Worn Out Flip-Flops

…and faded chalk drawings. 
Summer is officially closed for the season. School is upon us.



Mallory,  It is Labor Day 2012 and here we sit on the eve of First Grade.  As with most school kids, we have been preparing for the first day for a few weeks.  The supplies are nestled in your classroom and we successfully hunted and found your locker.  We found the perfect first-day dress and we bought a few new pair of shoes.  If anyone asks if you are excited about the upcoming school year, you quickly reply “Yes!!” You are ready—a little nervous, but ready.

We started the summer when you stepped off the bus and proclaimed that you were sad.  “All the teachers stood on the curb and waved goodbye.”  I quickly told you that in just three short months you would be going back.  As a first grader!  And I worried that I would have to live up to some pretty big standards that the administration had left on you. I was in fact, only your mom.  But we had fun.  We made some great memories.  And minus the two nights you spent at your grandparents, we spent every.single.day together.  Pfewwww.  When you are sixteen that is not going to fly.  But I promise, we had fun.  My favorite memories happened right here at home.  Using our thrift store trays to eat on the deck when the summer sun promised to not scorch our backs. Not having a plan for every single day. Realizing that being spontaneous can be just as fun as having an entire day planned out…
Here’s the reality check: We’ve also grown a shorter and shorter fuse with each other as the weeks have gone on.  We bite back.  We bicker.  It is best summed up as a healthy mother-daughter relationship.  I am optimistic that once we have some separation with school, our sassiness will drop dramatically. 

But here we stand with summer at our backs. It went by way too fast… I wish you the best of luck as you step onto the bus tomorrow.  You are no longer the youngest in the school.  You’ve got this.  I pray that you continue to love learning.  Thrive on new information and new tasks that are given. Let’s take first grade and plow through it.  Thanks for the great summer. I love you Peanut…Best of luck and All my (sassy) love.