The First Day of Second Grade

This morning we were up and at 'em at 7 a.m. By 7:15, I was frying bacon and scrambling eggs to give Grayson a good start on the day. G-rex was dressed and ready at 7:30, bouncing on his stool in the kitchen, eager to start the new school year.

Though January first is technically the new year, all us with kids in school know that the real new year begins on the first day of school. This is the day we return to our routines, make promises to ourselves to do better this year, look forward to a new year of adventure and learning, friends and activities and forward motion for another three seasons.

The only thing missing for us is the thrill of the purchase of new school supplies. At Wilson, you just make a donation of $20 at the beginning of the year and the school purchases all the supplies in bulk. It really makes a lot more sense than preparing a list and having the parents go out and shop for all that stuff. But I miss the fun of picking out new folders and pencils and crayons. Ahhhh, the smell of new crayons! I read recently that there is a company that makes a perfume called "Crayon," and another that smells like Play doh. That might be a BIT much, but I know where they're coming from.

Grayson is in Mr. Hopper's class this year, on the SECOND FLOOR. He is definitely moving UP the pecking order. Gray says that Hopper is a no-nonsense kind of guy, but the kids really like him, so that's good news.

Now it's time for me and Gray to get our act in order, too. No more late mornings sipping coffee in bed until 8 a.m. No more late nights for Grayson, plugged into the video games or Cartoon Network until 10:00. Got to start living by the schedule again. It's always a bit of a relief to have structure in our lives after the long loosey-goosey summer.

The rain does not let up. I have always said that you know when summer is over when the rain hits in August. We think of Oklahoma August as being a brutally hot month, but in truth we usually start getting serious rain in August toward the end of the month. This year that is true in spades. Its been raining almost non-stop for days. And it's been cool enough to keep the "kitty play yard" (the window to the sunroom roof from our bedroom) open all day and all night this week. The cats like to go out and sit under the eaves and watch the rain and feel like wild cats. One drop on their fur and their right back inside, but you can see that they feel like Kings of the Jungle when they're out there.

Grayson's birthday is, of course, another harbinger of fall. We are still undecided about where to have the party. I told him that today was the deadline. He has to make up his mind by tonight about whether he will have it at home or at some other venue. I'm pulled two ways. If we have it at home, it's more fun for the adults because we all hang around downstairs and drink Mojitos while the kids run rammpant. But if we do it offsite, I don't have to clean my whole house before and after the party. Last year it looked like the Mob had rifled Grayson's room after his party. It was a complete disaster area! I wish I had taken pictures of the mess, it was truly Olympian in scope.

This weekend is the JBF (Just Betwee Friends) consignment sale at the fairgrounds. I have about $300 worth of stuff to sell: I printed out 106 tags for items. It's amazing how much STUFF Grayson acquires in a year. It's a good thing that this sale takes place every year shortly before his birthday. It gives us a chance to make some room for all the incoming loot. Plus, I always buy almost all of Grayson's fall and winter clothes there, for about a third of what I would pay retail.

Ah, fall. It's in the air. Soon there will be football and falling leaves and chilly mornings. It's my favorite time of year.