Yes, it's true....summer is over and the new school year has begun. I still can't believe I have a 3rd and a 1st grader - I feel so old. And they are growing up far too fast (I know, I say that all the time). I have a mix of emotions: I'm happy, I'm sad, I'm excited, I'm anxious, I'm overwelmed, I'm ready, I'm so not ready. I just want to stop time - put it in a bottle and save it for later.

Here are my munchkins in the courtyard before jumping in the car to head to school. Tyler was beyond excited and couldn't sleep at all the night before. He came to our room 3 times and I finally had him sleep with us. Every time I rolled over he'd whisper 'Mom? I'm so excited for school.'. It melted me. He has the same enthusiasm for school I had as a kid and remember how he feels - exactly. You can see how the kids felt from their picture - it's written all over their sweet faces. Tyler was excited, confident and ready. Brielle was nervous and cautious with a little bit of hidden excitement :) They both ended up having an amazing day! I was so excited to hear all about it. We celebrated the first day by going to Golden Spoon and getting an ice cream with some friends. We also celebrated the end of the first day of school with a breakfast dinner (their request). And I prepared little notes for the kids at their place setting. They loved it and felt special that the spotlight was on them. I wished my video camera battery had been working - it was the cutest to see them get so in the letters and read them out-loud taking turns answering the questions. They wanted more questions so we kept going with the Q&A ;o) It was a fun-packed, exciting, butterflies in their tummies filled day and they both fell right to sleep after kiss and hugs.