Stress

Our digital camera has stopped working. When the lens cover opens, the screen is black and you can't take any pictures. When the cover is closed, the screen comes on and you can look at previously taken pictures, but you can't take new pictures because- the lens cover is closed! It's like the camera is confused or something- I'm open... I'm closed... I'm off, ... no I'm on... I don't know!

Anyway, my mind is spinning this week.

The over-riding thought is I'm-not-ready, I'm-not-ready, I'm-not-ready and capturing any one thought for more than a fleeting moment has been impossible.

Not ready for what you ask?

We've gotten really comfortable in our little summer routine. I take the boys to day care every morning for a few hours while I go in to work, I pick them up at noon, we head home for lunch and play time, reading, field trips etc. in the afternoons, they watch TV for a bit while I make dinner, Eric gets home, we eat together, we play for a little while, they take baths and go to bed. Eric and I have evenings together, and life is good.

What will change?
* Elijah starts 1st grade, full-day school August 13th. My first child to go to elementary school- emotionally stressful for mom. Throw in an open house, meet the teacher, arranging after school care, to bus-ride or not to bus-ride, and a birthday party and you've got practical kinds of stress too.
* Micah starts 1/2 day 4 days a week preschool, but not the same week as Elijah. That would make life too easy. He goes August 20th, stays home the 21st and then goes every day after the 22nd. His first school experience- again, emotionally stressful for mommy and him (a little), teacher home visit, open house at school for him (different school from Elijah's so different dates and times) and arranging after school care for him 4 days a week.
* Isaiah will be switching from morning day care to afternoons. Since Micah will be in school in the afternoons, it makes sense for these to be my working hours, thus Isaiah needs some childcare in the afternoons. His teacher, Ms Amy, who he loves, adores, worships, will not be his teacher after Friday as she is going on maternity leave, so even what should be an easy transition for him is not going to be.
* Eric goes back to class at the end of the month. Ugh! This means much less time chatting with my sweetie on a nightly basis. I'll have to make notes and reserve conversation for weekends. :)
* My job gets much more hectic throughout all of this as school start dates loom nearer.
* I feel like I barely stay on top of house work as it is, and life is about to get busier.
* AND, we're headed up to Indiana the weekend of the 16th to do something with our rental house and soon-to-be former renters. That might actually be a welcome break though as we'll be at nana and papa's for a few days, but there's always the financial stress of time between renters.

OK, somehow I thought that writing it all out would make me feel less stressed. Sometimes when I see a list of things that are bugging me, it doesn't bug me quite so much anymore.

Waiting....

Re-reading....

Nope.... didn't work this time. Still tense. In fact, I thought of a new one.

* How am I going to remember teacher and friend names for two kids in different schools?

Maybe I need to sleep on it. :) ahhhh sleep. no matter how stressed I get, I can always sleep. It's my gift.