Summer Vacation is over but...

Well, the school routine is starting back up.  For Harry it is back to the regular slog.  This year there will be a little change because Robert is at preschool 4 afternoons a week at Harry's school.  So we will all meet there at Robert's dismissal time which is a mere 10 minutes after Harry's.  In the meantime Harry is meant to sit and read or get a start on homework.  Then we will all meet outside Robert's classroom.  Tuesday will be the first day of this adventure, so fingers crossed that it all works out.  Normally Harry would have taken the bus, but an adult is meant to be at home when the child arrives and that cannot be guaranteed with the Robert in afternoon class.

Harry is now a fourth grader and he was looking forward to the learning part of school, but not the sitting down and paying attention all the time (some of the time is fine, but all of the time?).  Anyway, hopefully it will be a good year.  We met his new teachers a day before classes began and 2 of the boys in his class are military families new to the area who happen to live in our neighborhood and take the same bus.  That may be a nice thing as they get more independent in the 4th grade and are expected to write down homework etc, each day.  That is a difficult task for Harry, so it may be nice to have others to check with for assignments.

I must admit that this year I am not quite ready to let go.  Perhaps because Robert is 4 and I realize it will be a blink of my eye and they will both be in all day school.  I am realizing that I will miss having a little person around most of the time.  As much as some days they drive me crazy.  I always love to have my little energy bundles around.  The add so much to live and to my perception of it.  This will be our first almost full week of school with Robert in classes too.  Say a prayer for us as we adjust.

And so without further adieu - here are some pics from our end of summer adventure in Boston and at Grampy's house!

On the slide at the playground where I went to elementary school

It was a much less comfortable ride for those of us who are not elementary school sized :-)

My reader on a bench at the playground - the field in the background seemed much better when I went to elementary school 

On the T - we had a running commentary provided by R

H on the other hand had other entertainment options :-)

I think this carousel on the Boston Common is the 3rd one we've been on in the past couple of weeks  and was by far the slowest one although it had some pretty cool animals

At 4, R still gives me a smile and a wave :-)

First swan boat ride :-)

Swans!

Boston Public Gardens

Back in Needham with my best friend's daughter - a mini version of her Mom :-) - it brought back so many lovely memories of our childhood and she looks so darn much like her mom did when she was that age :-) - my mini me is a boy so it isn't quite the same :-)