Kindergarten School Shopping

We were off to Target bright and early this morning to get our Back To School supply list filled. Gabe starts kindergarten September 6th. It's still weeks away but it feels like it's just too soon. Don't get me wrong - some days I'd love to send him off to school for a bit, but as the big day gets closer it feels like such a big turning point for him. Going to preschool wasn't as big a deal, I guess, and he is changing so much right now!

Here's Gabe with his new backpack. In the past there wouldn't have been any question - it was Buzz Lightyear all the way. And even though Gabe doesn't watch any superhero TV - never seen Spiderman, or Batman, or Ironman, it's like little boys have some kind of built in sensor that goes off and makes a biological imperative to love all things superhero. He knows how Spiderman throws his webs. He corrals Ben into attacking invisible villains. He protects Baby Max from the forces of evil. Where does he learn this stuff?

By the way, on a side note, apparently I am often a villain, as when I am not giving him his way, he often yells, "Bad Mommy! Eeeeviiiil Mommy!"  I'm trying not to take that too personally....plus I don't know too many 5 foot ex elementary music teachers who are addicted to scrapbooking, coffee, and Pinterest who qualify as a force of evil. Just saying....

In any case, Gabe thoroughly enjoys shopping his school supply list. What better way to spend the morning than hanging out at Target putting glue sticks into a shopping cart. Note that in choosing his new backpack he managed to get the only boy backpack on the aisle that is actually glittery. The fabric behind Spiderman is very sparkly, and even a rainbow colored sparkle. Sweet!

Ben got a new backpack as well. I wasn't planning on it, but he was starting to feel a bit left out as Gabe was "choosing" the items from his list:

Me: Do you want the red scissors or the blue?

Gabe: I Want Purple.

Me: They don't have purple.

Gabe: Yes, They do. They are right there. (Points to kid scissors costing 4.99. I am holding the 50 cent sale scissors.)

Me: Those are only for kids who are ten and older. Now, red or blue?

Eventually Ben made it known that he needed school supplies too. Now, considering he's not going to preschool, nor has he had a dry underpants day in, well, what seems like forever, I think his point was debatable. But it did seem unfair that I ended up taking him on a shopping spree just for Gabe, so Ben got his own new Lightning McQueen backpack and a 20 cent pencil sharpener. He took an unreasonable liking to the pencil sharpener, especially considering that he A) doesn't know what a pencil sharpener is, and B) it's not his favorite color (green). There was a green one, but he inexplicably chose red. Hey, man, I didn't argue with this face. He hugged the sharpener all the way through the shopping and up to the checkout line. Any 20 cent item that can get him to sit quietly in the cart through 30 minutes of shopping can come home with us anytime! 

Luckily Max was asleep, since he now echos everything the big boys say. Tonight at dinner I laid the plates on the table and MAX screams out "keee-puuup", which is 18 month old for ketchup. Really? Man do they ever learn fast. Perhaps by next week Max will be Perler beading alongside Gabe too. Until next time...