yesterday was the first day of school for the

kids in chanhassen mn.

i was making my coffee when i heard the familiar roar

of the school bus lumbering up canyon curve.

my phone (of course) was right on the table so

i snapped a photo as it drove by... i saw a couple 

faces peeking through the windows~

probably little tikes with a stomach full of 

nerves.

i kiddingly said that i opened up the patio door though and

am pretty sure i heard a big, collective sigh of joy

from the moms and dads about town.

: )

one of my very best friends delivered her little girl to kindergarten 

yesterday and told me she had to sprint back to her car cause

she was crying so hard. all these firsts- so hard on most mamma's hearts.

so i got on with my day, but then in the early evening i went for a walk and
boy oh boy had the town come alive. i walked by the elementary school that two 
of my three attended and the playground and ball fields were buzzing
with kids practicing soccer and lacrosse for their fall leagues.

it brought back a flood of memories~ and i started thinking about
how fast those days of my life flew by... when you're in the thick of them
you have no idea that in the blink of an eye you'll be where i am.
your kids will be grown and you won't need to drive anyone
anywhere,
and you'll miss it.
i stood and watched the kids practicing lacrosse and
was just really bewildered that that seemed like another lifetime ago
for me.

cell phone pics don't upload well~

now my nights are pretty much my own, and i really do like this season of life. 
*i guess the melancholy just came from knowing that so much of my
life has flown on by~.

but for the record, can i just list some of the activities that i drove my 3 children to
in the 20 years i was actively parenting????

in no particular order, here's what i can remember:
soccer, t-ball, wrestling, karate, piano lessons, softball, football, hockey (oh the hockey!),
girl scouts, bike safety, swimming lessons, bible camps and sports camps, confirmation, tennis, 
golf caddying, lacrosse, baseball, and all their first jobs~

those were good times spent in the car.
you learn a lot about your kids from the front seat of the car.

so here's a shout out to fall and all the busy, leaf strewn ball fields around town~
 teaming with excited kids and their parents.
i had my turn, now it's
another generation's.

"tall oaks from tiny acorns grow."

happy fall y'all!
xo, beth