Back to School!!

Unlike our neighbors to the south, Canadian students stick it out in class until the bitter end of June, and in turn don't return to class until after the September long weekend (i.e. now). Which meant, being the procrastinator that I tend to be, that last week the kids I are where schlepping around the malls in search of pencils, binders, shoes, backpacks and the likes. All sorts of money spent on new shiny things, and the kids of course were super appreciative:

"This is so SUPER boring!"
"All these backpacks are lame."
etc, etc.

Last But Not Least insisted on some sparkly red shoes for preschool:

And we finally found some "non-lame" backpacks for the kids (halleluiah!). They had a little tag outlining the features of the bag like so:

And what did Big G say when he saw the tag showing the cooler area filled with can drinks?
"Look! This backpack even has a place for me to carry my Bud Lite!"


Oh, the fun continued as we hit the classic back-to-school stomping grounds: Walmart. AND, I sadly crossed the line and became one of Those Parents I swore I would never be- the one dining in Walmart's McDonald's. It's like the combination of 2 of the most mundane places on earth, eh? Well, I did it. Afterwards, we hit the restrooms and my son was waiting for us girls outside the door. When I came out, he was so very excited as he showed me a dime and a penny he had found.

"Where did you get those?"
"Well, I was doing push ups and I saw them under that thing and I couldn't just LEAVE them there!"
"Wait- WHY were you doing pushups on the floor outside of the washroom at Walmart again?
"BECAUSE, Mom (eye roll). Anyways, aren't they bea-U-tiful? I love them to much I want to marry them." To coins: "You're adorable!"

Yes, I have weird kids.

Added a bit of a crafty gift in those backpacks to start off on the right foot with all of the new teachers! All the ideas and printables are from an awesome blog I just discovered called eighteen25 and were found here. First up, some pencils for the teachers at preschool:

For the big kids, I sent these along:

Aren't they cute? I found the owl calculators (don't they look "wise"??) at Staples for only $5 and I even already had orange owl ribbon in the depths of my craft room. See? All this hoarding pays off once and awhile!

Anyways, I love my kids to pieces, but can't say I am too sad about off-loading them to school again. As my son asked, "Are we getting on your nerds?" Umm, yes. Quite often. ;)

Back to school will score me about 2 mornings per week all to myself when not at work...ahhhhh! And I resolve not to use this time for groceries, laundry, etc. Not even for time on the computer. Nope, I am going to use it to craft the crap out of stuff! Whooo hoooo!!