*Never quite "ready"*

The kids are coming back tomorrow!! So my beach trip on Friday threw me right back into Summer Vacation mode. I thought I would keep a good grip on reality as I ironically drank pumpkin spice coffee on the beach, but I was wrong. Friday through Sunday were about as worry-free as they come. Cal & I chilled on the beach, I had a roaring case of insomnia on Friday night, we played video games, did some cleaning up, played with glow sand (holy messy invention Crayola!) after dark & Cal somehow got hooked on the riveting theatrical production that is, "Fireman Sam". There are a lot of whiny kids on that show, btw.

Today was a mental & physical battle of concentrating on getting ready for the 1st day of classes tomorrow & warding off the crazy Sunday frenzy (even though it was Monday - going back after Labor Day is nothing less than glorious) that our profession can inflict on the weak. Really there is only so much that can get done with the hours available in the day. I really wish someone would work on that. I could use just SIX more hours. Is that really too much to ask? OK 8 more might be better. I would like extra sunshine with that order too.

As you can tell, I am running behind on my self-inflicted schedule. Sleeping the night before the first day is a ridiculous goal anyway. Checking & re-checking alarm clocks, trying to mentally run through one's schedule & my personal best - thinking of an awesome idea for a lesson that will undoubtedly take the place of anything that I have worked on leading up to said middle of the night epiphany - I'm not reading your mind...we're all just THAT similar.

Before you know it though, we'll be heading back to Six Flags for the end of year Senior trip. So I choose this year (like I was pretty successful at doing last year) to ward off those Sunday freak outs. I can look forward to each week knowing that it will be frenzied, unpredictable & inspiring - even if I am not "ready". How ready can you really be? I can tell you that you CAN be more ready than I am right now. But I am confident that I will enjoy getting to know a little over 100 new faces tomorrow. We'll laugh, we'll think, we'll be nervous & we'll be excited for a new school year.

I like to have a theme or goal in the classroom each year. For example one year it was consistency, one year it was respect & understanding & last year it was all about being comfortable & confident. I haven't decided 100% on a theme yet for this year, but it will have something to do with discovery & awareness. Trying new things, being kind, using positive language, going into each moment with a positive expectation & creating.

It can be so tempting to do the same things in the same way every time, but I just can't roll like that. I like to see where the day takes us. Sure, there are always plans & goals -- but there are so many different ways to get there. Oh! Those sweet little things will pretend they hate me for making them work & think. Eeeek! I'm so excited. Here we go 2012-2013. Good luck & good times to all of my teacher friends. You're ready enough. Now go lay in bed & stare at the ceiling thinking of all of the things you need to do.