In a week . .

School starts in about a week. Not ready for the homework and projects and schedules. But, I am ready for Christopher to be back with his friends and not on XBox Live or the iTouch.

We had a couple of things to get done in preparation.

School supplies
Easy to do with a middle schooler. A three-ring binder, some folders, a few spiral notebooks and mechanical pencils. There is a recommended list so we printed it out and took it to the store. And, as a result we bought the red pens, notebook paper, composition books and index cards, but I don't think those will be used. We could have gone into the last year's supply drawer and found these things.

School clothes
Christopher doesn't have a school uniform as dictated by his school. But, he does have a uniform. Khaki cargo pants and a T-shirt. Oftentimes, the t-shirt is either a Lee High School shirt or a Harris district champion shirt. This year, we're limiting that. He has a few "labels" that he can wear . . we'll see. Shorts and t-shirts do not an outfit make for my son. Rather, it's all about the socks. Socks. Black socks with a white Nike swoosh. So, we bought three new pairs and he has enough old pairs to last him through the week wearing two pair a day. Then, there are the Nike Elite Crew socks -- "mom, they have a stripe" -- which added up to $30.99 on ebay. He spent his own money on these socks and is going to carefully wash and hand dry them. He also mistakenly made a bid on another pair -- $16 total -- that he has to pay for.

Football
Since this is the first sport of the year, we're having to gear up. He's using the same helmet he had last year -- his own -- because the school helmet doesn't work. Still can't figure out why it doesn't work, but oh well, it just doesn't. His dad is replacing the face mask. $21 out of Christopher's wallet. Pants and pads day went well. Everything fit and is put away in the gym locker. We've ordered cleats because last year's have holes -- result of him being the kicker.

Schedule
Don't know the official class schedule, but we are working on a schedule around the house. He will pick out the week's outfits on Sunday so we don't have to frantically run a mid-week load of laundry for the right socks or shorts. We will have a dinner plan for each night (that's more for me). The trickiest schedule -- after getting home from practice and starving, he'll need a snack before any homework can take place. Yeah, getting homework done midst all other evening activities -- cooking dinner, caring for his sisters, etc., is tough.

School starts August 23 but we are in position to begin.