The blessed return of the mother ship | Monticello, MN Senior Pictures

Finally.  The kids have returned to the mother-ship (aka; school).  I can breath a sigh of relief, my parenting duties no longer require making the summer a fun and enriching experience (did I say that out loud?).  Now I can rely solely on questions about their day, and loving reminders to do their homework.  This is more my wheelhouse.   My speed.  My jam.  Now I can go onto Pinterst and pin ‘fun ideas to try with the kids‘ onto my board without the stress of actually doing it.  Wow, why don’t I just take out a billboard that says, ‘I’m a crap parent’!

Yesterday morning was supposed to go according to plan:  Get up, get dressed, eat breakfast, brush teeth, shoes on, out to the bus stop 10 minutes early to allow for pictures, big hugs and kisses as the bus pulls in, big smile and happy wave from mom as she skips back into the house.  I had everything timed out perfectly.  But I didn’t factor in room for error.  With 3 kids, you’d think that would be a given.

Error # 1 ~ Doing homework instead of eating breakfast  How is this even possible?  I blame the hubs.  Korey found the blank ‘summer book reading list’ on the fridge, and set it out on the counter where the cereal goes.  So I come down to find Lucy and Riley sitting at the kitchen table with stacks of books between the two of them, frantically writing down all the books they read over the summer.  They were supposed to be eating.  (factor in 10 minutes lost, but bonus** they will get to attend the ‘book reading reward pizza party’)

Error # 2 ~ Braces malfunction  Lucy has had her braces on for over a year, and of course, the first day of school is the perfect time for her wire to pop off and start stabbing her in the cheek.  (factor in 5 minutes lost, as I try to convince her that she can eat everything on the left side of her mouth for the day)

Error # 3~ Backpack Explosion  Already 15 minutes past our schedule, Riley’s backpack zipper chooses this morning to revolt.  (factor in 7 minutes lost, spent digging in the closets for a replacement backpack)

By some miracle, they managed to get on the bus, fully clothed and somewhat cheerful.  I brought Brady to preschool, then with nagging thoughts of Lucy getting poked in the face all day, I stopped off at the hardware store for a pliers and a nail clipper.  I walked into Little Mountain Elementary, prepared to do a little minor surgery inside Lucy’s mouth.    Bonus**I solidified my position as ‘the weird mom’ when I asked the new receptionist to fetch my daughter while I prepped my tools….so there’s that.

I have been having such a great time this summer meeting such fabulous high school students.  It makes me feel young…and sometimes old.  Depends on the topics we chat about during our session~haha!

Just a little FYI~there is still plenty of time to get your senior pictures taken…I know that Monticello’s yearbook deadline is towards the end of October.  If you missed the boat this summer, or you had pictures taken by another photographer, and don’t love them~email me and we’ll set something up!  (kelly@photographybykellyklatt.com)

Everyone, meet the beautiful Haley!  I’m considering hiring her as my fashion consultant…cuz the girl has style.