Back To School

It is 7:43 a.m. We've had breakfast and now the Daughters are putting on make-up and Teapot is having his tea (me too). In about 20 minutes we will take some pictures to remember this day. Daughter #2 is heading off to high school today and it is her first day. She's worried about two things.  She has to take shop (that industrial arts.... you know where you have to learn to saw, & hammer wood, and put small engines together).  She is terrified. I'll be honest I'm a little worried too. She is not the most graceful gal on the planet and tends to get hurt in freakish accidents. She's worried she will cut off a finger with some of those power tools. I'm worried that she will be so nervous that she will cut off a finger too. The other thing she is worried about is monkey locking her locker.... evidently she has done this before but when she was in the elementary school end she had lots of help. Now that she is in the high school end she is worried that she will do this and get detention for being late to class. I keep thinking I should just buy her a regular lock with a key and then we don't have to worry about it.  Either way we are going to have to cope with another year of assignments and studying.

Daughter #1 is an old hand at high school this year and doesn't appear to be nervous at all. She is looking forward to seeing her group of friends. (I just wish she would stop wearing those stupid shoes... they have a great ruddy crack in the bottom... I guess I will have to sneakily throw them in the garbage...). She does not have to do shop (industrial arts) this year which was the bane of her existence last year... this year she gets to choose her electives and I think she is feeling very grown up because she can determine her own choices.... (well, with a little help from Teapot and moi!) Meanwhile she has discovered the joys of science and is quite disappointed that her favorite teacher who taught her science last year is not going to be at the school this year. She will have to be prepared to learn from a new science teacher.

Teapot is embarking on his own new adventure. When he first started teaching, he was teaching grades 7 and 8. Then we moved here, and he started teaching high school. He had a few difficult years where it seemed like he was constantly changing curriculum so when the opportunity arose to teach in the elementary end of the school, he jumped at it and for the last 11 years he has taught a combination of 3, 4 and 5. This year, they asked him if he would be interested in teaching different grades.... so he is back to teaching 6 and 7. For the last few weeks, in the evenings, he has been learning the curriculum for these new-to-him grades. It has been long hours of working, and reading and some nights he works well past midnight. 

What's really weird, though, is that they are all really excited to go back to school. I think it is because the summer was not the best that we have had. Our camping vacation was too short and wet after a summer too hot to do anything. Also the Daughters have been missing out on the social aspect of school and seeing their friends every day. To be honest I'm really on the fence.  I will miss sleeping in and the lazy days of summer... but I am also looking forward to long days with no distractions and getting lots of work done. The only thing that really bothers me is that both Daughters are now in high school and they seem to be growing away from me. They go off and turn their backs to me and giggle about who knows what (probably boys) but there are definitely secrets.  If I wasn't so sure of them as well adjusted young ladies, I would be worried.  But I'm not. Teapot and I did a good job bringing these two lovely, and smart young ladies up, so I know they will be alright.

And so it begins..... again!

Later:

Good Lord! I'm the shortest! How did they grow up so fast?