In our house, August is as busy as the Christmas season, and I’m sure it will only become crazier once all three girls are in school full time. Not only do I have to begin a new school year, but right in a row (whose genius idea was this??) we have Bruce’s birthday, our anniversary, and then a short reprieve before Riona’s birthday. Not to mention the huge events of Isabella beginning first grade, Mythili entering “pre-K” preschool, and Riona becoming a preschool dropout due to her refusal to potty train! As if all of that weren’t enough, I spice it up with weekends of canning, attending old friends’ parties, and yes, spending two nights camping with 100 Girl Scouts from our entire Aurora unit!
Let’s see… where to begin? I reconnected with my old friend Kendall who I used to work with at Bonnie Brae, way back in my former life, and we all went to his fortieth on July 31. He was his usual happy self, and is still teaching middle school music. The next night I visited my friend Andy, who I used to work with at the Continental (again, former life) for his birthday blast. That was a great start to a crazy month!
On August 5, Isabella had the momentous event of beginning first grade, her first time with a male teacher and going to school all day. She was more than a little nervous, especially when she asked a few weeks beforehand, “Will I be in the morning or afternoon class?” only to discover the dire truth of the all-day classroom. I couldn’t get more than a shy smile out of her as we stood with the other students and parents outside of the school that morning, and the truth is, I couldn’t get much more out of myself. I was crying as I wrote the note to put in her lunchbox, and barely made it through saying goodbye to her before I broke down in tears. It’s just too much–every year when I begin another year of teaching, another year not home with them–it comes crashing down on me, and now she is and forever will be gone all day long, and sometimes I feel that I just can’t bear it… But she made it through her first day, as did I, for I had an interesting plan up my sleeve…
Amazingly, all three of my little angels were able to keep secret my surprise for Bruce’s birthday this year: a kitten. After we took Isabella to school, I “went to Sierra to work,” aka, picked up my newly-re-imaged laptop and headed over to the Dumb Friends League. Ever since my mom got a cat last Christmas, both Bruce and the girls have been mentioning their desire. I didn’t have much trouble at all finding a little gray and white kitten, ready to pick up the next day.
So I had to start work on Bruce’s birthday. What a downer. I gave him his card that morning, and, being Bruce, of course he didn’t expect anything more. He and the younger two had lunch with me, and I promised to pick up Isabella. Unfortunately, the wonderful weather we’ve been having reared its ugly head at precisely the moment I arrived at her school: a ginormous hail storm pelted us both as we dashed across the parking lot. I called Bruce and told him about the hail, adding in a “huge accident” holding up traffic, then drove across town and picked up our new family member. The poor, scared kitten, fresh out of neutering surgery, purred in Isabella’s lap the whole way home, and when we arrived, she held him out and said, “I know you always wanted a boy.” He was more than a little surprised, and quick to come up with a name: Gandalf the Gray (LOTR). Gandalf used his litter right away, and has easily found his place in our bed and next to Luna on her blanket.
Did I mention our anniversary is two days after his birthday? 
We went to our favorite restaurant, The Melting Pot, this time in Louisville so Grandma and Grandpa could watch the girls. As usual, we had a delicious dinner and a nice, romantic break. We spent the next morning on a hike with my parents and the girls, and then Bruce and I went to get my Boulder fix for the month, picking up tomatoes from the farmers’ market and getting a delicious espresso milkshake on Pearl Street.
Then my students came… and another busy weekend was upon us! I canned tomatoes all day Saturday, after taking the girls to get their pictures taken for Riona’s third birthday. On Sunday, we had a small party with the Mentzer and Schmidt boys, who loved the blow-up water slide better than all three girls combined. Riona helped me make her “baniwa” (vanilla) cake, which she gobbled up with “baniwa” ice cream. I just can’t believe… well, it’s almost too much to bear, seeing them grow up faster than I can stand. Three years have passed? She is still the sweetest, loveliest little girl, with the calmest temperament of anyone I have ever met.
My students returned for a second week of school. Two down and 31 to go, woo-hoo! This weekend we had our Girl Scout unit camp at Cherry Creek Reservoir. It was filled with activities, campfires, s’mores, songs, and swaps–little crafts you put on a pin and hand out to everyone. Spending the weekend with 100 Girl Scouts does sound crazy, but the level of enthusiasm that the girls express, and getting to know my troop members’ parents, truly was a priceless experience. I know that Isabella will always remember her first GS camp, and now that I’ve survived one, we’ll be sure to go every year. The girls were crying this morning when they had to say goodbye, as if they’re not all going to see each other in class… um… tomorrow!
And speaking of tomorrow… Mythili begins “pre-K” tomorrow. Riona was signed up to go, but we’ll just have to give her stubborn butt a few more months of potty training. Mythili will be in the same class as Isabella was in during her second year, with Ms. Teddy Bear and Ms. Jelly Bean, so she’s very excited. She also has a few friends in with her, Mason, Ayden, and Hunter, so the transition should be smooth sailing.
And that’s our insane August. I just have 80 miles to go to reach my goal of riding 300 miles on my bike–did I mention I’ve been riding to work?–for the month, and next weekend, let’s see: I think a nice glass of wine, canning, and sitting around the house sounds nice.
