Back to School!

As always, back to school time is a mixed bag of emotions for me.  On one hand, after two months of five kids home every day, I look forward to my days of quiet again.  But on the other hand, it means they won't be here anymore.  I know, a contradiction.  I loved the summer with the kids.  I think I cherished it a little more because next summer, I will be sending off our first to college.  (Oh no, I am tearing up again!)

Back to school means another thing I don't look forward to:  being broke!  We spread it out and it isn't so bad.  But we have five pair of feet that need new shoes.  We have five backpacks to fill.  And, of course, everyone wants new clothes!  So we spread it out and it makes things a little easier.

Today, we were talking new shoes and I am so happy that the kids are wanting to replace the Osiris shoes!  No offense to the makers of these shoes, but they are U-G-L-Y!  Now, I am 40 so this may have a little something to do with my opinion of these atrocious shoes, but it is what it is.  I was telling the kids how every generation has some fashion they will look back at and think, "What was I thinking???" and I am sure that Osiris shoes will be one of those things.

That, of course, lead to the question of what was the shoes that I now think were absurd.  Hands down, JELLY SHOES!  You remember them...they were made of plastic and made in a variety of colors and styles.  You would wear them and they tore the flesh off your feet, but we wore them anyway.  And if you were outside long, when you took them off, you had the pattern of the shoe on your feet thanks to the dirt that seeped through the holes.  Jelly shoes were horrible, looking back.

This also lead to the conversation of name brands.  One of our sons said he wanted a pair of Toms.  My poor clueless husband asked, "Do they have to be that brand?"  The look was priceless.  For me, it was Pasta clothes.  That was the "in" thing.  (Looking back, they were awful colors, awful patterns and awful material, but man, girls my age loved it!)  I remember my mom saying the same thing and I am pretty sure I gave her the same look.

It is so funny when I remember those things.  It really makes me appreciate my mom even more!  One day, my kids will be calling me and telling me that my grandkids want some lime green moon shoes and I will remind them of their love of Osiris'.