First Day of School

The Catholic Schools started yesterday.

I send my kids to Catholic School. (Dave Ramsey & I don't see eye to eye on this one. Yes, it keeps us broke. But I am counting on Catholic School to help me raise men & not Baby Daddies.)

Luke started Kindergarten & Joe is in 4th grade.

Lots of fussing, crying and yelling. From me, not from them. Why?

1. Greg didn't want to come. I said "you aren't coming for the first day?" He said "I'll look at pictures. I don't need to be there." I said "So, I get to carry these 7 bags of school supplies by myself?" He said: "oh".

2. The camera's batteries were drained. For some reason, this made me yell at Greg. He never uses the camera, but I felt better by yelling at him. So Greg had to find the replacements somewhere. . .don't know where he found them, but apparently me screeching like a banshee is a great incentive to find batteries.

Please tell me I don't need to explain why having a camera on the first day of school is ESSENTIAL. Because it is.

3. Yesterday was the most HUMID day of the year so far. I live in South Texas and humid is a way of life for us. Yesterday was BEYOND humid. I wore a silk Jones of New York dress that stuck to me like saran wrap. My makeup melted off and my hair looked like Sissy Spacek's in Carrie -- just after the pig blood.

4. School is over at noon on the first & second days and there is NO aftercare. Ostensibly, this is so everyone can EASE into school.

Hey Catholic School Administrators! We are all working parents. That is how we PAY tuition. Having to take 2 half-days off so you can ease into school isn't EASY for anyone but you.

Nevertheless. . .

1. Joe likes school naturally. I suspect he will end up with several doctoral degrees because he enjoys it so much. As long as he can pay cash for them, I don't care how many degrees he gets. Yesterday was a great day for him. Back in his element.

2. Luke isn't a school guy. He's smart, but he's street smart. I am counting on him to make all the money and to look after his older brother. Yesterday, Luke had a great time -- Whew! He was perfectly happy to come to school today, which I credit to his lovely teacher Mrs. Garza. (Holla Emily!)

3. Finally, yesterday marks the day where we stop double-paying school tuition and daycare. We pay school tuition for 11 months. They are in school for 9 months. That means 2 months, we pay school tuition AND full time daycare. Summer is broke time for us. (In the summer I drive real slow past the place where they sell plasma. I haven't done it yet, but I haven't ruled it out either.)

4. The two 1/2 days are allowing me to catch up on laundry.

St. Don Bosco (patron saint of Catholic Schools) Pray for us!

Bore the Scrap Out of Me. . .

One of my favorite things to do is scrapbook.

Scrapbooking is more than putting photos in albums. Scrapbooking is a creative process that tells a story with words, photos, and lots & lots of patterned paper, ribbon, rub-on letters and other arts & crafts supplies.

I started scrapping (or cropping, as some call it) when my oldest child was born. I got 5 albums done before his little brother was born 3 years later. The books tell a story of our home, which was filled with wonder and love.

Our home really WAS filled with wonder & love, so why does it make me throw up in my mouth a little when I write that down?

From a purely anthropological standpoint, my volumes and volumes (and volumes) of scrapbooks are an excellent snapshot the daily lives of middle-income, college educated married-with-kids family.

Volumes 1-4 are our life with a toddler. Every fricking day of it. "Here is Joseph in a red shirt." "Here he is in the kitchen!" "Joe in the bathtub!" "Here he is in a green shirt!" I honestly think the Joseph is one of the finest people God put on the planet, but I admit I went a little overbored. (yes, that is a pun).

Volumes 5-9 are our life with 2, then 3 kids. True to stereotype, Joe has more coverage than Luke or Paul. But, because I scrap, I know enough to have individual photos of #2 & #3 sons, instead of just photos of the 3 of them. (At least I think the photos are individual shots of each kid. My kids all kinda look alike.)

There are some pages about my husband & I. Some about other family. I've even done gift albums for other people. But mostly it's the boys. These kids better have good self esteem, because they are obviously adored.

I am glad I do these books. I enjoy them and my family enjoys them. They make great gifts. They evoke great memories.

But how often can I write of my love, gratitude and wonder? Maya Angelou I ain't.

I enjoy looking at others' scrapbooks. I even get scrapbooking magazines (yes, there are scrapbook magazines!). But scrapbookers are . . . boring.

I can't believe I said that.

I have lots of friends who scrapbook. None of them are boring. They are creative, witty and fun.

But how many pages about snowmen are titled "Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow. . "? I would hazard a guess that every scrapbooker has at least one.

I am not going to stop scrabooking. I am not going to stop telling my family how much I love them. I am just going to try to be a little less . . . corny.

How's this:

"Son,

I expect a lot from you. I expect you to be a good man -- like your dad. I expect you to stay away from drugs, trashy girls, and Dungeons & Dragons. You don't have to be a Catholic when you grow up, but I do expect you to believe in God. You need to pay your way in life because God knows Dad & I haven't saved up enough for you. Finish College. Get a job before you get married. Get married before you have a baby. Be a good husband. Be a good dad.

And whatever you do, son, marry a girl who appreciates scrapbooking. Or else all this work I've done chronicling your life will wind up in the trash.

Love, Mom."