Where did the summer go?

I know that some of my friends and family have kids that have already started school. My kids start in 1 week from tomorrow and I'm in a panic. Where did the summer go? I remember as a kid feeling like summer was about 3 years. I loved it. Days were long. We were at the pool a lot of the time and it seemed like we had a chance to actually get bored with going to the pool. (is there really such a thing?...not for me!) I don't feel like we have had a chance to get bored yet.

The funny thing is...we have their school supplies already, new shoes, new clothes, hair cuts done. A lot of the TO DO list is already done. So why do I feel so panicked? I woke up this morning about 2 hours earlier than I usually do and my worries set in so I just got up and showered. I guess it has to do with having a new son in kindergarten. Will he be okay? Will his big brother look out for him? Will he like school and enjoy the learning?

My second son is great. I call him my tigger because he seems to bounce everywhere. He does seem to get more nervous about new experiences then my older son. When he was about 3 1/2 I would take him in with me to the school when I helped out with T's class. He was always terrified of the kids and thought they were out to get him because they were so much bigger than him. I worried that when he went to preschool, he would have a hard time too but he didn't. He seemed to do just fine. The kids were mostly his size though. That will not be the case in a school that has 5th graders.

I know...I know... he will be fine and do great and I just have to take comfort in that I have prepared him for this. But what do you do with a kid who has already told you that he will go to school but he wants me to home school him for college?

Where did my summer go?????? ....I'm moving to Florida...summer is longer there, right?

2nd Annual Brown Family Reunion at Smith Mountain Lake

We are really lucky. My sister in law married into a great family that has a place right on the lake. Last year the house wasn't quite done so we were on the dock the whole time (and even that was a blast!!), but this year their beautiful lake house was done and they handed us the key and said go and play for the weekend! Thank you Alexanders!! It was the perfect size house for the group. We had so much fun just hanging out together, fishing, kayaking, riding around on the boat, and rafting. We even got into the spirit of the Olympics and had our own lake Olympics this year. It was great too cause my kids are a little older this year which made it much more relaxing then last year. We even took some time to take some family photos which was great. Thanks again everybody for making it so much fun!!!

Check out T's blog...

My son T has been begging me to help him start a blog too. We just started but for those of you who know him, he would LOVE it if you checked it out once in a while and commented ! Thanks! His blog is under my family and friends list as T's Travels.

A Little Warning...

I have a friend who is an amazing mother. She is the type that bakes homemade bread on a regular basis. You know the type...if it's better for the kids then she is gonna go the extra mile. She has four kids. Recently they were out shopping. She had spent a good while with them in one store. When they got to the next store the kids about lost it. They didn't want to go into another store even if it was only for a few minutes to return something. (You know we have ALL been there!) The oldest is 8 1/2 years old. She made the split second decision to just leave them in the car since the weather was so nice for the five minutes she would be gone. When she got back about 5 minutes later (and I mean FIVE minutes), her oldest said there had been a lady outside the window to see if the kids were alright. She then wrote down the license plate number of the car and left. Later that day, a policeman came to my friend's house to file the charge against her. They told her that they would be contacting her soon but it could be a fine (about 3000$), a felony charge (which would make getting a job hard) and possibly time in jail.

My friend is sick to her stomach to think that a split second decision like that has put her entire family in jeopardy.

I'm passing this story on only because each time I have run an errand this week, I have thought of her. How much easier it would be to just run in by myself to return that movie, or to go take that friend the book etc. It makes me have new resolve to make sure I never leave them in the car even for a moment....I know my friend would take it back if she could.

Randy Pausch...people vs. things debate

I'm sure most of you have heard of Randy Pausch. I'm sure most of you have heard he passed away about a week ago. I have to admit I'm addicted to his "Last Lecture". I taped it on the DVR once and have watched it tons of times. I cry each time. I come away with wondering how one man could just understand the importance of life and family so much better than most. I love that his parents let him paint his bedroom walls and this allowed him to dream even if it wouldn't help the resale of the home. I love that he spilled soda all over his brand new comfortable car to show his niece and nephew that they were more important to him than material possessions. I love the way he talked about his wife and how no one in Hollywood was beautiful enough to play her if they ever decided to make a movie about their story.

I guess most of us would say we know that the people in our lives are more important than the things in our lives....or at least we certainly wouldn't admit that the things are more important. I wonder if we could step back and look at where we actually spend our time and focus in our lives, would that really be true? I know I have certainly stressed out when one of my boys has once again spilled red punch on white carpet. I'm sure the message I gave him loud and clear was that the carpet was more important to me than him. Or how many times have I sent my children down to the basement to play so that I could watch a show and not be bothered. Is the show really more important to me? Of course not...then why am I giving that message to the people I love the most?

I will never forget when a loved one chose to go shopping on a Saturday morning even after my little boy asked him if he would come and see him play in his soccer game. It crushed my son that he couldn't go and without that person realizing it, he sent the message to my son that "material things are more important than you". I don't think my son has thought much of it since. However, I knew that this person always went shopping on Saturday mornings, so I knew it was something he could have skipped. That made an impression on me. I wanted to stop sending that kind of message in my own life.

I think we all struggle with this. I think that is why I loved Randy Pausch's last lecture because it was obvious that he had always lived his life in a way that told people around him that they were important...more important than things. He got it...he just got what was important and didn't care at all about the stuff that so many of us get caught up in. I want to be more like that. I want to be a tigger and bring joy to those around me and tell them by my actions how important they are to me. Thank you Randy Pausch for your incredible example to us all!