Almost Back to School.

School starts for us this coming Thursday, so the past week was spent in a lot of preparation and a lot of last minute summer activities/summer laziness.

On Monday, I baked over 100 muffins in preparation for fast and easy breakfasts before school. We aren't huge cereal people. Well I mean, we are TOTAL cereal people because cereal is the yummiest thing in the world, but it does nothing to fill me up. It's more of a snack item around here. So I try to make hearty breakfasts like oatmeal or pancakes, but wanted to have a bunch of muffins ready to pop into the microwave for crazy mornings, which I bet will happen at least twice a week.

I made bran, apple and zucchini muffins. I want them to last six weeks, but I know they won't, because we all love them. In fact, every time someone grabs for one, I find myself giving them a dirty look because school hasn't started yet and you are already eating up my backup plan! Sometimes I am giving this look to myself in the mirror as I snarf down half a dozen muffins.

You may remember that we started the Ramona series at the beginning of the summer. The girls have loved it. A couple of weeks ago, when we were on Book 6 of the eight-book series, I said flippantly, "Wouldn't it be cool if we finished all of the books before school started?"

Don't let me speak flippantly. Ever. Again. Because my girls took that to heart, and now the pressure is on. Whereas we were reading a chapter or so a night, skipping some nights due to swimming or other summer activities, now we are reading multiple chapters a night. We made it through Book 7 in two days. Now we are on Book 8, and we have about two chapters a night to read if we want to make it through our goal.

Things the Ramona series has taught me:

1. A simple childhood is a good childhood.

2. Families fight. Sisters fight. And then you forgive and keep going.

3. It's best when parents don't sweat the small stuff. And it's mostly small stuff.

Speaking of simple childhood, I took Gwen with me on some errands at the mall Friday afternoon, and she wanted to take a picture on each one of these rides that I wouldn't even give up a couple of quarters for. I hate spending money on stuff like that.

Maybe if I should have shaken the camera in order to give an "action feeling" to the photo since there was absolutely no actual movement coming from the rides themselves. Cheap-o mom!

And we had to get back to school haircuts!!

Gwen insisted she wanted her hair cut like Ramona. I wasn't sure I wanted to cut her hair off because I'm a major fan of the ponytail. But in the end, I gave in.

Look how long their hair was before! June on the left and Gwen on the right.

So Gwen wanted a lot chopped off, and June wanted a decent amount chopped off. Afterward, I told June that she looked like Beezus and Gwen that she looked like Ramona. This made Gwen very mad because, in a very Ramona-like way, she wanted to have what June/Beezus had. It's like one of those play-within-a-play productions high schools do that feel like they are trying too hard to be deep.

They both look darling, but Gwen still replies to all compliments about her new hair with "I do NOT want to look like Ramona!"

I had an appointment at my salon this weekend too and felt ready for the chop.

A total mom haircut. And yes, I AM a mom, but does my hair have to shout it out before I can even open my mouth and tell people myself? What's that, you say? The bags under my eyes give it away before my hair does? The shrillness of my yell? The buffet of snack crackers lining the bottom of my car?

Well okay then.

And here's Beck's church picture from this morning. The way that water bottle is laying next to him on the changing table makes it look like I'm comparing sizes. Like he USED to be the size of a water bottle, but look at him now!

But please know that I birthed him, all 80 pounds of him, and he was never the size of no water bottle.

Three days left until school starts. I'm excited for the routine; I'm dreading the routine. I'm a very complex person. Kinda like those plays-within-a-play.

The End.