Looking up...

(Forgive me as my commentary does not match the pictures.)

I'm exhausted.

Today is the kid's last day of school and the first day that I overslept.

Not so much that I made them late, but enough that I was practically stumbling out the door 

(still in my pajama pants) to drive them to school.

We live in a funny location that is too close to the school for them to catch a bus

and too far for them to walk in a decent amount of time.

I don't mind making them walk home on days when I'm particularly busy, 

but those days are few and far between, so I've been their school bus for most of the year.

There are some advantages to this situation.

Every day, I get 5+ minutes in the morning to hear about their plans for the day

(or maybe the weird dream that they had)

(or a conversation about how the radio people never let each other finish a sentence)

then in the afternoon I have about 20 minutes (traffic)

to ask them how their day was,

did anything interesting happen,

and how did you do on that test?

Anyone who has teenagers

(or has been one)

knows that "face time" with them is rare.

(They are busy creatures and have been known to hole up in bedrooms and basements for hours at a time,

only coming out for food.)

So that makes my time in the car with them that much more important. 

They grow up so quickly 

(really... it's not just a cliche, it's true!)

and I feel like I need to take advantage of each moment that I have left.

They've left their toys behind 

(hey... my commentary is catching up with the pictures, or vice versa!)

and in just one more year my oldest will be heading off to college.

(Oh, no! )

(And have you guys seen Toy Story 3?  I cried.)

So on mornings like this,

(when I could use a little extra sleep,

and when I'm grateful that my pajama pants can pass as yoga pants, or something like that)

I have to remind myself that this time is fleeting and 

remember how incredibly grateful I am to have these moments with them.