End of Summer Thanks

Today is Saturday, two days before school starts and I am so, so, so content and excited and hopeful and thankful for the end of summer and the beginning of routines.  Paul will be in kindergarten this year and he will have the same teacher Claire had, which is fabulous because we all love her and her teaching excellence is unparalleled.  She was able to connect the dots for Claire in a way that I wasn't able to and got her on the right track of loving education and school.  Of course we do all that at home, too, but it is such a gift to have a teacher that reinforces what you teach at home.
I think of Claire as a toy top and her kindergarten teacher the one that started her spinning.  She is still spinning on the momentum started at home and in kindergarten and her thirst for knowledge is unquenchable. Paul is at the same level (if not higher) that Claire was when she started Kindergarten and I'm so anxious to watch him develop his own momentum.  Of his own volition, he has started reading this summer. The first time he brought me a book and announced he was going to read it, I settled in for what I assumed to be an imaginary recreation of the events based on the pictures.  No, that boy can actually read the words! I am so proud of him.
So today the Boyette family is so thankful. Here's a few items that are close to my heart this day:

1. Time
I am so excited/hopeful/dreaming about the window of time between when I drop the kids off and when I have to report to work.  Of course the window is small but in my imagination, I have worked out, brewed a cup of tea, read the Bible, swam laps in the pool, read a book, written a book, cleaned the house, and planned dinner all in that 30 minutes.

2.  Routine
We all behave better and work more cooperatively when we've got a routine in place.  Summer has been free of routines and we have all gotten up/gone to bed/completed our tasks in a willy-nilly fashion.  It will be nice to get back to the routine of the school week.

3.  Education
When Claire gets home from school, it usually takes her 30 minutes to unwind and finish telling me every detail of her day and what she learned/experienced.  I can't wait to have two kids with that much enthusiasm for learning.

4.  Lunch box love
By the end of the school year, I know I will be throwing whatever's in the fridge into the lunch boxes.  But at the beginning of the year, I spend time mapping out the best and most creative ways to pack the kids lunches.  I research simple facts to include in their lunch notes and different foods.

5.  Family walks
The walk to and from school is always a time for appreciating nature and talking together.  Hopping, skipping, jogging, and riding scooters to school is always a blast.

6.  Early bedtimes
All summer we've been without assigned bedtimes, so I've been going to bed at the same time as the kids.  Now hopefully we'll get them to bed on time and then have an hour or two of adult time before I have to turn in.  Woohoo!  Adult conversations!

7.  Companions
My Bible study group is about to start up.  I've missed our Monday night discussions which keep me focused and life in perspective.  Also, it's a designated time once a week where Adam is assigned to the kids and I get to escape.

8.  Teaching
On the first day of school I will return to my school, Western Hills Elementary, where I'm a tutor/jack of all trades.  I am excited to see all my teacher friends and help out with a community that I'm not a part of otherwise.

9.  Office hours
All through the month of August, I've been working from home and dragging the kids to my office on Thursdays.  For the next nine months, I get to go to work by myself!

10.  Music of my choosing
When the kids are in the car, their favorite thing to do is choose music to play on my Ipod.  Granted, I like all that music, but the kids have a special talent for playing the same songs over and over and killing my love for them.  I can't wait to pick my own music in my own car.  It's the little things, you know?