back to school!

It seems a little surreal that I sent two kids off to school this morning. And for the first time in almost seven years, my baby boy will be spending more of his awake time away from home instead of at home with his mama and sisters.

We had a great first day, starting with a fairly smooth morning - I owe a big shout out to these printable morning routine cards I found on Pinterest last night.

There was even plenty of time left over for me to take an obnoxious number of first day of school photos in the front yard. (The signs D & E are holding are another Pinterest find.)

Then we loaded up the whole fam and took them to school today all together (it was quite an event).

First we dropped off sister...

And then big brother...baby sister made herself right at home.

When we came back home, Mady and I enjoyed a nice run on a beautiful fall morning followed by a mommy/baby girl shopping trip and lunch at Panera. We loved our one-on-one time together...

...but we were glad to see brother and sister get off the bus again at the end of the day. (And our new after school routine worked like a charm!)

My favorite story of the day: Dylan told me that he and Ella talked to each other through the fence at recess (their school keeps the little ones on a separate playground). Somehow that brought up prison yard images which made me laugh and then it reminded me how much they care about each other which made me smile.

First day of school = great success!