Day 137: Backpacks, Levi's, and Socks

All the essentials for starting 10th grade! You gotta have your jeans, and the correct length sock (who knew there were so many levels of men's athletic socks) and you gotta have a clean new backpack especially if the zipper on last year's is shredded to pieces... oh my goodness we have not even made it to Office Depot yet to stock up on school supplies! Yikes so much to prepare for before school even begins.

Well it is fitting that today is September 1st and the boys and I took a trek to the mall to buy Levi's, socks, t-shirts and new athletic shoes for their cross training & baseball practice which will kick in the first day! Yikes those boys are worked so hard.

For those of you who have children who attend Palisades High School or are familiar with the Pacific Palisades then you know all too well what Temescal's incline is like ... believe me I know as I train up that hill for my running and folks it is a bitch! Brutal, Brutal. And the boys run that thing like it's nobodies business.

Every September it is a ritual for all families with school aged children. Lists of school supplies issued by the teacher or school; new clothes and shoes; new backpacks; it is part of the "Back to School Regime."

I was thinking today as I sat in Macy's waiting for the boys to finish trying on their jeans, that I've been school shopping for 14 years. I figured from Kindergarten on ... and Brandon began Kindergarten at age 5 and now he is 19. So for 14 years I have made the pilgrimage to the stores to prepare my boys for the new school year. WOW. And they say Mom's don't do anything! Well those naysayers should spend the day with me as we have this ritual.

Buying all these supplies makes it feel real that school is around the corner for my boys. And it is ... first day is September 13th. The college boy started classes this week.

It's another year. Another season. Another grade. Another year closer to them leaving childhood. Damn can I just stop the clock!? Really, I'm not kidding!