Our Secret "Back to School" Tradition

Okay, so if I post this publicly, I'm not sure I'm keeping our "Back to School" tradition a secret anymore, but then again, I have posted about this tradition before.

For the past six years, we go to our favorite local amusement park on the last Friday of the season--the Friday before Labor Day.  When Lewie was three, it wasn't a big deal because he wasn't missing school.  However, now that Lewie is in elementary school and the school year always begins the week before Labor Day, we have to play hooky. 

Yes, we could certainly choose other days to go, but we like going on this last Friday because...

1)  The lines are short or non-existent.  (Since everyone else is at school, there are very few people.)

2)  It's one last "summer" treat to ourselves.

3)  It's our "reward" for going back to school.  I say "our" because the three of us begin school together; Lew and I work for two colleges, and Little Lewie starts fourth grade.  Even though, Lew and I do work on campus during the summer, the workload definitely picks up once all the college students return.

For the longest time, Little Lewie's favorite ride was the train, the "Quassy Express."  However, during these last few years, it's been the Pirate Swing.   This year, I lost count of how many times Lewie went on this ride, but if I had to take a guess, I'd say it was 15 times or more...

Lewie's second favorite ride appeared to be the"The Wooden Warrior" roller coaster.  He asked Daddy to go with him three times!  I went with Lewie once on the Pirate Swing and once on the Tilt-a-Whirl, but my stomach, unfortunately, couldn't handle much more.  In my teens, I could go on all the spinning rides, but these days, I'm lucky if I can do two, and even then, I have to space them out. 

Needless to say, my favorite ride in the park every year is the "Quassy Queen," a covered motorboat that takes us around the lake to see all the beautiful lake houses and mansions.  There are some WEALTHY people that live on this lake--lawyers, CEO's, and hedge fund managers to name a few.

By 5 o'clockish, we decided to head out and stop for ice cream before going home.  It was an awesome day and another awesome memory.  Lewie first started coming to Lake Quassy at age three. I'm glad to know that he hasn't outgrown our special day yet.

First Day of School (Fourth Grade)

Lewie started school last Monday.  He's now a fourth grader with privileges to sit at the back of the bus.  Thankfully, however, my sweet boy is not growing up too fast.  This year, I was still pleasantly surprised to learn that Lewie was not interested in buying certain clothes or sneakers. (I offered to take him shopping, and his response was, "Mommy, you know I'm not a fashion designer!")  So, he's still content to wear whatever I lay out on the bed.

When it came time to get on the bus, he let Grammy and me kiss him goodbye (without feeling embarrassed by us).  Then he proceeded to find his favorite seat, about the middle of the bus, six rows down.  He plopped down, took off his backpack, and waved goodbye with a big smile.  God, I LOVE this kid!

My mom had the opportunity to pose with Lewie this year for the back to school photo.  My husband was still inside catching up on sleep, and I had wet hair and no make-up.  (I managed to get Lewie dressed on time, but I was running late for work!)

When Lewie returned home, he said he LOVED his teacher and had a great day.  Even better was the extra bonus of being told that he wouldn't be given any homework during his first week back.  When I opened his backpack, I saw that he completed a worksheet in school called, "First-Day Feelings."  After reading the answers, I just had to share some of them in this post.

          My favorite place is home.

          After school, I like to play games.

          When I feel sad, it helps to think of happy things.

          If I could change my name, I'd call myself the name I already have.

          My favorite time of year is summer.

          If I could rule the world, I'd make everything free.

          If I had $100, I'd give it to the poor.

          The best thing that happened to me last year was when I got a homework pass.

          My favorite possession is Tiggey (his stuffed animal).

          If I lived in another country, I'd like it to be the U.K.  (That's where Dan TDM lives.)

          On my birthday, I'd like to learn how to make games. (He means "video" games, of course.)

All I can say, is here's to another awesome year of school and an awesome year of spending time with our big little kid.  This kid makes every day a joy.