oh, the places you'll go!!

At my happy home (as most already know...) we like to celebrate... 

ANYTHING and MOST EVERYTHING.....  

 I grew up celebrating ALL THINGS POSSIBLE OF CELEBRATING!!!!  My mom loved to express how proud and wonderful her children were (if i don't say so myself, wink wink.) by blessing us with favorite snacks, treats, toys, balloons, fun napkins and plates, flowers, yummy smelling candles, the sweetest cards EVER usually hidden in my book, purse, car, under my pillow, etc. etc.  Usually the start of something..school, college, or end of something getting braces off, dance recital, turing 10 and ending single digit birthdays was HUGE, and 13, don't get me started.... You get the idea... my mom blessed me with the want and NEED to celebrate ALL THINGS!!

 .Last week, we celebrated my littlest lamb taking it upon himself to no longer wear diapers... This act of celebration was rushed and done VERY improper in the ways of celebrating, i won't lie, as in 

"mommy is leaving town in t-minus 2 hours, lets rush to the toy store and you can pick out whatever you wish..." oh.  and whitmore, MOMMY IS SO STINKN' proud of you... you will never know how very much!

Oh. and he picked out an AUBURN football helmet... Doubly proud of that!!!! WDE. 

but EVEN BIGGER and SADDER than having no diapers left at my happy home (it has been SIX years since i have cruised the baby aisle at Publix, they will miss me, sniff sniff.)

my biggest baby...sniff sniff. is going to BIG SCHOOL which he ask nicely "mom, can we call it kindergarten now and NOT big School?"

bless him.

 Anyway,  I have had charlie in a little school a couple days a week with the same incredible kids who i am missing so much right now, with the most wonderful sets of parents (and FUN!) and have known the teachers and their children and their extended families and THEIR everything, you get the point.   I feel i have known every move my boys have made..... It is hard to let that part go.... It will be up to him to be brave and up to him to disclose what he wants me to know about his day (FYI.  i will know NOTHING if its up to him)  

  Anyway, enough ranting and raving about my biggest baby.  He is THE BEST and i am so very proud of him.  I find myself missing my mom around events as big as this, because you can rest assured there is no one on God's Green Earth that would have helped him celebrate, and ring in his new adventure with starting school....Thank you to everyone who has called and send him sweet notes of encouragement, text, etc.  he is so blessed to have so many people thinking of him and praying as he begins this chapter of his little life.
 as dr. seuss says it best....

Dear charlie,

congratulations!

today is YOUR day.

you're off to GREAT places!

You're off and away!

And when things start to happen,

don't worry.  Don't Stew.

Just go right along.

You'll start Happening too.

You won't lag behind, because you'll have the speed.

you'll PASS the whole gang and you'll soon take the LEAD.

Wherever you fly, you'll be best of the best

wherever you go, you will TOP all the rest.

Oh, the places you'll go! There is fun to be done!

There are Points to be scored. There are games to be won!

And the magical things you can do with that ball will make you the winning-est winner of all.

EXCEPT....

when they don't.

because sometimes , THEY WON'T....

I'm afraid that some times you'll play the LONELY game too.

a Game you CAN NOT win

'cause you'll play against YOU.

but...

onward you will go up many a frightening creek,

though your arms may get sore and your sneakers may leak.

But on and on you will hike.

And i know you'll hike far

and face UP TO YOUR problems whatever they are.

So, be sure when you step. Step with care and great TACT and REMEMBER that Life's a GREAT BALANCING ACT.

Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.

And never mix up your right foot with your left.

this is his main teacher, he has two....

AND WILL YOU SUCCEED?

YES! YOU WILL,  INDEED!

 (98 and 3/4 percent GUARANTEED.)

KID YOU WILL MOVE MOUNTAINS!!!

we love you more that life itself charles oren.  Congrats on being YOU and starting a wonderful new adventure.

XOXO,

mommy & daddy

 this is straight out of the book by dr. seuss-   And i will NOT read it to my biggest baby yet.... there will be a good time but i have a hard enough time reading it alone.   

"charlie, mommy wants to make your most favorite meal EVER and get you a cake and have a special celebration for your big day, what shall that be?"

oh mom, "davenports pizza would be perfect" " And can i get a dirt bike or fast boat as a treat (as in a REAL BOAT readers, the pontoon boats speed just isn't up to his par....)?   Apparently you won't know what the answer is unless you try?? so he claims...
 And the answer was NO.  
But what you can have is some super fun star wars plates to eat your pizza on, napkins and small set of legos with a side of books you can soon read BY YOURSELF..... (hard to believe)

howz that?

 special breakfast, special treat...

 special family dinner....

 the two "BIG" kids themselves

 the twin girls were there too, they were not much up for a photo session, i can't blame them....

 And after meeting the teacher, these two boys were 10 feet tall and bullet proof...so big!!!

on the first half day.....  I tried to drop off all three, they wouldn't take them, wink wink.

his littlest brother was HIGHLY disappointed to be left behind and must have said a MILLION times "miss charlie".... And i agreed, i missed him too!

we said our good-byes and headed to the playground, to sweat our sorrows out a little!!!

 my biggest baby is a walker, as they call them.... and has managed to "walk" this extra stinky boy, who i'd claim as my own, over most days and then back to his house, etc. etc.

 And the age old question "did you cry?"
no dear readers, i did not cry.... change is always hard, i do encourage change often with my happy home but it doesn't mean its easy..... We hardly do the same thing twice in one day except eat meals....... but i will admit, my eyes FILLED to the brim when charlie and his bestest did their "secret" hand shake (yes, i tried at a rapid pace to get the camera up and ON to snap a picture, i MISSED IT!) before parting their separate class lines.... It was almost as if it they gave one another a "pep talk" and a "good luck buddy" chat!  And i think its good for them to be in separate classes although, i can say i wish they were together, i have a small feeling they will get their fill, wink wink.
so, no i am not sad but i do miss him like CRAZY during the day........
What did i do on my first day with only TWO little indians?
I took to the playground, the grocery store, and pre-cooked dinner, fun snacks, and dessert so that when my monkey arrived i could be all play!!!!  oh and then walked to meet him a little early so that i could see his shining face walk out that door.
i got a HUGE hug and just like that he sprinted off running with friends....
i did ask "how was your first day?"
"it was GREAT!"  oh and playground was really short.  And that is all i got.

 these two have had some major work to do in the afternoons!