Back to school...almost.

12 days and counting...Good thing, I think we've all gone a little stir crazy around here!First week of August - it's the calm before the storm. It has taken me a few years to figure this out, but school responsibilities don't actually start on the first day of school. It really starts about 3 weeks before hand with the shopping for supplies, clothes, and shoes. There is also equipment shopping for any extra curricular activies - soccer balls, new piano books, etc. The selection of backpacks and lunch boxes is an extremely important choice of balance between fashion and function.

In addition to all the shopping, your calendar will be filled with various functions that require not only the presence of your children, but mostly you and your pocketbook. There are the open houses, teacher meet & greets, parent orientations. There will always be a t-shirt for sale, so bring cash. There will always be tons of paperwork, so be ready with your important info. It's best to go ahead and memorize the doctor's phone number and physical address as well as the policy numbers of your health insurance. Seriously, it's no joke. The amount of paperwork I will complete in the next 2 weeks probably killed a small forest. Well, at least a grove of trees. :)

We have been hanging kind of low this week, watching our carefree summer days slip by. We made the rounds to the library, the cheap movies, our church's play center, all while trying to avoid 115 degree heat.

We had the opportunity to let the kids visit my parents in St. Louis for the upcoming week. It will be great for them to have some last minute fun before school. So while my husband and I are spending 4 out of 5 days next week at a school related activity, the enrolled school children will be living it up at the grandparents. Don't worry. We are ready to meet the teachers. And we won't leave home without the cash this year.