Cheers to the Weekend, Back to School Edition

As of this afternoon, that's a wrap on our first week back to school for the 2018-2019! Only 175 more school days until I get to have a full summer with my Lu Crew littles again. :) We had a great week kicking off the school year, and are definitely saying CHEERS to that, among other things, as we welcome in this lovely weekend (Dear Fall-like temps in August in the South, I LOVE YOU!!! Love, Me) :  

First Days of School. Banks is now in 3rd grade, Raleigh in 1st, Harrison in pre-k, and Bella in preschool. While Harrison hasn't gone back to school just yet, Banks, Raleigh, and Bella made their way into our beloved Fort Mill Elementary on Monday and each had great weeks! I cannot begin to describe how much it warmed my heart to see my biggest two leading their little sister into this big new world of school, hand-in-hand. It took everything I had to hold back my tears. They came later, as we were driving away, leaving them in their classrooms. Specifically, I worried about Bels: I was scared she would feel abandoned again or that the unfamiliar surroundings and faces, coupled with being around hundreds of children again, would trigger something in her. But my brave girl didn't shed a single tear. She bravely joined her class and worked so hard all week, getting great reports each day. 

Thank you, Jesus, for surrounding her with Your love and protection. And thank you for placing Banks and Raleigh in classrooms filled with amazing, nurturing, challenging teachers - I can't wait to watch them all soar this year! <3

(This was Bella after pick-up her first day of school...)

(And still rockin' that smile as we headed into her last day of Week 1! Yay!)

Momma Mornings. Harrison doesn't go back to school until after Labor Day, which means he and I get all kinds of extra time together right now, just the two of us, while the other kids are in school during the mornings. This week alone, we've had two Starbucks Momma Dates, played driveway tennis, snuggled while he was combatting a 102/103 fever, and bought special surprises. He was also spoiled with a pool playdate with one of his sweet friends as well as a fun bounce-house-birthday party for another. This kid had a great week!

Well...except for the fact that he drove my friend's golf cart across my driveway and into the bushes, but that's another story for another day. #DennisTheMenace #BonnieAndClyde  Ohhhhhh, Harrison. 

Father-Son Camp. Last weekend, Banks and his dad drove up to the mountains of North Carolina for a weekend they'd been looking forward to all summer: Falling Creek Camp! This father-son camp is everything you would picture it to be: they slept in cabins at night and spent their days ziplining and rock wall climbing and spear throwing and fly fishing and blacksmithing and air rifle shooting and axe throwing and so.much.more.! There was a group of fathers and sons from our neighborhood who ended up going, and they just had the BEST time! Although Harrison wasn't yet old enough to participate, we promised him he'd be joining them for a father-son camp next summer!

Back-to-School Pool Par-tay. Meanwhile, the other kiddos and I had a blast at our 'hood's annual Back-to-School pool party last Saturday!

Fall sports mode. Sadly, Raleigh got off the bus with a low-grade fever earlier this week, which just so happened to be the first day of jazz/tumbling and cheer (yes, homegirl has a super busy Wednesday schedule for Fall!). This meant she had to skip out on dance/cheer this week, and we were both so bummed. Luckily, she has her next cheer practice on Monday and then jazz/tumbling/cheer again next Wednesday, and I know she'll be so excited when she finally gets to go! 

Banks started back to flag football last week and is doing great so far! I can't remember if I mentioned it here before, but he was supposed to be playing in a 7-8 year-old tackle football league this Fall. Unfortunately, not enough kids signed up; so, he is now playing his sixth season of flag football, with my hub serving as assistant coach. I thought he'd be super bummed - he's been looking forward to tackle football for years! - but honestly, he is just happy to be back out on the football field. Of all the sports he plays, football is his absolute favorite. So, we are counting down to his first game in a few weeks. For now, it's twice weekly practices, and he (and his dad!) are loving it. 

And with that, we are gladly welcoming in the weekend. Aside from Harrison's first soccer practice tomorrow, we purposefully left this weekend plan-free so that we can recover from our first week of school and spend some time together, seeing where the weekend takes us. Have a great one, friends! Sending love your way!