First Day of School and Eclipse 2017

Hey, we're still here! It's been a hot minute since I've written a post because let's be honest, parenting is hard. Taking care of 4 littles is a full time job, plus there's that side gig that used to be my full time job, and this wee little blog gets neglected. Props to all of you mamas that juggle kids, jobs, blogs, all of it seamlessly. I am not that organized, and I love napping too much. Maybe one day it will all be easy, but I highly doubt it. Now onto the task at hand, sharing some of what we've been up to.

Last week was a big one for us. Harrison and Brooke started kindergarten!! I took them in for their back to school night last Monday, and they were so excited. They got to meet their teachers, see their classrooms, and drop off their school supplies. They even got to meet their bus driver and check out their bus. I think that was the most exciting part for them. They've been looking forward to riding the bus to school with their friends for the last 6 months.

I was planning to take them in on their first day, but they wanted nothing to do with it. They wanted the bus right from the get go, which really was no surprise but it still broke my mama heart a little bit. They don't need me to take them to school anymore. They did want Rob and I to wait at the bus stop with them, so at least they still think we're cool enough to hang out with. No tears were shed by anyone, and then they were off!

They came happily running, literally, off the bus at the end of their first day. When I asked them what their favorite part of the day was, they both responded with an enthusiastic, "everything!" They have been really tired every evening, so it's been early bedtimes all week, which they're less than thrilled about, but otherwise it's been smooth sailing and happy kids. I know we're only a week into the school year, but it's crazy to think how worried we were about starting them in kindergarten this year. I know they are both going to rock this school year.

We decided to pull them out of school early yesterday so they could view the eclipse. We've been talking about it for months, and their school opted not to let the kindergarteners view the eclipse. H and B decorated paper helmets the day before, and they were excited to try them out. After realizing how they couldn't see anything while wearing their bag helmets, they started using the adults glasses instead. They were great about making sure they didn't glance at the sun without glasses on. So proud of them for listening. We were at about 88% here which was really cool, but we've already decided we will be going to a 100% totality zone during the 2024 eclipse.

We are slowly settling into our new daily routine which is already proving beneficial for me. It's amazing what you can get done in two hours when no one is saying "mom, mom, mom," every 10 minutes. Laundry, blogging, maybe even more trim painting. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. There's still napping to be done too. ;) Who else has kids that are back in school? What do you do with your kid free time?