I really do miss back-to-school shopping. I think I almost enjoyed it more than Christmas back in the day. There's nothing quite so satisfying, in my opinion, as having brand new pens, mechanical pencils with no broken lead, binders without bent corners, and erasers that can't judge you because you haven't made a mistake yet. There's something magical about it.
I remember from a very early age, about two or three weeks before school, getting all my supplies, and just spending gleeful hours making sure everything was labeled. When I was in elementary school, I would get a new set of Prismacolours every year, and while they are very expensive colouring pencils, they are also the best and I would go all the way through them just in time for the next school year and the next set to be bought. Anyways, I remember tediously sitting down with a roll of medical tape (my mom was a nurse) and making individual labels for each pencil that had my full name on it. It was glorious! My oldest son is three, so it'll still be a couple years before I get the joy of doing this for him. It's a little saddening to me, but from what I hear from moms around, school supply lists have gotten ridiculous... Nevertheless, I'm excited to have a bouquet of freshly sharpened pencils at my desk, which brings the longings of any true East Coast girl, autumn in all it's glory. I live in Idaho now, which is mostly overgrown with pines, a tree I think the world could go without, but I'm sure God has it here for a very specific reason. When we bought our house, I told my husband I wanted only deciduous trees planted, and luckily for me, he also hates pine trees. We planted a maple tree and a scarlet oak, both of which are still immature, but are quite promising. We also have some maple trees that line our street for which I am ever grateful to the landscaping designer. Who would want a pine lined street?
At Nicholas' school, for grades Primary through three, the teachers supply all the school supplies. The parents just hand over $40 for their child and it's done. While I know this is totally convenient and makes it easier for the teachers to have more consistency, I was completely disappointed that I couldn't pack Nicholas' school bag full of fresh supplies. I totally get your feeling of excitement. :)
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