End of Summer Meanderings

          

  Camping in the Big Horns
Kade enjoying his first Smore!

Relaxin' on the mountain

Hangin' out at the Buffalo pool

Fishin' buddies

Kade's 1st Fly Fishing lesson

Well, it's time to get caught up on my meanderings, I'm a good month behind on a few things that I wanted to share!  First of all I can't believe that summer is officially over; it went so fast and furious, I wonder if I was truly able to enjoy it.  But I do have to say that I am ready for Fall; which is honestly my favorite time of the year, the colors, the smells, the cool, crisp air, hunting in the Big Horns and my birthday!  But before I am able to begin sharing the Fall happenings of the Fraley Four I suppose that I should finish w/ our summer activities!  

August was of course filled with fairs, and once that was over we had the start of school to look forward to.  It's always so bittersweet to see school begin, I know that I'm going to miss having Hannah with me all day, and yet I look forward to the routine that the school year brings.  People are always asking the standard "How was your summer" and I always answer with the typical "It was good but fast".  I have to ask myself, how was our summer, really; and I have to say that it was good.  We made good family memories, Kade's first camping trip, Hannah's first time away at church camp, lots of fishing and playing at the lake, time spent with family.  We may not have done as much traveling as we have done in years past, but we managed to have plenty of adventures right around here.

So now Hannah has started the 6th grade, that means Middle School.  Now I have to confess that a couple of years ago the idea of my little girl being in the junior high struck terror in my heart.  It just seems so much bigger, more part of the world, than the elementary; but she was ready and so was I!  She was the most excited about the fact that she actually gets her own locker this year, that was a very big deal.  Hannah asked that I take her to school that morning, but that I not take her into the school, and that I NOT take pictures at school!  I couldn't believe it, the traditional picture of Hannah standing in front of the school, the one that I have taken every year since she was in Kindergarten, I was not allowed to take.  On one hand it broke my heart, and on the other hand I appreciate seeing the maturity and independence that our little girl is gaining, at just the right pace.  One of my favorite sayings is: "The two greatest gifts that we can give to our children are roots and wings."  My Hannah Mac is growing wings.  So, I had to resign myself to pictures of her at the house the 1st day of school and then in front of her bus the following day!

        

The other event that I wanted to share was my "7th Annual First Day of School Coffee".  The year that Hannah started kindergarten I realized that I was going to need a good distraction in order to survive the emotions of that day; so I hosted a coffee for other mothers who also needed the distraction and support of sending their babies off to school.  The coffee is something that my friends have come to look forward to and expect each year.  This year I was struck by some of the things that us "Courageous Mommies" have faced over the years; decisions of whether or not to send our kids on or hold them back, fears of how our children will get along w/ their teachers and other classmates, some of us moms were sending our last child on to kindergarten and some of us were watching as they entered high school.  Some of these women have been coming since the beginning, and each year we end up missing some moms who have gone back to work, but there were also some new faces this year that added to all of the fun!  There were a few tears that morning, but mostly a lot of laughter and LOTs of caffeine!  Each year I wonder if I will host the coffee or not but  I am always so thankful that I've opened up my home to these precious women.  We Moms need one another in order to be courageous.  So I suppose that it looks like I will be hosting the "Annual First Day of School Coffee" for another 17 more years until Kade graduates!