life on lallier farm: goodbye to summer

this morning three very excited kids woke up, ate breakfast, got dressed, brushed their teeth and packed their backpacks with the lunch they helped make last night. they were moving fast and ready to go by 8am-even though we didn't need to leave for another 15 minutes. it was fun seeing their enthusiasm. anneliese wanted me to help brush her hair and emily requested 2 pony tails. their hair has been wild all summer-so it was a treat to get to smooth it out and wrap hair ties around it.

anneliese had called me in last night before bed "can we go to my class first"
on the way we talked about the logistics of how we would work out the morning drop off. take the stroller or the wrap? take everyone to their classes one by one or let grant and emily head to their classes independently?
we found a parking spot in the very crowded lot. the 3 big kids with their backpacks unloaded and stood on the grassy median as i arranged ben in the wrap. i was carrying a blanket for anneliese's rest time and the kids were all holding onto it as we crossed traffic. emily said-"this is kind of fun" "it's kind of like tug a war and kind of like follow the leader". i smiled at these happy comments trying to imprint them so i could write them here later.
we decided that grant and emily could head to their classes and i would take anneliese. i could then go back and check to make sure they made it. they waved at friends and i heard 2 girls shout "emily!" as she made her way to the 1st grade hallway.
anneliese and i headed to the pre-k room. she hung up her backpack and sat down like it was something she had done everyday. 3 kids in an elementary school that is pre-K to 3rd grade. what a year!

it is an end to summer. a summer that was memorable not for big trips or events but for the expanse of it. the feeling of long afternoons of play, quiet sleep late mornings, evenings at the pool, library time, play with cousins and lots of time together.