First Day of School

This morning I sent 3 of my 4 kids off to school. Shawn is in the 3rd grade, Derek is a big time 1st grader and Chloe - one of my little princesses - went to her first day of Kindergarten (all day!). They were so excited that they all woke up early and came bounding up the stairs, got dressed right away, brushed their teeth with no arguing, and finished their breakfast with over 30 minutes to spare! I, however, was not so excited. It seems the summer went by so fast and we just didn't have a chance to do all the things I wanted to. It doesn't seem possible that Chloe is going to be away from home all day - she's only 5! AAAAAGGGGHHHHH! What's a mother to do?

I must choose to look on the bright side. My baby, Sarah (who's 3) is still at home and I love it when she says "Mommy, hold me like a baby." I love that she still loves to cuddle and wants to be told "I love you" all the time, dress up like Cinderella, and play tea party with her stuffed animals.

Beyond the joys (okay, and the stressors) of having a 3 year old at home, I also have to look forward to the older three learning and growing. They each love school and will make lots of new friends. Everyday, they get off the bus and remind me that the hectic lifestlye of the school year never changes. We will have after school snacks, homework, football, soccer and gymnastics practice, AWANA, and other weekly evening "to-dos". They will come home each day and tell me about all they did and discovered (which will stop one day far too soon when they no longer want to talk to me, I'm sure) and they'll tell me about their new friends. This is what I must focus on - not how sad I am that all of my babies are growing up! There is a time for them to be babies, a time for them to go off and be more independent and someday, they will have babies of their own; they cycle will start over. Isn't it amazing how God knew we would need a reminder of this...even on seemingly simple days like the first day of school.

Ecclesiastes 3 (NIV)
A Time for Everything

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:
time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot,
time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.