What fun!

The peace and quiet in the stores begins today. No running and screaming children. Last time I shopped a small child ran right into the path of my cart and I came within an inch of knocking him over. The mother did not bat an eyelash. Ughh.

And here I was thinking that post-Labor Day start dates were a thing of the past!

Kids here have been in school for a few weeks.

Every September brings new beginnings. There is a 6-year old who won't be walking by my house this morning as she did last year, on her way to school. This 6-year old girl and her family live three doors down from me and my only connection to them was watching her walk to school with her mom last year. She was killed in a boating accident 3 weeks ago. Just too sad to contemplate.

sushi, enjoy those cute wide eyed beings who have the right ideas about life

(((blfenton))) that's so awful. I hate to hear it. I'm sorry!

Elizabeth, I agree. It's the adult time of year. Great time to travel and visit attractions. The weather is still nice, everything is less crowed and hotels are cheaper. But it is also the time of the year when in the afternoon your stuck behind a school bus dropping off kids every few feet making your trip to the store twice as long.

Oh blfenton....that is so sad. Blessings to her family.

That's so sad, blfenton. Friends of ours lost a son to a boating accident many years ago, such a shock on what was planned to be a fun filled day.

There are really no children on this street. No bus stops, although I do hear a couple come up our hill mornings - and go on by. School here began last week. Our great nephew (he's 3) went to his first day of preschool at a private school last Tuesday. DH was so interested in the milestone, he drove over to the school to give him a hug as he arrived for his class. Noon to 2:30 ;0) I understand he's clinging a bit to the teacher, but says he likes it so far.

Milestone year for my family since all the grands are in school this year - kindergartner, a 3rd grader, 3 in 7th, an 8th grader, and one a junior in high school. Most of them started the new year prior to Labor Day. Today is the first day for two and their mother who teaches 5th grade. Her kids got promoted, but she didn't.

So very sad about the boat accident. I am sure it is on the minds of the entire neighborhood today.

I was an elementary school secretary prior to retiring and I remember how exciting the first day of school was for the staff. It was always a treat to see the kids and their parents after the summer break. Many of the kids made a point to come to the office and greet me, some even bringing small gifts from where ever they'd gone on vacation. I am still using a key fob from a trip one of the kids took to Hawaii. She's married and has children of her own now.

blfenton, that is a heartbreaking story. I can't help but think of how there is an empty desk sitting in what would have been her classroom this year.

(((blfenton)))

Bfenton, that’s heartbreaking. We have been in school a few weeks now, the bus coming at 6:15 is still an adjustment! I’m not really functioning when the alarm goes off at 5!

the bus coming at 6:15 is still an adjustment!

Are you kidding me? 6:15? That’s ridiculous.

Thanks everyone. Most neighbours on the block have older children, many who have left home. It is tough to know that there is a little girl who won't grow up and be part of our neighbourhood anymore. It is and has been a great area to bring up children. I know that the elementary school has a counsellor on site this morning which is our first day of school

Boys started 8/27.

Terilyn LOL, I hear ya...its harsh getting up so early. I can hardly hold my coffee cup as mornings are hard with RA...I'm like an old lady hunched over trying not to moan and groan...I always have everything ready the night before and the boys are getting older so they don't need much help other than breakfast. But even if I had nothing to do its the getting up so early that is harsh. This was easier when my own kids were kids.

My late husband was a teacher and he loved the "new beginnings" every fall. School started here 8/17 - ridiculous. DS and his two went to the Outer Banks for their vacation the 3rd week in Aug. All the southern schools had already started so they had the beaches to themselves - miles of beach and no other people. They've done this now for 3 years. It's less expensive than the Vineyard in August, when the prices are the highest. His children started school last Thurs in CT. Seemed ridiculous to have two days of school and then a 3-day weekend. Why not just let families have a last few days of vacation and start today?

Blfenton, it is so sad to have life extinguished at such a young age.

All yinz people from the hot states will get a kick out of this. Some of our schools were closed or having an early dismissal yesterday and today. Because of heat. It is going to be 93 both days and the average for September is 76. True some of the schools don't have AC, but I never heard of school being closed for heat here. How did kids ever survive in school before air conditioning?

Ah. My son's risings are no longer my concern. He has to make sure he gets up and gets to class. All his classes are Monday-Thursday (Fridays off) after noon. How he swung that his first semester of university? Pure dumb luck?

:)

I had a bad dream last night where I was trying to get somewhere and he would not get ready. Oy! I woke up so glad I didn't have that situation stopping me from getting out the door.

Functionthenlook, same here about the schools/heat. I really don't know why, there was no AC either at school or at home when I was in school and there surely were 90F days here and there when school was not cancelled. I remember visiting the restroom and running cold tap water over my arms to cool down, and the teachers turning off the lights and bringing in fans. I guess we were just more used to dealing with heat since there was no other option. However, I expect the schools in mid-Columbus are hotter due to the way cities concentrate heat.

I also can't remember schools being closed just for cold temps, although they might have been. I can clearly remember walking to school on a day when it was 3F, mostly because my gloves were not all that warm.

raee, looking back I felt sorry for the nuns in my school. They were in those black and white habits covered from head to toe. All you could see was their face and hands. It must of been unbearable for them.

The only time schools were closed when I was young in the winter was because the buses wouldn't start because of the cold. Not because the kids would get cold. If it snowed they would just throw chains on the bus. The city kids were rarely off of school, because they all walked to school.

I work at a University, so the parade here is older. Starting in mid-August with a throng of pick-up trucks, minivans, and moving trucks laden with chairs and shelves and stuff as the parents drop off their kids for the first time, or bring them back for their subsequent years. Then classes start the streets are packed, the sidewalks and pathways are crowded, and the restaurants near campus are busy.

I feel I can always spot the first year students, especially in the first couple of weeks. They are so energetic, earnest, excited, and optimistic. And many in the parade are wearing shredded jeans like in the other post, or somewhat-too-short shorts, or other questionable fashion choices.

You want a chuckle be a bird in a tree, across from the parking lot, the first day of school at our new high school. The traffic was INSANE. The rain didn't help. I managed to get to work on time but it was close. BUSSES are a good thing!! AND parents ALREADY paid for them!!! My neighborhood is devoid of school age children. The quiet is deafening.

Bob, you make me think of Don DeLillo's opening for White Noise. He talks about the procession of station wagons. I think of that every year as I drive on campus on move in day.

In the early 90s (before social media, cell phones and web sites) when our young family just moved into the neighborhood I found that the bus stop was a treasure trove of information. What neighbors were nice, loners, stuck up, or the nut cases. Who had the mean dogs to avoid while walking your dog. The dynamics of the school from the teachers to class parties. Opinions on the local business and restaurants. It was a good place to check out the parents whom kids your kids would be playing with and they could check you out. Plus to get on what I called the "neighborhood drum line" Where one parent would hear on the radio that school was letting out early or that the bus broke down so the kids would be late, or someone in the neighborhood died, etc and the phone calls would begin.

Arcy_gw, you reminded me of when my DD was in high school. She had the option of walking about 5 blocks to catch a bus, or walking to the school which was just under 2 miles. Sometimes I was able to drop her off on my way to work. When I did, I would be shaking my head at the other parents as I waited in the back up, watching them crawl up the U shaped drop off area until, one car at a time, the student would get out exactly in front of the entrance.

I would bet that nearly all of them had been to an amusement park and experienced the way they load/empty 5 or 6 cars at a time at the popular rides, then move the empties along to make room for the next 6 cars, but couldn't think to replicate that at the school. I would make DD get out of the car and walk 30 feet so that I didn't have to get caught in that stream of molasses.