel on the first day....Amanda is towards the back in the center.
Andrew and his best buddy Jeremy. For the first few days they get to sit together, but I'll bet Mrs. Garcia will have to split them up soon! :-)

We are off to a great start for our 2nd year of "real school". It is going SO MUCH better than last year!! The kids have been doing a great job of getting up in the morning and all head out with smiles on their faces....and they still have smiles when I pick them up in the afternoon. No tears, no hiding in the bathroom to cry (for kids OR for Mom!), no long battles in the hallway, no visits to the counselor or the nurse....it's fabulous! Alex is a just a whole new kid - he has grown up SO much. Andrew has the same teacher as he had last year and is delighted (not sure if she's say the same thing!), and Amanda is adjusting nicely to the independent world of Junior High. She says she loves all of her classes and all of her teachers. Pretty good, huh?

We are thankful to be living so close now - our schedule is a little crazy! Amanda starts class at 8:00, the boys start at 8:15 and I start at 9:45. I have a break from 11:30 to 1:00 and then finish again at 2:00. Alex gets done at 3:20, Andrew gets done at 4:05 (staying for after school Spanish) and Amanda gets done with Volleyball at 5:30. If I went back and forth for each of those, I would be making 7 trips a day.....SO, I am thankful we live SO close!!! (and so is Molly!)