'Back to school back to school, to prove to Daddy I'm not a fool.' I know I can't be the only 40-something who hears this famous song sung by non-other than Billy Maddison's Adam Sandler ringing in their ears when it's time for the kids to go back to school... right? Jokes aside, back-to-school time is here for real life, and my family managed to survive our first week back with a few snags along the way.

We had a wonderful time at open house, where we had the opportunity to visit classrooms, meet teachers, and pick up a few germs, too. Oh, yes- after a glorious summer of no sickness, we managed to bring cold germs home with us from open house. Yay... not! Open house was on a Thursday and by Sunday, Baby C was sniffling, throwing up, and has been down with the yuck for over a week. Despite copious amounts of sanitizing, hand washing, etc., everyone has the sniffles. We didn't even make it through the first week of school without kids coughing and sneezing, and y'all, this momma is TIRED. Getting everything prepped so the kids can head back to school is stressful enough, but hey, let's just throw the first cold of the school year into the mix as well.

It was pretty much the same last year, too. Kids went back to school and got sick after the first week. We spent about 3 weeks out of each month of the school year sick last year, no matter how hard we tried to keep the germs at bay. It is what it is, right? But can I just go ahead and vent on behalf of all parents that it really sucks? It really does. Having one week a month to do normal activities just isn't enough, and everything is getting ready to start back up for the year. Oh yes, back to piano lessons, play practice, Wednesday evening meals and programming at church, meetings for teams and committees, parties, social events, sporting events, and yes, even a trip or two.

My 'you cannot get sick before our big trip in October' chant didn't seem to work/ Can't imagine why? Back to school, back to germ city. Let's not pretend that viruses don't exist... that colds, COVID, the flu, RSV, pink eye, and ALL THE THINGS aren't waiting to ruin our plans for apple picking, pumpkin carving, soccer games, grown up outings, birthday parties, and all the fall things.

I know my kids aren't the only ones who have already gotten sick. I'm seeing lots of other parents post the same on social. Maybe we could all just try to remember to wash our hands, sanitize often, and keep hands away from our faces? I know, it's too much to ask, right? But maybe we could really try this fall, and actually get to enjoy some of it. 

Wouldn't it be nice?

Praying your 'back to school, back to everything' season gets off to a better start than mine has!