Monday, August 11, was the first day of school for our family! I try to always take first-day photos, like every other mother in the US, but this year, I did something different. I found these cute signs on Pinterest and printed one out for each of the kids. They are made to look like chalkboards, so you fill them in with white chalk. I liked how they turned out. In case you can’t read the signs below, they have a place for their name, age, favorite book and what they want to be when they grow up. I was afraid that my 10th  grader would frown upon this, but she has a sweet spirit and went right along with my whims.

Lauren, age 14 (almost 15!), favorite book: A Wrinkle in Time, wants to be a head librarian.

Mitchell, age: 12, favorite book: The Mysterious Benedict Society (which he also loves because his Nana knows the author), wants to be a writer.

Leslie, age 9, favorite book: Understood Betsy, wants to be an interior decorator.

Laci, age 7, favorite book: the Young Cam Jansen series (she discovered these books at our library this summer), wants to be a teacher.

Matthew, age 4, favorite book: Caps for Sale, wants to be Daddy.

When I awoke Matthew on his first day of  preschool, I asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up so I could write it on his sign. I expected him to say “The black power ranger” or “A ninja fighter”. I was way off. He didn’t hesitate for a second before answering, “DADDY!” On his paper, it says, “When I grow up I want to be a Daddy!” But really, I should have written, “Terry Basham, II”. He wants to turn into his daddy someday. I didn’t expect that answer, but it sure was a great way to start my day!

We had a great first day of school. I was a bit stressed trying to figure out a good schedule and making sure everything got done, but by the grace of God, I made it.  We received all of our books several weeks before school started, so that was a blessing. Last year, Mitch started science late because the books didn’t arrive until mid-September. It’s a good feeling to have everything ready to go.

I think everyone will enjoy the year. Although, when our first day was almost over, Mitchell said, “I can’t wait for Thanksgiving break!” So, maybe my expectations are too high.