Merry

 

Last few days of school

Clark Griswold wrapping job

Motion activated bird camera

Jeddy got Ada a ukulele music book

Putting together a hoverboard go-kart attachment

#tbt

 

Through some magical Apple update beyond the realm of my understanding, I now have access to our family’s entire catalog of photographs, dating back to our honeymoon, which was the first occasion we photographed digitally (our wedding pictures were on film).

Therefore, I institute Throwback Thursday, in order to enjoy all the feels that come from pre-blogging-days snapshots.

And by “all the feels,” I do mean mixed feelings.

Take Baby’s first snowfall:

First time parents:  “Let’s put Baby in his adorable furry snowsuit with teddy bear ears and show him the snow!”

Wow, we were overachievers.

That’s the same year we took him to the town Christmas tree lighting and posed with Santa.

He looks thrilled in both instances.

Incidentally, I do remember that night 17 years ago, at the lighting, when he decided he needed to nurse, and it was SOOOOOOO COLD…I haven’t been to a tree lighting since.

It looks like eight years and three kids later, we toned down our ambition to putting on music and letting them dance in the living room while we sat on the couch.

Ha— I just noticed this, the snowy picture above is framed on the wall in the dancing picture, right next to a picture from our honeymoon taken with our brand-new high-tech digital camera.

I guess even then I was remembering fondly those days of squishy babies in fur suits, when I was idealistic enough to take a six-month-old to see Santa and look at the snow—before my interior decorating devolved to toddler-proofing the Christmas tree.

But, oh, the joy on Lizzy’s chubby little temporary-tattooed cheeks!  The cuteness makes me smile, even as the very thought of those days exhausts me.

Fever

I’ve got holiday fever.  Don’t wanna do school.  

We have five more school days before Christmas break—but who’s counting.

It makes me wonder if teachers get senioritis too, because if so, it’s going to be a tough spring. 

Guidance counselors

Though the forced mass homeschooling of the pandemic made parents everywhere suddenly appreciate what schoolteachers do, it took me a couple extra years to come to the same conclusion about school guidance counselors.

It turns out those high school guidance counselors really do earn their keep.  And if you homeschool your kid all the way through graduation, guess how easy it is to become a de facto guidance counselor?

Not very easy.

From scheduling SAT and AP exams and knowing how colleges feel about them; to keeping up with scholarship opportunities; to knowing application deadlines; to working with the local community college; to explaining your grading scale; to writing intelligent recommendations; to advising on teacher recommendations, extracurricular lists, college entrance essays, and programs of study; to sending updated midyear reports…now I know why high schools employ these guys.

It may have cost me the use of my brain for the following 18 hours, but after weeks of work I finally completed the transcript, counselor recommendation essays, and school reports Jeddy required for his college applications.  Now he’s waiting on one teacher recommendation (from someone else), at which point I believe it can all be sent.

Hopefully, just in time for a merry Christmas and relief to all.