I always get a little down this time of year – change is upon us.  Starts with the evenings and a little cool breeze sneaking in to remind us that summer is coming to an end.
  For me, it makes me sad.  I absolutely LOVE having my kids at home.  There are times I have wanted to pull them from school and teach them myself, but I believe they need the social interaction that school provides and time to develop their friendships and establish their peer groups.  I know if I did keep them home, it would be more about what I wanted rather than what I think is best for them.
  What confuses me is the number of people who celebrate the return to school.  There’s no judgement  here, just have a hard time understanding it.  The back to school pics of the parents partying as the bus pulls away, that I don’t understand.  I’m not home weeping, believe me my day is full with work and I’m busy until they come home but there is a piece of me that truly misses them.
It’s a double edged sword, though.  I will miss the ease of summer, but welcome the routine of school.    
   I am using the start of school for a new beginning, to get the family more organized and back into our routines.  This summer has been different for us since the majority of it was spent getting ready to move, moving and getting settled into the new place.  In that chaos, we lost the part where the kids were doing daily chores, helping cook dinners, getting to bed at a reasonable time, limits on screen time and having family housecleaning night.  These will work their way back into our schedule next week. Life will start feeling structured and normal again and the laziness of summer will fade.