From the Desk of a 7th Grader's Mom

Eeeep! My baby boy went to 7th grade today. And I couldn't call him at the bus stop from the office in NYC because the goober left his cell phone at home. And he couldn't call me from the bus on the way home to tell me about his day because he left his cell phone at home (and I was in a Directors' meeting, even though I'm not a director, but I get to go to those meetings now! Go me!). But I did talk to him later as I trudged up West End with my rollerboard and two computer bags toward my new temporary/part-time home. He found a few friends from last year to have lunch with and hang out with between classes, and he found his way to the band hall. He is in pre-Advanced Placement for science, math, English and Texas History, so he's in class with kids closer to his academic level than last year.

We spent Friday morning at Target and Staples finding all kinds of little school supplies to fill his backpack and fortify his desk, since we didn't have an "official" list from the school. I told him we'd likely supplement with requirements from his teachers once he got to class this week, but we had all kinds of fun with locker organizers, mechanical pencils, a Texas Instruments calculator (remember those! they're like $10 now and thin -- I remember inheriting my sister's chunky one with the red LEDs for 7th grade calculator competitions -- yes, I was a mathlete! At least act a little surprised by that!!) and Texas Longhorn calendar organizers. No brainwashing here, no sir.

The little one is pretty well set with first grade. He has the same group of kids in his classes from last year, and pretty much the same routine. The only thing that's off with him is that he's about the only kid in his class that hasn't lost any teeth yet. He's got a new bottom tooth coming in, but it's coming in behind the baby teeth, so all that's happening is he's getting a gap at the bottom of his little smile. We'll have to check with the dentist if the primaries don't get loose pretty soon, or orthodontia here we come. Fun. More fun with him is his joining Cub Scouts this year. Despite his "playing" baseball this spring, he's still not all that interested in any sports, so we wanted to find something for him to do outside of school. So we're trying Tiger Cubs this year; he had a blast at the first pack meeting, so we're looking forward to having a year full of fun and learning in an activity we have no experience at all with. Of course, we knew nothing about speedskating and hockey a few years ago either....

As for my running, it's still going. I've bailed on long runs the last two weeks, mostly because I just have a hard time with Sunday mornings and running 12-13 miles during that early morning timeframe. But I've had no problem keeping up with the weekly schedule, even with the travel. It's just been that long run. But now that both kiddoes are in school, I've officially switched the schedule so long runs are on Fridays. Instead of this general pattern:
M - Rest/cross
T -- 3-4
W -- 6-8 (10 as we get into late October/November)
Th - 4-5
F - Rest/cross
S - 3-4
S -- long (12+ increasing to 20)

we will now have this:
M - 3-4
T - 6-8 (10 as we get into late October/November)
W - 4-5
Th - Rest (travel day - likely a rest day)
F - long (12+ increasing to 20)
S - Rest/cross
S - 4-6

I think this will get me back on track in a couple of ways:
1) Friday mornings are pretty much wide open once I drop the kids off; it's still too hot to run outside after 8:00, but I can hit the gym for a few hours easy. Once I work up to 16+ hours it will be cool enough to run outside.
2) It takes into consideration Thursday as travel days. Normally it makes for a very long day, so if I can sleep in before starting the day, there's no harm, no foul.
3) If I want to do a walk with my pal on Saturday morning (like I did this Saturday -- wow -- used some muscles I haven't felt in a while on that one!), or go to hockey, or whatever, then we can do that and I won't feel guilty for skipping a scheduled run. But if I need to make up a shorter run, then usually Elder Child is up for joining me at the gym, and TDP DinoBoy is usually in for a trip to the gym's kids area.
4) If I miss a Monday run (like I did today, making grocery store/drugstore trips like I did instead of working out) I can make it up on Thursday if need be.

I used to be hesitant about running Thursday mornings before checking out of the hotel because I'd end up with a bag full of wet sweaty clothes that sometimes didn't make it out of the suitcase before Saturday (yeah, yeah, like I like to do laundry as soon as I get home! puhleeze). But now that I'm in an apartment, I can just throw that over the shower rod and let it air dry until I return on Sunday night. And I won't be lugging a suitcase through the airport every week either!

Another post on the new apartment will have to wait; until then, I need to get to bed. Got another long day tomorrow. Peace out!