First Day of Middle School

Braden started school yesterday.... finally! (The end of summer sure makes me long for year-round school.) Last week, they had a sixth grade orientation to go over things and allow the kids to tour the building and practice opening lockers. And it sounds like the first day was more orientation. Nevertheless, it seems Braden was awake more than he was asleep the night before! When Jon and I went to bed at 10pm, Braden was still awake in his room. When I got up around 4am (just to go to the bathroom, not to start my day), he was on the couch. He was down there awake when Jon got up at 4:30. And he was laying there awake when I got up a little after 6am. Excited? Anxious? He said no.

This year's first day of school pictures were taken at the end of the school day. In the drama of him not sleeping, and then making sure we were ready on time to pick up Dylan, and getting the boys to school "early," I totally forgot to take his picture! And this is the first year that I didn't pick out a nice-looking outfit for the first day.
So..... I dropped the boys off in the morning and then they rode the shuttle bus to the fifth grade building after school. Sounds like he had a good day and he got more sleep last night!

Jerky!

Braden came home from Texas with a bag or two of beef jerky. (Thanks Grandma! Cause Mom doesn't buy meat from the store anymore.) The other night, he was munching on his jerky while watching TV.
Dallas LOVES jerky! Sometimes she begs quietly in front of people. Other times, she prefers to use the aerial attack method shown below.

Sitting in a relaxed manner which would lead you to believe she's just hanging out.

But then Braden decided to taunt her by turning his head and making eye contact. (Never make eye contact with Dallas unless you plan on sharing your food!)

And finally, she goes in for the kill! (I think she managed to steal from him twice.) It should also be noted that she is willing to take your fingers off if it's something she really loves.